White Lightnin' Blues

Here's an extra one for having goofed on the last one. "Bennie Moten is today best-remembered as the leader of a band that partly became the nucleus of the original Count Basie Orchestra, but Moten deserves better. He was a fine ragtime-oriented pianist who led the top territory band of the 1920s, an orchestra that really set the standard for Kansas City jazz. In fact it was so dominant that Moten was able to swallow up some of his competitors' groups including Walter Page's Blue Devils, most of whom eventually became members of Moten's big band.

Moten formed his group (originally a sextet) in 1922 and the following year they made their first recordings. Among Moten's 1923-1925 sides for Okeh was the original version of his greatest hit "South." During 1926-1932, Moten's Orchestra recorded for Victor and, although none of his original musicians became famous, the later additions included his brother Buster on occasional jazz accordion, Harlan Leonard, Jack Washington, Eddie Durham, Jimmy Rushing, Hot Lips Page, and (starting in 1929) Count Basie. So impressed was Moten by Basie's playing that Count assumed the piano chair for recordings from that point on (although in clubs Moten would generally play a feature or two). The most famous Bennie Moten recording session was also his last, ten songs cut on December 13, 1932 that found the ensemble strongly resembling Basie's five years later. In addition to Hot Lips Page, Durham, Washington, and Basie, the band at that point also starred Ben Webster, Eddie Barefield, and Walter Page and one of the high points was the debut of "Moten Swing." (Allmusic.com). Enjoy! +

Tracks

01 - Elephant's Wobble
02 - Crawdad Blues
03 - South
04 - Vine Street Blues
05 - Tulsa Blues
06 - Goofy Dust
07 - Baby Dear
08 - She's Sweeter Than Sugar
09 - South Street Blues
10 - Sister Honky Tonk
11 - As I Like It
12 - Things Seem So Blue To Me
13 - 18th Street Strut
14 - Kater Street Rag
15 - Thick Up Stomp
16 - Harmony Blues
17 - Kansas City Shuffle
18 - Yazoo Blues
19 - White Lightnin' Blues
20 - Muscle Shoals Blues
21 - Midnight Mama
22 - Missouri Wobble
23 - Sugar
24 - Dear Heart

Rockin' With The Rockets

Here's one that I found recently. Normally I draw from my own collection of cds, but I know I'm not the only person who collects the Classics Chrono[lo]gical series and this is too good to leave in obscurity. I'm currently listening to the band for the second time around, and the four recording sessions Harlan Leonard made in 1940 are as solid and respectable as any music put out by other bands of the era. Even Myra Taylor sounds a bit like Ella Fitzgerald. From Wiki, "a professional musician from the age of 17, he joined Benny Moten's orchestra in 1923, where he led the reed section until 1931. In 1931 he and Thamon Hayes formed the Kansas City Skyrockets, which included trumpeter Ed Lewis, trombonist Vic Dickenson, and pianist Jesse Stone. After disputes with the Chicago local of the American Federation of Musicians the band broke up. Leonard then formed a new band, Harlan Leonard and his Rockets which featured a young Myra Taylor. Charlie Parker played in this band for five weeks, but was fired by Leonard for lack of discipline. The band's music is considered transitional between swing and bop. The band broke up during the Second World War, and Leonard left professional music."  "One of the top Kansas City bandleaders of the late 1930s and early '40s, Harlan Leonard was fortunate enough to lead four recording sessions in 1940 that resulted in 24 selections and really showed off the strengths of his band. Leonard started playing professional with George E. Lee's group in 1923, and a few months later, he became lead altoist with Bennie Moten. He was with Moten for eight years (up until 1931) and then during 1931-1934, the altoist was with the Kansas City Sky Rockets which was led by trombonist Thamon Hayes. When Hayes departed in 1934, Leonard became its leader. Three years later, the group broke up and he soon formed a new big band, Harlan Leonard's Rockets. The band was most notable for the arrangements of Tadd Dameron (in his prebop days), Eddie Durham, and Buster Smith, and the solos of tenorman Henry Bridges and trombonist Fred Beckett (an early inspiration for J.J. Johnson). Although they appeared in New York during part of 1940, the Rockets were based in Kansas City and mostly played in the Midwest until 1943 when Leonard relocated to Los Angeles and put together a completely different orchestra. After that group broke up in 1945, Harlan Leonard permanently left music to work for the Internal Revenue Service."(Allmusic.com) Scans are included. Enjoy! +

Tracks

01. Rockin' With The Rockets
02. Hairy Joe Jump (Southern Fried)
03. Contact
04. Snaky Feeling
05. My Gal Sal (They Called Her Frivolous Sal)
06. Skee
07. I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire
08. Ride My Blues Away
09. I'm In A Weary Mood
10. Parade Of The Stompers
11. Rock And Ride
12. 400 Swing
13. My Dream
14. My Pop Gave Me A Nickel
15. Please Don't Squabble
16. A La Bridges
17. Dameron Stomp
18. Society Steps Out (Rachmaninoff Jumps)
19. Mistreated
20. Too Much
21. Keep Rockin'
22. Take 'Um