Blues Over Bodega: The Epitome of Protest Jazz

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 by Fantasy Records in 1964. I will provide some background information on the session, but first—what are your overall comments regarding this great album?

Jeff Barnhart: Hal, I purchased a used copy of this LP when I was a mid-teenager. At the time, I’d only heard two tracks by the Yerba Buena Jazz Band. One was on a release produced by the late Dave Jasen called They All Played the Maple Leaf Rag, (guess the tune the band was blowing through…it stood out for its relentless rhythm and the frontline with two trumpets). The second was on a compilation CD called The Best of Dixieland or something similar. That release covered all branches of ensemble jazz, including the British Revivalist offshoots. Somewhere in the middle of the playlist, Watters’ “Blues My Naughty Sweetie” came blaring out of the speakers like, to paraphrase the liner notes, an unstoppable freight train. It was love at first sound.

So I went to see what I could pick up at my three favorite record stores. I found none of the YBJB material from the 1940s but came across the Blues Over Bodega release. Reading the liner notes on the back of the LP, it might’ve been my age that made the word “protest” stand out! I eagerly bought it, took it home and played the album about 75 times over the next week before taking a break. It’s ironic that my first Watters album was such a late musical effort of his, but his power and emotion on this recording, along with the playing of so many who would become favorites of mine, such as Wally Rose, Bob Helm, and Bob Short, made me a firm fan!

I’m on the road at present with no access to my LP at home, so Hal, if you could please share the provenance of this release, I know this will help our readers in understanding the multi-faceted importance of Blues Over Bodega!

HS: The album came about because of Lu Watters’ concern over Pacific Gas & Electric’s plan to build an atomic power plant on Bodega Bay near Lu’s home in Cotati, California. The location chosen by PG&E was also close to the San Andreas Fault—source of the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire! Lu joined the Northern California Association to Preserve Bodega Head and Harbor and decided that protest through music would bring more attention to the situation.

Though he laid off from playing music for a dozen years after disbanding the Yerba Buena Jazz Band and closing Hambone Kelly’s, he sat in with Turk Murphy’s Jazz Band at one of the NCAPBH rallies at Bodega Bay (Bob Helm played me a tape of this rally where the band performed “Shake That Thing”)! Lu continued to play trumpet, sitting in with Turk’s band at two fundraisers at Earthquake McGoon’s, and finally organized the recording session which resulted in the Blues Over Bodega album. As Lu wrote, “This record did not win the Bodega Battle. But it did boost the morale of the people who were battling PG&E against depressing odds.”

Years ago, Lu told me that he planned to include the original Yerba Buena Jazz Band musicians on the session. However, Turk Murphy begged off for a variety of reasons. Banjoist Harry Mordecai had retired from music. Based on the evidence of a private recording, made while Lu was getting his chops back in shape, tubist Dick Lammi was not up to playing a recording session. Drummer Bill Dart was tied up with divorce proceedings. Fortunately, Yerba Buenans Bob Helm and Wally Rose were available, and they signed on for the session. Tubist Bob Short and drummer Thad Vandon were on loan from the Murphy Band. Banjoist Monte Ballou, an old friend of Lu’s, played banjo and the great Barbara Dane was featured vocalist.

Appropriately, the first track is titled “San Andreas Fault” (also known as “San Andreas Shake”). This performance made a huge impact on me when I first heard it and it is still my favorite from the whole album. Lu sounds as though he never stopped playing in 1951: strong, minimal number of notes on both the ensembles and the minor-key solo and an absolutely ferocious lead on the outchorus! Bob Mielke and Bob Helm play wonderfully creative solos and perfect parts. (Lu told Mielke, “Bob, nobody can write a Dixieland trombone part”). Wally Rose plays his typical effervescent style throughout, teaming up with Ballou’s rhythmic strumming, Short’s inspiring brass bass lines and Vandon’s understated drumming. I could listen to this one for hours and not tire of it. What appeals to you on this track, Jeff?

