The Story of Blues Over Bodega, Part Two
Hal Smith
January 28, 2025
JB: Faithful readers, this month my fellow musical forensicist and I will be continuing our exploration of a nine-track LP released by Fantasy Records in
JB: Faithful readers, this month my fellow musical forensicist and I will be continuing our exploration of a nine-track LP released by Fantasy Records in
Hal Smith: Jeff, according to our recent e-mail exchanges, we share a favorite album: Blues Over Bodega, recorded by Lu Watters’ Jazz Band and released
Jeff Barnhart: Hal, one of the highlights for me while exploring the music of cornetist Johnny Wiggs and banjo/guitar/vocalist Edmond “Doc” Souchon was the tasty
Jeff Barnhart: Well, Hal, you’ve done it again. I’ve been grooving on the selections you chose to share the music and story of Edmond Souchon: banjoist,
Jeff Barnhart: Welcome, dear reader! This month, we are continuing our exploration of the music of New Orleans cornet player Johnny Wiggs, whose recorded output
Jeff Barnhart: Hal my friend, you’ve chosen a musician I know little about, but whose work I’ve heard—and very much enjoyed in the past. Since
Hal Smith: Brother Kevin, we have received quite a lot of positive comments for our first article on Morey Feld. Before we begin part two,
Hal Smith: Dear Readers, this month Jeff and I will explore the music of the great jazz pianist Bob Greene. We start with the first
Hal Smith: Well, Brother Kevin…It seems like forever since we “talked shop” for an article in The Syncopated Times. Before another year slips away, what
Jeff Barnhart: Welcome back, dear readers. This month we’re continuing our discussion of a unique traditional jazz group that had its heyday in the 1960s
Jeff Barnhart: Welcome! This month we’re taking a break from poring over recordings created 95+ years ago and concentrating on a Californian group that had
JB: Welcome back, intrepid explorers! To start the New year off with a bang, we’re continuing our discussion of the incomparable Kid Ory Band’s appearances
Hot Jazz will return to the Upper Mississippi River next year during the Bix Beiderbecke Jazz Festival. The Riverboat Cruise this year was a huge
Jeff Barnhart: Welcome back, Hal! I couldn’t start this next topic without you!! In an earlier column (TST Jan–Feb 2023) we enjoyed a two-part exploration
Jeff Barnhart: Hal, we’re both very fortunate to have busy performing/traveling schedules this month so we’ve pared down the number of tunes we’ll explore. As we’ll
One of the experiences in jazz that I wouldn’t trade for anything was the brief time I spent playing with Ev Farey’s Golden State Jazz
Jeff Barnhart: Hal, this month we’re exploring Charlie Johnson’s Paradise Orchestra (sometimes Ten or Band), a unit that recorded between Feb 1925 and May 1929
Jeff Barnhart: Hal, this month we’re concluding our discussion of the music produced by violinist Clifford Hayes and Co. Starting as the Dixieland Jug Blowers,
Jeff Barnhart: Hal, last month we began exploring the music of the Dixieland Jug Blowers, concluding with the first side from their June 6, 1927,
Jeff Barnhart: This month we’re starting a two-part discussion about the music of the Dixieland Jug Blowers from the mid-1920s. I’ll freely admit I’ve only
A little over 100 years ago, if you wandered down to the riverfront in Davenport, Iowa, you might have heard hot music emanating from a
Jeff Barnhart: Hal, as you recall, we omitted one recording in our discussion of the New Orleans Owls (TST, March-April 2023) to work out a
As I have written more than once, my initial exposure to live jazz was hearing the Firehouse Five Plus Two at Disneyland in 1962. It
Jeff Barnhart: Hal, onto Part 2 of our exploration of the New Orleans Owls, a hot band that recorded some terrific sides over five sessions
