Photograph credit: bsabarnowl
Ever heard someone say, “that’s a real doozy”? Did you know that it meant something was incredibly impressive? But why? Let’s look at the origin of this expression:
Q: Why is something incredibly impressive called a “real doozy”?
A: “real doozy” may be an old-fashioned expression, but it still means something remarkable. I twas used to describe one of the most impressive cars ever made. Built between 1920 and 1937, the
Duesenberg was the best and most expensive American car ever built. During the Great Depression, and at a time when a Ford sold for $500, a top-of-the-line Doozy retailed for $25,000. With a custom-built body and a high-horsepower engine, the Duesenberg quickly became a favourite vehicle of the rich and famous. It still is! As one of the most collectible cars in the world, Duesenbergs in mint condition have sold for millions of dollars. Now that’s a doozy!
Whether we listen to music, take guitar lessons, attend concerts, or watch performances on television; we sometimes notice someone who will use the expression, “let’s jam” every so often. This week let’s take a look at the meaning behind “jam”, music-wise that is … and perhaps in other senses as well!
Jam Session Photography by Doublep1
Q: Why do jazz musicians call a spontaneous collaboration a “jam”?
A: All musicians refer to an informal and exhilarating musical session as “jamming,” but it first surfaced in the jazz world during the 1920s. “Jam” in jazz is a short, free, improvised passage performed by the whole band. It means pushing or jamming all the players and notes into a defined free-flowing session.
Preserved fruit was first called jam during the 1730s because it was crushed then “jammed” into a jar. To be “in a jam” has the same origin and means to be pressed into a tight or confining predicament. Jamming radio signals is a term from the First World War and means to force so much extra sound through a defined enemy channel that the original intended message is incoherent. All this is from “jam”, a little seventeenth-century word of unknown origin that meant to press tightly.
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The Now You Know series continues to entertain readers with the answers to everything from how certain English phrases or words originated to the origins of little-known but fascinating bits and pieces of sports, pop culture, social customs, the military, history, politics, money, games, and entertainment.
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