JB: I’ll have to limit myself to true highlights here, Hal; I could devote an entire column to this one tune alone! The intro is the final eight bars of the tune and comes in like a steamroller. On-beat melody notes alternate with off-beat banjo “hits” (and I do mean “HIT”) in the first two bars and then the riff becomes syncopated: it’s like the angry shouting of a protesting mob and enormously exhilarating. The first ensemble chorus has everyone playing with heart and heat, never too busy, but pulsating! Bob Helm hits a note at the end of this chorus that he carries into his solo clarinet ride. He bends and smears, sounding like no-one but himself, and it’s delightful!

The verse is up next, with Watters himself doing the honors. It’s in minor and resembles the verse we hear in Percy Venable’s composition “Irish Black Bottom” as recorded by Louis Armstrong’s Hot Five. Mielke channels his inner-Turk Murphy, but with more technique and some lip-trills a la Jack Teagarden! An ensemble verse follows, leading us to the magnificent Wally Rose, who keeps the momentum going with smashing octaves in the right hand and some moving left-hand figures breaking out of the ragtime formula. Helm romps through a third iteration of the verse and the band stomps back in for two out choruses that inexorably grow in intensity, ultimately landing on the riff that started it all! What a ride!!

I’ll make two observations here before turning it back to you. “San Andreas Fault” is in the difficult key of Db, with the verse in the relative key of Bbm (both have five flats). The band makes it all sound easy! Second, how terrific it is to hear the band able to open up; no longer restricted by the 78 rpm 3:20-minute maximum length, many of the tunes on this release are over 4 minutes in length: Our next tune, “See See Rider,” is just shy of six minutes long!

HS: Lu was never intimidated by the key of Db! I have a recording of the five-piece Watters band at Hambone Kelly’s where they play “South” and “Sister Kate” in Db (and no, the tape was not running slow). Also, keep in mind that the band played songs like “Richard M. Jones Blues,” “King Chanticleer,” “Frankie and Johnny,” “Got Dem Blues,” and “Peoria” in five flats and the second strain of Lu’s own “Sage Hen Strut” is in Db too.

“See See Rider” even winds up in Db! On the opening chorus, Lu’s trumpet soars over mournful, dirge-like whole notes by Mielke, Helm and Short. Next is a regular ensemble, with a sudden modulation to Db for Helm’s solo. The great Barbara Dane sings the verse, with wonderful backup by the front line. Her first note on the chorus is one of the bluest I have heard from any singer. Lu’s accompaniment is spot-on. Mielke contributes a typically inspired solo, then Barbara sings again with Helm accompanying on soprano sax. Mielke takes over the accompaniment for the next vocal chorus. He had worked with Barbara Dane for several years prior to Blues Over Bodega, so he knew exactly how to back her up. An intense ensemble precedes the final vocal chorus, which includes a vocal break and the band holding the last note. This is really an excellent side, instrumentally as well as vocally.

When the Yerba Buena Jazz Band played at the Dawn Club and Hambone Kelly’s, Lu would include rags played by Wally Rose with the rhythm section in almost every set. This not only gave the horns a rest from blowing triple forte for three or four minutes at a time; it also helped to expose the YBJB fans to classic rags by Joplin, Scott, Turpin, and others. Lu contributed a rag of his own to the repertoire: “The Villain”—inspired by the type of piano playing one might hear as accompaniment to a silent movie. (I’m sure you will have more to say about that, Jeff). This rag was written in 1949; played by Wally, Dick Lammi, and Bill Dart at Hambone Kelly’s and recorded by Ralph Sutton for Lu’s Down Home record label on one of Ralph’s sojourns to Northern California.

JB: I love the opening chorus on “See See Rider!” The harmonization and voicings are perfect. The horns obviously took the time to work out their parts; the homophonic backing to Watters’ gorgeous and emotional statement of the melody is effectively contrasted by the steady chunking of Ballou’s banjo. The ensuing ensemble is much looser but doesn’t lose the almost sobbing quality. Helm’s clarinet solo takes us from Ab to Db and he bends notes so viciously they might break! Both the remaining instrumental solos and the backing of the vocals prove that hot musicians can also play sensitively without sacrificing intensity. I was astounded by Babara Dane’s performance here; if this were the UK, we’d be justified labeling her “Dame Barbara Dane!” Since we lost her this past October, it’s wonderful to have an opportunity to showcase her in this month’s column.

