From Roots to Fusion —Episode 7

By 1955, there was hardly a city in Europe that didn't have at least one Dixieland Jazz Club where young musicians played and improvised on New Orleans jazz classics. In the Soviet bloc, however, this genre—along with all popular music from the Western world—was banned. But for decades afterward, enthusiasts would secretly tune in to America Forces Network for Mister Midnight's smoky voice and four or five hours of nonstop jazz.

Meanwhile, the 45 rpm record arrived in the Old Continent bringing the first recordings. It still only contained one song on each side, but it was much smaller and lighter than the old-fashioned '78s. Soon after, the "Extended-Play" or EP, the same size as the '45 but now with four songs, would be released.

Jazz had expanded, beyond the American borders.