I’m currently enjoying (another) Jimmie Lunceford album called Rhythm is our Business. I can’t find a link to it, I’m afraid. It seems that quite a few of these CDs I’m picking up second hand are actually ones that you could mail order or get as one of those monthly music club deals. So they’re not on amazon or the other major music sites. Which sucks, because they’re actually really great compilations – some unusual stuff that isn’t on the more usual CDs.
Anyway, this Lunceford one is really neat. It has a few of my favourites (Hitting the Bottle (which I LOVE), Organ Grinder’s Swing (great fun for dancing but goes over like a lead balloon with Melbournians because it has those tinkly ‘organ’ bits), Wham (Re-Bop-Boom-Bam) (fun lindy fun)), but also a couple of new things that I didn’t have before. Perhaps the most interesting version of Black and Tan Fantasy I’ve heard so far. Most of the versions I have are by Ellington (as you’d expect), with a few other ordinary versions. But I really like this Lunceford one – it has a different intro and the initial trumpet solo feels quite different.
I’m a big fan of second hand CD shops, and regularly turn up nice surprises. Nice cheap surprises.
I was going to post a clip which I remember as Black and Tan Fantasy, but is actually something else (East St Louis Toodle-oo or something) with the Five Hot Shots or the Berry Brothers or somebody dancing…
…look, I’m having trouble remembering, ok?
Anyway, because I couldn’t find any of those things on youtube (one search is enough), here’s the Nicholas Brothers, who frickin’ rock.
And because the 70s were a very strange place, here’s the Nicholas Brothers with the Jacksons.
And because I can’t keep away from youtube, here’s something else:
Yes, there were skips dancing lindy in the 30s. Though I’m not sure Dean Collins counts as a skip – he was Jewish. That’s some serious jazz action he and Jewell McGowan are pulling out, west coast lindy style.
The best bit of that clip is right near the end where the white dood sings Darktown Strutters’ Ball – that’s some seriously dodgy racial politics right there.
