‘As Long as They Can Blow’: Steve Provizer on Interracial Jazz
NOTE: This is an edited excerpt of the interview I did with Steve Provizer after reading his new book, As Long As They Can Blow:
Bush Street above Powell in San Francisco: The Club Hangover Story, 1949-61
Club Hangover was the foremost Dixieland and New Orleans Jazz nightclub on the West Coast in the 1950s. The intimate nightspot featured music six nights
Monterey by the Bay: The Bash Was a Smash!
NASA hasn’t perfected the robot that would be the ideal reviewer for a jazz festival like the Jazz Bash by the Bay in Monterey, California,
Bob Greene: Man on a (Morton) Mission
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
From the 35th San Diego Jazz Party
We attended the 35th Anniversary of the San Diego Jazz Party this past February and with beautiful weather at last! The Hilton Del Mar is
Celebrating the Centennial Jazz of 1924
1924 found America deep in the Jazz Age with speakeasies, bootleggers, and hot jazz as the soundtrack. Calvin Coolidge was president (winning re-election in November),
Big Joe Turner: Feel So Fine A Bio-Discography
Big Joe Turner: Feel So Fine, Derek Coller’s exhaustive bio/discography of the legendary alumnus of Kansas City’s colorful past has been recently published to critical
Jelly Roll Blues: Censored Songs & Hidden Histories
Sometimes, those of us interested in music of the late 19th or early 20th century feel fortunate at the number of recordings available for us
Wham Re-Bop-Boom-Bam: The Swing Jazz of Eddie Durham
Arranging is an underrated element in jazz and arrangers have not been given the credit they deserve. Arranging has almost always been considered piecework, paid
Humphrey Lyttelton: Profiles in Jazz
In music history, it ranked with Igor Stravinsky’s debut of The Rite Of Spring in 1913 and Bob Dylan “going electric” at the 1965 Newport
As Long as They Can Blow: Interracial Jazz Recording and Other Jive Before 1935
The best-known examples of interracial jazz recordings are the 1935 and ’36 sides cut by the Benny Goodman Trio which included black pianist Teddy Wilson.
Frank and John: The Musical Banta Brothers
In the world of 19th century theater, there were many siblings who made their success by performing together. As the phonograph became a legitimate medium
Jeff Barnhart & Spats Langham • We Wish We Were Twins
There are some albums which are done a terrible disservice by either not getting the press nor the reviews they deserve. Such is the case
Lionel Hampton
Lionel Hampton was born April 20, 1908, in Louisville, Kentucky. He and his family moved to Chicago, Illinois, in 1916. During the 1920s, while still
Jazz Jottings April 2024
Charlie Barnet Tells All Growing up in the heydays of the Big Bands, I thought I had a pretty good handle on the leaders of
Rudiments of Ragtime Installment 15: Thomas “Fats” Waller (1904-1939)
By the age of 10, Thomas Waller was playing piano and organ proficiently and beginning to compose in syncopation. In fact, by the end of
(Mis)Remembering the 1974 Joplin Fest
As I blow the dust off of the fifty-year-old files of Joplin Ragtime Festival documents, it isn’t just the dust causing my eyes to tear.
“The Swamp of Jazz”
Full disclosure, kind readers: during my public school years I was an unalloyedly precocious rapscallion with a big sense of humor (to myself, anyhow), a
Darden Purcell • Love’s Got Me in a Lazy Mood
Work has had me on the road a lot lately, so that new in-car MP3 player has been a lot of use. (Promoters, take note:
Betty Bryant • Lotta Livin’
With the UK state pension now standing at 68 for people born in 1987—and likely to rise further, given our shambles of an economy and
‘Downsizing’ Duke Ellington in After Midnight
When Paper Mill Playhouse, the State Theater of New Jersey, announced their 2023-2024 season, the production I was most looking forward to was the musical
A Brief Stop in NOLA
Prior to the Templeton Ragtime Festival in late February, I spent a few days in New Orleans. As my regular readers know, when I travel
Inspiring Elvis: The Music Behind the King of Rock and Roll
Over the past years, I have seen it claimed quite often, sometimes with a tinge of resentment by black speakers, that Elvis Presley co-opted the
The Miracle of Competence
Of all that which I consider worthy, perhaps the most remarkable is when someone does exactly what they promise they’re going to do. I weep
Letters April 2024
You Call That a Monitor? Here’s a Monitor! To the Editor: Thanks for your good works. On large monitors: I am using the 55″ 1080P
The Frowning Festival
The Frowning Festival Einsiedeln, Switzerland is a charming, alpine village near Zurich and is the oldest and most important place of pilgrimage in Switzerland. NGJB
The Festival Roundup April 2024
JAZZ PENSACOLA JAZZFEST (Pensacola, FL) – April 6-7 The 41st Annual Pensacola JazzFest will be April 6-7, 2024, at Seville Square in historic downtown Pensacola.
