One of America’s pioneering filmmakers had nothing to do with Hollywood but nevertheless left his mark on the emerging industry. Oscar Micheaux was a homesteader, who then turned his attention to making movies in the early 1900s. He was a Black man who made movies for Black audiences at a time when they weren’t allowed into mainstream, white-only theaters. And for several pivotal years in the 1920s, he operated out of Roanoke, Virginia.
Us & Them Encore: A Band On The Right Side History
John Smith fretting a five-string bass at the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame.
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The U.S. continues to struggle with racial discrimination, and this episode of Us & Them looks back at a moment in the 1960s when music and race collided in Charleston, West Virginia. At a time when America’s popular music scene was becoming increasingly integrated, a local band found itself forced to choose between playing the gig and standing up for principle.
Host Trey Kay speaks with John Smith, the surviving member of The In Crowd, a Charleston-based band that played popular tunes during that era. One night at the Charleston Athletic Club, a mixed-race couple was denied the right to dance. Smith recalls the band’s response: If they couldn’t dance, we wouldn’t play. The decision carried consequences, and the musicians paid a price for taking that stand.
Decades later, Smith and his late bandmates have been recognized for their quiet act of resistance. For this episode, Kay meets Smith at the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame to reflect on that pivotal moment and its lasting impact.
Kay also gathers with the Charleston-based band The Carpenter Ants for a rehearsal that turns into a conversation. Musicians from different generations share their experiences in the local music scene, reflecting on how it has mirrored both the divisions and the unity of their community. Together, they explore how music can both expose and heal the nation’s deepest wounds.
This episode of Us & Them is presented with support from the West Virginia Humanities Council and the CRC Foundation.
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John Smith, the only surviving member of the Charleston-based band The In Crowd, sits on his front porch at his home in Rand, West Virginia, after being honored at a ceremony at Levi Baptist Church for the group’s stand against racial discrimination in 1968.
Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
“If they didn’t serve [the mixed race couple], then we weren’t going to play anymore… So he told us to ‘go the hell out.’ And we did.”
— John Smith, surviving member, The In Crowd
John Smith plays guitar while serving in the U.S. Army in Germany in 1959. Years later, he would pick up the bass guitar as a member of the Charleston-based band The In Crowd.
Photo courtesy of John SmithMichael Pushkin, president of American Federation of Musicians Local 136 and a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, speaks at Levi Baptist Church in Rand, West Virginia, where he apologized to John Smith and the late members of The In Crowd for the union’s actions in 1968.
Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
“The band did the right thing… The union that was supposed to be there representing them was on the wrong side of history.”
— Michael Pushkin
The Carpenter Ants, a mixed-race band, practice at the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame in Charleston, West Virginia, during a gathering honoring John Smith and the legacy of the Charleston-based band The In Crowd. Pictured are Charlie Tee (vocals), Michael Lipton (guitar), Ted Harrison (bass) and Jupie Little (drums). During the event, band members spoke with Smith about their own experiences facing racism while performing in West Virginia. Charlie Tee died in December 2021 at age 68.
Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
“People have always thought what they wanted to think… but now they just come out and say it. You don’t care where you go, they’re just gonna say it.”
— Charlie Tee, the late lead singer of The Carpenter Ants
“You go to this one place and they show you what you really are… It was a wake-up call.”
— Jupie Little, drummer and vocalist, The Carpenter Ants
Barbara and John Smith listen and sway to the music of The Carpenter Ants at the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame in Charleston, West Virginia, during a gathering honoring Smith and the legacy of the Charleston-based band The In Crowd. Family members and friends joined the celebration recognizing Smith as the band’s only surviving member.
Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public BroadcastingThe Carpenter Ants bassist Ted Harrison shows John Smith his five-string bass at the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame in Charleston, West Virginia. After thanking the band for the tribute performance, Smith made one request — to get his hands on the bass once more.
Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public BroadcastingTrey Kay stands with Barbara and John Smith at the entrance to the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame in Charleston, West Virginia, during a gathering honoring Smith and the legacy of The In Crowd.
Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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WVPB will be screening excerpts of Ken Burns’ recent PBS documentary series "The American Revolution" this week at Marshall. Us & Them host Trey Kay will moderate the event, and he spoke recently with WVPB News Director Eric Douglas about why revisiting the nation’s founding story matters today. Also, a bill to temporarily delay moving a child to homeschooling during an active case of abuse or neglect hit a snag in the Senate on Monday.
One of America’s pioneering filmmakers had nothing to do with Hollywood but nevertheless left his mark on the emerging industry. Oscar Micheaux was a homesteader, who then turned his attention to making movies in the early 1900s. He was a Black man who made movies for Black audiences at a time when they weren’t allowed into mainstream, white-only theaters. And for several pivotal years in the 1920s, he operated out of Roanoke, Virginia.
West Virginians gathered at the capitol last week to urge lawmakers to take action on rising electric bills. Also, state leaders have been quick to respond to news of the U.S.-led attack on Iran. And, Larry Kump, a Republican member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, died over the weekend.
