jeffcrom

Paul Desmond - Take Ten (RCA Victor stereo)

Atlanta has some great record stores. Check out: Wax n Facts Wuxtry Full Moon. This small store is around the corner from my house. Records Galore. A little bit of a drive to the suburb of Clarkston. Live music - well, Atlanta is pretty depressing for a city this size. Gary Motley, a good straight-ahead pianist, is playing at Churchill Grounds Friday and Saturday. The Nighthawks are at Blind Willie's blues club on Friday. Pick up a copy of Creative Loafing at one of the record stores and see if anything strikes you. Do you have a car here? PM me if you want a ride to record stores.

Yes, I love swing/mainstream jazz on 78s, both for the chance to hear rare material and because they sound so "present." But as you can probably tell from my posts, I'm really into early jazz, and where I live, you can still find decent records from before 1935 sometimes. Once a month or so I'll drive around and hit antique and junk shops in north Georgia, and I've found some surprisingly good stuff at times. And a couple of the bands I "specialize" in, like the Original Memphis Five and the Louisiana Five, are not particularly sought after by collectors, so I often find their records on Ebay for a few bucks. There were several record labels called Delta; this one was a subsidiary or affiliate of Manor, according to Manfred Selchow's Ed Hall bio-discography. The other sides recorded at this 1944 session were issued under Sid Catlett's name. The one I played last night is excellent musically, but was the worst-sounding record I played all night. I've thought about experimenting with different stylii, but so far I just use whatever came with my Grado 78 cartridge. I worry about starting down that road - part of me wants a fancy variable speed turntable and an equalizer with presets for various types of 78s and an extra cartridge wired to play vertically-cut records. But collecting 78s is already madness, and my current setup sounds good enough for me. So far I have refrained from descending further into madness. For years, when my wife rolled her eyes about the number of records and CDs I bought, I could say, "Well, at least I don't collect 78s. Those people are crazy!" Look at me now.

More late-night 78 listening last night - a particularly enjoyable selection: Coleman Hawkins - Body and Soul/Fine Dinner (RCA Victor); early 1950's pressing. Ed Hall and the Big City Jazzmen - Blues in Room 920/Sweet Georgia Brown (Delta) DeParis Brothers Orchestra - Change o' Key Boogie/The Sheik of Araby (Commodore) Jam Session at Commodore No. 6 - When Day is Done/At Sundown (Commodore 12"); with Hackett, Russell, Condon, etc. Mildred Bailey - Easy to Love/Don't Take Your Love From Me (Columbia); some nice Teddy Wilson piano. Count Basie Kansas City Seven - Lester Leaps In/Dickie's Dream (Vocalion) Duke Ellington - Sepia Panorama/Harlem Air Shaft (Victor) I really enjoyed that 45 minutes.

I've got one of those Audiophile 78 RPM "LP's" - by Harry Blons' Dixieland Band. Ewing Nunn, who ran Audiophile, was a recording genius. The Audiophile LPs I have from the 1950's and '60's are among the best-sounding records in my collection.

Gary Burton/Stephane Grappelli - Paris Encounter (Atlantic mono promo)

Glad you're healing up and can once again negotiate the wonderful world of 78s, Clunky. Late last night, vintage jazz: Original Dixieland Jazz Band - Margie/Palesteena (Victor, 1920) Tony Parenti's New Orleanians - In the Dungeon/When You and I Were Pals (Columbia, 1928) Wingy Mannone - Tar Paper Stomp/Tin Roof Blues (Champion, 1930) - a later pressing, made after Decca had bought Champion. Original Memphis Five - My Papa Doesn't Two Time No Time/High Society Seven (Sam Lanin Orch.) - Hula Lou (Grey Gull, 1924). Clarinetist Jimmy Lytell is one of my favorites from the 1920's - he sounds so good on the OM5 side. Fletcher Henderson - My Rose Marie/Lanin's Arcadians - Some Other Day (Silvertone, 1924). The Henderson side has 24 bars of Louis and some nice Buster Bailey.

John Coltrane - The Heavyweight Champion (Rhino/Atlantic). When I listen to this set, I usually program tracks to duplicate one of the original albums, but tonight I'm spinning disc four as is.

In the Year of the Dragon (Paul Motian) Don't Let the Dragon Eat Your Mother (John McLaughlin) The Dragon Suite (Marc Levin) Drinkin' Dragon's Blood (The Radiators) and, of course (sorry): Puff the Magic Dragon (Peter, Paul and Mary) Next up: FIVE

Ain't none of us getting younger. Here's to a speedy recovery, Chuck.

Just spun two Hot Jazz Club of America reissues from the late 1940s. HJCA records were pressed on vinyl, and sounded pretty good, for dubs. These two are by a band that recorded a bunch of sides over four days in 1932 - the results were originally released on Vocalion, Banner, Perfect, and other labels. The band was called the Memphis Night Hawks, the Alabama Rascals, Darnell Howard and his Memphis Night Hawks, and Roy Palmer's Alabama Rascals. My copies use the last name. Personnel is not entirely known, but Darnell Howard, Roy Palmer, and percussionist Buddy Burton are on board. It's fun "hokum" jazz. Georgia Grind/Stomp That Thing (HJCA 71) Nancy Jane/The Dirty Dozen's Cousin (HJCA 72)

Percy Humphrey - At Manny's Tavern (Center). 1953 dance hall tapes by a five-piece band, including Sweet Emma Barrett.

