Jazz Crazy Records

An Archive of Early Jazz on 78 RPM

Category: Jazz

  • “Blues (My Naughty Sweetheart Gives To Me)” – Ted Lewis and his Band (1926)

    “Blues (My Naughty Sweetheart Gives To Me)” – Ted Lewis and his Band (1926)

    I can’t believe in the nearly two and a half years I’ve had this channel I’ve never posted a Ted Lewis record! To rectify this, here is the hilariously named “Blues (My Naughty Sweetheart Gives To Me)”.

    Lewis first recorded this song in 1919 at his first session for Columbia with a smaller band. Here we find a electric recording of Lewis seven years later giving the tune a fresh look. Lewis’ clarinet verges on a klezmer style throughout, and seems to constantly inspire the other instruments to join in as he stretches out.

    The original issue was a standard black Columbia Viva-tonal label – and this one is a repressing from 2-3 years later with Lewis’ custom Columbia label. These labels were originally a mirrored silver – but with age and time, the chrome finish dulled to a battleship grey.

    Recorded in Chicago, Illinois on July 16, 1926.
    Released as Columbia 770-D.

    Ted Lewis – clarinet, alto sax, director
    Walter Kahn, Dave Klein – cornet
    George Brunies – trombone
    Sol Shapiro – violin
    Maurice Aten – banjo
    Frank Ross – piano
    Harry Barth – tuba
    John Lucas – drums

  • “Stomp Your Stuff” – Ray Miller and his Orchestra (1926)

    “Stomp Your Stuff” – Ray Miller and his Orchestra (1926)

    Was flipping through my Ray Miller records and came across this jazzy dance tune – Didn’t see a transfer of this one anywhere on YouTube yet so here it is!

    Vaya! Baile Ud.!

    Thanks to a comment by @henridelagardere264 I did some additional research on composer Bill Krenz – who was born in 1899 not far from me in Rock Island, Illinois. This was Krenz’ first composition – and he went on to write many more – including “Starlight Rendezvous” which was performed by Tommy Dorsey and a number of minor rags in the 1950s such as “Boogie Woogie Russian Rag”, “Poodle Rag”, and “Ramblin’ Rag”.

    Krenz played a solo piano set at the Bix Lives! Memorial Jazz Festival in Davenport in 1974 – so I wonder if he had moved back to the Quad Cities by that point?

    Recorded in New York City on March 9, 1926.
    Released as Brunswick 3132.

    Credits:
    Ray Miller – director
    Charlie Margulis, Bob Howard – trumpet
    Andy Sindelar, Mike Durso – trombone
    Volly de Faut – clarinet, alto sax
    Fred Crissey – alto sax
    Karl Spaeth – tenor sax
    Herman Kaplan – violin
    Bill Krenz, Joe Breitenbach – piano
    Happy Mansfield – tuba
    Tony Briglia – drums

  • “Old Man Blues” – Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (1930)

    “Old Man Blues” – Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (1930)

    “Old Man Blues” is an energized contrafact of “Old Man River” – the hit by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein from the Broadway play “Showboat”. Duke dials up the tempo and gives it an innovative arrangement full of engaging moments and showboating solos.

    Duke and the band were in Hollywood to appear in the Amos ‘n Andy film “Check and Double Check” and while there, recorded three songs: this one, “Ring Dem Bells” and “Three Little Words.”

    If you’d like to watch Duke and the band play this tune in the film, head over to:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGb6fpS4Ais

    It’s a rare opportunity to see an early jazz band playing live, complete with the showmanship that they exhibited nightly at the Cotton Club.

    Recorded in Hollywood, California on August 26, 1930.
    Released as Victor 23022.

    Credits:
    Duke Ellington – piano, arranger, director
    Cootie Williams, Arthur Whetsel, Freddy Jenkins – trumpet
    Joe Nanton – trombone
    Juan Tizol – valve trombone
    Johnny Hodges – clarinet, soprano sax, alto sax
    Harry Carney – clarinet, alto sax, baritone sax
    Barney Bigard – clarinet, tenor sax
    Fred Guy – banjo
    Wellman Braud – bass
    Sonny Greer – drums

  • “Some of these Days” – David Nelson and the King’s Men (1931) – King Oliver’s Nephew!

    “Some of these Days” – David Nelson and the King’s Men (1931) – King Oliver’s Nephew!

