What 78 are you spinning right now ?

[Clunky]

Busy week getting these ...

Duke Ellington..

Chloe E /Across the track blues HMV Victor UK B 9171

Just a settin and rockin/ Moon Over Cuba HMV Victor UK B 9268

Jack the Bear / Morning Glory HMV Victor UK B 9048

Riff Staccato/ Time’s a Wastin HMV Victor UK B 9456

Sherman Shuffle / Hayfoot strawfoot HMV Victor UK B 9324

Harlem airshaft/ Sepia Panorama HMV Victor UK B 9135

Barney Bigard A lull at dawn / Charlie the Chulo HMV Victor UK B 9185

Roy Eldridge ...

Aint that a shame All the cats join in Decca USA 23532

Twilight time Fish Market Brunswick Decca UK 03608

Adrian Rollini Swing low /Stuff etc Decca USA 807- brilliant

Golden Gate Orchestra -OH THOSE EYES /Ah ha (Puritan) USA 11394- good solos even on the nonsense Ah Ha

All Stars Swedish L’estrado/ Sophisticated Lady (Esquire UK) 10-313

Johnny Hodges Squatty Roo /Things aint what they used to be (HMV) Victor UK B 9283

Ted Lewis Dallas Blues/ Royal Garden Blues (Columbia )UK CB 446- mint laminate- Waller in fine voice, great band

Gene Norman’s Just Jazz No 2- One O’clock Jump /Two o’clock jump (Vogue) UK V2271- complements parts 3 and 4 on Gazell

Lionel Hampton -Bouncing at the Beacon/ Chasin with Chase (HMV) UK B 9395- average only

Oscar Peterson Soft Winds/ Sweet Lorraine Columbia Clef UK LB 10035- quite good really

Oscar Peterson - Angel eyes/ Unforgettable Columbia Clef UK LB 10011- ok/forgettable

Dizzy Gillespie Interlude in C / Swing Low Sweet Chariot Vogue UK V 2024- hmm not sure, not Diz's best for certain

Gerry Mulligan Loverman / Sextet Vogue UK V 2165- brilliant clarity of sound

Dizzy Gillespie Oo Shoo be Doo be/ They cant take that away from me Vogue UK V 2160

Milton Jackson Criss Cross/ Willow Weep for me Vogue UK V 2161- wonderful of course

Benny Carter Isn’t it romantic/ Key Largo Columbia UK LB 10016- slush

Joe Liggins - Honeydripper Part 1 Honeydripper Part 2 Parlophone UK R 3124- repetitive RnB sides. sadly W Jackson on credits is not Willis Jackson

Edited December 30, 2012 by Clunky

[jeffcrom]

Some 1920s jazz:

Chas. Chreath's Jazz-O-Maniacs - Pleasure Mad/Market Street Blues (Okeh). Nice St. Louis jazz from 1924. "Pleasure Mad" is a Sidney Bechet tune which Bechet himself didn't record until many years later.

Halfway House Dance Orchestra - Maple Leaf Rag/Let Me Call You Sweetheart (Columbia, 1925). Very worn, but the drive of the music comes through.

Savannah Six - 'Tain't Cold/Hot Aire (Harmony, 1925). The Original Memphis Five plus banjo.

The Emperors - Clarinet Marmalade/A Blues Serenade (Harmony, 1927). A Phil Napoleon big band; pretty interesting.

Might as well mention a gamble which mostly didn't work out. I bought two 78s (for just a dollar each) in the little town of McCaysville, Georgia, on the Tennessee border: a 1928 Ted Lewis on Columbia and a 1929 Victor with Ben Pollack on one side. The Pollack is from the period when Jack Teagarden, Benny Goodman, and Jimmy McPartland were all in the band. Well, Goodman and Teagarden both play the melody solo, but perfectly straight; there's no jazz content to this record at all. The flip, by Ted Fiorito, is even worse.

One side of the Lewis, "Oh, Baby," is pretty good, with George Brunies on trombone and Don Murray on both clarinet and tenor. The other side, "Start the Band," is Lewis at his worst, although the lyrics amused my wife. From memory, one verse went:

If she plays hard to get,

A hot cornet will make her pet.

