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September 4, 2010

8track: Teddy Wilson plays piano

Posted by dogpossum on September 4, 2010 12:29 AM | Comments (0)

I've made a new 8track.

Here's a direct link to the mix.

I stole the photo for this mix from here, the Life Magazine site. The photo is actually taken from one of the Benny Goodman Madhattan Room gigs, and I've included one of the live recordings from that gig in this mix.

Ok, so this 8track is Teddy Wilson themed. I love this man. He played in so many bands, doing all sorts of stuff from hot New Orleans revivalist action to scorching 1930s big bands. He was also the king of precise, beautifully delicate solo work, and of course, his work with Billie Holiday is beyond compare. I've chosen a few songs from 1932 to 1946, with a range of bands. Here's the track list:

(title band album bpm year song length)

I've Found A New Baby New Orleans Feetwarmers (Tommy Ladnier, Teddy Nixon, Sidney Bechet, Hank Duncan, Wilson Myers, Morris Morand) The Young Bechet 269 1932 3:14
High Society Louis Armstrong and his Orchestra (Teddy Wilson) Louis Armstrong and his Orchestra 1932-1933 250 1933 3:27
Swingin' With Mez Max Kaminsky, Freddy Goodman, Ben Gusick, Floyd O'Brien, Milton 'Mezz' Mezzrow, Benny Carter, Johnny Russell, Teddy Wilson, Pops Foster Mezz Mezzrow: Complete Jazz Series 1928 - 1936 139 6th November 1933 3:05
Easy Like (Take B) Wingy Manone and his Orchestra (Dicky Wells, Artie Shaw, Bud Freeman, Jelly Roll Morton, Teddy Wilson, John Kirby, Kaiser Marshall) The Wingy Manone Collection Vol. 2 1934 2:38
In The Slot (Take A) Wingy Manone and his Orchestra (Dicky Wells, Artie Shaw, Bud Freeman, Jelly Roll Morton, Teddy Wilson, John Kirby, Kaiser Marshall) The Wingy Manone Collection Vol. 2 243 1934 2:50
Jungle Love Teddy Wilson and his Orchestra (Bobby Hackett, Pee Wee Russel, Johnny Hodges, Allan Reuss, Al Hall, Johnny Blowers, Nan Wynn) Teddy Wilson (disc 2) 190 1935 2:50
Chimes At The Meeting Willie Bryant and his Orchestra (Teddy Wilson, Cozy Cole) Willie Bryant 1935-1936 245 1935 3:01
Long Gone From Bowling Green Willie Bryant and his Orchestra (Teddy Wilson) Willie Bryant 1935-1936 201 1935 2:51
Warmin' Up Teddy Wilson and his Orchestra (Roy Eldridge, Buster Bailey, Chu Berry) Classic Chu Berry Columbia And Victor Sessions (Disc 2) 241 1936 3:20
Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen, Part 1 Benny Goodman Quartet (Teddy Wilson, Gene Krupa, Lionel Hampton, Martha Tilton) RCA Victor Small Group Recordings (Disc 2) 176 1937 3:27
Avalon Benny Goodman Quartet (Teddy Wilson, Gene Krupa, Lionel Hampton) Benny Goodman: The Complete Madhattan Room Broadcasts (vol 1: Satan Takes a Holiday) 258 1937 2:47
Let's Call The Whole Thing Off Billie Holiday and her Orchestra (Buster Bailey, Teddy Wilson, John Kirby) Lady Day: The Complete Billie Holiday On Columbia (1933-1944) (Disc 03) 124 1937 2:38
Honeysuckle Rose Teddy Wilson Quartet All Star Jazz Quartets (disc 1) 168 1937 3:13
Just A Mood (Blue Mood) Parts 1 & 2 Teddy Wilson Quartet All Star Jazz Quartets (disc 1) 88 1937 6:48
Practice Makes Perfect Billie Holiday and her Orchestra (Roy Eldridge, Don Redman, Georgie Auld, Don Byas, Jimmy Hamilton, Teddy Wilson, John Collins, Al Hall, Kenny Clarke) Lady Day: The Complete Billie Holiday On Columbia (1933-1944) (Disc 06) 153 1940 2:37
Gloomy Sunday Teddy Wilson and his Orchestra (Billie Holiday) The Lady Of The Blues 1941 3:12
Flying Home Teddy Wilson Sextet (Emmett Berry, Benny Morton, Edmond Hall, Slam Stewart, Big Sid Catlett) The Complete Associated Transcriptions 1944 198 New York, 15th June 1944 4:56
Indiana Teddy Wilson Sextet (Emmett Berry, Benny Morton, Edmond Hall, Slam Stewart, Big Sid Catlett) The Complete Associated Transcriptions 1944 217 New York, 15th June 1944 3:11
Cheek To Cheek Teddy Wilson Teddy Wilson (disc 5) 1946 2:25

The New Orleans Feetwarmers stuff is interesting, but it's not my super favourite. And that Louis Armstrong Orchestra track is a bit ordinary. But - Sidney Bechet and Louis Armstrong!
'Swinging with Mezz' is a cool one - Wilson is playing with a bunch of Chicago doods.
The Wingy Manones are good ones, and it's a mixed race band - check out the lineup!

I quite like the Teddy Wilson Orchestra 'Jungle Love', though I think 'Warmin' Up' is better.

The Willie Bryant stuff is rocking, and of course Wilson is responsible for the gorgeous introduction to 'Viper's Moan', a song that's overplayed (to wonderful effect) in lindy hopping circles, but which I haven't included here, because I actually prefer 'Chimes at the Meeting'. I once played that song for a crowd of beginners. I remember the expression on the face of one of the few experienced dancers (and DJs) in the room that night. And I _really_ remember the way the dancers (who were pretty much all noobs) went NUTS for this song.

(that's a pic of the Goodman Quartet - Wilson on piano, Goodman on clarinet, Hamp on vibes, Krupa on drums. I'm not sure who took that pic, but it gets used a LOT and is on the RCA small groups CD cover... It's actually a still from this amazing clip).

After 'Warmin' Up', things change a little because I visit some of the Goodman small group action. I adore this version of 'Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen' with Martha Tilton's gloriously laid back vocals. This is one seriously awesome song. It's really tight, precise, perfect (in typically Goodman style), but it's also swinging like the proverbial.

I followed this with another song by this group (minus Tilton), because it's a live recording from the Madhattan Room. These gigs were important because they were the first time Goodman took his mixed race small group on the stage, admittedly for a white crowd, but still. This was 1937, and that was some crazy arse shit to pull in segregated America. But this was Benny Goodman, a super extremely major rock star. And this band was phenomenally popular. Not to mention rockhardawesome. I adore the Lionel Hampton (vibes) and Gene Krupa (drums) combination. They were pretty badass percussionists, often known for a kind of blunt object approach. But Wilson and Goodman had a sort of powerful precision that seems to temper them. I adore this group and I think I have everything they did (not counting the harder to find live ones).

