Duke Ellington 1924-1931 - Selected discography on CD

As a small tribute to a great man on his 110th Anniversary, here's a selected (but quite complete) discography of Duke Ellington cd's with recordings from 1924 to 1931, as was published a couple of years before in the Spanish jazz website Tomajazz.

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DUKE ELLINGTON: DISCOGRAFÍA SELECCIONADA EN CD - RECOMENDACIONES 1924-1931

La producción discográfica de Duke Ellington en este período puede ser catalogada en cuatro grandes grupos:

– Sesiones de grabación para el sello Brunswick y su filial barata Vocalion, a partir de noviembre de 1926.

– Sesiones para los sellos OKeh y Columbia (algunos discos salieron en las filiales baratas Diva, Harmony y Velvetone), a partir de marzo de 1927.

– Sesiones para el sello Victor (luego RCA-Victor), a partir de noviembre de 1927.

– Grabaciones para sellos pequeños, entre las que se pueden distinguir por un lado las grabaciones iniciales (previas a la primera sesión significativa, la de 29 de noviembre de 1926 para Vocalion en la que se grabó la versión original de “East St. Louis Toodle-Oo”) y, por otro, el resto de discos para sellos pequeños. Esos sellos pequeños para los que grabó EKE en el período 1924-1931 fueron: Blu-Disc (algunos discos se editaron/reeditaron en la compañía vinculada Up-To-Date), Pathe, Cameo, Plaza, Durium, Gennett y Paramount (únicamente el rollo de pianola de “Jig Walk”).

Todas las grabaciones para los sellos Brunswick/Vocalion del período 1926-1931 -incluyendo varias tomas alternativas- se hallan recogidas en el triple CD Early Ellington: The Complete Brunswick And Vocalion Recordings Of Duke Ellington, 1926-1931 (Decca Jazz GRD-3-640), publicado en 1994. Una selección de las mismas puede encontrarse en The Brunswick Era, vol. 1 1926-29 (Decca MCAD-42325) y The Brunswick Era, vol. 2 1929-31 (Decca MCAD-42348).

Las grabaciones para Columbia/Okeh del período 1927-1930 pueden encontrarse en el doble CD The Okeh Ellington (Columbia C2K 46177), publicado en 1991 como parte de la serie “Columbia Jazz Masterpieces”.

Las sesiones para Victor se encuentran incluidas en la magnífica integral The Duke Ellington Centennial Edition – The Complete RCA Victor Recordings (1927-1973) (RCA 09026-63386-2), publicada en 1999, que se encuentra descatalogada desde hace unos años y que puede encontrarse ocasionalmente en tiendas de internet de segunda mano por precios astronómicos. A principios de los 90 se publicaron también tres CD que recopilaban una buena parte de estas grabaciones para Victor: Early Ellington, 1927-1934 (Bluebird 6852-2-RB), Jungle Nights in Harlem, 1927-1932 (Bluebird 2499-2-RB) y Jubilee Stomp, 1928-1934 (Bluebird 66038-2).

Tanto la Centennial Edition como el triple CD del sello Decca presentan un magnífico sonido. La remasterización de Steven Lasker no elimina todo el ruido de superficie, pero consigue una separación de instrumentos y una nitidez realmente destacables. La recopilación de Columbia tiene un sonido más plano, puesto que se emplearon sistemas de reducción del ruido en el proceso de remasterización. Lo mismo sucede con los tres CD individuales del sello Bluebird, pero éstos no dejan de ser una buena alternativa a la costosa adquisición de la Centennial Edition para las grabaciones Victor de este período, puesto que, aunque descatalogados, se encuentran con cierta facilidad de segunda mano y a buen precio.

Como aproximación cronológica para completistas -y como único camino para conseguir los temas grabados para sellos pequeños-, existen dos vías alternativas: [1]

-La serie “The Chronogical (sic) Duke Ellington” del sello francés Classics, que recopila de forma cronológica todas las tomas máster de este período en 10 CD. El complemento perfecto son los 3 CD del sello Neatwork que agrupan las tomas alternativas.