Alas, Muggsy Spanier had not yet joined the band; I'd like to hear his demonstration of those lyrics.

[Clunky]

Interesting comments Jeff re Ted Lewis. I'm really totally unfamiliar with his work but realised he can be pretty hit or miss. My usual shop had a box full of Ted Lewis. I'll be careful !!

Edited December 31, 2012 by Clunky

[jeffcrom]

Interesting comments Jeff re Ted Lewis. I'm really totally unfamiliar with his work but realised he can be pretty hit or miss. My usual shop had a box full of Ted Lewis. I'll be careful !!

Lewis was a really horrible musician/entertainer who often hired some pretty good jazz musicians. George Brunies joined the band in the mid 1920s and stayed for ten years. Muggsy came on board in 1929; some of my favorite Lewis records are those with him. And TL hired Fats Waller, Benny Goodman, and Frank Teschmacher for record dates.

So there are some really interesting Ted Lewis records out there, but it's a crapshoot. Avoid the blue-label and "flags" Columbias - Brunies didn't join until the "Viva-tonal" label era. If you find any of the grey Lewis picture labels (the one below is from my collection), that's the right time period for Muggsy to be present. Of course, any particular record may really suck.

[JSngry]

Lewis was a really horrible musician/entertainer who often hired some pretty good jazz musicians.

You gotta be very wary of anybody who allowed himself to be called "the high-hatted tragedian of song" and then had the nerve to ask if everybody was happy. That whole thing just reeks of dickishness.

Just sayin'.

[jeffcrom]

Lewis was a really horrible musician/entertainer who often hired some pretty good jazz musicians.

You gotta be very wary of anybody who allowed himself to be called "the high-hatted tragedian of song" and then had the nerve to ask if everybody was happy. That whole thing just reeks of dickishness.

Just sayin'.

Yep.

I'm looking for a 78 copy of Lewis's "Ho-Hum." As I understand it, during Benny Goodman's clarinet solo, Lewis himself interjects, "Play it, Ted!"

[jazztrain]

Don Murray and Jimmy Dorsey also show up on clarinet on some Ted Lewis dates.

Interesting comments Jeff re Ted Lewis. I'm really totally unfamiliar with his work but realised he can be pretty hit or miss. My usual shop had a box full of Ted Lewis. I'll be careful !!

Lewis was a really horrible musician/entertainer who often hired some pretty good jazz musicians. George Brunies joined the band in the mid 1920s and stayed for ten years. Muggsy came on board in 1929; some of my favorite Lewis records are those with him. And TL hired Fats Waller, Benny Goodman, and Frank Teschmacher for record dates.

So there are some really interesting Ted Lewis records out there, but it's a crapshoot. Avoid the blue-label and "flags" Columbias - Brunies didn't join until the "Viva-tonal" label era. If you find any of the grey Lewis picture labels (the one below is from my collection), that's the right time period for Muggsy to be present. Of course, any particular record may really suck.

[Clunky]

Lewis was a really horrible musician/entertainer who often hired some pretty good jazz musicians.

You gotta be very wary of anybody who allowed himself to be called "the high-hatted tragedian of song" and then had the nerve to ask if everybody was happy. That whole thing just reeks of dickishness.

Just sayin'.

Yep.

I'm looking for a 78 copy of Lewis's "Ho-Hum." As I understand it, during Benny Goodman's clarinet solo, Lewis himself interjects, "Play it, Ted!"

I'll look out for a copy of "Ho-Hum"and if I find two.. ...

[jeffcrom]

Inspired by this discussion, I played some of my better Ted Lewis records today. I only played one side of some, if I knew the flip side to be lousy. All are on Columbia.

Ted Lewis Popular Favorites (Columbia "flags" sample record, 1923). This is an interesting record, made before Lewis started hiring real jazz players. The longest tune in the medley is a klezmer-ish version of "Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives to Me."

Some of These Days/Bugle Call Rag (1926). Sophie Tucker takes the vocal on side one, and I certainly would rather listen to her singing than to Lewis. Lots of George Brunies on "Bugle Call."

Oh, Baby! (1928). Mentioned in a post above.

