Topic: Tunes You're Listening To

[dj]

Another jewel from Document's Too Late, Too Late series is the Nashville Washboard Band doing Arkansas Traveler on Volume 10.  The Nashville Washboard Band, when they were recorded by the Library of Congress at John Work's house on July 14, 1942, consisted of James Kelly on mandolin, Frank Dalton on guitar, Tom Carrol on "tin-can bull-fiddle", and Theopholis Stokes on washboard, with at least two of the members singing.  The band recorded a varied set that day consisting of blues, hokum, dance tunes, and a pop song.  Everything that's on Volume 10 is good, but Arkansas Traveler stands out.  The band really charges through this, with Kelly adding trills and variations to the melody as the song progresses, and Stokes taking time out from his frantic washboard playing to play a verse on what sounds like a bunch of different sized pots.  Mandolin fans should check this one out.

I should point out that there are an additional two songs by the Nashville Washboard Band, Soldier's Joy and Old Joe, on Too Late, Too Late Volume 6.  I haven't heard them yet, but they're now in the mail on their way to me from Allegro Music, which has them in stock at a good price, should anyone be interested.  (Thanks, Stuart!)
       

[dj]

The soundtrack to my December this year has been the four discs of Document's Blues, Blues Christmas.  The song I've listened to the most from that set, and the one I've found myself singing all month, is When Was Jesus Born by the Heavenly Gospel Singers.  I don't know much about the group, except that they recorded for Bluebird from 1935 to 1941 and that the Document issues of their complete works run to four volumes, so they were prolific in their heyday.

When Was Jesus Born is an acapella performance by the quartet.  It's sung in a fast, swinging rhythm, and the group is tight but loose, if you know what I mean - lots of vocal asides, fills, and deliberately staggered entrances that give the song an exciting, semi-improvised feel.  With the exception of one verse which is used at two points in the song, the entirety of the lyrics are"

When was Jesus born? The last month of the year
When was Jesus born? The last month of the year 
When was Jesus born? The last month of the year 
Was it January (no, no) February (no no) March April or May?
June July August, September October November?
It was the twenty-fifth day of December
The last month of the year 

It's the catchiest song I've heard in ages.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

[dj]

I've been listening to a lot of ragtime lately, thanks to several Archeophone CDs.  One piece that's really caught my ear is Creole Belles, recorded in 1902 by the Columbia Orchestra.  It's an instrumental version of a song with lyrics written by J. Bodewalt Lampe in 1900.  You can find the music online by searching for creole belles sheet music.  The song structure is Intro, Verse, Chorus, Break, Instrumental Flourish, Verse Chorus. It's performed as a march/two step, by a brass band with a pumping tuba and piccolo flourishes embroidering the melody.  What would be of interest to most Weenies is that the chorus, with minor melodic and lyric variations, is the same as the opening verse from John Hurt's My Creole Belle.  Whether Lampe used an existing folk tune as the basis for his chorus, or whether the chorus escaped from the rest of the song and seeped into popular culture as a distinct song I can't tell.  But it's an interesting indication of the age of some of Hurt's repertoire. 

What's also interesting is that this song would seem to be either an ancestor or a composed offspring of both blues and jazz.  Take the chorus and sing it to a finger picked guitar and you've got a song that's in the blues repertoire.  But, if you can imagine a band playing this song without the music, with the tuba doing it's bass part, a cornet holding down the melody, a trombone improvising a harmony under the cornet, and the piccolo flourishes replaced by a violin or clarinet (and added banjo and drums), you've got early jazz.   

[Richard]

Cousin Joe Pleasant, I really like the jazz influence.

[maddoggirl]

Lonesome Road Blues by Sam Collins, probably the easiest to listen to of his records I've come across so far. He has a gorgeous voice, but the sound quality on most tracks doesn't do it justice.

