Course notes New Orleans Jazz Course for U3A Week 1 Hello, IÕm Gordon Bull. Over the next five weeks will look at the key musicians who shaped and developed the genre and who made New Orleans Jazz, and hear their music. We will follow recorded jazz from 1917 through to today. Each session will last 2 hours, The first hour or so of each session will be me talking and playing music but encouraging discussion and comment. The second part will be devoted to you so I hope you will bring recordings which you like and you will talk about them. I am prepared to run a lending library of my CDs throughout the course, to enable you to explore a wide range of New Orleans jazz. So at the end of the session come and browse and decide if you would like to borrow anything Slide 1 The five weeks will be broken down roughly as follows 1. history and influences, 2. Chicago, 3. revival, 4. UK, 5. back to New Orleans Here we go then Slide 2 1 New Orleans Wiggle, Piron's New Orleans Orchestra The line up for that record was Peter Bocage (tpt), Johhny Lindsay (tbn) Loius Cottrell (d), Loius Warneke (altosax),Lorenzo Tio Jnr (cl), Steve Lewis (p), John Marrero (bjo), Armand Piron (violin). I chose that as our opening number since Piron was one of the very early band leaders who adopted the style that was to become know as New Orleans Jazz. The recording dates from 1923. Note the inclusion of the violin, left over from earlier orchestras. Note also the inclusion of an alto sax. I came across this single recording in my collection only recently and was bowled over by it. So much so I bought a CD of his entire recordings. Piron was a Creole who with Clarence Williams opened a music publishing business in New Orleans. They quickly had a hit piece with I wish I could shimmy like my sister Kate. The sound of the Piron orchestra is so different from others recorded at the time. There is an irresistible dance beat to the understated rhythm, and the complicated arrangement demonstrates how well they were matched as an ensemble. You can imagine them playing this music at a society ball. Piron's New Orleans Orchestra quickly became the best paid African American band in New Orleans, for Piron landed regular jobs at both the Spanish Fort amusement park and the exclusive white New Orleans Country Club. History of New Orleans If we want to understand why it was that New Orleans was the place where jazz was born, we have to understand the way New Orleans developed and the people who came to New Orleans. The following notes were drawn mainly from A Trumpet around the Corner by Samuel Charters, published by University Press of Mississippi Jackson, 2008. Slide 3 It was French fur trader, Rene-Robert Cavelier, who led the first European journey down the Mississippi and past the bend in the river that became New Orleans, seeking a better way to get his furs to Europe. The date was 31st March, 1682. He claimed the whole of the Mississippi area as French territory and named if Louisiana after the French king. Work began in 1717 on the new settlement, which was tactfully named after the royal regent Duc dÕOrleans. The city was laid out by a French engineer called Adrien de Pauger who prepared precise plans for what was to become the French quarter. The role of the city was to be the trans-shipping point for goods coming down the river to ocean going vessels to take them to France and the French colonies. Work was slow using convict labour, they had to contend with two severe hurricanes in 1721 and 1722, and they struggled with clouds of mosquitoes and deadly snakes. By November 1721 New Orleans had 471 people, 277 whites, 172 blacks and 22 African Slaves. The economy of the new town failed to materialise since no goods came down river. In 1791 there was a new infusion of French blood into New Orleans following the defeat of the French colonials in Hiati. more than six thousand French citizens and their French-speaking servants fled to New Orleans bringing their music with them. Changes occurring upstream where the settlers had arrived in the northern territories in large numbers and the trade the French had anticipated finally began in earnest. The frontiersmen who came down river with their goods were usually Protestant, often with a stiff moral background. When they arrived in New Orleans they were in a Catholic city with a less restrictive attitude. They had also just been paid and the city offered a respite and soon it had become loose, raw and irrepressible. In 1803 the population was 4000 whites, 2700 slaves and 1300 free persons of colour. Up