Jungle Blues (1928). Ted Lewis plays Jelly Roll Morton. Who'd have thunk it?

Clarinet Marmalade/Shim-Me-Sha-Wabble (1928). This is one of Lewis's better records, mostly because he's nowhere to be heard. It's mostly the Don Murray show. Unfortunately, there is one very non-swinging violin solo by Sol Klein.

Farewell Blues/Wabash Blues (Ted Lewis picture label, 1929). It floors me that Lewis had the chutzpah to play along side of Frank Teschemacher. Could he not hear what he sounded like? Anyway, Tesch and Muggsy are in great form here.

I'm the Medicine Man for the Blues (Ted Lewis picture label, 1929). This is a painful recording, for the most part, but there are some tasty Muggsy Spanier licks along the way.

Someday, Sweetheart/Somebody Stole My Gal (1930 recording, 1937-38 pressing). Ted's singing is as awful as ever, but Muggsy, Brunies, and Jimmy Dorsey sound great.

Yeah, Clunky, if you find a spare copy of "Ho-Hum," I'll swap you something for it.

[Clunky]

I'll certainly look out for it and some of the others recommended above. My local shop has acquired a major collection of 78, mainly from the 20s and early 30s. They are slowly sorting through it all in batches. The most recent batch was Ted Lewis and loads of California Ramblers ( by various names). No idea what'll be in store next week but I've never seen so many collectable 78s. They know what to charge but even so prices don't strike me as too bad and nothing like eBay.

[jazztrain]

Jeff,

Modesty, self awareness, and a realistic, objective assessment of one's abilities are not traits found in great abundance in some popular entertainers. The lack of these qualities, ironically, is probably one factor that allows them to achieve the success that they do (and to laugh all the way to the bank) without being crippled by insecurities and self-doubt.

I guess I've learned to put up with Ted Lewis based on the musicians that he hired. He has some remarkably good records (especially if you overlook his "contributions").

[Clunky]

Look away now. Only by second shellac casualty in 4 years. The first was a Parker Dial and now this. Picked up around ten 78s with my right hand only and heard an ominous crack and discovered this discovered with it's thick cardboard sleeve. I didn't think i'd been clumsy but there you go, the dangers of liking shellac. Not a brilliant record but quite decent and I'd presume not all that common especially here in UK. Oh well

[JSngry]

Ok, what do we know about this Vincent Bair-Bey guy on alto? That's a totally new name to me.

[jazztrain]

Jim,

Some quick searching shows a Vincent Bair-Bey who recorded with Ruth Brown, Wynonie Harris, Hot Lips Page (on sessions with vocals by Big Maybelle, Marion Abernathy, and Barbara Cameron), Sammy Price, Lonnie Johnson, Buddy Tate, and Jesse Stone. On the Jesse Stone session, he's apparently listed as "B. Bairbay" on a Bear Family issue.

He's described on a Tom Archia discography website as a "passionate Bird imitator."

I found a death notice for a Vincent W. Bair-Bey, who might be the same guy. Born 10/8/23. Died 6/14/77. Buried in Long Island National Cemetary, Farmingdale, NY. Served in the U.S. Army and listed as a veteran of WWII.

Edited January 4, 2013 by jazztrain

[JSngry]

Hmmm....sounds interesting...a passionate Bird imitator who seems to have played mostly R&B date.

Thanks for that info!

[jeffcrom]

First of all, Clunky, condolences on your loss. Since I started collecting 78s seriously about three years ago I've broken four or five. Only one really broke my heart (an unreissued American Music by St. Louis pianist Charles Thompson), and I recently found another copy of that one.

I have that Skip Hall record. Bair-Bay seems to have been from Cincinnati - at least he shows up on a lot of King/Federal records recorded there in the 1940s. He may have been a "passionate Bird imitator," but on the Hall 78 he's more of an R & B-flavored player; he sounds a lot like Earl Bostic.

He plays on at least one session from a Wynonie Harris collection I have - I'll check that out soon.

[jazztrain]

Bair-Bey solos on two tunes from the December 28, 1947 Hot Lips Page session -- "Fat Stuff" and "Boodie, Boodie." I agree that he sounds more like Bostic than Bird. He's most convincing on "Boodie, Boodie."

