Nathaniel Jack "Monk" McFay (June 27, 1908, Wichita Falls, Kansas - October 22 or 23, 1994, Los Angeles) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader, known especially for leading jazz bands in Hawaii.
Kansas is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka and its largest city is Wichita, with its most populated county being Johnson County. Kansas is bordered by Nebraska on the north; Missouri on the east; Oklahoma on the south; and Colorado on the west. Kansas is named after the Kansas River, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native Americans who lived along it banks. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the (south) wind" although this was probably not the term's original meaning. For thousands of years, what is now Kansas was home to numerous and diverse Native American tribes. Tribes in the eastern part of the state generally lived in villages along the river valleys. Tribes in the western part of the state were semi-nomadic and hunted large herds of bison.
Los Angeles, officially the City of Los Angeles and often known by its initials L.A., is the most populous city in California, the second most populous city in the United States, after New York City, and the third most populous city in North America. With an estimated population of four million, Los Angeles is the cultural, financial, and commercial center of Southern California. The city is known for its Mediterranean climate, Hollywood and the entertainment industry, and its sprawling metropolis. Los Angeles is the largest city on the West Coast of North America.
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, United States, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and developed from roots in blues and ragtime. Jazz is seen by many as "America's classical music". Since the 1920s Jazz Age, jazz has become recognized as a major form of musical expression. It then emerged in the form of independent traditional and popular musical styles, all linked by the common bonds of African-American and European-American musical parentage with a performance orientation. Jazz is characterized by swing and blue notes, call and response vocals, polyrhythms and improvisation. Jazz has roots in West African cultural and musical expression, and in African-American music traditions including blues and ragtime, as well as European military band music. Intellectuals around the world have hailed jazz as "one of America's original art forms".
McFay was working as a bellhop in Amarillo, Texas when he was asked by Roderick Thomas to substitute on drums in the house band; he played with Thomas's territory band until 1934, also doing a short stint with Red Williams during that time. In 1934 he played in Oklahoma City with the Spotlight Entertainer Orchestra, the band led by Joe Brantley. In 1935 he relocated to Los Angeles and played with Bernard Banks, who took his band to the Casino Ballroom in Honolulu. He led his own band at the Casa Loma Ballroom in 1936, then returned to Oklahoma City to play in the Spotlight band again, now under the leadership of Leonard Chadwick. In 1937 he toured Honolulu with his own band again, and returned to Oklahoma City a third time in 1938 to play with Leslie Sheffield's band. From 1939 to 1941 he once more played in Honolulu with a band which included Henry Coker; he left Hawaii due to legal troubles. Following this he played with Harlan Leonard in 1945 and then joined Buddy Banks's band, where he recorded for the first time. He played with Banks until 1949.
A bellhop or hotel porter (international) is a hotel porter, who helps patrons with their luggage while checking in or out. Bellhops often wear a uniform, like certain other page boys or doormen. This occupation is also called bellman and bellboy in North America.
Amarillo is the 14th-most populous city in the state of Texas, United States. It is also the largest city in the Texas Panhandle, and the seat of Potter County. A portion of the city extends into Randall County. The estimated population was 199,826 as of 2017. The Amarillo metropolitan area has an estimated population of 276,020 in four counties as of 2017. The metro population is projected to surpass 310,000 in 2020.
Territory bands were dance bands that crisscrossed specific regions of the United States from the 1920s through the 1960s. Beginning in the 1920s, the bands typically had 8 to 12 musicians. These bands typically played one-nighters, 6 or 7 nights a week at venues like VFW halls, Elks Lodges, Lions Clubs, hotel ballrooms, and the like. Francis Davis, jazz critic for The Village Voice, likened territory bands to "the Top 40 cover bands of their day, typically relying on stock arrangements of other ensembles' hits." He said, "many historians give much credit to territory bands for popularizing modern ballroom dancing that began during the World War I era with the influence of Vernon and Irene Castle."