A note about those Madhattan gigs: apparently the crowd of star-struck teenagers kind of mobbed the stage, not really dancing, but kind of going ape shit. There are, however, some pics of kids dancing the Big Apple at this gig in the Life Magazine collection on Google.

From here, of course, I slide over to the QUEEN of everything, Billie Holiday. I love love love her work with the Teddy Wilson Orchestra. The songs they did together were attributed either to his band, or to a band under her name. Either way, the musicians they worked with were wonderful, and this combination of Wilson's wonderful precision and gorgeously delicate piano matched with Holiday's amazing delivery (the timing! the delays! the phrasing!) is beyond amazing. I'm also interested in John Kirby's presence in some of these sessions. He also did some pretty nifty small group stuff, in a similarly precise 'chamber jazz' style - he, Goodman and Wilson had much in common in their small group recordings.

I haven't got the details for the 'Teddy Wilson quartet' recordings in there, but I'm not sure that's Hampton in there on vibes. I'll have to look it up. I do like that song 'Just a Mood', and I suspect the trumpeter is Buck Clayton (who did so much work with Count Basie, with Billie Holiday and with Benny Goodman's small groups, in the same year these were recorded.

Then I squeeze in some more Billie Holiday. Because I can. I do like 'Gloomy Sunday', in part because I first heard it on Sinead O'Connor's album Am I Not Your Girl? which introduced me to jazz in 1992. That wasn't a terribly great album, but I bought it because I was into Sinead, and that's (partly) how I got into jazz, though I didn't start dancing until 1998.

(this image is from the Life collection and features Sid Catlett, but isn't the band I've included here... but the pic is GREAT, right?)

The Teddy Wilson Sextet stuff from 1944 is my current favourite band. Hot diggedy. Slam Stewart! That is some extremely hot shit, right there. I love that entire album and I thoroughly recommend it. It's a bit fiddly and probably in the chamber jazz category, but it's hotter than the Goodman stuff, and that version of 'Flying Home' shits all over the Goodman one that has a similar small group feel but is perhaps a bit too mannered to really pwn all. I love the song 'Indiana', though I most like the 1935 Mound City Blue Blowers version with the lyrics... gee, to think that that version was recorded only 2 years before Goodman did his Madhattan stuff... I think of the Mound City Blue Blowers as kind of the punkers of jazz - white boys with attitude, stuffing about with hot jazz (there are some good clips on Youtube which are really fun).

And then the last song is a solo piano piece. The song is one we tend to associate with Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong and other vocalists, particularly from the 50s. So it's kind of nice to hear Wilson do a fun, jumpy version. It's not the best quality, though, as it came from a cheap 4CD set. But it's definitely worth a listen. I think it best shows Wilson's style, so completely different from people like Fats Waller or Count Basie or Duke Ellington... I tend to associate Wilson with Woody Allen films, though he's not over-represented in the soundtracks.

I love Teddy Wilson. And I adore the variety of bands he's been in.

"8track: Teddy Wilson plays piano" was posted in the category 8 tracks and djing and lindy hop and other dances and music

June 22, 2010

8track: songs that might work for balboa

Posted by dogpossum on June 22, 2010 4:29 PM | Comments (1)

Or check it out here.
Image stoled from Shorpy.

I'm trying to get my brain around some balboa music. Buggered if I know what I'm doing. All this stuff is songs that I love, but which don't really always work for flatout badass lindy hop. What the hey - maybe they'd be good for bal? Who can say.

title artist album bpm year length

Chris And His Gang The Cairo Club Orchestra Sunday 180 2004 2:40
Swingin' On The Campus Cootie Williams and his Rug Cutters The Duke's Men: Small Groups Vol. 2 (Disc 2) 196 1939 2:42
Stompy Jones Duke Ellington The Very Best Of Duke Ellington 199 3:04
Stealin' Smack's Apples Glenn Miller's G.I.s (Peanuts Hucko, Mel Powell, Bernie Priven, Joe Schulman, Ray McKinley, Django Reinhardt) Glenn Miller's G.I.s in Paris 1945 175 1945 2:36
Boo-Woo Harry James and his Boogie Woogie Trio (Pete Johnson) Pete Johnson 1938-1939 209 1939 2:59
Zonky McKinney's Cotton Pickers (Don Redman) Zonky 226 1930 3:03
Sugar (That Sugar Baby O' Mine) Teddy Wilson and his Orchestra (Billie Holiday, Roy Eldridge, Benny Carter, Milt Hinton, Cozy Cole) Lady Day: The Complete Billie Holiday On Columbia (1933-1944) (Disc 05) 170 1939 2:48
I'm Crazy 'Bout My Baby (05-20-38) Una Mae Carlisle with Dave Wilkins, Bertie King, Alan Ferguson, Len Harrison, Hymie Schneider Una Mae Carlisle: Complete Jazz Series 1938 - 1941 201 1938 2:41

"8track: songs that might work for balboa" was posted in the category 8 tracks and djing and lindy hop and other dances and music

June 12, 2010

solo charleston comp MSF 2010 [edited]

Posted by dogpossum on June 12, 2010 6:47 PM | Comments (0)

Ok, so I've just checked this post that I wrote mid-exchange in a sleep-deprived haze, and realised that all of it is wrong. You can't listen to it here. That's a link to the image I used for the picture to go with the 8track.

Here's the player:

Or you can go to the 8track site to listen there.

The set list:

Shake That Thing Mora's Modern Rhythmists Devil's Serenade 227 2006 2:58
(a warm up all-skate track that everyone knew, but not the Vince Giordano version that usually gets played)

Digadoo Firecracker Jazz Band The Firecracker Jazz Band 247 2005 5:20

(My obsession with this band continues. I bought all their other albums the other day (you can see them here). This was a challenging song to play for a comp, particularly as they were doing shines at this point, and everyone had to deal with very different solos. But they did a brilliant job - it was super cool to see people enter with the vibe of the solo before, then suddenly realise 'oops, this is something different' then tailor their dancing to suit the music. So they weren't just dancing despite the music, pulling out stunts one after another, but actually dancing to the music. This is less common than you might think in a solo charleston comp, which can be a bit stunt-heavy. Anyways, this song is still one of my faves, and I've been playing this song for dancers for ages. It's long and complicated, but it's super neat.
The dancing was the best I'd seen all night, I think, and I had a lot of fun watching it.)

I Found A New Baby Firecracker Jazz Band The Firecracker Jazz Band 287 2005 4:05
(We had to do another round of shines as the crowd couldn't decide which people they wanted pulled out. So all the competitors (six instead of four) went back at it. This song is faster and kind of crazy. It's also kind of de rigeur to play this for solo charleston comps. Firecrackers again, because I love their crazy energy, and their 'sophisticated street sound'. This song kicked their arses, and we ended up with a winner).

