 HEART AND SOUL: BESSIE, BILLIE AND THE BLUES
Uplink: 5/22/03
Left: Billie Holiday (photo © William P.
Gottlieb, courtesy of William P. Gottlieb/Ira and Leonore S. Gershwin Fund
Collection, Music Division, Library of Congress).
In celebration of the 100th anniversary of W.C. Handy's
discovery of the blues, and in recognition of the blues’ ongoing impact on
music and cultural history, both in America and around the world, on
September 5, 2002, the United
States Congress proclaimed the year 2003 as The Year of the Blues
(YOTB).
In a Riverwalk Jazz show uplinked May 22,
The Jim Cullum Jazz Band features singers Carol
Woods, Topsy Chapman, and Linda
Hopkins at the Landing as we continue to celebrate The
Year of the Blues with a show devoted to the "First Ladies of the
Blues."
 
Above: L. to R.: Carol
Woods, Topsy Chapman. Below: Linda
Hopkins
In American music,
"blues" can describe a tonality, a formal structure, or just a
feeling. In the 1920s and 30s, songwriters and publishers often used
"blues" in the titles of songs that did not have a 12-bar
blues form or blues tonality, in order to "cash in" on the
popularity of genuine blues songs.
The first artists to record rural blues were men from the
Mississippi Delta region such as Robert Johnson (1912-1938) and Leadbelly
(1889-1932). They accompanied themselves on 6 or 12 string guitars, singing
a folk blues that probably had changed very little since the 19th century.
Mamie Smith (1883-1946) was the first woman to record blues
songs in 1920 with her versions of Perry Bradford's "Crazy Blues,"
and "It's Right Here for You" on Okeh Records.
The record was a wild success, selling over a million copies
in less than a year, and finally ending up selling over two million copies.
After this, record companies saw financial opportunity in selling what was
then called "race records" to urban African-American minorities.
The success of "Crazy Blues" prompted other record
companies to also try to find other female blues singers that could match
the sales of "Crazy Blues."
 Left:
Bessie Smith (photo courtesy of the Red
Hot Jazz Archive).
The most important of these was Bessie
Smith (1895-1937). Starting out as a vaudeville performer, in
1923 Bessie made her recording debut with "Gulf Coast Blues" and
"Down Hearted Blues." The record sold more than 750,000 copies
that same year.
Bessie was one of the biggest stars of the 1920s and was
popular with both whites and African-Americans, but by 1931 the Classic
Blues style of Bessie Smith was out of style.
The greatest exponent of the next generation of female blues
performers was Billie Holiday
(1915-1959). Building on the work of her musical models Louis Armstrong and
Bessie Smith, "Lady Day" created a widely influential singing
style deeply rooted in the blues.
More resources about this show's subject:
Here
is a tune list for this show.
 CDs:
Video:
Books:
On the Web:
THANKS FOR YOUR SERVICE
For May 2002, Jim Cullum's Landing in San Antonio offers FREE ADMISSION if you are
currently employed as:
Please show your ID to your server. There is a limit of 4 free admissions per party.
For reservations, please
call The Landing during normal business hours, Central Time, Monday through Friday, at
210-223-7266 or 210-325-2495. Reservations are suggested only on weekend nights or for
large parties.
LISTENER FEEDBACK
Fan mail is music to our ears. We love
hearing from you. If you have any comments about our radio program or a
live performance by the Jim Cullum Jazz Band, email them to the
webmaster, and please let us know where you are located and on which
radio station you heard the show.
|
PARIS
IN THE THIRTIES: BILL COLEMAN & DJANGO REINHARDT
Uplink: 5/29/03
Above: Bill
Coleman
Bill Coleman was born in Paris, Kentucky, but spent most of his adult life
in Paris, France. He came from the same generation of jazz trumpeters as Louis Armstrong.
He was heavily influenced by Armstrong, and, like Armstrong, Coleman was part of the New
York jazz scene in the late 20s.
But in 1933, Bill Coleman went on tour in Europe and fell in love with the
jazz scene in Paris, at that time populated by a number of American expatriate artists and
musicians like Coleman Hawkins and Benny Carter.