-La serie “Duke Ellington – Complete Edition” del difunto sello francés Masters Of Jazz, que recopila, en 12 CD, todas las grabaciones existentes hasta enero de 1931, incluyendo tomas alternativas y alguna grabación en la que la participación de Duke Ellington es dudosa, como el rollo de pianola de “Jig Walk” del sello Paramount. Es una lástima que este sello francés distribuido por Média 7 desapareciera, puesto que su labor de recopilación y documentación de las grabaciones de algunos maestros del jazz (entre los que también se encuentran Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton o Count Basie) fue magnífica. Las notas de los discos de Duke Ellington –que por desgracia están descatalogados y son muy difíciles de encontrar– fueron escritas por Alexandre Rado, profundo conocedor de la música de Ellington.

A la hora de elegir recopilaciones de uno o dos CD, que combinen material de los archivos de RCA-Victor, Columbia-OKeh y Brunswick-Vocalion, las primeras opciones serían las de Naxos y ASV-Living Era, por tratarse de reediciones recientes, fácilmente disponibles a precio reducido, y que presentan un magnífico sonido y una adecuada selección de temas:

– Cotton Club Stomp: 1927-1931 (Naxos Jazz Legends 8.120509) (1 CD)

– Duke Ellington In The Twenties – The Duke Steps Out (ASV-Living Era CDAJA5573) (1 CD), con una selección de temas que va desde 1924 hasta 1929

– Duke Ellington In The Thirties – Creole Rhapsody (ASV-Living Era CDAJS2015) (2 CD), con una selección que va desde 1930 hasta 1939 (y entre los que se encuentran siete temas de 1930 y 1931).

Como curiosidad, Great Original Performances, 1927-1934 (BBC CD 643) es parte de la serie “Jazz Classics in Digital Stereo” producida por Robert Parker, en la que se aplicó la técnica del “falso estéreo” a una selección de grabaciones de algunas de las más destacadas figuras del jazz, con resultados que han suscitado división de opiniones.

Notas:

[1] Series cronológicas:

Classics 1924-1931

-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1924-1927 (Classics 539)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1927-1928 (Classics 542)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1928 (Classics 550)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1928-1929 (Classics 559)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1929 (Classics 569)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1929-1930 (Classics 577)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1930 (Classics 586)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1930, vol. 2 (Classics 596)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1930-1931 (Classics 605)
-The Chronogical Duke Ellington And His Orchestra 1931-1932 (Classics 616)


Neatwork 1924-1931

-The Alternative Takes In Chronological Order, Volume 1 (1924-1929) (Neatwork RP 2009)
-The Alternative Takes In Chronological Order, Volume 2 (1930-1931) (Neatwork RP 2018)
-The Alternative Takes In Chronological Order, Volume 3 (1931-1933) (Neatwork RP 2023)


Masters Of Jazz 1924-1931

-Duke Ellington Volume 1 1924-1926 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 8)
-Duke Ellington Volume 2 1926-1927 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 9)
-Duke Ellington Volume 3 1927-1928 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 25)
-Duke Ellington Volume 4 1928 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 30)
-Duke Ellington Volume 5 1928 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 52)
-Duke Ellington Volume 6 1929 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 69)
-Duke Ellington Volume 7 1929 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 88)
-Duke Ellington Volume 8 1929 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 101)
-Duke Ellington Volume 9 1929-1930 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 123)
-Duke Ellington Volume 10 1930 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 145)
-Duke Ellington Volume 11 1930 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 173)
-Duke Ellington Volume 12 1930-1931 Complete Edition (Masters of Jazz MJCD 174)


©2007, Agustín Pérez Gasco

Johnny Guarnieri with Lester Young - April 18, 1944 session

In his comments to the third instalment from my series on jazz records advertisements, Michael Steinman appropriately reported about the fashions in jazz hagiography, and how the Johnny Guarnieri April 18, 1944 Savoy sides with Lester Young have been released many times as if Prez had been the leader, though they were sessions led by the very talented pianist.

He is totally right that these sessions were originally recorded and released under Guarnieri's leadership, as the labels from the original Savoy 78 rpm discs (Savoy 509 & Savoy 511) show. On those issues, group is named Johnny Guarnieri's All Star Orchestra, though Bruyninckx discography lists Johnny Guarnieri Swing Men.

