Tell Me About Ella Mae Morse

[Teasing the Korean]

I have only one track by her, on a Capitol Records Johnny Mercer compilation.

She seems to be an important transitional figure, from what I gather, in tying various genres together into a sort of proto-rock 'n' roll.

[felser]

Yes, fascinating singer, well worth further exploration.   You described her well.  "Cow Cow Boogie" is a classic, and she did many cuts that are quite enjoyable in that jump-blues, country, pop, etc. hybrid of hers.  Here is where I landed, after trying some different configurations.

Edited June 28, 2023 by felser

[Big Beat Steve]

"Proto rock'n'roll" describes it fairly well. She had two careers - first as the swing and boogie vocalist with Freddie Slack and with early solo records in the 40s, culminating in the groundbreaking "House of Blue Lights", and then, after a hiatus of several years, in the 50s, as a solo artist with studio big bands, and hit it with the much-covered "Blacksmith Blues". She was about the first white female singer to pick up songs before the actual R'n'R era that are usually associated with Bill Haley and other major R'n'R acts, and did covers of R&B hits that were way more credible and substantial than those by other white cover artists (particularly of the female variety).
The chapter dediced to her in Nick Tosches' book "Unsung Heroes of Rock'n'Roll" is well-earned.
Her "Barrelhouse Boogie and the Blues" and "The Hits of Ella Mae Morse and Freddie Slack" LPs were reissued by Capitol in the mid-80s and gave her name and her songs wider awareness in R'n'R jiver and dancers' circles.

Edited July 2, 2023 by Big Beat Steve

[romualdo]

7 hours ago, Big Beat Steve said:

Nick Tosches' book "Unsung Heroes of Rock'n'Roll" is well-earned.

Highly recommended read IMHO

[Teasing the Korean]

Thanks all!  I will have to look for that comp.

Does Nich Tosches get into Louis Prima in that book?  I ask because Tosches is featured fairly extensively in the Prima documentary. 

[Big Beat Steve]

Hey, you're leading this discussion astray! 😁

But to answer your question: Yes - pages 82 to 88.

Edited July 2, 2023 by Big Beat Steve

[felser]

21 minutes ago, Big Beat Steve said:

Hey, you're leading this discussion astray! 😁

 

And that never ever happens on this board.....squirrel!

[Teasing the Korean]

42 minutes ago, felser said:

And that never ever happens on this board.....squirrel!

Squirrels are splooting.

[Big Beat Steve]

A bit early this time, but ... well ...   So ... any other Ella Mae comments?

[Teasing the Korean]

1 hour ago, Big Beat Steve said:

A bit early this time, but ... well ...   So ... any other Ella Mae comments?

I welcome additional comments.  As the OP who asked the question, I won't really have anything to add until I start listening to her.

[mjzee]

"Cow-Cow Boogie" was written by Benny Carter (along with Raye and De Paul).  Must have provided him a nice income stream throughout his life.  You can hear it sung by Jon Hendricks on this:

[gvopedz]

Check out her "Razzle-Dazzle":

https://archive.org/details/78_razzle-dazzle_ella-mae-morse-big-dave-and-his-music-charles-e-calhoun_gbia0428603a

 

[JSngry]

20th Century Texas women!

She got Jimmy Dorsey to hire her in Dallas when she was 14. It took a letter from the Mansfield. Tx school board to uncover her real age.

But she was back at 17, with Freddie Slack. The rest is history, or should be. 

Sexy as phuvk.

 

[JSngry]

1954!

[Big Beat Steve]

8 hours ago, gvopedz said:

Check out her "Razzle-Dazzle":

https://archive.org/details/78_razzle-dazzle_ella-mae-morse-big-dave-and-his-music-charles-e-calhoun_gbia0428603a

 

Now that is a case where she wasn't among the first to do a substantial cover version (i.e. one that did not water down the original, as was too often the case then) in the PRE-R'n'R days, and therefore is not really a case of "proto R'n'R" (but just a plain R'n'R cover song - which is alright but not one of her trailblazing records).