Festival promotor Laurie Whitlock has died
The Jazz world has lost a lifelong contributor to the celebration and preservation of Jazz. Laurie Whitlock spent many long hours volunteering with the most
Seatle Saxophonist Bill Ramsay has died at 95
Well known Seattle saxophonist Bill Ramsay died on March 3rd, he was 95. He was a founding member of the Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra in
Kerry “Fatman” Hunter killed in hit and run
Prominent New Orleans drummer Kerry “Fatman” Hunter was killed by a drunk driver while walking near the corner of Claiborne and Elysian Fields on Mardi
Steve Lawrence, of Steve & Eydie, has died at 88
Steve Lawrence, of Steve & Eydie, has died at 88. The son of a Jewish cantor his own professional singing career began when we was
Arthur Marshall’s Kinklets
Independent of Scott Joplin, Arthur Marshall (pictured) wrote a small collection of pieces every bit as graceful and dignified as those by other Classic Ragtime
Poem: Nighthawks Through The Years
Jackson, Brooks, Porter; the twenties’ best creators. Their work lives on all thanks to boardwalk empire and the aviator. “Jazz is dated, get lost, you’ll
Phonograph Society to Crack Down on ‘Nostalgia Newbies’
The International Society of Antique Phonograph Enthusiasts (ISAPE) has issued new guidelines for playing records on vintage machines. Society chair Dr. Marta Meeling, PhD, DDS,
Drummers’ Summit: Let’s Talk About Morey Feld
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
Whisper Darkly: Shining a Light on Secretive Jazz Age Theater Project
YouTube is just full of surprises, isn’t it? For instance, today I learned that there’s a channel called Electro Swing Thing, which recently uploaded a
Benny Goodman’s Female Singers – 1939-49
During the Swing era, bandleaders had a variety of different opinions about the importance of employing a female singer. Some, such as Artie Shaw, considered
Cold Winds Outside, Hot Jazz Inside!
When we hit New Orleans this past January it was 32 degrees and very windy! The Mississippi encourages bitter winds through the Quarter and creates
The Spirit of Hot Jazz in St. Louis: T.J. Muller’s All-Star Jazz Band
Traditional jazz and ragtime are back in St. Louis these days and as vibrant and joyful as in the days when the Goldenrod Showboat graced
The El Dorado Jazz Band, Part Two
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
97 Years of Jazz: Happy Birthday, Dick Hyman!
Multi-keyboardist Dick Hyman, born March 8, 1927, will turn 97 years old this month. With a prolific career behind him he’s no longer performing publicly,
Bobby Burns Berman: ‘Hollywood’s Entertainer of the Stars’
From the 1920s to the 1940s my great uncle Harry Berman had a multifaceted career as a performer on stage, screen, records, and radio. His
Louis and Bria in NYC
On a rainy Friday, December 1, I made my second trip to the Big Apple in just under two months. My main purpose was to
Helf and Hager Set up Shop on Tin Pan Alley
In the latter 19th century, a few daring publishers decided to try and combine their hustling status with the phonograph. In the 1890s it was
‘The Harlem Strut’ by James P. Johnson: A ‘Groundbreaking’ Stride Solo
The “Roaring Twenties” were off to a rousing start by late 1920. Musically, if not in other ways as well, the contributions of African Americans
My ‘Dear John’ Letter
In previous columns I’ve shared stories regarding the people who paved the path I’ve traveled to become, musically—and sometimes so much more, who I am
David Reffkin and the Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival
There was a knock at the door and when I answered the fellow introduced himself as David Reffkin (not to be confused with Joshua Rifkin
The Lost Hook Tapes
It really is a waiting game based on luck and endurance. I am banking on the idea that if you stick to your artistic career
Dick Hyman’s Century of Jazz Piano (5 CD + 1 DVD Box Set)
Within Dick Hyman’s Century of Jazz Piano (Arbors), a five-disc CD set totaling 121 selections, pianist Dick Hyman seeks to demonstrate the development of jazz