[dj]

I've been listening to random stuff from 1927 today, and Texas Alexander's Section Gang Blues just came on.  Johnm talked about this extensively and transcribed the lyrics here.  I don't have too much to add except to say that while one always hears that Texas Alexander was notoriously hard for an accompanist to follow, the synchronization and sympathy between Alexander's vocal and Lonnie Johnson's guitar is pretty amazing and a credit to both musicians.  I guess I should also add that, in my opinion, this is one of the ten or so most beautiful blues recordings of all time. 

[uncle bud]

Turner Parrish playing the instrumental "Trenches". On Document's Barrelhouse Piano Blues 1929-33. That's some fine piano whuppin'.

[Norfolk Slim]

Scrapper's version of Nobody Knows you when you're down- from the Mr Scrapper's Blues CD.

Its always nice to be cast back in time to when a tired song wasn't tired.

[frankie]

I recently got a copy of the Document CD - Manchester Free Trade Hall 1964:  Reverend Gary Davis...  just can't stay away from "The Sun Is Going Down" with Sonny Terry.  Talk about on fire!!!  what a wall of rhythm!  totally electric.

[Johnm]

I've been listening to the Hobart Smith CD, "Hobart Smith--Blue Ridge Legacy", on Rounder.  It is all tremendous stuff, but the cut that seemed to particularly stand out yesterday when I was driving down to Seattle was "Jim Along", a banjo tune I don't recall ever hearing anything like before.  The whole tune is centered around a minor6 chord, and I don't know of any other banjo or fiddle tunes for which that is the case.  What an interesting tune, almost Middle Eastern-sounding, leaves me thinking, "Wow, where in the world did that come from?"
All best,
Johnm
Oops, thought of another tune that leans on the minor6:  the B part of Hobart Smith's "Last Chance".

[Gumbo]

is there a thread for lyrics that just don't rhyme?
I'm listening to Peetie Wheatstraw's The Breaks I'm Getting and i love the line about his big toe but the closing verse/couplet goes

Now i'm gonna sing this verse and i ain't gonna sing no more
cause i'm getting kind of warm, and you know i've got to go
I love to clown for you all, and I love to act the monkey
but i don't want to get to hot 'cause i'm scared i'm liable to get a bad cold

'cause i got tired, of them breaks they're giving me
i'm gonna pack my grip and i'm going back to Tennessee

makes me laugh every time! I guess cold might be meant to rhyme with more and go but the way it comes out just sounds deliberately off - in a fun way. Is there a word that rhymes with monkey that people would be expecting? funky maybe? it certainly doesn't follow the pattern of the earlier couplets:

I was bare-footed, naked, out in the ice and snow, with all my yes-yes out, 'nd see my big toe
I was bare-footed, didn't have on no shoes, and the rocks gravel and concrete is giving my toe the blues.

[jopoke]

Archie Edwards - Toronto Sessions has been getting a lot of play. Definitely an artist to check out if you have not heard him.

Frankie's albums are also on heavy rotation this week. Get back into the studio and make some more albums!!!

Take it easy, Joe

[uncle bud]

Rosa Lee Hill, "Pork and Beans", from the 7-CD George Mitchell Collection on Fat Possum. She is superb.

You can hear a bit more of her on an additional Fat Possum/George Mitchell CD, Rosa Lee Hill and Friends, which features female musicians recorded by Mitchell, including Hill, Jessie Mae Hemphill, Precious Bryant, Lottie Kate (backed by Jim Bunkley), Essie Mae Brooks, and Catherine Porter (backed by Will Shade).

[jaycee]

champion jack dupree - too evil to cry. new orlean's pianist, on a document records  cd, (docd5444) entitled chicago blues!

[frankie]

Rosa Lee Hill, "Pork and Beans", from the 7-CD George Mitchell Collection on Fat Possum. She is superb.

She is just fan-freaking-tastic...  Pork and Beans, Come Here Fairer, Bullyin Well, Rollin and Tumblin...  all good...  heavy, heavy time.  love it!