Anyway, the group was composed by Billy Butterfield (tp), Hank d'Amico (cl), Lester Young (ts), Johnny Guarnieri (p), Dexter Hall (g), Billy Taylor (b) and Cozy Cole (d) and they recorded four tunes -three originals, named “Exercise In Swing” (four takes), “Salute To Fats” (five takes) and “Basie English” (two takes), and “These Foolish Things” (one take)-, all of them magnificent examples of mid-size ensemble swing. Recording session lasted from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and, in the afternoon, Lester Young recorded another session with the Earl Warren Orchestra, which was actually the Basie Band minus Basie.

According to Bruyninckx and Lord, all the LP issues including any of these tunes were released as by the Lester Young Orchestra, being two of the earliest examples The Immortal Lester Young (Savoy MG 12068) and The Master’s Touch (Savoy MG 12071). But general discographies are wrong once again, as the Savoy twofer LP called Lester Young, Pres/The Complete Savoy Recordings (Savoy SJL 2202) only mentions in its liner notes that this session was made under the leadership of Johnny Guarnieri and gives no exact band name.

Most CD issues, such as the Lester Young - Complete Savoy Recordings 2-CD set or The Chronological Johnny Guarnieri 1944-1946 (Classics 956), have corrected this common mistake and given leader credit to Guarnieri.

Alphonse Picou playing High Society (1958)

Alphonse Picou (born New Orleans, October 19, 1878 and died New Orleans, February 4, 1961) formed his own Independence Band in 1897 and played with Oscar Duconge in 1899, the Excelsior Band (1900) and Freddie Keppard's Olympia Band. Then he had short periods with other bands such as Bunk Johnson's, Wooden Joe Nicholas' and Emanuel Perez's. He was semi-retired in the 30's, but due to the New Orleans revival he started to play again making records with Kid Rena (1940) and Papa Celestin (1947).

Picou is best known for originating the clarinet part on the standard "High Society". Although it is believed that George Baquet was the first clarinet player who played the difficult solo part of "High society", it is without doubt Picou who made it popular. He has been mistakenly credited as the writer of this tune, but in fact it was a 1901 marching band composition by Porter Steele. Picou made his own arrangement, making it gently swing and paraphrasing the Piccolo part to create his famous clarinet solo, which became a standard part that every New Orleans clarinetist should be able to duplicate.

Now you can watch him playing "High Society" with the Paul Barbarin band. Although the uploader states it was recorded in New Orleans, I think it could be from an Art Ford's Jazz Party on December 25, 1958, with the following line-up, according to Bruyninckx and Lord discographies: Punch Miller, Percy Humphrey (tp) Jim Robinson (tb) Alphonse Picou (cl) Armand Hug (p) George Guesnon (bj) Alcide Pavageau (b) Paul Barbarin (d).

Cotton Club programs on ebay

Two Cotton Club programs have surfaced on ebay, as a big game hunting trophy for extremely wealthy collectors of memorabilia.

The first one, listed as a "RARE 1929 ART DECO DUKE ELLINGTON COTTON CLUB PROGRAM" and with Buy It Now price of USD 150, has a colourful cover made by Julian Harrison. In fact, as you can easily discover by the listed songs and the presence of Ivie Anderson (spelled as Ivy Anderson), it IS NOT from 1929. It is from 1938, and it was partially reproduced on Duke Ellington: Day by Day and Film by Film by Dr. Klaus Strateman (Jazz Media, 1992). If you ever wanted to know the menu at the Cotton Club, you're lucky to have come to the right place [see the fourth picture].

The second one, also from the mid 1930's, also includes the great Ethel Waters, and it has an amazingly crazy starting bid of USD 800, maybe because it bears Duke Ellington's autograph.

What Pee Wee Russell said [1]

Ralph Berton, from WNYC radio, promoted Pee Wee Russell's appearance at the Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street program on January 6, 1941. The radio program featured Pee Wee playing two blues numbers accompanied by Joe Sullivan, Eddie Condon and Dave Tough. After the show, a 15-year-old clarinet student who had been in the audience approached his hero for some technical advice and, according to Ralph Berton, this was the conversation:

"Mr. Russell... I've always w-w-wanted to ask you - how do you manage to g-get that wonderful dirty tone on your instrument? I've tried everything. I tried soaking my reeds in water overnight". Pee Wee, hunching and twisting as he finally glanced at his tremulous admirer, advised: "Why don't you try soaking your head in whisky?"

