The source of house music is considered to be traced back to the early 1980’s in Chicago, Illinois. House rhythms were initially rooted in disco, however the music has been influenced by a varied selection of styles such as blues, jazz, soul, R&B, and funk.
The creation of the expression “house music” is a hotly debated issue amidst artists and DJ’s. Some proclaim the idea comes from a night club titled “The Warehouse” at which longtime resident Producer/DJ Frankie Knuckles spun a particular brand of dance music until 1982 when the establishment closed. Knuckles himself stated he first witnessed the term while passing by a pub around the south side of Chicago that hung a sign in its window reading “We play house music”. DJ Leonard “Remix” Rroy states the sign was likely a reference to the kind of soulful songs one would play at your own house.
An alternative opinion is that the phrase referenced the production of music in the homes of revolutionary DJ’s and dance producers. These early projects would be recorded with synthesizers, drum machines and sequencers. Many others declare that “house” references the relationship of certain recordings with their respective DJ’s, as in the house DJ’s spun their very own house records.
The Chicago club scene of the early 80’s was fueled by DJ’s mixing a number of varieties of music which include disco, hip hop, funk, pop, and R&B. The dawn of fairly cheap digital instruments led to various DJ’s crafting their own blend of existing tracks by blending in drum machines and effects.
Labeled by many to be the first original house music record, “On & On” by Jesse Saunders was published in 1984. The album’s accomplishment ignited a wave of tracks from the earlier DJ’s attempting their hand at creating house music. The music shortly branched off into subgenres of house such as deep house and acid house.
Having the assistance of club DJ’s like Lil Louis, Frankie Knuckles, Ron Hardy, and radio stations like WBMX, house music quickly acquired recognition in Chicago. Simultaneously, house began to extend to nearby DJ’s and producers of Detroit, Michigan. Artists like Marshall Jefferson aided the push house outside of Chicago with his widely famous track “Move Your Body”. By the mid to late eighties artists like Larry Heard, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson, Farley Keith, and Steve Hurley, persisted to popularize the style.
Presently, house music is stronger than ever and can be heard in a variety of forms within night clubs across the world. The style has continued to diverge into subgenres such as progressive house, electro house, techno house, breakbeat, and the list goes on. House is not just a form of music, but is a religion reinforced by committed followers the entire world over.