Bugle Call Rag Jim Cullum Jazz Band (Duke Heitger, Clint Baker) Chasin' the Blues 243 3:51
(The winner, in charmingly good nature, conceded to a solo of triumph on request. This is the song I chose. It's a bit less frantic, because he was buggered. And we faded it at 30seconds. But he did a jolly good job).

plus some other ones I had on my short list:
Oriental Strut Firecracker Jazz Band 228 2005 The Firecracker Jazz Band
(Too many Firecracker songs for 8tracks).

Hop Head Charlestown Chasers 250 1995 Pleasure Mad 2:57

San Les Red Hot Reedwarmers 285 2007 Apex Blues4:45

Jubilee Stomp David Ostwald's Gully Low Jazz Band (Howard Alden, Mark Shane, Herlin Riley, David Ostwald, Ken Peplowski, Randy Sandke, Wycliffe Gordon) Blues In Our Heart 278 2006 3:22

Happy Feet The Manhattan Rhythm Kings The Aviator 233 2004 2:59

"solo charleston comp MSF 2010 [edited]" was posted in the category 8 tracks and djing and lindy hop and other dances and music

April 9, 2010

8track: strings and clapping for running

Posted by dogpossum on April 9, 2010 8:05 PM | Comments (0)

Image from shorpy, though I almost went with this.

I actually listen to the songs in the following order. That way they start mellow and get crazier, so I can wake up gently, then get my arse kicked a bit when I start to lag later on.

Thulandivile (Keep Quiet I've Heard You) Elite Swingers Natural Jazz 131 2:39
Dinah Preservation Hall Preservation Hall Hot 4 With Duke Dejan 154 2004 5:01
Eh la bas Preservation Hall Jazz Band Shake That Thing 191 2004 3:52
Baby (Darlin') Baby Midnight Serenaders Sweet Nothin's 243 2009 3:16
A Mug Of Ale Joe Venuti's Blue Four All Star Jazz Quartets (disc 3) 220 1927 3:07
Coffee's Cold/Tater Patch Uncle Earl Going to the Western Slope 254 2004 3:08
Double Check Stomp The Pasadena Roof Orchestra Rhythm Is Our Business! 228 1996 3:59
The Love Me Or Die C.W. Stoneking Jungle Blues 153 2008 3:55
El Pito (I'll Never Go Back To Georgia) Joe Cuba Crooklyn: Vol. I 157 1966 5:33
If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight Linnzi Zaorski and Delta Royale (Charlie Fardella, Robert Snow, Matt Rhody, Seva Venet, Chaz Leary) Hotsy-Totsy 129 2004 2:36
The Clapping Song Shirley Ellis Because Of Winn-Dixie (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) 168 2005 3:11
Drinker Born Uncle Earl Waterloo, Tennessee 2007 3:22
Stay A Little Longer Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys The Tiffany Transcriptions (vol 2) 232 3:07
Some of These Days Midnight Serenaders Sweet Nothin's 255 2009 3:29
El Panadero Cheba Massolo Coyazz 202 2008 2:32

"8track: strings and clapping for running" was posted in the category 8 tracks and music and running

February 25, 2010

eh? what's that they're sayin'?

Posted by dogpossum on February 25, 2010 9:01 PM | Comments (0)

I've made a new 8track. You can listen to it here or...

(Image stoled from Shorpy, king of olden days pictures)

These are all songs that are a little odd. Songs that I have to listen to on headphones, repeating bits to be sure I heard correctly... But these are all songs that I'm loving at the moment. Some of the lyrics are funny (Fats and Teagarden singing about their love for one another), some of the melodies are funny (way down Borneo way), some of the songs feel kind of kooky (another orientalist), sometimes the language is charming and yet also kind of odd (French popswing), some are interesting versions of favourites (first you get a bottle...)... I am madly in love with Jack Teagarden again, so he dominates a little. I always love Fats, because he makes me giggle. Lil Hardin is badass. Teddy Wilson is scarygood - but a piano/vibes duet?

title - year - artist - bpm - length (you can find these songs without the albums, I think... because I'm tired of adding them in...)

Hittin' The Bottle 1930 Frank Trumbauer and his Orchestra (Andy Seacrest, Nat Natoli, Bill Rank, Chet Hazlett or Charles Strickfaden, Fud Livinginston, Matty Malneck, Roy Bargy, Eddie Lang, Min Leibrook, George Marsh, Jack Fulton) 2:59

That's What I Like About You 1931 Jack Teagarden and his Band (Charlie Teagarden, Sterling Bose, Pee Wee Russell, Joe Catalyne, Max Farley, Adrian Rollini, Fats Waller, Nappy Lamare, Artie Bernstein, Stan King) 173 3:23

Borneo 1928 Frankie Trumbauer and his Orchestra (Bix Beiderbecke, Charlie Margulis, Bill Rank, Frank Trumbauer, Chet Hazlett, Irving Friedman, Lennie Hayton, Eddie Lang, Min Liebrook, Hal McDonald, Scrappy Lambert, Bill Challis) 184 3:11

Oriental Swing 1938 Lillian Armstrong and her Swing Band (Ralph Muzillo, Johnny McGee, Al Philburn, Tony Zimmers, Frank Froeba, Dave Barbour, Haig Stephens, Sam Weiss) 181 2:59

Hey! Stop Kissin' My Sister 1940 Fats Waller and His Rhythm (John Hamilton, Gene Sedric, Al Casey, Cedric Wallace, Slick Jones) 191 2:48

Coucou 1940 Le Quintette du Hot Club de France (Hugo Rostaing, Django Reinhardt, Joseph Reinhardt, Francis Luca, Pierre Fouad, Josette Dayde) 153 2:42

It's Tight Like That 1929 Jimmy McPartland, Jack Teagarden, Benny Goodman, Gil Rodin, Larry Binyon, Vic Briedis, Dick Morgan, Harry Goodman, Ray Bauduc 204 2:51

Honeysuckle Rose 1937 Teddy Wilson Quartet 168 3:13

"eh? what's that they're sayin'?" was posted in the category 8 tracks and lindy hop and other dances and music

January 8, 2010

a new 8track: 9 songs I might play for flappers tonight

Posted by dogpossum on January 8, 2010 1:44 PM | Comments (0)

I'm putting together some music for tonight's set at Swingpit in Newtown. A discussion about 'fast' music on twitter + some low-level interest in 20s charleston and solo jazz encouraged me to revisit some appropriate music in my collection.

I put together an 8track of things I'm thinking about.

(clicky).

There isn't as much solo charleston in Sydney as there was in Melbourne when I left, though there is a bit of solo dancing generally. Very little hot 20s or 20s-style music is played here at social events. I think we might need a rash of workshops on 20s dances generally to stimulate interest and skills... actually, there's definitely interest, it just feels as though people don't really feel confident or know what to do out there to this stuff.
Personally, I'd really like to learn some eccentric 20s partner dances.