"Razzle Dazzle" is a carbon copy (arrangement and all) of the ORIGINAL which was recorded in May 1955 and released in June 1955 by none other than Bill Haley & His Comets. The producers behind Ella Mae Morse (no doubt involving Dave Cavanaugh aka "Big Dave" as he figured on the "Barrelhouse ..." LP shown in an earlier post here) quickly jumped on the bandwagon and had her cut it in August 1955. This version is very nice but does not really add much that's new or different (except the femme vocal instead of Bill's voice 😁).

[JSngry]

She was from Mansfield. Texas, a town of very dubious pedigree in terms of race relations.

And yet. Ella Mae Morse not only sold well to African-American audiences, she was, apparently, thought to actually BE African-American by many who had not seen her picture.

AFAIK, there's no story about how she absorbed that feel so young. Mansfield was (and might still be for some) a Klan town. So this little white girl was getting something somewhere to sing like that, so totally unaffected. 

Maybe she got out of Mansfield and moved up to Dallas. But even then, a young white girl would not have unlimited access to all the cultural opportunities that were available...

Sam Phillips was wanting a White boy who (supposedly) sang black. And Wanda Jackson gave Capitol a teenage wildcat/sex kitten. Exploitation. Business. Distraction and distortion.

Ella Mae Morse was to one degree or another all of that, minus the hype. She was natural.

Now, is it just me, or does that sound like Rex Middleton's Hi-Fi's joining in on "Rock Me All Night Long"?

 

[Teasing the Korean]

14 hours ago, JSngry said:

20th Century Texas women!

She got Jimmy Dorsey to hire her in Dallas when she was 14. It took a letter from the Mansfield. Tx school board to uncover her real age.

But she was back at 17, with Freddie Slack. The rest is history, or should be. 

Sexy as phuvk.

Thanks for these videos!

[Big Beat Steve]

1 hour ago, JSngry said:

Sam Phillips was wanting a White boy who (supposedly) sang black. And Wanda Jackson gave Capitol a teenage wildcat/sex kitten. Exploitation. Business. Distraction and distortion.

Some accounts of the career of Ella Mae Morse (and her place in the pre-history of R'n'R) point out that she did have some stylistic influence on Wanda Jackson.

[JSngry]

This notion of "pre-history" is an artificial construct erected by the gatekeepers of The Industry in order to control the narrative and direct the money.

If the music was there before the name, that's the name's problem. There's no such thing as "pre-history" when everything is right there to be seen and had. 

[Big Beat Steve]

Not so sure about the invalidity of the "pre-history" tag ...
I understand this in two ways in THIS context:

On the one hand: The elements and sounds of the music were there but not (or at least not enough) out in the open for the general music-buying and listening public to be really aware of it on a wider scale. You had to look (i.e. listen) for it hard to really notice it. Which gives rise to the existence of tomes like "What was the first Rock'n'Roll record?" by Jim Dawson and Steve Propes (incidentally feat. Ella Mae Morse with Freddy Slack and their "House of Blue Lights" in chronological place #4 out of 50 ).
So at the time the "music in the making" did not yet go under a name of its own that would have identified this "new" style (and made it an entity easier to market, as you say). And in hindsight this was why the term "pre-history" later came into use to give these early blossomings of a style a name (or categorization) anyway. Like in MANY other areas of facts and events that eventual become part of history. E.g. the Minton's Playhouse sessions can be (and are, really) considered the pre-history of Bebop but wouldn't it be a bit of a stretch to claim this style as such actually started there and then as a FULL-FLEDGED style?

On the other: I do realize a term like "pre-history" (that is coined after the fact) is also used because it may convey a touch of special "insider's awareness" to those who explore this niche music. A kind of "enlightened musical archeologist" feeling. Human nature ...

Edited July 4, 2023 by Big Beat Steve

[JSngry]

Here's some post-history then:

 

[Big Beat Steve]

Very interesting ...