Hal, besides her obvious vocal gifts, I love that Dane’s contribution flows as part of the feel of the song rather than interrupting it. Rather than vocal features, the sides that include her remarkable work find her vocals seamlessly incorporated to make her another equal voice in the line-up. This is so hard to do; I can’t think off the top of my head of any contemporary band with a vocalist (of any gender) that manages this as well.

I should point out that Dane’s lyrics on the verse of this blues completely rewrite the original story, bringing a more reconciliatory tone to it, at least until she starts in on the choruses. Lyrically, her final chorus is also not in the original, but is awesome: “Well, you made me love you: now your time has come!”

I remember first hearing “The Villain” performed by pianist Robbie Rhodes with the rhythm section of the South Frisco Jazz Band at the Great Connecticut Traditional Jazz Festival in 1987! Even before I was steeped in the silent film comedy world, the title, tremoloed diminished chord intro, and sinister first section in Cm had me picturing a caped, mustachioed meany in a top hat! I’m surprised no one has included it in the background for the numerous old films being posted on YouTube.

I love that we hear drummer Thad Vandon on brushes—and that sustained cymbal during the introduction makes me think of the steam coming from a train about to run over the heroine tied to the tracks! A true rag, this tune has three distinct sections (the remaining two strains are in Ab). The third strain features a riff found in several of Jelly Roll Morton’s hotter piano pieces, such as the climax to “Shreveport Stomp” or “Finger Breaker.” It’s real hot stuff and Wally Rose is clearly having fun. The form appears to be fluid, as is evidenced by a live recording from 1950 with Wally accompanied by Dick Lammi on bass and Bill Dart on drums! Hal, what else can you share about this Watters rag and what’s next?

HS: The late K.O. Eckland (Firehouse Five Plus Two pianist) hung around Hambone Kelly’s quite a bit in the late 1940s and throughout 1950 when he was attending U.C. Berkeley. He was present when Ralph Sutton recorded “The Villain” on a piano in one of the HBK back rooms. K.O. told me that he was turning the pages as Ralph read the music! Let’s include Ralph’s recording in the links, as a contrast to the way Wally performed it. By the way, around 1955 pianist Robin Wetterau wrote a band arrangement of this for Gene Mayl’s Dixieland Rhythm Kings. That same arrangement was used a few years later by the Great Pacific Jazz Band and still later by Ted Shafer’s Jelly Roll Jazz Band.

I heard Thad Vandon play drums quite a few times, and since you mentioned it, I seem to remember he played either a “swish” or “sizzle” cymbal while he was with the Turk Murphy band.

Notice that Bob Short played string bass, rather than his usual brass bass, on both of the piano rags included on the album. Bob’s string bass playing reminds me of the way Ray Leatherwood, Morty Corb, Phil Stephens and Jud DeNaut played. It wasn’t New Orleans style, but the time, feel, and the choice of bass notes were flawless.

JB: I’m glad you mentioned K.O. Eckland. I always admired his playing and his writing! In addition to his two books outlining West Coast Jazz, in the later years of his life he’d write the content of the program for the Pismo Beach Jazz Jubilee and his observations about the featured bands was way cleverer than anything they’d come up with! Hal, this is such a feast of tasty music produced by some West Coast legends that we’ve been consuming in aural bliss! There’s much too much here to cover in one segment of our collaboration, so what say we continue this discussion next month?

HS: I got to work with K.O. quite a bit during the early and mid-1990s. He had the same sense of humor on the bandstand that you see in the band descriptions in the Pismo Jubilee programs. He was a good piano man too!

There is a lot to say about the remaining tracks on Blues Over Bodega, so making this a two-parter is an excellent idea.