At any rate, this 8track is a list of songs that I am considering playing tonight. The sound set up at this venue is very shit, so I'm avoiding the lofi action. Which is a crying shame. But there you go. I had to add the Armstrong version of Oriental Strut, though, as I LOVE it. It also makes me think about Woody Allen films as he plays it quite often in his films (especially Bullets Over Broadway) and I'm trying to get a copy of Sweet and Lowdown.
I'm also a bit hot for Jabbo Smith atm, so I had to add Jazz Battle as well. Same with Johnny Dodds.

I stole the image for the 8track from here.

Track details:

Rhythm Spasm Rhythm Rascals Washboard Band 315 1995 Futuristic Jungleism 2:33
San Les Red Hot Reedwarmers 285 2007 Apex Blues 4:45
Jubilee Stomp David Ostwald's Gully Low Jazz Band (Howard Alden, Mark Shane, Herlin Riley, David Ostwald, Ken Peplowski, Randy Sandke, Wycliffe Gordon) 278 2006 Blues In Our Heart 3:22
Stampede Randy Sandke and The New York Allstars 260 2000 The Rediscovered Louis And Bix 2:47
Jazz Battle Jabbo Smith's Rhythm Aces (Omer Simeon, Cassino Simpson, Ikey Robinson) 259 1929 All Star Jazz Quartets (disc 1) 2:41
Hop Head Charlestown Chasers 250 1995 Pleasure Mad 2:57
New Orleans Stomp Johnny Dodds' Black Bottom Stompers 244 1927 Golden Greats: Greatest Dixieland Jazz Disc 2 2:47
Oriental Strut Firecracker Jazz Band 228 2005 The Firecracker Jazz Band 2:36
Oriental Strut Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five (Kid Ory, Johnny Dodds, Lil Armstrong, Johnny St Cyr) 191 1926 Hot Fives and Sevens - Volume 1 3:03

"a new 8track: 9 songs I might play for flappers tonight" was posted in the category 8 tracks and djing and lindy hop and other dances and music

December 10, 2009

blues djing

Posted by dogpossum on December 10, 2009 5:54 PM | Comments (4)

FYI: I've made a dodgy 8track with examples of the stuff I'm talking about in this post. I'm not entirely confident with some of my observations as I really don't know enough about blues music. So please just read this post (and observations) as my ideas and working-through stuff rather than as any sort of authoritative commentary. The discography details are below the post.

(clicky)

I've been listening to the latest Confessing the Blues podcast. It's interesting to read a blues dancing equivalent to the Hey Mr Jesse show, especially when I'm not really all that conversant with American blues dancing culture.

In case you're curious, blues dancing developed within (or at least in close proximity to) the lindy hop communities. In Herrang, there's been a Wednesday blues night for ages. At American exchanges blues nights would often follow evening dances or even the late night dances. Australia has a slightly different blues dancing history. I remember workshops as early as 2001 in Melbourne, and then occasional classes or sessions by visiting teachers. By about 2005 there was a sort of staggering blues sub- or developing culture in Melbourne.
It wasn't til about mid 2006 that Melbourne's blues nights were running regularly and flourishing. These blues nights were run by the large school in that city and featured classes with a side of social dancing. Interestingly, though, these blues classes were pioneered and eventually pushed through by enthusiastic teachers and dancers who'd been involved in blues events overseas. In contrast to the usual round of lindy hop fare from that organisation, this was much more a grass roots development. I think this has been an important factor in blues dancing's popularity in that city.
In 2006 MLX ran blues events as part of their late night calendar. In 2009 there were three annual blues 'exchanges' or workshop weekends. There are regular blues workshops in Adelaide, Perth, Canberra, Brisbane and Sydney. Moving to Sydney last year, I was struck by the very different local blues dancing culture. Melbourne's blues scene is firmly rooted in everyday social dancing and socialising. Sydney, in contrast, again with its blues scene organised by the large school, is centred on classes and has no un-class-related blues social events. The large school had, more or less, transplanted a Melbourne product to Sydney. The product, without that broader enthusiasm and firm social setting, has struggled in this particular market.
That's not to suggest that there isn't a great deal of interest in blues dancing in Sydney. There is. It is more that the events are managed and prescribed by the school, with the impetus from within a commercialised pedagogic model rather than a sort of groundswell of local popular interest. One of the consequences of this (which we see in one of that organisation's lindy social night as well) is an emphasis on using spaces which are suitable for classes and not quite right for social dancing. Blues in Melbourne used smaller, more crowded bar-like venues, and I think this emphasis on socialising is very important. Local teachers also used their own small studio spaces for social events, and I think this interest at a non-commercialised, local-interest level was also very important. It simply meant that the lessons and workshop weekends were serving an already existing market, and were meeting an already present demand. In Sydney, the demand is not so significant, and the classes have had to be marketed quite rigorously for their success. There is not the significant word of mouth promotion that was so successful in Melbourne.
It's been disappointing, as a blues dancer and DJ, to see the local Sydney blues scene struggle. They've been struck by difficult venue changes, by interrupted class and social schedules, and perhaps most significantly, they're also dealing with an organisation which is run from Melbourne, rather than locally. This has seen numerous problems in the lindy hop community, and has - I think - been partially responsible for the stunted growth of the local blues scene.
Blues is an interesting example of the power of localised, groundswell interest and creative and commercial development. In America, and in Melbourne to a more limited extent, house parties and private parties have been important in developing DJs' and dancers' skills. More significantly, dance in private spaces has contributed to the development of community of interest and creativity which is not necessarily mediated by larger commercial dance interests. Though blues in Melbourne has definitely been commodified through the class and workshop structure, it still resists with its emphasis on social dancing and socialising.

But of course, my information and experience is almost two years old now. And I don't have the close connections with blues that I do with lindy hop. Things might not be quite as I've described...

On another point, blues in Australia is largely without the interest in historical musical and dance forms that its American counterparts have been exploring in recent years. There are certainly individuals who are very interested in historical blues dance forms, but the predominant teaching and social event themes are not. One exception was a recent visit by an American teacher very interested in historical context. Brought to Australia by Australian teachers, this visiting teacher conducted workshops in a number of Australian cities. Unfortunately, either by coincidence or by design*, the large teaching school ran a large blues event the weekend after this international teacher left. One of the workshop weekends conducted by this teacher coincided with a large lindy exchange which is run by one of the more enthusiastic Australia blues dancers. Interpersonal conflicts and a generally disorganised approach to promotion meant that the visiting teacher did not receive the broader discussion the visit warranted.
In summary, the commercial interests and interpersonal conflicts which characterise the Australian scene were a direct impediment to the introduction and dissemination of this historical aspect of blues dance at that moment. This issue troubles me as a DJ and dancer. As a DJ, I found less interest in historical blues music and music for blues dancing, which was endlessly frustrating. As a dancer, I could not find local classes disseminating this historical content, and on the social floor I found a resistance to or intolerance for my own experimentation with historical steps and movements.

