Here are some silly songs that make me laugh. Not in any particular order.
Direct link to 8tracks | Shorpy provided the brilliant photo.
Slim’s Jam Slim Gaillard and his Orchestra (Bam Brown, Zutty Singleton, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Jack McVea) The Legends of Savoy, Vol. 2 110 1945 3:17
The Stuff’s Out [it jumped just a minute ago] Skeets Tolbert and his Gentlemen of Swing (Carl Smith, Lem Johnson, Fred Jefferson, Al Hall, Hubert Pettaway) Skeets Tolbert 1931-1940 153 1939 3:24
Hey! Stop Kissin’ My Sister Fats Waller and His Rhythm (John Hamilton, Gene Sedric, Al Casey, Cedric Wallace, Slick Jones) Last Years (1940-1943) (Disc 1) 191 1940 2:48
Murder In The Moonlight Red McKenzie and his Rhythm Kings (Eddie Farley, Mike Riley, Slats Young, Conrad Lanoue, Eddie Condon, George Yorke, Johnny Powell) Classic Sessions 1927-49 (Volume 2) 193 1935 2:55
It Ain’t Right Stuff Smith and his Onyx Club Boys (Jonah Jones, Jame Sherman, Cozy Cole, Bobby Bennett, Mack Walker) Stuff Smith: Complete Jazz Series 1936 – 1939 196 1936 2:42
I’ve Got To Be A Rug Cutter Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra The Complete 1932-1940 Brunswick, Columbia And Master Recordings Of Duke Ellington And His Famous Orchestra (disc 06) 236 1937 2:35
Indiana Mound City Blue Blowers (Bunny Berigan, Eddie Miller, Gil Bowers, Nappy Lamare, Harry Goodman, Ray Bauduc, Red McKenzi) Classic Sessions 1927-49 (Volume 1) 230 1935 2:54
I Lost My Girl From Memphis Jimmie Noone’s Apex Club Orchestra (Eddie Pollack, Zinky Cohn, Wilbur Gorham, Bill Newton, Johnny Wells, Georgia White) Jimmie Noone: The Complete Recordings, Vol.2 CD 3 280 1930 2:28
Organ Grinder Blues Clarence Williams and his Orchestra (Ed Allen, Cecil Scott, James P. Johnson, Floyd Casey, Eva Taylor, Clarence Todd) Complete Jazz Series 1934 104 1934 3:11
Let’s Sow A Wild Oat Jimmie Noone’s Apex Club Orchestra (Joe Poston, Alex Hill, Junie Cobb, Bill Newton, Johnny Wells, George Mitchell, Fayette Williams) The Jimmie Noone Collection 185 1928 3:03
Then You’re Drunk Jimmie Noone Trio (Gideon Honore, Henry Forte, Ed Thompson vcl) Jimmie Noone 1934 – 1940 140 1940 2:59
I knew I had to start with Slim Gaillard, but I wasn’t sure where. Slim and Slam are so obvious. But I really like this nice, slow song with lots of talking. Slim does his usual shtick, but you also get to hear the rest of the band mucking about.
Stuff’s Out. I like thinking about dancing in inappropriate clothing when I listen to this song. You know, shirts that ride up, necklines that plunge a little low, brassieres that don’t quite do the job. Tolbert might not have been being as kind as me, but I like the idea of a lady jiggling her bits with delight.
“Swine! To the pigpen!” Fats is another obvious choice. But this is the best intro ever.
‘Murder in the Moonlight’ isn’t exactly a funny song, but I like singing it because it’s cheesy and makes me laugh: “I’ve been killed with kindness; it’s love in the first degree.”
‘It Ain’t Right’ isn’t really a funny song either, but I really like the timing on the vocals “mama, I’m talk-in”. It’s really clever, and my response to cleverness when I’m dancing is usually to shout out with inappropriate laughter.
The opening few bars of this song make me laugh and laugh and laugh. Dave exclaimed “Child!” at about the sixty-fifth playing.
Someone playing the comb just makes me laugh. I love the melody of ‘Indiana’ – I love singing it loudly and dramatically. Also, the Mound City Blue Blowers are just funny.
I love Jimmie Noone more than anything. More. Than. Anything. I had about ten of his songs on this list, but had to cut it down. This one doesn’t have the funniest lyrics, but like ‘Murder in the Moonlight’ and ‘Indiana’, it has a fun riff that’s cool to sing and sounds excellently dramatic.
When Clarence Williams tells you to “wrap your lips around that clarinet and get good and low”, you do as you’re told. More talking, more fun. “Yeah boy, don’t you pull off your shoes in here.”
More Jimmie Noone. Singing about sowing a wild oat.
I really liked Ed Thompson’s scraggly vocal singing about knowing when you’re drunk.