    Dave Nelson was a Louisiana-born trumpet player (and nephew of jazz royalty King Oliver) who most famously played on the King Oliver Orchestra’s Victor sides from 1929 through 1931.

    He led two sessions with his own band in 1931 that resulted in seven released sides – three on Victor and four on the budget Timely Tunes label. His orchestra, comprised of many “borrowed” players from King Oliver’s Orchestra, were aptly named the “King’s Men”.

    I don’t suppose you could have picked a worse time to go out on your own as a bandleader as 1931 during the throes of the Great Depression. After 1931, the next time Dave Nelson appears on a record is 1937 when he played a session with Willie “The Lion” Smith and his Cubs for the Decca label.

    Recorded in New York City on January 14, 1931.
    Released as Victor 23039.

    DAHR reports only 5,976 copies were sold. To give some measure of comparison, Victor 23040 by the Doc Daugherty Orchestra sold well over 12,000 copies

    Credits:
    David Nelson – trumpet, vocals, director
    Melvin Herbert, Harry Brown – trumpet
    Wilbur de Paris – trombone
    Buster Bailey, Glyn Paque – clarinet, alto sax
    Charles Frazier – tenor sax
    Wayman Carver – tenor sax, flute
    Sam Allen – piano
    Arthur Taylor – guitar
    Simon Marrero – bass
    Gerald Hobson – drums

    If you like this tune, be sure to check out Dave Nelson’s “When Day is Done”:
    https://youtu.be/N9jyKbSEM-U

  • “Georgia Stomp” – Charles Fulcher and his Orchestra (1925) Atlanta Jazz

    “Georgia Stomp” – Charles Fulcher and his Orchestra (1925) Atlanta Jazz

    Recorded in Atlanta, Georgia on January 28, 1925.
    Released as Columbia 316-D.

    Credits:
    Charles Fulcher – clarinet, violin, director
    A. D. Barfield – trumpet
    Pop Miller – trombone
    Otis Haislip, Neely Plumb – alto sax
    Frank Crutcher – tenor sax
    Bo Norris – piano
    Gwynn Hester – banjo
    Chuck Jordan – tuba
    Sandy Jordan – drums

  • “Buffalo Rag” – Vess L. Ossman (1905) – Ragtime Composition by Tom Turpin

    “Buffalo Rag” – Vess L. Ossman (1905) – Ragtime Composition by Tom Turpin

    Tom Turpin, the “Father of St. Louis Ragtime”, published seven compositions in his lifetime, including this one composed in 1904 and performed here on banjo by Vess L. Ossman with orchestra accompaniment.

    Some misalignment in the label design can be seen here – where the title and artist information seems to be off-center from where it usually appears. This seems to indicate that this information was printed separately from the rest of the label.

    Recorded in New York City circa 1905.
    Released as Coumbia A218.

  • “One Smile” – Sam Lanin and his Roseland Orchestra (1925)

    “One Smile” – Sam Lanin and his Roseland Orchestra (1925)

    A lilting dance number by Lanin’s Roseland Orchestra featuring some nice trumpet work by Red Nichols starting at 2:21.

    Recorded in New York City on June 3, 1925.
    Released as Columbia 396-D.

    Credits:
    Red Nichols, Hymie Farberman – trumpet
    Herb Winfield – trombone
    Clarence Heidke, Alfie Evans – clarinet, alto sax
    George Slater – clarinet, tenor sax
    Eddie Sheasby – violin
    Bill Krenz – piano
    Tony Colucci – banjo
    Joe Tarto – tuba
    Vic Berton – drums

  • New Arrivals at the Jazz Bunker – Jazz Chat Episode 8 – African 78 rpm records and exciting jazz!

    New Arrivals at the Jazz Bunker – Jazz Chat Episode 8 – African 78 rpm records and exciting jazz!

    The last six months have been a fruitful time for finding 78 rpm records – and I wanted to take a moment to share some of the incoming arrivals in two categories: 1) African 78 rpm records and 2) Jazz 78s.

    I also wanted to address the question of where to find African 78s by giving you some backstory on how I acquired these latest few – along with some of the jazz records you’ll be hearing in the coming weeks!

