Chitlin 'Circuit
Chitlin 'Circuit was the name of a number of musical theaters in the southern and eastern United States that allowed musicians, comedians, and other stage artists of African American descent to perform safely during segregation . The name goes back to the traditional African American soul food chitterlings (pronounced chitlins ), a dish made from pig intestines .
The Chitlin 'Circuit has been the career springboard for such successful artists as Cab Calloway , BB King , Duke Ellington , Ray Charles , The Supremes , Ike & Tina Turner , Patti LaBelle , Jimi Hendrix , Gladys Knight & the Pips , Otis Redding , The Isley Brothers and The Jackson 5 , to name a few examples.
Major clubs on the Chitlin 'Circuit included the Cotton Club in New York City , the Apollo Theater in Harlem , the Victory Grill in Austin , the Howard Theater in Washington , the Uptown Theater in Philadelphia , the Royal Theater in Baltimore, and The Fox Theater in Detroit .
literature
- Preston Lauterbach: The Chitlin 'Circuit And The Road To Rock'n'Roll. Norton, New York 2011, ISBN 978-0-393-07652-3 .