I just listened to the Wynonie Harris session with Hot LIps Page (the "Good Morning Mr. Blues" session). No solos by Bair-Bey on that session.

Both sessions (and some others that include Bair-Bey) are on a Hot Lips Page CD "Shoutin' The Blues" on Blue Boar Records that is distinguished by some rather wretched transfers.

Edited January 4, 2013 by jazztrain

[jazztrain]

I checked my copy of Todd Bryant Weeks' "Luck's In My Corner - The Life and Music of Hot Lips Page" in the hope that there would be some information about Vincent Bair-Bey. Not much outside of the discographical listings. In a brief discussion of a 1953 recording session led by Page, Weeks mentions that Page put together a group with some "old associates" that included Bair-Bey, Alfred Cobb, and Sam "The Man" Taylor.

[jeffcrom]

I often don't post here when I listen to non-jazz 78s. But in case anyone is interested, I played a bunch of Rudy Wiedoeft today, and a stack of acoustic Victor Red Seal opera records for a couple of days before that.

Victor marketed their Red Seal opera records as the height of musical achievement, and as prestigious consumer items. I won't list everything I played, but the records were by Caruso, Galli-Curci, Gigli, Nellie Melba, and Tetrazinni. I've always loved Caruso, and enjoyed Gigli and Galli-Curci almost as much. Amelita Galli-Curci is my favorite "golden age" soprano; she had a beautiful voice, and was a real artist. One of the records I played was the 1908 recording of the Sextet from Lucia with Caruso; mine is the original pressing with the Victor "Grand Prize" label as shown. This was the most expensive record on the market at the time; it cost $7.00, the equivalent of $172.00 in today's money - for a single-sided, four-and-a-half minute record. More copies made it into consumers' hands than you would think - as I understand it, anyone buying a Victor record player could choose one record from the Victor catalog, and many people picked the Lucia Sextet.

Rudy Wiedoeft was a virtuoso saxophonist (alto and C-melody) who had no connection with jazz - he played pop tunes, semi-classical pieces, flashy waltzes, and ragtime novelties. I have about a dozen Wiedoeft records - solos accompanied by piano or orchestra, duets with other saxophonists (Wheeler Wadsworth and Arnold Brilhart), duets with other instrumentalists, saxophone ensembles. Like I said - no jazz at all, but very impressive saxophone playing.

Edited January 4, 2013 by jeffcrom

[Clunky]

Original Indiana Five ( Dixie Jazz Band) / Ted White’s Collegians- Coffee Pot Blues/ Crazy Words Crazy Tune (Oriole) USA . Not sure who plays with TWC but it's a fun side with some decent solos. There's a nice solo by a bass clarinet. Any ideas who?

Edited January 5, 2013 by Clunky

[jeffcrom]

Original Indiana Five ( Dixie Jazz Band) / Ted White’s Collegians- Coffee Pot Blues/ Crazy Words Crazy Tune (Oriole) USA . Not sure who plays with TWC but it's a fun side with some decent solos. There's a nice solo by a bass clarinet. Any ideas who?

I've become pretty good at tracking down these anonymous 1920s dance bands. Because recordings showed up on various labels using various pseudonyms, it's usually a pretty convoluted process, using Rust's American Dance Band Discography, Steven Barr's Almost Complete 78 RPM Record Dating Guide, and Online 78 RPM Discographical Project. Your record is actually by Bill Perry's Entertainers, vocals by The Radio Imps, recorded for the Plaza group of labels in early January, 1927. Unfortunately, the personnel is not known, except that the Radio Imps/Melody Twins were Ed Smalle and Jerry Macy.

Oriole was one of the "dime store labels"; during that period it was pressed by Plaza for McCrory's stores (which I remember from my childhood). Banner was Plaza's main label; they also made Domino and Regal.

If you're interested in the steps I went through to find the source of this record:

1. I looked up Oriole 828 on the 78 discography site. Beside "Ted White's Collegians," it had a "BP" in parentheses. It also listed a matrix number (7032) a control number (681, visible on your label), and a recording date of January, 1927. The control number is a "false" matrix number assigned by another company (like Oriole).