Since then, the broader interest in history and historical dance forms in lindy hop has seen a trickle-down or follow-on effect for blues dancing in Melbourne. This delights me, and yet I am unsure of its broader effects within the local Melbourne scene or national blues scene. I haven't been to the major blues dancing weekends for a number of reasons, even though I've been (most flatteringlly) invited to DJ at them. They tend to cluster in the second half of the year, right in the middle of the marking period of the semester. And my partner isn't interested in blues dancing at all.
This second point is particularly important to me, and I think, indicative of the national Australian blues scene in general. The Squeeze and I tend to go to exchanges with the thought that we are on holiday together. We both enjoy lindy hop very much. But The Squeeze isn't interested in blues dancing, and I'd really rather save our travelling money for combined trips. Just because I like to go on holiday with my partner. The Squeeze isn't the only lindy hopper with no interest in blues whatsoever.
I think that the popularity of lindy exchanges and of of 'groovy' or connection-centred lindy hop in America were important factors contributing to the development of blues dancing scenes in that country. The cost of flights and sheer distances between cities in Australia limited the number of annual lindy events for a long time. It was only in about 2005 that traveling for weekend events - let alone social weekends - became very popular and affordable here. The last couple of years in particular have seen social dancing weekends (exchanges) rise signficantly in popularity.
As we move into a culture which prioritises long weekends full of late night dancing and no workshops, however, we are also following America into an interest in historical lindy hop forms. It is as though we missed the broader, saturated interested in groove and connection-centredness. In Melbourne, though, this approach to dance did rise sharply in popularity. But a little later than the US, and with less lasting influence.
My doctoral research suggests that the sudden and more significant penetration of American lindy trends into the Australian scene is almost entirely due to the influence of online media. Youtube, discussion boards and lately Faceplant and (to a much lesser extent) Twitter. Youtube in particular suddenly gave us access to the dancing bodies of America in a way previously prevented by the cost and time of flights. We could actually see what was happening on the dance floors in other countries. The last year in particular has seen a massive increase in dancers' use of online media for the dissemination of images of dancing bodies.
Faceplant has not only connected dancers internationally, making it simpler to map the networks of inter-local communitas (and this glocal networking is something I wrote about quite extensively in a number of articles as well as my doctoral thesis), it has also connected their online clip-viewing habits. A clilp featuring a particular dancer or dance is suddenly right there in front of dancers on Faceplant, showcased and framed by the 'friend' relationship, by the tagging of featured individuals and by clip's placement in the 'live' feed of updated status and posted content.
Faceplant and other online social networking services and tools have not seen dancers necessarily adding more content to the intertubes. But it has seen them suddenly drawing connections between individuals, dance events, and online tools. Podcasts which previously existed only in the menus of discussion boards for some Australian dancers suddenly leapt to the front of their minds when linked from Faceplant. More importantly, individual dancers (and DJs) making contact via Faceplant began sharing their own online resources - lists of links, clips, audio files, music purchasing sites, comments or updates about their experiences at international or national events.

Faceplant has not changed the way dancers interact. But it has suddenly sped up connections between individuals, and tightened the relationships between them as a consequence. As I see it, the most important consequence of Faceplant has been its integration of a range of online tools, particularly YouTube and the hosting of AV content with individual blog-light or tweet-like content of networked friends. Dancers aren't doing anything new online. They're just doing it faster.
Though one thing they are doing now that they didn't do a few years ago, and which has far more lasting importance, is travel. Online contacts and networks do facilitate travel (and the Frankie95 event is the very best example of word-of-mouth promotion via online networks), but it is the actual, face to face interaction with other dancers in other cities that has effected the most substantial changes to Australian lindy hop and blues dancing.

But I've rambled off-track a little. What I had meant to say, originally, was that if we had had this depth and breadth of online contact in the early 2000s and late 1990s, blues dancing (via groove and connected-centredness) would have traveled to Australia earlier and been more substantially established here before the American interest in historicism had developed. But it did not, and so we sort of skimmed over the supergroove moment. Local cultural influences held sway, and the teachers who traveled internationally to their preferred destinations (Herrang, Camp Hollywood, wherever) continued to be the guiding influences in their local communities.

What, then, to reiterate, is happening in blues in Australia? I can't speak with any (convincing) authority on this. I can say that I suspect a greater interest in historicism. But I can't be sure - I haven't seen any local Sydney interest in this _at all_. Melbourne remains the largest blues dancing community in the country. I will try to get to some national blues events this coming year and comment further.

So, then, with all this in mind, what exactly am I doing DJing for blues dancers? In the simplest terms, there's often a shortage of DJs willing to do the late night sets at exchanges, and there's a shortage of blues DJs in Sydney. I'm no longer quite as willing to do the super late sets, but I have contacts who've seen me DJ those later sets, and seen and heard me DJ blues. These contacts are who help me secure gigs. I have no idea how good a blues DJ I am. I don't think I suck, but I'm fairly certain I'm not the most amazing blues DJ in the universe. At this point, I aim for 'don't break it' and am surprised if I manage anything more.
With that, I'm not sure if my comments about DJing for blues dancers are at all useful or even accurate. But hells, as if that'd stop me filling up the intertubes with _something_ other than pictures of kittehs.

Returning to that Confessing the Blues podcast. In the program someone had written an email asking a series of questions. The presenters answered in detail, with side trips for rants and other digressions. As to be expected and welcomed in any discussion of DJing.
One of the questions was:

What music do you play at a blues dance?

...or something to that effect. You can listen to the podcast for their answer. Mine is as follows.

What exactly makes it into my playlist depends on a number of factors. I don't pre-plan my set lists. Though I do make short-lists of songs I might play, I develop the actual list as I go, responding to what I see and hear and feel in the room. These factors are shaped by:

• The scene. When I say 'the scene', I'm referring to the local community. The sorts of people out dancing regularly; the sorts of music played regularly; the venues used; the class content and teaching styles; the 'regular' DJing.
• The crowd. This refers to the people who are actually there at that moment, at that event. This is affected by the context - is this after a class, is it a blues session at a late night at an exchange, is it a set at a blues event, is it a free-floating social event, is it band breaks, is it in a bar, a studio or a hall? These things all determine the type of people at the event, and the ways in which they interact.
• The event itself. Is this a lindy exchange? A blues exchange? A social dance at a blues workshop weekend? After-class at a weekly blues event? After class at a monthly or fortnightly blues event?

In terms of the songs that are already in my 'maybe' list - the music that I actually own - I personally:

• like stuff that's 'blues structured';
• like stuff that's identified as 'blues';
• but I also like slow drags and other musical forms which 'work' for blues dancing.