to this time anyone who could prove descent from a French or Spanish forefather, whatever racial mixture, had the status of a white citizen. Thus there was a substantial social group of free people of colour who were prosperous and educated. At the same time two new developments spurred on the prosperity of the city. Firstly cotton growing up river created the commodity which produced prosperity and secondly the arrival of paddle steamers to carry the cotton. The first paddle steamer, the Orleans, arrived in 1812 from Pittsburg. At that time the levees, large earth banks, were built to protect the city, eventually stretching from 43 miles below the city to 120 miles above it, 4 feet high and 15 feet wide. You can imagine the cost. Despite the levees the river continued to dominate and give rise to problems for the city. Outbreaks of cholera and yellow fever took their toll. In spite of its problems, or perhaps because of them, the people of this threatened city turned to dance, theatre and music with a fervour. There were balls for children, coloured balls, balls for slaves and the widely famed quadroon balls which were restricted to white men and free women of colour although some slave women managed to get in at times. The laxness of morals where what singled these balls out from others. In 1840 there were 80 ballrooms offering dancing. Another important element was the opera which was central to the world of Creole of Colour. The orchestra members were mostly drawn from this group and it was this group of well trained musicians who would give the emerging music of New Orleans its distinctive character. Slide 4 In addition to the many balls available in the 1840-1860Õs there was also music in the streets from peddlers and itinerant groups of German musicians who in coming to New Orleans brought their instruments and their melodies with them. It was the Germans who brought the music of funerals to New Orleans; they used to use village brass bands to accompany the funeral cortege in Germany. Many local merchants used bands outside their premises to advertise their wares. So there was music to be heard everywhere. Add to this an immigration of Sicilians who moved into the French Quarter and brought their music with them and the musical mix was growing. Slide 5 Lets hear a funeral march from Jelly Roll Morton. You can picture them leading the funeral parade first to the cemetery and back again. You can hear classis Sidney Bechet playing soprano sax and some fine trumpet from Sidney de Paris. 2 Oh, Didn't He Ramble Jelly Roll Morton's New Orleans Jazzmen This is a late Morton record, recorded in New York in 1939 with Sidney de Paris (tp): Claude Jones (tb): Sidney Bechet (ss): Happy Cauldwell (ts): Jelly Roll Morton (p): Lawrence Lucie (g): Wellman Braud (b): Zutty Singleton (d) With the end of the civil war in 1865, slaves were technically free, although many found themselves bound to the land where they were indentured. With the withdrawal of Federal troops in 1887 who had attempted to enforce the new laws, bands of vigilantes roamed the countryside terrorising the slaves who hadnÕt managed to flee. Many thousands however, found their way to New Orleans for work on the levees and relative freedom from the vigilantes. To accommodate the influx, new districts were created to the north and west of Canal Street, called Uptown since it was upstream of Canal Street. In 1894 the Creoles of Colour were reclassified as Negro by a change in the legislative code and 200 years of their society and culture were caste aside and they were forced to accept the same discrimination in housing, jobs and political rights as the rest of the African American society. As the 19th century wound down, the city was full of contradictions as it had always been, bound as it was to its unique and historic past. By 1900 the population had grown to 287,000, the expansion of the sewage system had almost eradicated cholera, large ocean vessels could now dock alongside the levees. There were busy picnic areas and resorts along side the lake with their concert bands and dance orchestras. Brass bands were ready to lead a procession for any reason Š and there were many. There were nightly balls in the dozens of roomy dance halls in each neighbourhood. The establishment of Storyville in 1896 localised prostitution and gambling and the cabarets, brothels and dance halls within its boundaries gave work to many musicians. In the early years of the 20th century, New Orleans was beginning to hear a different kind of music in the cabarets and