 Left: Django Reinhardt in 1946 (photo © William P. Gottlieb, courtesy of William
P. Gottlieb/Ira and Leonore S. Gershwin Fund Collection, Music Division, Library of
Congress).
In Paris, Bill Coleman met the great innovator of jazz guitar, Django
Reinhardt, and his partner, jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli.
In a show uplinked May 29, we'll re-visit the bistros and nightclubs of Paris in the
1930s.
When Bill Coleman wasn't hanging out in Paris making records with Django,
he traveled the world. He toured in Japan, India, Egypt, and all over Europe.
Occasionally, he'd return to the States where he worked with Benny Carter's Orchestra,
made recordings with Fats Waller, and played in Teddy Wilson's Band. But most of his work
was in and around Paris. Bill Coleman continued playing there until a short time before
his death. He died in Toulouse, France, in 1981 at the age of 77.
 Right: Paul Mehling
Our show is devoted to this rich musical scene, with a special focus on
trumpeter Bill Coleman, and the great jazz guitarist, Django Reinhardt. Our guest is San
Francisco guitarist and bandleader Paul Mehling,
a disciple of Django's playing.
The following are some tune notes from Paul Mehling:
"Django's Tiger:" Django first recorded this tune as a trio number with bass and
rhythm guitar. Then, when the Quintet of the Hot Club of France did their first sides he
recorded it again, with a very similar solo. Like Louis Armstrong, it appears that once a
solo was shaped satisfactorily, Django tended to re-use it. Django thought Louis was king
and would kill for the opportunity to play for the man who embodied jazz. His chance came
when Django heard that Louis was in Paris. Django and his brother Joseph (who played
rhythm guitar) went to Louis' hotel room, knocked on the door, and offered to play for
Louis. Louis was in his skivvies and getting ready for a gig, but he said, "Sure,
sure come in boys--you can sit on the bed and knock yourselves out." As the story
goes, Louis didn't pay much attention to them. He kept crossing from the bathroom--to the
suitcase--and back, without really listening. Django was crushed. "Django's Tiger"
is one of the tunes Django probably used to try to impress Armstrong that day.
"Blue Moon" is a tune you might have heard in the '30s if you dropped into a
nightclub in Paris called Bricktop's. It was a smoky Parisian hangout for artists and jazz
lovers. Many American jazz musicians and pop stars showed up there, such as Duke
Ellington, Spencer Williams, and Bing Crosby. Classical composer Maurice Ravel would come
by and try out his improvisational skills with the band. Bill Coleman played at Bricktop's
when he first got to Paris, and Django was a regular on the bandstand.
"Parfum:" When Django was in the middle of a recording session, the
producers would often ask him to play one of his improvisations to fill an extra side of a
78 when needed for time. Apparently, Django had these motifs lying around in his brain
ready to go. Since they'd cut the disk live right there, Django would ask for the lights
in the recording studio to be dimmed. He'd tell the engineer in the control room to warn
him when the record was coming to an end by turning the lights back on, then he'd quickly
wrap up the piece right on time. Musically, they're very avant-garde pieces
for the 1930s. In fact, they are still unusual, in a beautiful way--rather like Bix
Beiderbecke's piano solos.
"Nuages:" There is a plaque on the house in Samois-sur-Seine where
Django actually lived. He was a nomad, but he bought a house just outside Paris and lived
out his days there until he passed away at 43. The plaque says in French, "Here lived
and died the French guitarist and composer Django Reinhardt," which is astonishing to
some because they think he wrote only a handful of tunes, "Nuages" being the only
one most people can name. In fact, he wrote hundreds of tunes but he only published 100 of
them, and recorded even less than that. He even wrote a Mass for the church choir and
organist but it has all disappeared.
Based on Riverwalk script ©2001 by
Margaret Moos Pick
More resources about this show subject:
Here is a tune list for
this show.
CDs:
 Video:
Books:
On the Web:
Red Hot Jazz Archive:
|
Bessie
Smith