I tend to favour historical music, but certainly not exclusively. The 'blues' genre is mighty and wide, and still a living, viable music today. I do not stick to one particular historical period - I range from the 20s to the current day.
I look for a particular feel. As an example, in cataloguing my music I distinguish between 'kissing songs' and 'blues songs'. Kissing songs are ballads, or songs that make me want to grab The Squeeze and cuddle him. Or they make me think of nannas having polite slow-dances with their husbands [Moonlight Serenade - Glenn Miller = kissing song example]. Blues songs make me feel like dancing. I've heard other DJs talk about tension and release in blues dancing songs. I guess that could mean the difference between a kissing song and a blues dancing song. Kissing songs are polite, blues dancing songs demand your attention. But I don't think that definition is quite useful for me. I've also heard people talking about blues songs having a 'pulse', but that doesn't even begin to work for me, because I'm looking for that rhythmic 'bounce' in my lindy hopping music (and dancing).

I'm also sceptical of comments that a piece of music 'is slow lindy not blues'. I think that there is a range of dances which aren't necessarily lindy hop (slow or otherwise) but which are also more than a slow-dancing cuddle. When I'm blues dancing, I don't even bother thinking 'no lindy hop!' I think 'dance!' If some lindy gets in there, good enough. And, to be frank, I sure as fuck don't bother classifying each of my movements as 'lindy hop' or otherwise. I'm just dancing. Historically, lindy hop and other vernacular dances were all about change and cross-polination. There weren't terribly many rules about dancing beyond social conventions. Context, the music and mood shape the way I dance. So a shimmy can be either incredibly sexually provocative, it can be slightly silly, or it can be an incredibly macho shake of the shoulders. So I don't make any rules for what moves or steps I do where. But I look for a different feel in the music when I'm blues dancing.

I think that this is where I have to leave my discussion of how to define blues dancing music. The ways I choose and buy my music might be more useful.

My musical tastes are motivated by my dancing interests and by my musical interests. As a DJ, I'm very interested in historic musical forms, but I gather most of my music almost accidentally when I'm buying music for lindy hopping. Or when I'm 'going complete' with an artist (eg the lovely surprise of Herny Red Allen with Victoria Spivey [Moanin' the Blues by Spivey et al is on the 8track]). As an example, I bought the Mosaic 'Classic Columbia, Okeh and Vocalion' Count Basie/Lester Young set. This is, as the title suggests, a complete collection of recordings by a band leader/musician during a particular time period with a particular recoding label(s). Basie is an interesting example. He has his roots in Kansas, and he also has his roots in blues music. This set includes a number of songs that I think of as 'classic blues' including I Left My Baby [which is on the 8track]. These songs have been performed in many ways, at many tempos, and in many styles. On this set, the 1939 version of I Left My Baby is 86bpm, and the mood is slower, more introspective, more intense. We're encouraged to listen to the vocals and the solos by the slower tempo. There's an intensity that makes you want to move, but to move with meaning. And this song is along side a host of songs that are perfect for lindy hopping. Some of which are, incidentally, blues structured, but with a higher tempo and a different energy and mood.

The distinction between 'blues' and 'lindy hop' isn't fixed or definite - one set a song can set the room to lindy hopping another night it can get them bloozing.

I make musical choices when I'm compiling my 'maybe' list based on my musical tastes, and on what I would like to dance to. So my sets are subscribing to my tastes and preferences. I've tried buying music to suit general trends, but I find I end up with music I don't especially like and don't DJ very often. So I don't do that much.

My sets are, though, guided by the brief I've been given by the organiser. I like to talk to them about what they want, or to just have a couple of lines in an email outlining their preferences. I like this when I'm DJing for an unfamiliar lindy hop crowd. I like managers of regular events to give me updates on their preferences as well, particularly when they're as astute as some I've worked with in Melbourne. Canny event managers see when their crowd is changing and developing in its musical and dancing tastes, and asks the DJs to work with that. I'm happy to take that sort of direction. If I don't like their vision, I don't do the gig. I've been lucky enough to DJ in two cities with relatively healthy social scenes, and with a few different events to choose from. But I also put a lot of effort into developing good relationships with event managers, where I can ask what they're interested in, and I can make suggestions or speculations.

I choose the songs I'm going to play, ultimately, by what I see going on on the floor - who's there, how the room feels, and so on.

More specifically...
Tempo?
I tend to keep it below 160bpm. 160 is about where I'll begin my solid lindy hop. More probably, I'll sit below 120 with occasional forays up into the 140s. But the tempo will be dictated by feel. So I might add in some slow drag stuff at higher tempos.
There is no basement tempo - I will go low.

What moods am I looking for?
With lindy hop, I tend to look for higher energy music. But this isn't the case with blues.I tend to range across the energy levels and moods. Some of my favourites include:

• upenergy, 'beer room party' music. I think of this as 'Andy' music. I remember having a revelation listening and watching Andy DJ - he came in loud and proud and didn't DJ down into the cuddle zone, mood wise. The crowd was lively and boisterous. I really like this. This energy can be found in soul, early RnB, etc. I am a bit keen on Chicago blues at the moment, and this stuff is really good for that party feel [Hound Dog is my current obsession and example of this style on the 8track.]
• lowenergy, cuddly stuff. This sort of music encourages close connection and often sensuous themes. Stuff that encourages introspection and serious facial expressions. I won't play this at an after-class event first off. I usually work into this vibe later in the night/set. Unless I'm following from a DJ who was doing this stuff. As a DJ and dancer, I prefer blues events to work with more than just this vibe. I know that this feel was the primary goal of a lot of blues dancers in Australia at first, particularly at late night house parties. But I think I'd die of boredom if this was all I had to work with as a DJ or dancer [I Got It Bad by Oscar Peterson is the example on the 8track.]
• humourous, medium to high energy. This is often vocal-driven. There may be sensual or even sexually explicit lyrics or musical elements, but the sex is subverted or sort of tipped on its side by humour. So you feel silly dancing sexily unless you're being ironic or otherwise adding layers of meaning to what you're doing. I put my dirty, salty nannas here [My Handy Man Ain't Handy No More is the 8track example.]

Generally, I think a song's a 'blues dancing song' when I listen and think 'this makes me want to dance slowly and it doesn't make me want to lindy hop.' I really like to 'solo blues dance' (whatever that fucking means), so I like that stuff.