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Ralph Berton, de la radio WNYC, promovió la actuación de Pee Wee Russell en el programa Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street el 6 de enero de 1941, donde Pee Wee, acompañado por Joe Sullivan, Eddie Condon y Dave Tough, tocó dos blues. Después del show, un estudiante de clarinete de quince años que había estado entre el público, se aproximó a su héroe buscando algún consejo ténico y, de acuerdo con Ralph Berton, ésta fue la conversación:

"Señor Russell... Siempre he querido preguntarle... ¿cómo consigue sacar ese maravilloso tono sucio de su instrumento? Lo he intentado todo, incluso poner las cañas a remojar en agua durante toda una noche". Cuando por fin Pee Wee le echó una mirada a su tímido admirador, se retorció y encorvó para aconsejarle: "¿Por qué no pruebas a poner tu cabeza a remojar en whisky?"

Downbeat "Immortals Of Jazz"

From September 1939 to August 1941, Downbeat published a series of biographical sketches called "Immortals Of Jazz". A quick look at the complete list may supplement Downbeat polls in order to give a hint of what was "popular" at the time.

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Desde septiembre de 1939 hasta agosto de 1941, Downbeat publicó una serie de perfiles biográficos con el nombre de "Inmortales del Jazz". Un rápido vistazo a la lista completa de estos perfiles y a la de las encuestas de Downbeat puede dar una idea de lo que era "popular" en el jazz de aquellos años.

Red Nichols (Sept., 1939)
Red McKenzie (Oct. 15, 1939)
Gene Krupa (Nov. 1, 1939)
Fletcher Henderson (Nov. 15, 1939)
Louis Armstrong (Dec. 15, 1939)
Duke Ellington (Jan. 15, 1940)
Benny Goodman (Feb. 1, 1940)
Coleman Hawkins (Feb. 15, 1940)
Joe Venuti (Mar. 1, 1940)
Frank Teschemaker (Mar. 15, 1940)
Johnny Dodds (Apr. 1, 1940)
Jelly Roll Morton (Apr. 15, 1940)
Muggsy Spanier (May 1, 1940)
King Oliver (May, 15 1940)
Gil Rodin (June 1, 1940)
Red Norvo (June 15, 1940)
Earl Hines (July 1, 1940)
Sidney Bechet (July 15, 1940)
Bix Beiderbecke (Aug. 1, 1940)
Emmet Hardy (Aug. 15, 1940)
Jimmy Dorsey (Sept. 1, 1940)
Benny Carter (Sept. 15, 1940)
Salvatore Massano (Eddie Lang) (Oct. 1, 1940)
Leon Rappolo (Oct. 15, 1940)
Frank Trumbauer (Nov. 1, 1940)
Don Redman (Nov. 15, 1940)
Jack Teagarden (Dec. 1, 1940)
Mary Lou Williams (Dec. 15, 1940)
Chick Webb (Jan. 1, 1941)
Fats Waller (Jan. 15, 1941)
Miff Mole (Feb. 1, 1941)
Jimmy Noone (Feb. 15, 1941)
Jess Stacy (Mar. 1, 1941)
J.C. Higginbotham (Mar. 15, 1941)
Teddy Wilson (Apr. 1, 1941)
Roy Eldridge (Apr. 15, 1941)
Ben Pollack (May 1, 1941)
Tommy Dorsey (May 15, 1941)
Bud Freeman (June 1, 1941)
Count Basie (June 15, 1941)
Pete Johnson (July 1, 1941)
Mildred Bailey (July 15, 1941)
Wingy Manone (Aug. 1, 1941)

Benny Carter and the QHCF in Barcelona (Jan. 29&31, 1936) [ENG]

After two minor festivals in the summer and the autumn of 1935, the Hot Club of Barcelona went to town signing Benny Carter and the Quintet of the Hot Club of France including Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli for the III Festival de Jazz (January 1936).

