JSngry Posted March 17, 2008 Author Report Posted March 17, 2008 Yeah, a few years ago, I finally got to hear that album of the Lion talking and discussing the early days of the Clef Club, etc, and it made me realize just how much into refined craftsmanship this whole school was. They really knew the details, down to the most seemingly insignificant, and not just about music, but also about attire, conduct, everything. It's no wonder that Ellington had as much of an omniverous palate as he did. He was trained to not miss anything! Quote
Christiern Posted March 17, 2008 Report Posted March 17, 2008 (edited) Love your Down Beat scans, but could we have the date on these things. May 24, 19?? Apropos Willie the Lion, I interviewed him for my radio show in 1960--He was a great talker, I'll have to look for that tape. I also spent the good part of an evening in one of his two Harlem apartments (the one to which his wife did not have access) in preparation for a Prestige session ("Songs We Taught Your Mother") where he was to accompany Lucille Hegamin. We were getting together a band and he insisted that all the musicians be born under the same sign (Sagitarius, I think), so arrived armed with the Encyclopædia of Jazz. I think Cecil Scott was the only one who fit the astronomy requirements, but we got it together. The Willie turned to me and asked, "What's your sign?" When I told him that I was a Libra, he thought about it for a moment, then nodded his head, "That'll be alright." He had a marvelous ebony walking stick with an elephant's head on it. The head came off and allowed him to pour the booze. It was a Prohibition relic. Edited March 24, 2008 by Christiern Quote
Chuck Nessa Posted March 17, 2008 Report Posted March 17, 2008 It's in the thread title on my screen. Quote
JSngry Posted March 17, 2008 Author Report Posted March 17, 2008 Yeah, 1973. Eubie was still middle-aged... Quote
Chuck Nessa Posted March 17, 2008 Report Posted March 17, 2008 Had a chance to spend some time with the man. He was sharp as a tack near the end and a hoot! He seemed to be a wonderful spirit. Quote
JSngry Posted March 17, 2008 Author Report Posted March 17, 2008 Did you ever get to hang w/The Lion? That's another cat who seemed sharp as a tack at all times... Quote
Chuck Nessa Posted March 17, 2008 Report Posted March 17, 2008 Did you ever get to hang w/The Lion? That's another cat who seemed sharp as a tack at all times... Never met WLS. Quote
Christiern Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 I wouldn't say that we hung out together, but I did see him on many occasions. I may have mentioned this here before, but I will never forget walking into an all-night deli with Gene Krupa and Willie during a Verve session at Webster Hall. Priceless: the look on the faces of the elderly Jewish men behind the counter when Willie walked in and addressed them in Yiddish! Once we were discussing musical talent and I asked him if he thought it was genetic. He said it definitely was, pointing out that his wife had no musical talent, so there was not much to expect from their children. His girlfriend, on the other hand, was an opera singer, so their children were set. Quote
JSngry Posted March 18, 2008 Author Report Posted March 18, 2008 Once we were discussing musical talent and I asked him if he thought it was genetic. He said it definitely was, pointing out that his wife had no musical talent, so there was not much to expect from their children. His girlfriend, on the other hand, was an opera singer, so their children were set. Like I said, attention to detail.... Quote
Larry Kart Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 I love Eubie's Warner Brothers LP "Marches I Played On The Old Ragtime Piano," ragged-up marches (Sousa, etc.) with Milt Hinton, Panama Francis, Buster Bailey, and Kenny Burrell on rhythm guitar. Swings like a tidal wave. The man's time was something else. Recorded in 1959, when Eubie was still in his late adolesence. Quote
Kalo Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 Great thread! Youse guys is priceless. Eubie Blake has long been a favorite of mine (since high school in the mid-1970s) and Willie "the Lion" Smith is one of my most treasured personal jazz discoveries of the last few years. I dig that anecdote from Chris about "the Lion" speaking Yiddish. So it's true that he was Jewish and nicknamed after the Lion of Judah? Quote
paul secor Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 The recording on Jazz Alliance of his appearance on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz (1979) is well worth seeking out. Quote
medjuck Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 I interviewed Willie the Lion many years ago when he was in Toronto to do a tv show playing duets with Don Ewell. I really didn't know much about him at the time but he told me about speaking Yiddish and being the Lion of Judah. It was done at a press party at which he held court and charmed everybody. Years later Billy Crystal regaled me with stories about Willie the Lion. BTW Crystal's production company is called Face Productions because The Lion nicknamed him Face. Quote
blind-blake Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 How did Willie come to know Yiddish? Any idea? That's amazing. Quote
Noj Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 Were any of you guys surprised by Eubie's high praise for Dick Hyman's and Oscar Peterson's playing? I mean, I like them both but I'm just sayin'... Quote
Christiern Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 Performers of Blake's generation (and the one that followed) had a civility about them. One rarely heard them put a fellow artist down when speaking to a member of the press, or in public. I'm sure that Eubie heard for himself that Hyman could play all the notes in a variety of pleasant sequences, but only as others had played them before. Quote
Harold_Z Posted March 18, 2008 Report Posted March 18, 2008 Were any of you guys surprised by Eubie's high praise for Dick Hyman's and Oscar Peterson's playing? I mean, I like them both but I'm just sayin'... Not surprised. Those guys are both extremely technically accomplished players. Virtuosos. The issues that people may have with their playing have more to do with personal taste. Eubie, and I would bet Willie the Lion also, is responding to that technique. Quote
mjzee Posted March 19, 2008 Report Posted March 19, 2008 How did Willie come to know Yiddish? Any idea? That's amazing. He was Jewish. Not sure that the "Lion" reference is to the Lion of Judah. He came up in an age when everyone had a nickname (the Duke, the Count, etc). Quote
_forumlogo.png.a607ef20a6e0c299ab2aa6443aa1f32e.png)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.