    0:00 Welcome
    0:34 Thank you to all the Jazz-Bos
    1:08 What precipitated this video
    2:01 Where does one find African 78s?
    2:53 Diaspora Records (diasporarecords.com)
    3:23 Intro to New Arrivals
    4:02 The Story of how I got a copy of Ngoma 202
    8:19 The Story of how I got a copy of Ngoma 1787 (& others)
    16:43 eBay finds: Ngoma 1165 and Loningisa 112
    20:07 The secret to finding Loningisa releases: the HMV LON series
    21:55 Other records that came directly from Africa
    26:57 Fantastic Kenyan records in rougher shape
    34:55 There are JAZZ records too! Some new Jazz arrivals
    50:02 Upcoming plans for special videos!
    51:37 Goodbye!

  • “Sepia Panorama” – Duke Ellington and his Famous Orchestra (1940)

    “Sepia Panorama” – Duke Ellington and his Famous Orchestra (1940)

    The first jazz CD I ever bought was Duke Ellington’s “The Blanton-Webster Band” – a 3 disc set of one of Duke’s most polished and innovative bands. I listened to it countless times at work where my supervisor, jazz musician and artist Reverend Dwight Frizzell, would play it – often commenting on the tracks as they played. Noting a performer or a particularly interesting solo.

    For a 19 year old whose taste in music was firmly in 70s and 80s punk and art rock, this music was a revelation. It was not at all predictable. The performances were absolutely perfect. Most importantly, it effortlessly and authentically expressed joy. To this day, the Ellington recordings from 1940-1942 on Victor remain favorites that I return to often.

    Here we have one of the more interesting compositions to fit on a 78 rpm record: an ABCDDCBA song form.

    0:00 A section (12 bars)
    0:26 B section (16 bars)
    1:01 C section (8 bars)
    1:18 D section (12 bars)
    1:45 D section (12 bars)
    2:12 C section (8 bars)
    2:29 B section (8 bars)
    2:46 A section (12 bars)

    The D section is the inner core of the tune – a 12 bar blues that features Ellington and Blanton in the first go round and a quiet lush Ben Webster in the second. The rest of the sections seem to arc us first toward and then away from that beautiful moment in the middle.

    Recorded in New York City on July 24, 1940.
    Released as Victor 26731

    Credits
    Duke Ellington – piano, arranger, director
    Wardell Jones, Cootie Williams – trumpet
    Rex Stewart – cornet
    Joe Nanton, Lawrence Brown – trombone
    Juan Tizol – valve trombone
    Barney Bigard – clarinet
    Johnny Hodges – clarinet, soprano sax, alto sax
    Harry Carney – alto sax, bass sax
    Ben Webster – tenor sax
    Fred Guy – guitar
    Jimmy Blanton – string bass
    Sonny Greer – drums

  • “Justrite” – Bennie Moten’s Kansas City Orchestra (1928)

    “Justrite” – Bennie Moten’s Kansas City Orchestra (1928)

    Some excellent Kansas City jazz from Bennie Moten on Victor.

    September 6-7 1928 saw Bennie Moten’s Kansas City Orchestra in the Victor studios in Camden, New Jersey for an epic two day session that yielded eleven released sides – including “South” – the last song to be recorded on the 7th and the band’s most popular and enduring hit. “South” stayed in print in the RCA Victor catalog until the late 1950s and was also released on 45pm.

    Here, we have the first song recorded on Sept 6th: “Justrite”, with songwriting credits split between Moten and cornetist Ed Lewis.

    I’m not sure if my ears are full of stuffing, but a few other versions of this tune out there (like the version on Spotify) sound a tad sharp. This one sounds in tune to my ears when I play along with it – but you’ll have to tell me what you think. If I’m wrong please let me know and I’ll schedule a cerumenectomy post haste. ^_^

    The tune starts off with an insistent tension, but soon falls into a driving groove with some nice ensemble playing before Ed Lewis finally hits a solo around the minute mark. He is followed by what sound like a vocal effect similar to Cliff Edwards’ “Effin’”. A baritone sax solo follows, then a banjo solo. A second distant-sounding cornet takes us back to a rousing conclusion.

    Recorded in Camden, New Jersey on September 6, 1928.
    Released as Victor 21739.

    Credits
    Bennie Moten – piano, director
    Ed Lewis, Booker Washington – cornet
    Thamon Hayes – trombone
    Harlan Leonard – clarinet, soprano sax, alto sax
    Jack Washington – clarinet, alto sax, baritone sax
    Woody Walder – clarinet, tenor sax
    Leroy Berry – banjo
    Vernon Page – tuba
    Willie McWashington – drums