trollday

Thursday is, according to the word on the twitters, #trollday. I’m not really sure what that means. At first I thought it meant that we should post troll-y things on teh twitz or on our blogs or on the faceplants. In the sense that they should be deliberately inciting furious debate.

Then I thought it meant that we should be responding to troll-y posts by other people, getting full of the righteous fury. Or shouting “troll!” and pointing at said troll. This is where we all (once a-fucking-gain) shout at Andrew Bolt. Geez, am I the only one who’s had a gutful of that fuck? Surely not.

I’m not really keen on that second approach to trollday. My most successful methods for dealing with trolls in public forums has involved:

a) Posting a streaker to derail the flamefest started by a bit of trolling. I’m not sure how well-known streaking is beyond the British empire, but there’s a long tradition of streaking at major public sporting events here in Australia.

The effect of a streaker is, essentially, to stall the normal course of events. Posting a picture of a streaker in the middle of a nasty online shitstorm is a very effective tactic. It’s difficult to continue a thought when you’re looking at someone’s bits in the middle of a sports match.

b) My other method for dealing with trolls is to ignore them. I delete comments on my blog if they’re nasty. I unfollow twitterers who repeatedly say things that upset me or give me the shits. I unfriend sexist fuckwits on faceplant. Just like I hang up on prank callers and I walk away from dickheads in conversation (though I admit – I will give a dickhead a serve in a conversation. If I’m feeling my oats.)

I’ve found this approach very useful. For a while there on the Australian swing dancing discussion board I was getting some pretty nasty hate mail/private messages/etc. The moderator(s) were utterly useless on this front. So I had to deal with it myself.

You know what I did? I deleted them, I blocked them, I ignored them. Suddenly, no more harassment (sexual, verbal, you name it). And by geez did it make them crazy with the rage! But you know what? If an idiot can’t figure out why I’m cranky with their genderfail, I’m not going to buy into their attention-seeking rubbish by helping them get their learn on by responding to their inanity. That’s their issue. And there’s a pill for that.

I’ve heard some talk lately on teh twittz about ‘echo chambers’, and how not following people you disagree with (or who post opinions you disagree with) is like being in an echo chamber, where you only hear your own opinion echoing back at you.

You know what? I’m ok with that. Because it’s not like there’s a shortage of opinions with which I disagree everywhere else in the mainstream mediasphere. Or on the streets of my city. Or in the conversations of people I meet. I quite like the thought of setting up my own little counter public sphere (thanks Nancy Fraser and all the sisters who’re down with that action). I like the thought of fostering debate and discussion which is both respectful and supportive of feminism, socialism and all the other isms I dig. Because, despite the impression Paper Giants was trying to give, Ita Buttrose and mass-circulation ‘womens’ magazines do not represent me and my ideas about women and feminism*.

After all, the best response to a bit of trolling is to ignore it.

Easier said than done. I’ve had no end of trouble trying to convince people in online arguments that women have a right to, oh I don’t know, make their own decisions. Look however they please. Wear what they like. Think their own thoughts. Express those thoughts. Be treated with respect in public discourse. And do all that action on the dance floor – bring their jazz steps (or not), say no to rough or disrespectful dance partners**, actually lead rather than follow.

This has resulted in far too many late nights until I realised that there were better solutions. Yes, the ‘ignore them’ thing works online. But in the world of bodies, the best way to convince some dickhead that women can be excellent leads, is to get my arse up on the dance floor and be the best bloody lead that I can be. The best way to convince people women can DJ is to get up and DJ. And to keep doing all these things until you get good at them. Or as good as you can be. I figure, eventually, I’ll be dancing in an echo chamber – there’ll be just as many women leading as men, all around me on the dance floor. Wouldn’t that be nice?

So, on this trollday, I suggest we embrace the echo chamber, and rather than rising to the LOLBolt bait once again, we turn our attention to the interesting, clever people amongst us who do have things we should be reading or listening to.

* Right here, I have to say: if the only way you have of defining a woman’s power/lessness is through sex, sexuality and childbirth, you’re doing it wrong. Cleo, its publisher and its content do not represent my idea of woman-positive discourse.

