Marshall Jefferson

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Marshall Jefferson was born in 1959 in Chicago and is often called the father of house music. He was the son of a police officer and a teacher, studied accountancy for a while and worked at a post office. As a teenager he loved hard rock. At the beginning of the 1980s, through friends, he became involved in the emerging house scene of Chicago. At first he disliked dance music, until he heard the DJ Ron Hardy play. After that he wanted to make records himself.

Music and breakthrough

In 1985 his first production came out, the EP Go Wild Rhythm Trax, under the name Virgo. A year later Move Your Body (The House Music Anthem) appeared on Trax Records, the first house track with piano. The record became a big hit in Chicago and in England introduced many listeners to the new genre. In the 1980s Jefferson recorded under several names, such as Virgo, Jungle Wonz, Truth and On the House, and produced for CeCe Rogers, Sterling Void and the first two albums of Ten City. In March 1987 he was in England with Frankie Knuckles for the first house tour.

Influence

His style is deep and melodic, with heavy piano riffs and grand-sounding strings. In this way he helped lay the foundation of deep house. Move Your Body was later used in the film 24 Hour Party People and in the game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and received a remix with Solardo in 2019.

Listening

• 
  Move Your Body (The House Music Anthem) · Marshall Jefferson, 1986
  Apple Music ↗

Discography

Studio albums

• 1996Day of the Onion