Examples of songs/styles that I play:

• big bands playing blues songs during the 30s, 40s and 50s. eg Basie with Jimmy Rushing singing I Left My Baby;
• - small bands with vocalists singing blues structured blues songs. eg Victoria Spivvey with the Henry Red Allen small groups; Bessie Smith with small bands. These tend to be blues queens accompanied by badass musicians [Moaning the Blues by Spivey et al is the 8track example];
• small bands with or without a singer doing blues structured songs [a Duke Ellington sextet doing Tough Truckin' is the 8track example];
• Chicago blues, especially as it leads into soul. Big Mama Thornton. Blues structured. Important instrumentation. Can be massive big energy, or less crazy [see Hound Dog on the 8track].
• New Orleans, slow drags and slower walking styles. I really like this style, and I tend to play quite a bit of this. It's very popular with dancers who are keen on old school lindy hop. I like to play slow drags for the long, sensual/miserable feels. I watch the tempos, and I don't tend to live here all night during a set. This stuff is important when I'm transitioning. I often find that I'm only one of a few DJs who play 'old school' blues sets at an event, so I feel obliged. [St James Infirmary and The Mooche are good examples by Aussie bands on the 8track]

How do I actually combine choose songs when I'm DJing a blues set?
Pretty much the same way I do when I'm DJing a lindy hop set. Except I sit down more. And wear a jumper because I tend to get pretty cold at those super late nights. I like to work a wave, energy wise, and often tempo-wise. But I worry less about working the tempos. The energy is more important. I'm also much, much more careful about transitioning between styles. Mostly because the music I might play is representative of so many different styles. But also because the range of styles means that you have a range of moods and energy types on offer. And you want to really bring the crowd with you, or work with the crowd rather than jolting and jostling them about.

I guess, what I'm saying overall about the way I DJ for blues dancers is:

• slower than lindy hop, but not all slow all the time;
• blues structured or blues identified songs and styles are good;
• emotional range is far broader than with lindy hop (where I tend to DJ the 'crazy manic happy' vibe);
• historical forms and songs please me, so I tend to favour them.

Songs I won't play:

• Trip hop, hip hop, contemporary styles that I think of as 'dancing alone'. Because I hear this stuff at normal clubs and venues, and I dance 'normally' there. Also, those DJs know this stuff and I don't, and I'd much rather a DJ with those skills and that collection make this stuff sound good than I stuff one into my set as a sort of random tokenism.
• Soul and Funk. I will play blues songs by soul singers, but I prefer not to play what I think of as solid soul or funk. I love that stuff, but it's not blues. I will and have occasionally dropped in a soul favourite, but often as a sop to popular taste. I don't mess with funk, I stick to soul. And I prefer earlier soul. Again, ultimately, I don't have much of this, I don't know it well, and so I'd really rather not embarrass myself trying to be 'cool' with it [the Etta James song is a soul song I do play].
• Songs with male singers and sexist lyrics. I hate that shit. So I don't play it.

*I would suggest coincidence if it were not for the fact that this strategy has been employed time and again by this organisation. While I suspect that they are simply this clueless and disconnected from the broader national scene, I am also quite sure that they are disinterested in broader community development and good will.

8track set list
Moonlight Serenade Glenn Miller and his Orchestra 84 The Aviator 3:25 [an example of a 'kissing song']

I Left My Baby Count Basie and his Orchestra with Lester Young, Jimmy Rushing 86 1939 Classic Columbia, Okeh And Vocalion Lester Young With Count Basie (1936-1940) (Disc 2) 3:13 [an example of a big band with a blues shouter doing a blues structured song which works for blues dancing. Also, a song from a big chronologically ordered set by a particular artist, which also has a lot of great lindy hopping music on it.]

St. James Infirmary The Cairo Club Orchestra 109 2004 Sunday 3:33[An Australian band doing a song which I think of as 'New Orleans' and sort of like a slow drag (though not really...well, whatevs). It also has a slightly higher tempo and works for lindy hop]

Hound Dog Big Mama Thornton 76 Very Best Of 2:52 [A Chicago blues queen singing a very famous song. This is an example of what I think of as 'party music'. Lots of energy, lots of sass]

I Got It Bad (and That Ain't Good) Oscar Peterson 55 1962 Night Train 5:09 [Cuddle music in the supergroove vein.]

My Handy Man Ain't Handy No More Alberta Hunter 76 1978 Amtrak Blues 3:49 [A small group with a female vocalist doing a humourous song that works for blues dancing]

Moaning The Blues Victoria Spivey acc by Henry 'Red' Allen, JC Higginbotham, Teddy Hill, Luis Russell 100 1929 Complete Jazz Series 1926 - 1929 3:02 [A 'classic blues' song by a blues queen accompanied by some shit hot musicians, some of whom had very high profile careers with big bands which recorded songs we play for lindy hop]

Tough Truckin' Duke Ellington Sextet 96 1935 The Duke's Men: Small Groups Vol. 1 (Disc 1) 3:09 [An instrumental song recorded by a small band which works for blues dancing]

The Mooche Michael McQuaid's Red Hot Rhythmakers 117 2006 Rhythm Of The Day 3:41 [An Australian band doing a song which I think of as New Orleans, though it isn't (I think it was recorded by Ellington in New York...). The instrumentation feels New Orleans - banjo, reeds, a particular percussive sound. The Ellington 1928 is of course the superior recording, but this version is very popular with dancers in Melbourne and the band itself is also very popular]

Please Please Please James Brown 74 Sex Machine 2:45 [A soul song from the 70s or 60s (I forget which) but which I will and have played for blues dancers... though with my tongue in my cheek]

I'm Gonna Take What He's Got Etta James 57 1967 The Best Of Etta James 2:35 [A soul track that I do play for dancers, and which works very well.]

"blues djing" was posted in the category 8 tracks and lindy hop and other dances and music

December 8, 2009

8 songs from 1935 that I love

Posted by dogpossum on December 8, 2009 7:49 PM | Comments (0)

(linky).

Spreadin' Rhythm Around Teddy Wilson and his Orchestra (Billie Holiday, Johnny Hodges, Cozy Cole) 195 1935 Lady Day: The Complete Billie Holiday On Columbia (1933-1944) (Disc 01) 2:56
Chimes At The Meeting Willie Bryant and his Orchestra with Teddy Wilson, Cozy Cole 245 1935 Willie Bryant 1935-1936 3:01
Swing, Brother, Swing Willie 'The Lion' Smith and his Cubs, Willie 'The Lion' Smith vocal 231 1935 Willie 'The Lion' Smith 1925-1937 2:52
Murder In The Moonlight Red McKenzie and his Rhythm Kings (Eddie Farley, Mike Riley, Slats Young, Conrad Lanoue, Eddie Condon, George Yorke, Johnny Powell) 193 1935 Classic Sessions 1927-49 (Volume 2) 2:55
Chasing Shadows Louis Prima, Pee Wee Russell, Frank Pinero, Garry McAdams, Jack Ryan, Sam Weiss 170 1935 Louis Prima Volume 1 3:04
Truckin' Henry 'Red' Allen and his Orchestra 171 1935 Henry Red Allen 'Swing Out' 2:54
Swingin' On That Famous Door Delta four (Roy Eldridge, Joe Marsala, Carmen Mastren, Sid Weiss) 190 1935 All Star Jazz Quartets (disc 2) 3:00
There's Rhythm In Harlem Mills Blue Rhythm Band (Lucky Millinder, Henry 'Red' Allen, Buster Bailey) 207 1935 Mills Blue Rhythm Band: Harlem Heat 3:11

I love all of these songs a great deal. Why?
Billie Holiday is the best. And in this band, Wilson not only has her gun pipes, but also Johnny Hodges and Cozy Cole. omg orsm.
Teddy Wilson was freaking GREAT stuff and turned up in all sorts of bands.
Louis Prima was actually cool, once.
I especially <3 the vocals in Chimes at the Meeting: "Goodnight sister pork chop." Also: more Teddy Wilson.
Willie 'The Lion' Smith is foshiz. I like this tinkly version of a song we tend to associate with Billie Holiday.
Murder in the Moonlight pleases me with its silly, cheesy lyrics: love in the first degree and all. +1 for Red Allen.
The Delta Four are just one of a million bands featuring Roy Gun Eldridge.
That version of Truckn' is fucking GREAT. I DJ it a lot. I love the kind of lazy pathos matched with a song about a dance fad. Madness. +1 for Red Allen.
There's a Rhythm in Harlem is mo good. I've crapped on about versions of In The Mood, and this is one of my favourites. + Red Allen.