** Here it is: if some guy has hurt you in the past or looks rough, say ‘no thank you’ if you don’t want to dance with him when he asks. Say ‘no thank you’ to dance invites from drunks at live gigs. Say ‘no thank you’ if the guy asking you has been rude or unpleasant to you in the past. Say ‘no thank you’ if you JUST DON’T WANT TO DANCE.

8track: a nice group of songs

linky | image from shorpy

A group of nice songs. Not a speck of jazz, and not at all appropriate for lindy hop. Fairly heavy on the vocals and emoting. So much emoting, in fact, I almost feel uncomfortable listing these songs. But then I listen to them, and I feel better.

Caramel – Suzanne Vega – Nine Objects Of Desire – 1996 – 2:53

Chip Away The Stone – Hot Club Of Cowtown – Ghost Train – 2002 – 3:17

Tell Me Again – Ron Sexsmith – Blue Boy – 2001 – 2:37

The Littlest Birds – The Be Good Tanyas – Blue Horse – 2000 – 4:07

Railroad Bill – Crooked Still – Shaken By A Low Sound – 2006 – 2:19

Coffee’s Cold/Tater Patch – Uncle Earl – Going to the Western Slope – 254 – 2004 3:08

Clifton’s Two Step – Clifton Chenier – Louisiana Blues & Zydeco [Bonus Track] – 193 – 1965 – 3:11

Down On Penny’s Farm – Natalie Merchant – The House Carpenter’s Daughter – 2003 – 3:44

I Don’t Want Your Millions, Mister – Barbara Dane – I Hate the Capitalist System – 137 – 3:34

Bury Me Under The Weeping Willow – Natalie Merchant – The House Carpenter’s Daughter – 2003 – 3:22

Jazz Appreciation Month: American Folk-Blues Festival 1962 session

linky

I know I don’t have to say it, but I will: there’s no jazz without the blues.

An extremely awesome performance by some extremely awesome blues musicians:

Helen Humes : vocal
Sonny Terry : harmonica
Brownie ‘Kazoo’ McGhee : vocal, guitar
Willie Dixon : vocal, bass
T-Bone Walker : vocal, guitar
Memphis Slim : vocal, piano
Jump Jackson : drums

I really like this clip. I might even have considered leaving my man for Willie Dixon : “you know, if it’s good to me, must be good to you.” Yowzers.
The call and response stuff within the band feels like partner dancing to me.
The bit of dancing at the end is neat, and I really like the type design (the original white stuff, not the shitty bit someone’s put over the top).

..I’ve included this clip not just because I _love_ it, but because this festival was important for bringing American blues to Europe, where it influenced people like the Stones, Eric Clapton, etc.

Jazz Appreciation Month: Jimmy Giuffre Three

linky

Jimmy Giuffre Three playing ‘the River and the Train’ over the opening credits of ‘Jazz On A Summer’s Day’, which was filmed at the Newport Jazz Festival.

I overuse this song, but I love it. Love it. Nothing danceable here at all. The film, of course is excellent stuff, and the history of the Newport Jazz Festival is pretty interesting. There’s been some cool stuff written about the festival’s valorising of ‘traditional’ jazz and swing (at the expense of modern stuff).

8track: some silly songs that make me laugh

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.

Jazz Appreciation Month: Billie Holiday and friends

Am I nuts? Why, yes, I probably am. Ryan Swift has drawn my attention to the fact that it’s Jazz Appreciation Month over at the Smithsonian. So I’m going to see if I can come up with a different song or artist every day of this month. I struggled with the Women’s History Month thing (though in a good way – stretch and learn!), so I might need your help. I’ll try to make it women musicians, but that might be difficult. Also, as Loggins says – “why not just list all the people who inspire you? Do they have to be all women?”

Because men can be inspiring too. :D

I’m going to start with a song I overtweet, overlink, overuse. Billie Holiday doing ‘Fine and Mellow’ with some of her friends, live on telly in 1957.

linky

Fuck that shit. I’m not wearing no fucking high heeled shoes.

[EDIT: this is a post responding to a series of arguments provoked by Sarah’s post. Some she makes herself, some have been made by other people.
EDIT no2: if you’re just new here (and I’m suddenly getting a lot of traffic), you might be interested in reading about my general philosophy of following here. Might be.]

I began to think about writing this post back when I wrote Women talking about their own bodies and how this issue was trolled or women dancers wearing high heels and talking about it. I did write something longer and with cleverer arguments. Then I just gave up. So this is shorter and blunter and proper ranty.

