Honky Tonk

A '''honky-tonk''' (also called a '''honkatonk''', '''honkey-tonk''', or '''tonk''') is a type of  [[bar (establishment)|bar]] that provides musical entertainment (usually [[country music]]) to its patrons. Bars of this kind are common in the [[Southern United States|Southern]] and [[Southwestern United States|Southwestern]] [[United States]].

The term "honky-tonk" has also been applied to various styles of 20th-century American music.



==Etymology==

The origin of the term ''honky tonk'' is unknown.<ref>The ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' (''OED'')</ref> The earliest source explaining the derivation of the term (spelled "honkatonk") was an article published in 1900 by the ''New York Sun'' and widely reprinted in other newspapers.<ref>''Reno Evening Gazette'' (Nevada), 3 February 1900, p. 2, col. 5. "Every child of the range can tell what honkatonk means and where it came from. Away, away back in the very early days, so the story goes, a party of cow punchers rode out from camp at sundown in search of recreation after a day of toil. They headed for a place of amusement, but lost the trail. From far out in the distance there finally came to their ears a 'honk-a-tonk-a-tonk-a-tonk-a,' which they mistook for the bass viol. They turned toward the sound, to find alas! a dock [sic] of wild geese. So honkatonk was named—N. Y. Sun".</ref> It states that the term came from the sound of geese, which led an unsuspecting group of cowboys to the flock instead of to the variety show they expected. The ''[[OED]]'' also states that the first use in print was in 1894<ref>''The Daily Ardmoreite'' (Oklahoma), February 26, 1894, pg. 2, col. 1. (Oklahoma Historical Society, Microfilm #110). "The honk-a-tonk last night was well attended by ball heads, bachelors and leading citizens. Most of them are inclined to kick themselves this morning for being sold."</ref> in the ''Daily Ardmoreite'' ([[Ardmore, Oklahoma]]) newspaper, in which it was written "honk-a-tonk". However, the terms ''honky tonk'', ''honk-a-tonk'', and ''honkatonk'' have been cited from at least 1889 in the "Daily Gazette" ([[Fort Worth, Texas]]),<ref>"Daily Gazette (Fort Worth, Texas), 24 Jan. 1889. "A petition to the council is being circulated for signatures, asking that the Honky Tonk theater on Main Street be reopened."</ref> from 1890 in the "Morning News" ([[Dallas, Texas]]),<ref>"Morning News" (Dallas, Texas), 6 Aug. 1890 "Myself and him set and talked awhile and he got up and said he wanted to go to the honk-a-tonk (variety show)."</ref> and 1892 in the ''Galveston Daily News'' ([[Galveston, Texas]]),<ref>''Galveston Daily News'' (Texas), July 26, 1892, pg. 6. " "FORT WORTH, Tex. (...) A youth named Goodman, who arrived here from Wilbarger county entered Andrews' honkatonk on Fifteenth street and was ordered out on account of his age." ([http://www.barrypopik.com/article/1686/honky-tonk-not-from-tonk-pianos ''Honky Tonk (not from Tonk pianos)'', retrieved July 9, 2006])</ref> which used the term to refer to an adult establishment in [[Fort Worth, Texas|Fort Worth]].

The "tonk" portion of the name may have come from a brand name of piano. One American manufacturer of large upright pianos was the firm of William Tonk & Bros. (established 1889),<ref>Pierce, ''Pierce Piano Atlas''.</ref> which made a piano with the decal "Ernest A. Tonk". These upright grand pianos, made in Chicago and New York, were called "Tonk pianos". Some found their way to [[Tin Pan Alley]] and may have given rise to the expression of "honky tonk bars". It is unlikely, however, that a Tin Pan Alley piano manufactured in 1889 would have influenced the vocabulary in Texas by January of that same year.

The term ''[[honky]]'' was, as a term for whites, derived from ''bohunk'' and ''[[Hunky Culture|hunky]]''. In the early 1900s, these were derogatory terms for [[Bohemian]], [[Hungarians|Hungarian]], and [[Poles|Polish]] immigrants. According to Robert Hendrickson, author of the ''Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins'', black workers in Chicago meatpacking plants picked up the term from white workers and began applying it indiscriminately to all whites. "Father of the Blues" [[W.C. Handy]] wrote of "Negroes and hunkies" in his autobiography.<ref>Father of the Blues by William Christopher Handy. 1941 MacMillan. page 214. no ISBN in this edition</ref>

==History==

Honky tonks were rough establishments, mostly in the [[Deep South]] and [[Southwest United States|Southwest]], that served [[alcoholic beverage]]s to a [[working class]] clientele.  Honky tonks sometimes also offered dancing to piano players or small bands, and were sometimes also centers of [[prostitution]]. Katrina Hazzard-Gordon writes that the honky-tonk was "the first urban manifestation of the jook", and that "the name itself became synonymous with a style of music. Related to the classic blues in tonal structure, honky-tonk has a tempo that is slightly stepped up. It is rhythmically suited for many African-American dance."<ref>Jookin'. Katrina Hazzard-Gordon. Temple University Press. 1990. page 84 ISBN 0-97722-613-X</ref>

As [[Chris Smith (composer)|Chris Smith]] and [[Charles McCarron]] noted in their 1916 hit song "Down in Honky Tonk Town", "It's underneath the ground, where all the fun is found."