I'm not a Knocky Parker expert at all - I have a couple of albums (a trio with co-leader Omer Simeon on clarinet and a Tony Parenti album from the 1960's) and a few scattered tracks on various albums. I somehow had a negative impression, remembering his playing as being kind of heavy-handed. Well, I've got the Parker/Simeon album on right now, and it's wonderful. Parker has a clean touch - firm, but not heavy-handed at all. What was I remembering? Was I thinking of Wally Rose? I just found online (and sprung for) the Doc Evans album Jazz at Carleton with Parker on piano. I've been wanting to hear that one, since I'm married to a Carelton College alumna. I'll spin that Parenti album soon, as well. And Mr. Parker's Light Crust Doughboys feature "Knocky, Knocky" from 1938 is pretty damn good.

Forgot to mention this afternoon spin: Hampton Hawes All-Stars - Memory Lane Live (JAS). A 1970 jam session with Harry Edison, Sonny Criss, Teddy Edwards, Leroy Vinnegar, Bobby Thompson, and Big Joe Turner. While looking for a picture online I discovered that this one has received the Fresh Sound treatment. Now playing: Knocky Parker/Omer Simeon - Parker-Simeon Storyville Creepers (GHB). A nice 1949 concert with Arthur Herbert on drums.

Art Hodes - Mostly Blues (Audiophile stereo). I've mentioned this one before, I think, although I can't find a good picture online. It's an excellent quintet date (Marty Grosz on guitar) on a fabulous-sounding 1957 stereo (!) album. Now: Okeh Western Swing (Epic), disc two.

My copy has thumbtack holes in the corners of the opened gatefold from where the thumbtacks went to pin it up on the wall back in the day. Can't say that I blame the original owner.... Now: Mississippi Delta Blues Festival '79 (Delta Blues). Fabulous stuff here - Napoleon Strickland's Fife and Drum Band, Boyd Rivers, Big Joe Williams, Johnny Shines, and more.

Doc Paulin's Marching Band (Folkways). 1980 recordings of the rough-and-ready brass band that trained several generations of New Orleans musicians.

Bunky Green - My Babe (Exodus mono). Bunky's first, I believe, with Donald Byrd, Jimmy Heath, and Wynton Kelly.

Played a few of my Jazz Record Mart 78s today, starting with three great pianists: Mary Lou Williams - Swingin' for Joy/Clean Pickin' (Decca, 1936) Willie Smith (The Lion) and His Cubs - More Than That/I'm All Out of Breath (Decca, 1937) Jess Stacy and His Orchestra - Daybreak Serenade/It's Only a Paper Moon (Victor, 1945). Lee Wiley vocal on side two. Ended with Paul Quinichette - No Parking/People Will Say We're In Love (Mercury, 1953). This is in the original sleeve and is so pristine that I think it must be unsold store stock.

Well, I'm an AM yellow-label completist, but there are several of the blue label issues I don't have. I even got rid of one - I thought the featured artist just wasn't in good shape, compared to his other records. I definitely think there are some weaker sessions there, but I haven't heard them all.

Yes to your Jelly Roll question - after the first volume came out, Jazzology/Solo Art either lost the rights to the LOC material or found out that they never had them - I don't know the exact story. And I second your recommentation of the Barnes/Bocage Big 5. That's one of my favorite New Orleans sessions of the 50's - what a glorious mess it is. By that I mean that it's all over the place stylistically - Emile Barnes is playing a rough, early-20th-century style, Peter Bocage is also somewhat old-fashioned, but much more sophisticated, and Homer Eugene is basically playing bebop guitar. And nobody's worried that it might not work - they're just playing music. I love New Orleans - they still don't care about "styles" down there.

Continuing my irrationality: Ken Colyer's Omega Brass Band - Marching to New Orleans (British Decca 10"). When it comes to New Orleans-style brass bands, only Bunk's Brass Band, the Zenith Brass Band, and the Eureka Brass Band beat Colyer's Omega BB to records.

Ken Colyer - Club Session With Colyer (London). My affection for British trad trumpeter Ken Colyer is not really rational, especially considering my comments about derivative music elsewhere in the forums today. Part of it has to do with Colyer's interesting repertoire - few, if any, New Orleans bands would have been playing "Chrysanthemum Rag" or "Snag It" in 1956. And Colyer was just so damn good, even if he wasn't that original. Oh, well - I never claimed to be consistent.

Basin Street Blues (Louis Armstrong and many others) Burgundy Street Blues (George Lewis) Gravier Street Blues (Johnny Dodds) Canal Street Blues (King Oliver) I've Got the Blues for Rampart Street (Ida Cox) Next up: RADIO

What a nice thing to say! I thought about telling the folks here that I was going to visit, but didn't, for a variety of reasons - it was a short trip (just two full days), I didn't want to abandon my wife too much, and I had been too stressed out about my dad to post much of anything here. It certainly didn't occur to me that you would have been willing to make the drive over to meet me. It was a great visit, short as it was. I don't get to visit very often, but Chicago is a city I really love.