The team at EDMTunes put together an exciting Wavefront Music Festival 2013 recap video for your enjoyment. Though the intro song \”Jack\” was produced by UK DJ Ben Westbeech a.k.a Breach, it has deeper ties to Chicago and the Chicago house music scene than you may be aware of. Who is Jack and what is Jack\’s House and what does it mean to Chicago EDM? Only everything.
In 1987 Rhythm Control released their track \”My House\” which featured Chuck Roberts delivering the fundamentals of house music like a preacher spouts the gospel to Sunday mass:
In the beginning there was Jack
and Jack had a groove
and from this groove came the grooves of all grooves
and while one day viciously throwing down on his box
Jack boldly declared
\”Let There Be House!\”
and House music was bornI am you see
I am the creator
and this is my house
and in my house there is only House music
but I am not so selfish
because once you enter my house
it then becomes our house and our House music
and, you see, no one man owns house
because House music is a universal language
spoken and understood by allyou see, House is a feeling that no one can understand really
unless you\’re deep into the vibe of House
House is an uncontrollable desire to jack your body
and as I told you before
this is our House and our House music
and in every House you understand there is a keeper
and in this house the keeper is Jacknow some of you might wonder who is Jack
and what is it that Jack does
Jack is the one
who gives you the power to jack your body
Jack is the one
who gives you the power to do the snake
Jack is the one
who gives you the key to the wiggly worm
Jack is the one
who learns you how to whop your body
Jack is the one
that can bring nations and nations of all jackers together under one houseYou may be black
you may be white
you may be Jew or Gentile
it don\’t make a difference in our houseand this is fresh!
These spoken words were then merged with what is regarded to be the first deep house record to exist, \”Can You Feel It?\” (1986) by Chicago-born Larry Heard. Quickly becoming the most played version of the song and laying the foundation for deep house music to flourish in the Chicago area. Understanding the importance of Jack and Jack\’s House is to understand the very rules the entire electronic dance music scene is based on. 30 years later the ideals embodied in Chuck Roberts\’ sermon are still alive and well. They are what 90\’s raver kids dubbed \”PLUR\” and are the reason we all flock to huge music festivals today. We all crave the love, kindness and feelings of togetherness the EDM community has brought to our lives. Many people have made best friends out of complete strangers at shows and it all started by house music lovers following the gospel as spoken by Chuck Roberts.
After Jack successfully caught on to the entire house music community, the idea became so popular a dance move was created in his honor:
\”One of the primary elements in house dancing is a technique that came from Chicago that involves moving the torso forward and backward in a rippling motion, as if a wave were passing through it. When this movement is repeated and sped up to match the beat of a song it is called jacking, or \”the jack\”. All footwork in house dancing is said to initiate from the way the jack moves the center of gravity through space.\” [Source: Wikipedia, \”Chicago House\”]
Learn how to properly jack your body with professional dancer Brian Henninger here.
Respect for Jack and his mantra has since spread to other newer genres of EDM that deep house forefathers never could have imagined in their time. Britain\’s bass heavy Let\’s Be Friends\’ track \”The Creator\” throws back to Jack with their dubstep/drumstep banger that\’s reminiscent of the sounds of electro house gods Knife Party. Check it out below.
EDMTunes couldn\’t have chosen a better song than Breach – Jack to represent modern day house music in Chicago. Thanks for helping remind us where we began as we watch moments from our very own festival in the best city for house music in the world. Chicago gave birth to this amazing music years ago and we\’re all so lucky we get a front row seat to watch her grow up.