Now, I’m going to make this very clear, right here in the introduction. I’m playing the ball, not the woman. Sarah Breck is a great dancer, in heels, out of them or doing her own genderbending action. I don’t question her dancing ability or knowledge about dancing. And I’m not telling her she shouldn’t wear heels. But I am, sure as shit, challenging the arguments about gender norms and fashion she makes in her recent blog post. Here, I’m going to respond to Sarah Breck‘s original comment that women should wear heels while lindy hopping. She opens her post with:

Growing up in the Lindy scene I have heard so many times how women should wear heels because that’s what women are suppose to do. We are women and women wear heels. Now I loved that traditional ideal but I never could get past the FEELING that being in heels gave me. Every attempt I had made to wear heels I felt off balanced; unstable; and constricted in my movement.

Yeah, yeah, I know. I should just stop there. Because that is some crazy, fucked up shit. Women supposed to do what? Love that traditional what? Yeah, I know. But you’d be surprised by just how influential this sort of attitude is in the lindy hop world.

So here it is. I’m delivering the smack down.

1. I am suspicious of any argument that I should look like this lady to the left while doing anything. But particularly dancing.

2. I am extra suspicious of any argument that begins ‘women (not men) should do X’. I am absolutely calling bullshit on any argument that then continues ‘because they look better’. I think we owe it to ourselves to immediately question this sort of bullshit gender essentialism. My first response to any suggestion that I should do something because a) I’m a woman and b) it looks better is to do the exact opposite.

3. I’m utterly disinterested in doing something simply because it is fashionable. And dancing in heels is, first and foremost, a fashion choice – choosing to wear something to look like everyone else (or to look like the ‘cool’ people). I like jazz because it fucks up shit. So I choose not to wear heels just because everyone else is doing it. I choose to argue against wearing heels because it is suggested that they will make men (or anyone else) like you more. That shit is wrongtown.

4. As Frankie Manning said, “Get in shape to do lindy hop, don’t do lindy hop to get in shape.” The argument here is that lindy is such a demanding dance it requires a high level of fitness and muscular strength and control to perform at an advanced level (and even at a moderate level, I’d argue). So I run and cycle and swim and do strength training so that I can dance at my best.
Sarah argues that women should learn to dance in high heels by dancing in high heels. This smells a) like bullshit and b) dangerous. If a dancer (male or female) wants to dance in heels, they should first develop mad core strength, excellent glutes, badass calf muscles and so on and so on before they step into a pair of heels.

5. If someone asks you to suffer so you can look a particular way, be just like everyone else, or otherwise conform with someone else’s ideas of how to be a desirable woman, you should immediately shout NO! Because that is also wrongtown.
Wearing heeled shoes is bad for your feet, for you body and for your badassery. There is no evidence to support the argument that wearing heels is anything other than bad for you unless you are actually incredibly fit and strong and capable of holding your perfect posture in all conditions. Most dancers are a) not incredibly fit, b) actually dancing on some sort of undiagnosed or untreated injury. Wearing heels is just plain bad news.

6. And finally, an historical argument. Women lindy hoppers today should wear high heeled shoes, because that’s what women lindy hoppers wore then? Hm. I call bullshit, again.
There’s ample evidence and many photos of women dancers from the 20s, 30s and 40s wearing all sorts of shoes. There are some correlations between race, class and gender and what dancers are wearing in footage from films (ie white women dancers tend to wear heels; black women dancers who tend to be presented as ‘servant’ type characters tend not to wear heels), but these are not consistent, and this is cinema – it’s not real life. We should also be suspicious of recreating fucked up gender/class/ethnic stereotypes. This is the 21st century. Let’s make good discourse, not reproduce fucked up shit from the past.
There’s actually quite a bit of anecdotal as well as primary source evidence to support the idea that while they wore heels sometimes (especially if they were west coast white girls), many lindy hoppers didn’t wear heels while dancing badass a) because it impeded their badassery and b) they were often all about rebellion and being unconventional.

SO

Wearing heels is all about boring reproduction of boring conventional gender roles. It stops you being totally badass (ie you can’t dance hardcore or do scary aerials or otherwise rock ON). And if you’re not going to be badass – if you’re not aiming to be the best you that you can be – what’s the point?