2. Looked up Oriole in the Barr book and was reminded that it was pressed by Plaza, and that Banner was their main label.

3. Went to the appropriate Banner listing on the 78 discography site and did a search for "crazy words." Side A of Banner #1922, by Bill Perry's Entertainers, matched the title, approximate date, and matrix number. Bingo!

4. Looked up Perry in the Rust discography. The Oriole issue is not listed, but that's not uncommon when recordings were leased to and issued by several different labels. This recording was also issued on Banner, Domino and Regal in the U.S., Apex and Starr in Canada, and Imperial in the U.K.

This one was a pretty easy one to track down - it took about five minutes. Because the information in all of the sources I listed is incomplete, sometimes I have to go through a lot more steps to find the source of a record from the 1920s. I spent half an hour this morning trying to find the source of a Rudy Wiedoeft record on the obscure Cleartone label, but I mostly struck out, except that it's probably from 1921 or 1922.

Edited January 5, 2013 by jeffcrom

[jazztrain]

Nice work!

[Clunky]

Thanks Jeff for your detective work.

Now spinning another of today's purchases

University Six- Then I’ll be happy/ Smile a little bit -(Harmony) - two hot sides and not a novelty or dance tune in sight. Very good sound too.

Edited January 5, 2013 by Clunky

[jeffcrom]

1929-30 hot jazz discs this morning, most of which I've mentioned before:

Mound City Blue Blowers (as Tennessee Music Men); vocals by Red McKenzie (as Jack King) - Georgia On My Mind/I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me (Velvet Tone). I think I've mentioned that this record provided the most bang for the buck of any in my 78 collection. It's from the MCBB session with Coleman Hawkins and Muggsy Spanier, and it cost me all of five cents.

Kentucky Grasshoppers - Four or Five Times/It's Tight Like That (Banner). The Kentucky Grasshoppers were basically Ben Pollack's band without Pollack, recording jazz for another label. On board are Jack Teagarden, Jimmy McPartland, and Benny Goodman. This record is pretty worn, but still enjoyable.

Kentucky Grasshoppers - Makin' Friends/Fred Rich and His Orchestra - I Get the Blues When It Rains (Banner). Jimmy Dorsey replaces Goodman in the Grasshoppers; "Makin' Friends" is a blues feature for Teagarden. The Fred Rich dance band side is not bad; Leo McConville and both Dorsey brothers solo.

Wingy Mannone's Orchestra - Tar Paper Stomp/Tin Roof Blues (Champion). I know I've mentioned this one - it's at least the distant ancestor of "original cover" reissues like the OJC series. The original Champion issue, from 1930, was by "Barbecue Joe and His Hot Dogs." Decca bought Champion in 1934, and the next year reissued this under Mannone's name, using the original Champion label design (with "m'f'd by Decca Records" in small print). Most people here probably know that "Tar Paper Stomp" was the first recorded appearance of the "In the Mood" riff.

[Clunky]

Original Memphis Five Static Strut / Tampeekoe (Victor) 20039

Varsity Eight/ Lou Gold - No One/ Show me the way ( Cameo ) 694

Two more from yesterday with very contrasting sound. The immediacy of the sound on the Victor is astonishing for what must be an acoustic recording. Two pretty swinging and reasonable hot sides. The Cameo disc can't hide it's budget heritage. Also acoustically recorded and in reasonable condition it's pretty noisy. I wonder what a mint Cameo might sound like. The Varsity Eight play well enough without really setting things on fire. Rollini gets some space. Lou Gold on the flip is really quite decent and quite jazzy.

1929-30 hot jazz discs this morning, most of which I've mentioned before:

Kentucky Grasshoppers - Makin' Friends/Fred Rich and His Orchestra - I Get the Blues When It Rains (Banner). Jimmy Dorsey replaces Goodman in the Grasshoppers; "Makin' Friends" is a blues feature for Teagarden. The Fred Rich dance band side is not bad; Leo McConville and both Dorsey brothers solo.

This is the only Banner I've got and it's a great side. Must see if I can locate it.