There's quite a bit of overlap in band personnel here, not only because my tastes are fairly consistent, but also because musicians got around. Which no doubt contributed to some musical and creative cross-polination. And some broader consistencies or at least repeating patterns in music in that year.
I could have picked multiple versions of the same song from the same year, but I didn't.

"8 songs from 1935 that I love" was posted in the category 8 tracks and djing and lindy hop and other dances and music

December 1, 2009

8 dirty nannas

Posted by dogpossum on December 1, 2009 6:25 PM | Comments (0)

I've made a little 8track of 8 of the women singers I played in my late night set at MLX9.

(clicky)

I tend to think of the women I like to DJ for blues as 'dirty nannas', and I've banged on about this here ad nauseum. This isn't quite 100% dirty nannas. Some of the women here were younger when they recorded these songs. But all of them had attitude. I tent to play far too many vocal tracks when I DJ for blues dancers. I think it is, in part, because I'm really not a very experienced blues DJ, and because I don't have a whole lot of music I'd play for blues dancers. But it also probably has something to do with the fact that I like my music for blues dancing to carry levels of meaning. More than just a straight out 'grab you partner and cuddle' imperatives. I like irony and parody and suggestion.

At any rate, this is only a small chunk of the stuff I played in that set, and when you listen to it here or on the 8track site it won't be in the order I played them. So imagine there are other songs in between them, cushioning the changes.

A note: that version of Fine and Mellow is about the most perfect performance on earth. You can (and really should) watch it here:

(clicky)

Hound Dog Big Mama Thornton 76 Very Best Of 2:52
Rosetta Blues Rosetta Howard acc. Harlem Hamfats 103 1937 History of the Blues (disc 02) 3:00
Jealous Hearted Blues Carol Ralph 80 2005 Swinging Jazz Portrait 3:48
Kitchen Blues Martha Davis 80 1947 BluesWomen: Girls Play And Sing The Blues 3:05
Fine And Mellow Mal Waldron and the All-Stars (Billie Holiday, Roy Eldridge, Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Milt Hinton) 79 1957 The Sound Of Jazz 6:22 best live on CBS TV 'Legendary sound of jazz' 1950s small female vocal Swinging blues 60 14/01/07 4:58 PM
3 O'clock In The Morning Blues Ike and Tina Turner 64 1969 Putumayo Presents: Mississippi Blues 2:40
Hard Times Mildred Anderson 67 1960 No More In Life 4:15
Gimme A Pigfoot Bessie Smith acc by Buck and his Band (Frank Newton, Jack Teagarden, Benny Goodman, Chu Berry, Buck Washington, Bobby Johnson, Billy Taylor) 1933 Complete Jazz Series 1929 - 1933 3:30

"8 dirty nannas" was posted in the category 8 tracks and djing and lindy hop and other dances and melbourne and music and travel

November 19, 2009

modernism + jass = orsm punnage

Posted by dogpossum on November 19, 2009 5:29 PM | Comments (1)

A new 8track:

Or check the linky.

Songs include:

Putting On The Ritz The Cangelosi Cards Clinton Street Recordings, I 3:38
All I Know The Countdown Quartet 2002 Sadlack's Stomp 2:57
Digadoo Firecracker Jazz Band 2005 The Firecracker Jazz Band 5:20
My Daddy Rocks Me Les Red Hot Reedwarmers 2006 King Joe 6:17
Who Walks in When I Walk Out Midnight Serenaders 2009 Sweet Nothin's 3:21
Zonky New Orleans Jazz Vipers 2006 Hope You're Comin' Back 5:06
Eh la bas Preservation Hall Jazz Band 2004 Shake That Thing 3:52
Sud Buster's Dream Rhythm Rascals Washboard Band 1995 Futuristic Jungleism 4:18

I'll do another one of just Australian bands when I get a chance. Putting this together I found I had far too many modern bands to include in just 8 tracks, which suggests I should have put this together by theme. I guess the theme is 'new' and 'things I like at the moment.'

"modernism + jass = orsm punnage" was posted in the category 8 tracks and cat blogging and djing and lindy hop and other dances and music

September 18, 2009

8 songs about food

Posted by dogpossum on September 18, 2009 11:03 PM | Comments (1)

8 songs with lyrics about 'eating'. And when I say 'eating', I mean 'sex'. Well, mostly. Some are actually songs about food. Probably. But not the Fats Waller ones.

There are approximately 60 squillion billion jazz and blues songs about 'food' and 'eating'. These are only 8, but 8 that I really like, or that we sign around our house, or that are just plain good.

Bessie Smith's 'Gimme a Pigfoot' is the best, because it's a song about simple culinary and social pleasures - a pigfoot and a bottle of beer. And she's not going to be payin' 25c to go in NOwhere.

"8 songs about food" was posted in the category 8 tracks and cat blogging and djing and fewd and lindy hop and other dances and music

September 14, 2009

8 1930s Ellington tracks that'd pwn Bechet in a ninja fight

Posted by dogpossum on September 14, 2009 6:49 PM | Comments (0)

As if Bechet and Ellington'd ever get into a ninja fight!
As if this is the final list of Ellington orsm!

8 of my favourite songs from Ellington's (small and large) 1930s bands.

1. Jungle Nights In Harlem Duke Ellington and his Orchestra 1930
2. Shout 'Em Aunt Tillie Duke Ellington and his Orchestra 1930
3. Rockin' In Rhythm The Harlem Footwarmers with Duke Ellington 1930
4. It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) Duke Ellington and his Orchestra with Ivie Anderson 1932
5. Stompy Jones Duke Ellington and his Orchestra 1934
6. Digga Digga Do (M 187-2) Cootie Williams and his Rug Cutters 1937
7. The Back Room Romp Rex Stewart and his 52nd Street Stompers 1937
8. Top And Bottom Cootie Williams and his Rug Cutters 1939

"8 1930s Ellington tracks that'd pwn Bechet in a ninja fight" was posted in the category 8 tracks and cat blogging and djing and lindy hop and other dances and music