honky-tonks of Storyville. But most people only heard the new music when a band on an advertising wagon tried out their new style of ragtime. Many of the musical jobs in New Orleans were open to African Americans but the pay was poor and the work irregular. In the white community it was considered a near catastrophe if a son decided to seek a career as a dance hall musician. For the Creoles it was an acceptable profession but only if it meant performing ŅgoodÓ music. In the Uptown districts, strict Methodist and Baptist families objected but for most black families, deprived of schooling and opportunities a son who became a musician was the familyÕs pride. The story of Alphonse Picou, a classically trained Creole musician, is worth repeating. He was heard practising his clarinet at home by a band leader who asked him to come to a rehearsal. When he arrived Picou asked where the music was Š there was none. He was told to come in on the chorus and that when he couldnÕt come in to stay quiet and listen. Two nights later at the dance for which they had been practicing, Picou found it easier and joined in a lot and got lots of applause. The band worked by having one of their number who could read music, learn the melody and teach it to the others to play in unison. Picou had plenty of work both with Uptown and Downtown bands as well as in a philharmonic orchestra, marching bands and concert bands. So here we see one person making a living from a wide range of musical activities and styles. Picou, of course is famous for his chorus of High Society. Lets hear it now. Slide 7 3 Papa CelestinÕs Tuxedo Jazz Band playing High Society in 1950 The line up is Celestin (tpt), Bill Matthews (tbn), Alphonse Picou (cl), Octave Crosby (p), Richard Alexis(bass) Christopher Goldstone (d) and it was recorded in 1950 Influences that led to jazz There has been much discussion about the musical influences that led to the creation of jazz in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. Hymns and songs from Europe, mostly France, popular dances and military marches all played their part and gave jazz its principal components Š the four-beat measure, the four bar unit of construction, a certain kind of syncopation. Some of the most popular dance tunes of the era were ragtime numbers from Scott Joplin. Tiger Rag came from an old French quadrille called La Marseilles. The folk and work songs of the Negroes added their influence, For example, Lift Ōem up Joe by King Oliver was taken from a song from the railroads as they lifted the rails. The marching bands which were so prevalent in New Orleans obviously used military marches as part of their repertoire, so we get numbers like Marching through Georgia and bands would play numbers by Sousa. Blues is a form of music based on the use of the blue notes - notes sung or played at a slightly lower pitch than that of the major scale for expressive purposes. It emerged as an accessible form of self-expression in African-American communities from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads. Blue notes resulted from the difficulty Negroes had in singing hymns taught to them by missionaries using the European scale whereas they had been used to a simpler five-tone scale. Lets listen to some of the influences Slide 8 4 Maple Leaf Rag Scott Joplin Scott Joplin published many rags and the sheet music was picked up by bands who created their own version. Maple Leaf Rag sold 1M copies in sheet music at 1c. Joplin never recorded, what we hear here is a recording of a piano roll Joplin made. Slide 9 Here is a Joplin rag, as played by the New Orleans Rhythm Kings. I like to cornet solo, reminiscent of Olver 5 Maple leaf rag New Orleans Rhythm Kings This was recorded in 1923 with Paul Mares (cnt), George Brunis (tbn), Leon Rappolo (cl), Mel Stitzel (p), Ben Pollack or possibly Frank Snyder (d) Slide 10 Marches by the military bands were picked up by jazz bands and made their own. This a local band, the Muskrat Ramblers who play at Hassocks Jazz club every month. 6 Marching through Georgia Muskrat Ramblers The influence of military bands is obvious on this number. The line up is Bill Phelan (t), Mike Mounter (t), Ron Wecott (tbn), Alan Cresswell (cl), Jim Heath (bjo), John Frucht (bs), Paul Norman (d) Slide 11 The influence of blues on early jazz is contested, but it certainly had an influence at some stage. This one tells of the floods caused by the Ohio river. There is a song by Bessie Smith called Back Water Blues with a similar theme. 