"Strange Enchantment" this week on Night Lights

[ghost of miles]

This week on Night Lights it's "Strange Enchantment," a program of Halloween-related jazz, including music from Duke Ellington ("Stalking Monster"), Bill Evans ("Witchcraft"), Kay Starr ("The Headless Horseman"), Rahsaan Roland Kirk ("Haunted Feelings")and a very young Gil Evans with Skinny Ennis ("Strange Enchantment") as well as tracks from Andrew Hill, Miles Davis, and Lenny Bruce's Dracula-as-roadweary-musician monologue. You'll also hear the true story of the New Orleans Axeman, who wreaked bloody mayhem in New Orleans in 1918-19 and who promised to spare anyone who happened to be playing jazz. You can read more about the New Orleans Axeman here. The sheet music of the song "The Mysterious Axman's Jazz," written in response to the killer in 1919, is pictured above, taken from the 1947 WPA book YA YA GUMBO (a collection of Louisiana folk tales). The program airs on WFIU at 11:10 Saturday night (9:10 California time, 12:10 a.m. New York time). You can listen live here, or hear the archived edition next week in the archives.

Next week we'll be launching our first-ever Night Lights fund-drive program. I'll be giving away copies of the 4-CD HOWLS, RAPS & ROARS box-set (featuring Lenny Bruce and Allen Ginsberg, among others), the Herbie Nichols Project's STRANGE CITY, the CD/book of Frank O'Hara reading his own poetry, Duke Ellington's FAR EAST SUITE, and more. (I'll also be giving away some Art Farmer/Jazztet Verve Elites to anybody from Organissimo who pledges.) Because of the time change, Night Lights will be airing at 12:10 a.m. instead, but I'm happy to report that discussions are underway to retain the program in its current time-slot.

Edited October 29, 2004 by ghost of miles

[Dan Gould]

David,

Thanks a lot for the link to the Axeman story. Never heard of it before, very interesting!

[ghost of miles]

David,

Thanks a lot for the link to the Axeman story. Never heard of it before, very interesting!

Yeah, a friend of mine hepped me to the story several years ago. I've searched in vain for a recording of "The Mysterious Axeman's Jazz, " but I'm not sure if one was ever made or not.