– More on Hayakawa –
To the Editor:
As you said in the Jan. issue (“Baby, It’s Colder Inside,” January 2019), it’s a welcome relief in these difficult times to have a trivial subject like old pop tunes to argue over. You mentioned S.I. Hayakawa, and I have a bit to add. After he became a relatively right wing senator, despite his earlier right on linguistics pronouncements, he still retained his love of traditional jazz, etc. and his sense of humor. He was often in the audience when the band I played in, Wallace Reverie’s Tuxedo Jazz Band, when it played at a restaurant in Marin County, California, in 1980. Also he sometimes participated in jam sessions on harmonica or piano.
Politics aside, that part of him I liked.
Eliot Kenin
Martinez, CA
The main thing I remember about Hayakawa was that Johnny Carson used to make fun of him for falling asleep in the Senate. But his musical enthusiasm was real. When he first gave “Popular Songs vs. the Facts of Life” as a talk in 1954, he illustrated it with selections performed by Bob Scobey’s Frisco Jazz Band. -Ed.
– 600 Concerts –
To the Editor:
Just wanted to share a highlight milestone moment in our jazz club. Saturday, January 5th, was the 600th gig that Nancy and I have organized over 18 years for the Kitchener-Waterloo Dixieland Jazz Club. We have presented 47 different bands and 248 different musicians to our fans during that time.
As you know we operate once a week, every year, between September and May, unlike most jazz clubs which operate once a month.
We’re off and running again as you know, even though I turned 80 last August. God I’m tired!
Thanks for your support of our club as always, and for taking the time to view a bit of “proudness” from some “forever Dixieland jazz fans.”
Wayne and Nancy Pauli
The KW Dixieland Jazz Club
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
“Congratulations!” seems too mild a word—yet I’ll offer mine. The first 600 gigs are the hardest. Keep ’em coming! -Ed.