===Origins of the establishment===

Although the derivation of the term is unknown, ''honky tonk'' originally referred to bawdy variety shows in the [[American West|West]] ([[Oklahoma Territory|Oklahoma]] and [[Indian Territory|Indian]] Territories and [[Texas]]) and to the theaters housing them. The earliest mention of them in print refers to them as "variety theaters"<ref>''The Daily Oklahoman'', Sunday, September 5, 1915, pg. 1., col. 1. "There is scarcely an old-time gambler in the United States who does not remember the Reeves gambling house and 'honkytonk' in Guthrie. ...a stage and rows of curtained boxes, was built as an addition for the purposes of a free-and-easy variety show."</ref> and describe the entertainment as "variety shows".<ref>''Reno Evening Gazette'' (Nevada), 3 February 1900, pg. 2, col. 5. "The programme is made up largely of specialties. Whatever the feeling of a long-suffering public, the honkatonk vocalists never will permit "Sweet Rosie O'Grady" and "Just One Girl" to perish from the earth, and coon songs are sung as May Irwin never did and never will sing them. Always at least one drama is presented, the entire company, vocalists, dancers and all, participating. Among the most popular plays are "The Dalton Boys" and "Mildred, the She-Devil of the Plains," for the old traditions still are respected to a certain extent, though the participation of the audience is no longer solicited."</ref> The theaters often had an attached gambling house and always a bar.

In recollections long after the frontiers closed, writers such as [[Wyatt Earp]] and E.C. Abbott referred often to honky tonks in the cowtowns of Kansas, Nebraska, Montana, etc. of the 1870s and 1880s.<ref>Hunter, [http://www.lib.utexas.edu/books/texasclassics/traildrivers/txu-oclc-12198638-c-0832.html ''Trail Drivers of Texas'', pg. 832]. "I went to Dodge City, the honkatonk town, cleaned up an bought a suit of clothes, and left for San Antonio, reaching home July 1, 1885."</ref> Their recollections contain lurid accounts of the women and violence accompanying the shows. However, in contemporary accounts these were nearly always called [[hurdy gurdy]] shows, possibly derived from the term hurdy gurdy that was sometimes mistakenly applied to a small, portable barrel organ that was frequently played by organ grinders and [[busker]]s.

As late as 1913, Col. Edwin Emerson, a former [[Rough Rider]] commander, hosted a honky-tonk party in [[New York City]].<ref>"COL. EMERSON'S NOVEL PARTY; Rough Rider Veteran Gives 'Old Forty-niners' Honky-Tonk Fandango'." ''New York Times'', New York, N.Y., February 23, 1913. pg. C7</ref> The Rough Riders were recruited from the ranches of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Indian Territories, so the term was still in popular use during the Spanish American War.

===Bars===
The distinction between honky tonks, saloons and dancehalls was often blurred, especially in cowtowns, mining districts, military forts and oilfields of the West. As variety theaters and dancehalls disappeared, ''honky tonk'' eventually became associated mainly with lower-class bars catering to men. Synonymous with ''beer joint'' and like terms, honky tonks usually serve beer or hard liquor and may have had a bandstand and dance floor. Many may have furnished only a [[juke box]]. In the Southeastern U.S., ''honky tonk'' gradually replaced the term ''[[juke joint]]'' for bars primarily oriented towards blues and jazz. As [[Western swing]] slowly became accepted in Nashville, Southeastern bars playing Western swing and Western swing-influenced country music were also called honky tonks.

==Music==

The first [[music genre]] to be commonly known as ''honky tonk music'' was a style of [[piano]] playing related to [[ragtime]], but emphasizing [[rhythm]] more than [[melody]] or [[harmony]]; the style evolved in response to an environment where the pianos were often poorly cared for, tending to be out of tune and having some nonfunctioning keys.

Such honky tonk music was an important influence on the formation of the [[boogie-woogie]] piano style, as indicated by [[Jelly Roll Morton]]'s 1938 record "Honky Tonk Music" and [[Meade Lux Lewis]]'s big hit "Honky Tonk Train Blues." Lewis recorded the latter many times from 1927 into the 1950s, and the song was covered by many other musicians, including [[Oscar Peterson]].