7 Southern Flood Blues Big Bill Broonzy Bill Broonzy is accompanied by Black Bob on piano and it was recorded in 1937 Music in New Orleans at the turn of the century In the early years of the century the new ragtime style was handed back and forth between the musicians of the two races it was difficult even to tell who had originally created the repertoire they shared or the band style they used. The first recorded jazz was by a white band called the Original Dixieland Jass Band in 1917. We have no sound archive before that. The recordings of those days were made by an acoustical process rather than an electrical process so the quality is rather poor. Slide 12 From 1890s Š 1930s, master recordings were made using a direct-to-disc cutting process. Performers were typically grouped around a large acoustic horn. The acoustic energy from the instruments was channeled through the horn's diaphragm to a mechanical cutting lathe located in the next room, which inscribed the signal as a modulated groove directly onto the surface of the master cylinder or disc. Following the invention and commercial introduction of the microphone, the electronic amplifier, the mixing desk and the loudspeaker, the recording industry gradually converted to electric recording, and by 1925 this technology had replaced mechanical acoustic recording methods for such major labels as RCA Victor and Columbia, and by 1933 acoustic recording was completely disused. The Original Dixieland Jass Band learnt their trade by working for one of the most influential white band leaders in New Orleans Š Papa Jack Laine. His bands however, were often racially integrated. As Arnold Loyocano said CanÕt truthfully say who had the first white jazz band in New Orleans. DonÕt know. But I do know Jack Laine had the most popular band at that time. He was more in demand around 1900 and he developed fellows like Nick La Rocca, Tom Brown and Raymond Lopex. They all played with him. He had two or three bands at the time, so popular he couldnÕt fill all the dates. Lets hear that first recording by the ODJB now. The line up was Nick La Rocca (cnt), Eddie Edwards (tbn), Larry 'Pat' Shields (cl), Henry Ragas (p), Tony Sbarbaro (d). This record was recorded on 26th February 1917. The recording engineers at Victor had real problems recording the band. The final balance had La Rocca 20ft from the horn and the drummer even further, 5ft behind La Rocca. Pianos recorded poorly so Ragas was only a few feet away from the horn Slide 13 8 Dixieland Jass Band One-Step - Original Dixieland Jass Band Right from the beginning the ODJB ran into copyright issues. It turns out that the piece we have just heard was so close to a piece composed in 1909 called That TeasinÕ Rag. The matter was resolved by the recoding company who made an agreement with the composer so they could continue to release the record but the title of newly printed labels would read Introducing that TeasinÕ Rag and the ODJB gave up 2/3rds of the copyright royalties. Much like Jack Laine, the influential band leader in the Creole arena was John Robichaux. Like Laine he had a number of orchestras on the go at once. They ranged from those that played at society functions to local dance halls and later, in 1919 he was hired to play at the cityÕs most prestigious African American theatre, the Lyric on Burgundy and Iberville. His six piece orchestra then included Alphonse Picou on clarinet, John Lindsay on trombone, Andrew Kimble on cornet and Zutty Singleton on drums. Robichaux played violin. Robicheax was responsible for the introduction of the bass drum pedal which allowed drummers to play bass and snare drum at the same time. As the century turned, the band led by Buddy Bolden gained popularity, and the 34-year old John Robichaux had something else to contend with - this new Bolden sound. Usually Robichaux played for a different type of crowd than the type of crowd that Bolden attracted, but not always. They both played at Lincoln Park, Longshoremen's Hall, Providence Hall, and the Masonic and Odd Fellows Halls. Robichaux, in addition, played in the Downtown halls where Bolden wasn't hired. But Bolden could, and did, play a few polite society dances, and Robichaux by then had Williams and McNeil playing hot enough cornets to move an Uptown crowd. In 1902 in New Orleans, a new park, Johnson Park, was opened as a baseball park, right next to Lincoln Park. John Robichaux and his band would be at Lincoln Park, and Buddy Bolden with his band would in the music pavilion at Johnson Park. It's been said that Bolden would say to a member of his band "Come on, put your