Quintet of the Hot Club of France bandmembers were playing in a variety of ensembles and regrouped for the Spanish tour; telegrams were sent to Stéphane in Monte Carlo, and he flew to Barcelona to join the ensemble.

Benny Carter had arrived in Paris in 1935 to play with the Willie Lewis orchestra and would stay in Europe until 1938, as an arranger for the BBC orchestra (at Leonard Feather’s suggestion) and travelling all over Europe, playing and recording with the top-notch British, French and Scandinavian jazz musicians, as well as with other American expatriates such as Coleman Hawkins.

The two Barcelona concerts took place on January 29 and 31, 1936, at the Cine Coliseum and the Palau de la Música Catalana, respectively. On both concerts, Benny Carter played accompanied by the Hot Club of Barcelona Orchestra, conducted by pianist Antonio Matas and made up of outstanding jazzmen from the best orchestras in town, such as Sebastián Albalat (tenor sax), Magín Munill (trumpet) and José Bellés (drums) from the Napoleon’s Band, Francisco Gabarró (trombone) from the Miuras de Sobré, José Domínguez (alto sax) and Fernando Carriedo (trombone) from the Matas Band, José Ribalta (trumpet) and Steve Ericsson (guitar) from the Demon’s Jazz, Antonio Russell (bass) from the Casanovas Orchestra and José Masó (trumpet) from the 16 Artistas Unidos.

Both concerts were a great success and reviews on newspapers were unstinting in their praise, except for JLL from La Veu De Catalunya, who called Benny Carter “an authentic black man playing the most ignoble of the musical instruments” and described the Quintet of the Hot Club of France as “five white men mimicking black men’s primitivism”. [1]. In return, Benny Carter praised the Spanish musicians’ musicality and their outstanding ability to improvise, stating that “I’m amazed by your jazz professionals” [2]. This dedication was published on the cover of Jazz Magazine (official magazine of the Hot Club of Barcelona), #5, February 1936:

“In as few words as possible I should like to thank the members of the Hot Club and also the general public of Barcelona for the enthusiasm shown at my concert. I may truly say that I have enjoyed playing for you much more than you enjoyed listening. Nevertheless, thanks for listening.

Musically Yours,
Benny Carter”

Grappelli recalls that “we had a magnificent reception marked by all the warmth and enthusiasm the Spaniards are capable of. After each concert, hats rained down onto the stage as though it were a bullfight. It was marvellous!”

I’ve found two mentions of additional concerts, but my research to find any document brought no results:

-José María García Martínez, in his book Del Fox-Trot Al Jazz Flamenco. El Jazz En España 1919-1996 (Alianza Editorial, 1996), mentions an extra concert at the Teatro Olimpia, with Jaume Vila sitting in for Stéphane Grappelli, who refused to play.

-Michel Dregni, in Django: The Life And Music Of A Gipsy Legend (Oxford University Press, 2004), states that “the tour began at the Cinema Coliseum on January 29 and 30 and continued at Musica Catalana (sic) on January 31 and February 1 (…). In the end, the Spanish tour was a resounding success (…) and the Quintette played double the concerts scheduled”. In my opinion, according to advertisements and reviews published in La Vanguardia (see images), this possibility is nearly ruled out.

Coda: Dregni also tells this story, not mentioned neither in Chema García’s book nor in Jazz En Barcelona 1920-1965 by Jordi Pujol Baulenas (Almendra Music, 2005) and for which I have found no evidence in the archives of the newspapers from this period. According to Dregni, “when the applause ended, a surprise awaited the musicians. The concert organizer had departed with the proceeds. The band was paid an advance of 3.000 francs before leaving Paris, but now the balance of 4.000 francs plus their travel expenses were gone. Django, Carter, and the bandmates pooled the money in their pockets to afford train tickets home, with one lone Catalonian sausage to slice up between them to quell their stomachs on the long journey to Paris”. You can smell a faint whiff of literature –call it fable or legend- in this passage.