The [[twelve-bar blues]] [[instrumental]] "Honky Tonk" by the [[Bill Doggett]] Combo, with a sinuous [[saxophone]] line and driving, slow beat, was an early [[rock and roll]] hit. [[New Orleans]] native [[Fats Domino]] was another honky tonk piano man, whose "Blueberry Hill" and "Walkin' to New Orleans" became hits on the popular music charts.

During the pre–World War II years, the music industry began to refer to honky tonk music being played from Texas and Oklahoma to the West Coast as ''[[hillbilly music]]''. More recently, the term has come to refer to the primary sound in [[country music]], developing in Nashville as [[Western swing]] became accepted there. Originally, it featured the [[guitar]], [[fiddle]], [[string bass]], and [[steel guitar]] (imported from [[Music of Hawaii#Folk music|Hawaiian folk music]]). The vocals were originally rough and nasal, as exemplified by singer-songwriters [[Floyd Tillman]] and [[Hank Williams]], but later developed a clear and sharp sound, such as that of singers [[George Jones]] and [[Johnny Paycheck]]. Lyrics tended to focus on working-class life, with frequently tragic themes of lost love, adultery, loneliness, alcoholism, and self-pity.

Copyrighted and released in 1941,"I'm Walking The Floor Over You" by [[Ernest Tubb]]<ref>http://www.freehandmusic.com/search.aspx?all=ernest+tubb&prodid=391479 Sheet music with copyright notice at Solero Music</ref> his sixth release for Decca,<ref>http://www.countrymusichalloffame.com/site/inductees.aspx?cid=192 Ernest Tubb at Country Music Hall of Fame</ref> helped establish the honky tonk style and Tubb as one of its foremost practitioners.<ref>Go Cat Go! Craig Morrison. 1952. University of Illinois Press. page 28. ISBN 0-252-06538-7</ref> Hailing from Crisp, Texas, Tubb was a fan of Jimmie Rodgers and fused Western swing, which had been using electric guitars for years, with other "country" sounds.<ref>Honky Tonk Angel: The Intimate Story of Patsy Cline. Ellis Nassour. page 39.</ref>

He took the sound to Nashville, where he was the first musician to play [[electric guitar]] on [[Grand Ole Opry]]. In the 1950s, honky tonk entered its [[golden age]], with the massive popularity of [[Webb Pierce]], [[Hank Locklin]], [[Lefty Frizzell]], George Jones, and Hank Williams. In the mid- to late-1950s, [[rockabilly]] (which melded honky tonk country to [[rhythm and blues]]) and the slick country music of the [[Nashville sound]] ended honky tonk's initial period of dominance.

In the 1970s, [[outlaw country]]'s brand of rough honky tonk was represented by artists such as [[Gary Stewart]], [[Waylon Jennings]], [[Willie Nelson]], [[David Allan Coe]], and [[Billy Joe Shaver]]. During the 1980s, a revival of slicker honky tonk took over the charts, beginning with [[Dwight Yoakam]] and [[George Strait]] in the middle of the decade. This more pop-oriented version of honky tonk crossed over into the mainstream in the early 1990s, with singers such as [[Garth Brooks]], [[Alan Jackson]] and [[Clint Black]].

===Music===

*[[The Rolling Stones]] number one single and gold record “[[Honky Tonk Women]]” (1969) was based on the sound of 1930s honky tonk artists like Hank Williams<ref>{{Citation |author=Steve Appleford |contribution= |date=1997 |title=The Rolling Stones: It's Only Rock and Roll: Song by Song |journal= |editor= |edition= |isbn=0028648994 |issn= |volume= |page=88 |place= |publisher=Schirmer Books |url= |accessdate= |authorlink= |archiveurl= |archivedate= }}.</ref> and referenced the reputation of honky tonk bars as centres of prostitution.<ref>{{Citation |author= |contribution= |date=2006 |title=
Encyclopedia of prostitution and sex work, Volume 2 |journal= |editor=Melissa Hope Ditmore |edition= |isbn=0313329702 |issn= |volume= |page=407 |place=London |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |url= |accessdate= |authorlink= |archiveurl= |archivedate= }}.</ref>
*[[Lynyrd Skynyrd]] recorded a song “Honky Tonk Night Time Man” in 1977 on their album ''[[Street Survivors]]''.
*[[Trace Adkins]] recorded his single “[[Honky Tonk Badonkadonk]]” in 2005; it is track 11 on his album ''[[Songs About Me]]''.
*[[George Strait]] recorded the song “Honk If You Honky Tonk” in 2003 on his album ''[[Honkytonkville]]''.
*[[Clint Eastwood]] directed a movie titled ''[[Honkytonk Man]]'', in which he played the  role of a country musician during the [[Great Depression]].