hands through the window. Put your trombone out there. I'm going to call my children home." Apparently Bolden would start to play, and all the people out of Lincoln Park would go on over to where Buddy was. Many others also verified the story of Buddy pointing his horn toward Lincoln Park and powerfully "calling" the Lincoln crowd. The word is that dancers abandoned the smoother Robichaux band to hear Buddy Bolden produce a new, more raggedy, more exciting sound that stirred their dancing fancy. We have no recordings of Bolden. Lets hear a few of the bands that were from New Orleans in the early part of the 20th century. The Owls were a white band who played in New Orleans from 1922 Š29. This recording dates from April 1926 and is the jazz standard ThatÕs a Plenty Slide 14 9 That's A-Plenty New Orleans Owls The band consisted of Bill Padrone (cnt), Frank Netto (tbn), Pinky Vidacovich and Benji White (cl and sax), Monk Smith (g and ten sax), Rene Gelphi (bjo), Dan LeBlanc (tuba), Earl Crumb (d) Monk Hazel, who was younger than many of the jazz musicians, having been born in 1903 played regularly at the Bienvill Hotel. He recorded in 1928. Lets hear his group playing Sizzling the Blues Slide 15 10 Sizzling the Blues Monk Hazel & His Bienville Roof Orchestra As best as I can make out the line up was Sharkey Banano (tpt), Sidney Arodin (cl), Hal Jordy (reeds), Joe Capraro (g), Monk Hazel (d) Before we move on lets hear Papa Celestin and the Original Tuxedo Orchestra, so called because they worked at the Tuxedo Dance Hall and all wore tuxedos. Here they are playing Black Rag recorded in January 1925. There are similarities with the first record I played by Piron and his Orchestra. Slide 16 11 Black Rag Original Tuxedo Jazz Orchestra The line up was most likely Oscar Celestin (cnt), Shots Maddison (cnt), William Ridgely (tbn), Willie Joseph (cl), William Thoumy(sax), unknown (cl & sax), John Marrero (bjo), Simon Marrero (b), Bill Mathews (d) Movers and shakers in New Orleans Finally, this week I want to look at the movers and shakers from New Orleans who took jazz onward, upward and outward. I have picked four Freddie Keppard, Joe King Oliver, Jelly Roll Morton, and Paul Mares. Freddie Keppard was an important musician who succeeded Buddy Bolden as "king" of the cornet players in New Orleans. He started playing around 1906, leading the Olympia Orchestra and playing in marching bands, funerals and Storyville clubs. He also played with Bill Johnson who asked him to round up a group of musicians and come to Los Angeles with the promise of work. This band became known as the Original Creole Orchestra and from 1914 to 1918 it toured the country in vaudeville shows, giving northern audiences their first taste of authentic New Orleans Jazz. Like so many New Orleans musicians, he settled in Chicago in the early 1920's. He worked with several bands in the city including, Doc Cook's Dreamland Orchestra, Erskine Tate, Ollie Powers and with Charles Elgar Creole Orchestra at the Savoy Ballroom. By the time Jazz became widely recorded Freddie's better days were behind him, but his wild and ragged style is well represented by the song Stock Yard Strut that he recorded with his Jazz Cardinals in 1926. Keppard was an alcoholic, and became an unreliable band member. He continued to work up until 1928, when he came down with tuberculosis. He suffered with the disease until it took his life in 1933. Slide 17 12 Stock yards strut Freddie Keppard's Jazz Cardinals King Oliver was one of the most influential band leaders and cornet players to come out of New Orleans. He started playing around 1908 and played in a number of marching bands including the Olympia, The Onward and the Original Superior. He played in Kid Orys band. In 1919 he moved to Chicago with Ory and played in Bill JohnsonÕs Original Creole Orchestra and played with them at the Dreamland ballroom then toured with them. In 1922 he returned to Chicago and started King OliverÕs Creole Jazz Band at the Lincoln Gardens. The 1923 recordings are amongst the best recorded jazz. Oliver was also noted as a composer, having written many tunes still regularly played, including "Dippermouth Blues", "Sweet Like This", "Canal Street Blues", and "Doctor Jazz". Two of Armstrong's most famous recordings, "West End Blues" and "Weather Bird", were Oliver compositions. The band contained some of the greatest jazz musicians who went on to successes of their own. Lets hear Alligator Hop with King Oliver, Louis Armstrong (cornets), Honorˇ Dutrey (tbn), Johnny Dodds (cl), Lil Hardin (pno), Bill