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[1] Quoted by N. Suris in “Así se hace la crítica”, Jazz Magazine, March 1936
[2] N. Suris: “Benny Carter nos hace confidencias”, Jazz Magazine, February 1936

Transcription books - vintage covers

In the 1940s, Leeds Music Corporation published several books of transcriptions with very nice vintage design on some of the covers and at least two trumpet/cornet & trombone warm-up books under Rex Stewart's and J.C. Higginbotham's names. They all appear to have the same illustrator, who signed (just on some of those covers) simply as "Holley".

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En los años 40, Leeds Music Corporation publicó una serie de libros de transcripciones con algunas portadas magníficas y al menos dos libros de ejercicios de calentamiento para trompeta/corneta y trombón, firmados por Rex Stewart y J.C. Higginbotham. Todas las portadas parecen hechas por el mismo dibujante, que firmó algunas como "Holley".

Benny Carter and the QHCF in Barcelona (Jan. 29&31, 1936) [ESP]

This is the chronicle of the concerts that Benny Carter, on one hand, and the Quintet of the Hot Club of France, on the other, gave in Barcelona in early 1936. I'll start with the Spanish version, but my foreign readers can be sure they'll have their English version.

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Tras dos minifestivales de menor calado en el verano y el otoño de 1935, el Hot Club de Barcelona tiró la casa por la ventana para su III Festival de Jazz (enero de 1936), contratando a Benny Carter y al Quinteto del Hot Club de Francia que incluía a Django Reinhardt y Stéphane Grappelli.

Los miembros del Quinteto del Hot Club de Francia estaban por aquellas fechas dispersos en varios grupos distintos y se reagruparon para las actuaciones de Barcelona. En concreto, Stéphane Grappelli se encontraba en Monte Carlo y hubo que enviarle un telegrama para que cogiera un avión y se presentara en Barcelona.

Benny Carter había llegado a París en 1935 para tocar con la orquesta de Willie Lewis y permanecería en Europa hasta 1938, empleado como arreglista de la orquesta de la BBC (por sugerencia de Leonard Feather) y viajando por toda Europa, tocando y grabando con los mejores músicos de jazz británicos, franceses y escandinavos, así como con otros expatriados norteamericanos como Coleman Hawkins.

Los conciertos barceloneses tuvieron lugar los días 29 y 31 de enero de 1936 en el Cine Coliseum y en el Palau de la Música Catalana, respectivamente. En ambos, Benny Carter tocó acompañado por la Orquesta del Hot Club de Barcelona, dirigida por su pianista Antonio Matas e integrada por destacados jazzmen pertenecientes a algunas de las mejores orquestas de la ciudad, como Sebastián Albalat (saxo tenor), Magín Munill (trompeta) y José Bellés (batería) de la Napoleon’s Band, Francisco Gabarró (trombón) de los Miuras de Sobré, José Domínguez (saxo alto) y Fernando Carriedo (trombón) de la Matas Band, José Ribalta (trompeta) y Steve Ericsson (guitarra) de la Demon’s Jazz, Antonio Russell (contrabajo) de la Casanovas Orchestra y José Masó (trompeta) de Los 16 Artistas Unidos.

Los dos conciertos tuvieron un gran éxito de público y todas las actuaciones fueron reseñadas con elogio por los periódicos barceloneses, a excepción de JLL en La Veu De Catalunya, quien tildó a Benny Carter de “negro auténtico que toca el más innoble de los instrumentos musicales” y describió al Quinteto del Hot Club de Francia como “cinco blancos que imitan el primitivismo de los negros” [1]. Recíprocamente, Benny Carter elogió la musicalidad y la notable capacidad de improvisar de los músicos españoles, declarando que “vuestros profesionales del jazz me han dejado pasmado” [2]. Esta es la dedicatoria firmada por el músico americano que apareció en la portada de Jazz Magazine (revista oficial del Hot Club de Barcelona), número 5, febrero 1936, Año II:

“In as few words as possible I should like to thank the members of the Hot Club and also the general public of Barcelona for the enthusiasm shown at my concert. I may truly say that I have enjoyed playing for you much more than you enjoyed listening. Nevertheless, thanks for listening.

Musically Yours,
Benny Carter”

Por su parte, Grappelli recuerda que “tuvimos una magnífica recepción marcada por la cordialidad y el entusiasmo de los españoles. Después de cada concierto, el escenario quedó sembrado de sombreros, como si fuera una corrida de toros. ¡Fue maravilloso!”

