The Music of Detroit - Part Two Jack White

 

The opening guitar chords of “Seven Nation Army” is easily one of the most well-known guitar riffs to ever kick off a song. Chanted and sung at sports stadia all over the world, those licks are the product of one of the most impactful musicians to ever be born in Detroit: John Anthony Gillis (aka Jack White) was born there in July of 1975 and it is safe to say that Detroit has a special place in Jack White’s heart.

Full disclosure; this writer is a giant fan of Mister White for a plethora of reasons. Some of his songs are a constant on my personal play lists, but there are many of his musical efforts that have zero appeal to me. My fandom is not based on loving every lyric and chord, but my admiration is directed at a fellow Michigander who charts his own course artistically and who, in spite of traveling the world and now living in Nashville, remembers his roots in Detroit and has done a lot to keep the Motor City moving along in spite of all the challenges it has faced over the last 10-15 years.

Jack White was the youngest of ten children brought up in a humble household. His parents both worked for the Archdiocese of Detroit. His father, Gorman, was the building maintenance superintendent and his mother, Teresa, was a secretary to the Cardinal. It seems that being the last in line in a very big family served as a musical launching pad for Jack. As a first grader, he started playing around on a drum kit that was abandoned in the attic by his siblings, several of whom tinkered with music and formed a band called Catalyst. White stuck with the drums while also playing with any other instrument he found in the house.

Jack almost entered the priesthood. He served as an altar boy, (and can been seen as an uncredited extra in the 1987 movie “Rosary Murders”) and was seriously considering the seminary when he decided to attend Cass Technical High School instead of attending a seminary in Wisconsin that had accepted his application. He played drums and trombone in the school band. When he was 15, he began learning the upholstery trade in a three year apprenticeship program. These days he has returned to his love of upholstery and creates and sells furniture. You can take a look at www.jackwhiteartanddesign.com. It is worth noting that White’s first entrepreneurial effort was called Third Man Upholstery – the motto for which was “Your furniture is not dead.” He also incorporated the color scheme of yellow and black which continues today with Third Man Records.

Jack was good friends with Brian Muldoon, a fellow upholsterer, who talked White into forming a punk band. Since Muldoon was a drummer, White decided to play the guitar. Jack Gillis became Jack White after he met, fell in love with, and married Meg White. He decided to turn things upside down by reversing tradition and taking her name.

Turning things upside down and a love for old school technology has become a way of life for White. When he and Meg toured the planet as some of the best known examples of the revival of garage rock, White would purposely make his performances more difficult by playing inexpensive guitars that would go out of tune in a heartbeat and laying out his stage set up in a manner that actually made his job more difficult. His intensity and no holds barred live performances found willing audiences everywhere the White Stripes went.

These days White tours as a solo artist, but he is and has been involved in many side projects which most notably include The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather. The Raconteurs were the result of Jack collaborating with Brenden Benson, a fellow Michigan born musician. They crafted “Steady as She Goes” and enjoyed it so much they drafted some more local talent and recorded their first album in Benson’s home studio. The recorded a couple of albums, then took a break for many years before reforming in 2019 to record the album “Help Us Stranger” and they toured in support of the album.

White met Allison Mosshart when she fronted a band called The Kills who opened for the Raconteurs in their early tours. She actually filled in singing for White when he developed bronchitis that he had a hard time shaking while on tour. White returned to the drums when he and Mosshart formed the Dead Weather. They have toured and released three studio albums and resemble The Raconteurs in that they might just spring up some time and record or perform.

White’s musical and video output is a wonder to behold in bands and as a solo artist. Three of his solo efforts have reached number one and he has taken home a dozen Grammy awards.

These days White lives in Nashville, but he has never forgotten his birthplace. It is pretty safe to say that Jack White has had a very large hand in the salvation and revival of music recorded and played on vinyl LP (Long Playing) records. He has said that nothing beats the thrill of opening up a brand new record, popping it on a turntable while reading the lyrics and album credits.

To help create and satisfy the desire for vinyl, White began buying up old school record pressing equipment and moving it to a large building he purchased on Canfield Street in the Cass Corridor in Detroit. Thanks in large part to his financial investment there, the area has experienced a fantastic come back. Third Man Records – with the motto “Your turntable is not dead” is an anchor in that neighborhood. Even if you have no appreciation for Mister White and/or his music, it is worth a visit to the neighborhood which boasts cool places to shop and eat in addition to providing an opportunity to see a vinyl pressing operation and a couple of blocks of impressively restored vintage homes. (www.ThirdManRecords.com) Since opening TMR in Detroit in 2009, White has also opened versions of the store in Nashville, TN and across the Atlantic in London.

In spite of being well known around the planet, White likes to keep his personal life as quiet as possible. One of my favorite White stories proves that point. When we attended a Chrissie Hynde concert at the Masonic Temple in Detroit in 2014, I noticed the ticket mentioned the show would be in the “Jack White Theatre”. When asked, the usher who sat us was happy to relate the story that White found out the Masonic Temple was in arrears on taxes to the tune of $142,000 and was on the brink of foreclosure in 2013. With no fanfare, press releases or photo ops, White paid the bill and saved the venue. The Masonic Temple thanked him by putting his name on the theatre, he did not ask for it. He also put up $170,000 to refurbish Clark Field, a baseball field in SW Detroit.

The New York Times once called Jack White “the coolest, weirdest, and savviest rock star of our time” and I am very inclined to agree with that statement. Next time, we will take a look at some other rock n roll acts born and raised in Detroit.