Johnson (bjo), Baby Dods (dms). I love the fluid clarinet of Dodds. The recording quality is not great but still lovely to listen to. Slide 18 13 Alligator hop King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band Jelly Roll Morton was a pianist, bandleader and composer. His publicity photos claimed he was the 'originator of jazz and stomps', an example of the kind of outrageous and colourful statement frequently associated with this most colourful of jazz characters. Morton was born Ferdinand Joseph Lamothe in New Orleans, and he grew up in that city's Creole society. After leaving his hometown in 1907 to become a wandering pianist, he seldom returned there, yet his subsequent music was to include some of the most brilliant examples of what is now known as New Orleans jazz. From 1907-1922 he criss-crossed the United States, drawing in a wide range of musical influence, and becoming fully aware of the emergence of jazz. By the end of that period, he was based on the West Coast, where he not only played, but began publishing his compositions. In 1923 he moved to Chicago and soon began a series of outstanding recordings both as a pianist and with various bands. Lets hear Jungle Blues recorded in 1927 with George Mitchell (cnt), George Bryant (tbn), Johhny Dodds (cl), Stomp Evans (alto), Bud Scott (bjo), Quinn Wilson (tuba), Baby Dodds (dr), Jelly Roll Morton (p) Slide 19 14 Jungle blues Jelly Roll Morton and his Red Hot Peppers My last New Orleans musician is Paul Mares. Mares was born in New Orleans and was a childhood friend of the Brunies brothers and Leon Roppolo. In 1919 he went North to Chicago and ended up playing in Tom Brown's Band From Dixieland and with George Brunies. He and Brunies took a job working on the Mississippi riverboat S.S. Capitol. On the boat Mares and Brunies were reunited with their old friend Roppolo. The three left the boat and took a job at the Friars Inn, a gangster hangout in Chicago. And so the Friars Society Orchestra was born. The Friars Society Orchestra was one of the most influential white jazz bands of the 1920s. When the band left the club they became known as the New Orleans Rhythm Kings. The records that the band made in 1922 and 1923 were widely copied by other white musicians of the 1920s. Jelly Roll Morton recorded five songs with the band in 1923 and this session is generally considered the first "racially mixed" jazz record. New Orleans Rhythm Kings split up in 1924 and Roppolo and Mares went to New York and played with Al Siegal. In 1925 Mares returned to New Orleans and re-formed the New Orleans Rhythm Kings with Roppolo and recorded seven songs for Okeh and Victor records, but soon afterwards Mares joined the family fur business, playing music on the side. He ran the business well and with his prosperity purchased 3 homes for himself and his relatives in New Orleans' new suburb of Metairie, Louisiana. Mares's Metairie home was the site of a legendary jam-session in 1929 where Bix Beiderbecke and the other jazz playing members of the Paul Whiteman Orchestra jammed with the local New Orleans jazz musicians. Paul Mares died at the age of 49 of lung cancer, according to his brother Joe, caused by "smoking too many cigarettes". Here is the New Orleans Rhythm Kings in August 1923 with Paul Mares (cor) George Brunies (tb) Leon Rappolo (cl) Jack Pettis (C-melo sax) Elmer Schoebel (p) Lew Black (bj) Steve Brown (b) Ben Pollack (d). RapolloÕs playing was said to have influenced Bix Beiderbeck. You can hear his limpid style on this number. Slide 20 15 Farewell Blues - New Orleans Rhythm Kings Now it is your turn. I hope you have brought some New Orleans music for us to listen to. Please tell us why you brought the tunes you did and what it is about them you so like I have brought along a few of my own Bouncing around by Pirons New Orleans Orchestra Š I just love the sound of this group, partly Oliver (listen to the trumpet, yet somehow caught in a time warp from a time when things were more gentle. Honky Tonk Train Blues Meade "Lux" Lewis- I thought it worth playing a little Boogie Woogie which emerged in Chicago in the 20Õs and grew out of the travelling pianist like Jelly Roll Morton Just A Little While To Say Here Chris Barber- this seems to capture the spirit of a New Orleans band, the clarinettist is Ian Wheeler who takes a lot from George Lewis. Following on from the last one which is obviously a spiritual, here is another from a great gospel singer, Sister Roseta Tharpe, singing Down By The Riverside with Chris Barber's Jazz Band All tunes on week1 CD