Existen dos menciones a conciertos adicionales de los que no he podido obtener ninguna evidencia documental:

-José María García Martínez, en su libro Del Fox-Trot Al Jazz Flamenco. El Jazz En España 1919-1996 (Alianza Editorial, 1996), hace referencia a un recital extra que se acordó celebrar en el Teatro Olimpia, en el que Stéphane Grappelli se negó a intervenir, siendo sustituido por Jaume Vila.

-Michel Dregni, en Django: The Life And Music Of A Gipsy Legend (Oxford University Press, 2004), señala que “la gira barcelonesa del Quinteto del Hot Club de Francia comenzó en el Cinema Coliseum los días 29 y 30 de enero y continuó en la Música Catalana (sic) los días 31 de enero y 1 de febrero”, con el doble de actuaciones de las previstas. En mi opinión, y de acuerdo con los anuncios y las reseñas de esta gira publicados en La Vanguardia (ver imágenes), esta posibilidad queda prácticamente descartada.

Para concluir, Dregni también narra una anécdota que no se menciona ni en el libro de Chema García ni en Jazz En Barcelona 1920-1965 de Jordi Pujol Baulenas (Almendra Music, 2005), y para la que tampoco he encontrado ninguna evidencia en los archivos de los periódicos de la época. Según Dregni, “el organizador del concierto desapareció con las ganancias. El Quinteto del Hot Club de Francia había recibido 3.000 francos por anticipado antes de salir de París, pero nunca cobró los restantes 4.000 francos ni los gastos del viaje. Los músicos tuvieron que rascarse los bolsillos para pagar los billetes de vuelta en el tren, y tuvieron que compartir una butifarra catalana para acallar sus estómagos en el largo viaje a París”. Un tufillo literario, ya sea fábula o leyenda, asoma en este pasaje.

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[1] Citado por N. Suris en “Así se hace la crítica”, Jazz Magazine, marzo 1936
[2] N. Suris: “Benny Carter nos hace confidencias”, Jazz Magazine, febrero 1936

The Lion, The Lamb & Eubie Blake at Newport '60

In the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival, boisterous spectators created a major disturbance, and 12,000 college students were finally tamed by the state police, National Guard and the U.S. Marines. Poet Langston Hughes, with the strong conviction that the disturbances would mean the end of the festival, wrote an impromptu lyric, "Goodbye Newport Blues," that he brought to the Muddy Waters band onstage, where Waters pianist Otis Spann sang it:

I got to keep up singing
Though I got the Newport blues . . .
Those sad, bad Goodbye Newport blues

In this crowdy and tumultuous environment, the performance of ragtime and stride pianists like Eubie Blake, Donald Lambert or Willie The Lion Smith could be seen like nothing more than an anachronism.

But, despite the poor image and sound quality and the strange feet fetishism of the camera man, we must be thankful for having these six videos, where we can watch, for example, Donald Lambert playing his amazing arrangement of Grieg’s “Anitra’s Dance”, with an artistic level at least as high as his famous January 30, 1941 Bluebird recording, or The Lamb and Eubie Blake playing together on James P. Johnson’s “The Charleston”. This is the only recorded duet between Lambert and anyone else (he apparently did some duet work with Paul Seminole in the 1920's, but no recordings survive) and it gets so good near the end that surprisingly the audience clamors for more (MORE!) and of course they have to do a few more choruses, this time with the Danny Barker group joining in.

Otherwise, aural evidence confirms that these "Liza" and "Anitra's Dance" performances by Donald Lambert are those included in the Storyville CD Donald Lambert - Recorded 1959-1961 (Storyville 101 8376). Storyville is incorrectly listing those tracks as being recorded on July 7, 1960, when the Lamb appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival was positively on July 1, 1960 (check the New York Times review from July 2, 1960).

Old jazz magazines - record ads [3]

Here's the third installment of my series on old record advertisements from vintage jazz magazines. This time the source is Needle (from June 1944 to December 1944) and labels are Asch, Apollo, Blue Note, Savoy and the very rare S.D.