D.A. Pennebaker ‘The Very Nature of Film is Musical’
D.A. Pennebaker was a filmmaker, born in 1925, died on August 1, 2019. He was one of a small group of filmmakers who created a
Artful and Accomplished Jazz Doublers
In the language of jazz, “doubling” means playing more than one instrument (not at the same time, c.f. Wilbur Sweatman and Rahsaan Roland Kirk). Doubling
The Ukulele That Flew To The North Pole
The ukulele Martin 1K, the “Dick Konter” of the early 1900s, is perhaps the most famous ukulele in the world. It traveled on the plane
New Photo of Bix Beiderbecke Discovered
According to Bix scholar Albert Haim, Great American Songbook maven Michael Feinstein has unearthed a previously unknown photo of Bix Beiderbecke. The photo, which was
Building Where First “On Location” Recordings of Jazz and Country Were Made Faces Demo
Movement to save it wins temporary injunction. In June 1923, pioneer record producer Ralph Peer and New York-based Okeh Records took their newly-invented portable recording
Chris Barber Announces Retirement after 70 Years in Music
The Big Chris Barber Band will carry on but Chris Barber has decided that at 89 its time to retire from full time playing. Barber
Don Neely’s Royal Society Jazzes On
One can’t imagine the vintage music scene today without the influence of Don Neely, the founder of the long-running Royal Society Jazz Orchestra. The California-based
Lovie Austin: The Hidden Blues Queen Who Inspired Swing Kingmakers
Duke Ellington is remembered as perhaps swing’s greatest bandleader. But prodigious pianist Mary Lou Williams—who also wrote for Earl Hines, Benny Goodman, and Tommy Dorsey—was
Laurence Juber Rules the ‘Realm of the Tune’
My television was on, but I wasn’t watching—until the talent of Laurence Juber demanded my attention. His finger style guitar playing was stunning. My ears
Texas Shout #52 Common Themes
Set forth below is the fifty-second “Texas Shout” column. It first appeared in the July 1994 issue of West Coast Rag, now The Syncopated Times. I
Texas Shout #51 What To Look For In Record Reviews
Set forth below is the fifty-first “Texas Shout” column. The concluding installment of a two-part essay, it first appeared in the June 1994 issue of
Texas Shout #50 Record Reviewing Redux
Set forth below is the fiftieth “Texas Shout” column. The initial installment of a two-part essay, it first appeared in the May 1994 issue of
From The 48th annual Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival
The 48th annual Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival occurred from July 31 through August 3 at the perennially over-air conditioned Rhythm City Casino in Davenport,
From the 38th Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival
The Thursday afternoon concert featured new pieces by contemporary composers such as Vincent Johnson, Marty Mincer, John Reed-Torres, and Martin Spitznagel, the latter two playing their own works. This added a welcome variety
From The World Championship Old Time Piano Playing Contest and Festival
This event with a hopelessly long but descriptive name occurs annually on Memorial Day weekend on the beautiful University of Mississippi campus in Oxford. This
The Vitality Five Syncopation Gone Mad
Art Tatum Piano Starts Here
Marty Elkins Fat Daddy
Carl Sonny Leyland & Lluis Coloma Telling Our Stories
Dennis Lichtman Just Cross The River
Neville Dickie Salutes The Jazz Piano Greats
Bunk Johnson Rare & Unissued Masters 1943-46
Ed Clute A Summer Night’s Magic
Take Five: The Public and Private Lives of Paul Desmond
Superstride: A Biography and Discography of Johnny Guarnieri by Derek Coller
The Original Blues: The Emergence of the Blues in African American Vaudeville
Three Books About Buddy Bolden
The Russell Family’s Legacy of Jazz: Luis Russell, Carline Ray, & Catherine Russell
It has always seemed a bit improbable that Catherine Russell, the vibrant and exciting swing singer, is the daughter of Luis Russell, the leader of
Billie Holiday: Profiles in Jazz
She had a small voice that could not compare to that of Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. She never scatted and her improvising tended to
Clarence Williams: Profiles in Jazz
Jazz history books often leave his name out, but Clarence Williams was a major force in the 1920s and ’30s and had quite a career;
New Orleans’ Carousel Bar Turns 70
The Carousel Bar inside the Hotel Monteleone in the two hundred block of Royal Street is the only revolving bar in New Orleans. Installed on
Leah Chase: a Queen and a Princess
To be a woman, you have to look like a girl, act like a lady, think like a man and work like a dog. —
New Orleans: The Land of a Thousand (Jazz) Dances
Arthur Pryor and the Birth of Ragtime
In 1893, twenty two year old Arthur Pryor performed his first trombone solo with Sousa’s Band. The time and place couldn’t have been better. The
Justin Ring’s Fifty Years on Record
Some folks are content to run things from behind the scenes, Justin Ring was one of these. Just as with Eddie King, Ring’s name appears
The Mysterious Mr. King
If you ever find yourself thumbing through discographies of Victor records from the 1920s, one name shows up more than most. You’ll see him listed
Laurence Juber Rules the ‘Realm of the Tune’
My television was on, but I wasn’t watching—until the talent of Laurence Juber demanded my attention. His finger style guitar playing was stunning. My ears
Testifyin’
I recently observed that, in your youth, you know you have a dear friend if they help you move. At my age, if they show
My Right Foot – Part Two
Last night was my first gig back after foot surgery—and it was, thankfully, a fairly easy one. I delegated the herding duties to another musician
Barbara Lashley, A Love Affair with Song
“It was always hard to believe, for most of us who worked with Barbara, that any jazz singer could be that sweet and that uncomplicated.She
The Gang at Monkey Inn (Part 2) The Bill Erickson Combos 1961-62
Don’t miss the downloadable audio files that follow this post. Part 1 is HERE. The Monkey Inn was a casual beer and pizza joint and
The Gang at Monkey Inn (Part 1) – Classic and Traditional Jazz 1958-62
Don’t miss the downloadable vintage audio files at the bottom of this article. In Berkeley, California the Monkey Inn (1956-66) was central to the second
The Mind of the Jazz Musician
Jazz musicians are highly trained professionals, just as in any other skilled professional field. Whilst on stage, it may appear to the causal observer that
The Sound Guy
Performing live cuts to the essence of what we do as jazz musicians. We love performing in intimate settings (because jazz is traditionally acoustic music)
Economy Jazz Class
Joplin’s Landmark School
In my April 2018 column, I wrote of the accomplishments of the good people of Texarkana and the work they are doing to preserve their
Michael Chisholm’s Labors of Love
Making new friends and learning more about older acquaintances is one of the many rewards of being part of the on-line ragtime community. I am
Yes, They All Played Ragtime Is Still Relevant Today
They All Played Ragtime (Alfred A. Knopf, Ltd., 1950) by Rudi Blesh and Harriet Janis is a wonderful story of our ragtime heritage. There have
Bill Evans, Minnesota based Trombonist and Bassist, has passed at 83
Bill Evans, passed away on September 10th after a battle with cancer, he was 83. In the 1950s he was a founding member of the
Tom Pletcher, Cornetist in Bix’s Own Style, Has Passed.
Tom Pletcher, the leading interpretter of Bix Beiderbecke of his generation died in August at 83. Tom Pletcher’s ties to jazz went back two generations.
San Antonio Jazz Legend Jim Cullum Has Died
There have been few more important, or more successful advocates of Dixieland jazz in the last half-century than cornetist Jim Cullum, Jr. who died on