House Rent Rag

Just in the nick of time! It's been a busy month, fortunately, but watching the Ken Burns documentary on Prohibition reminded me to get something posted. This should fit the bill well. "One of the all-time great clarinetists and arguably the most significant of the 1920s, Johnny Dodds (whose younger brother Baby Dodds was among the first important drummers) had a memorable tone in both the lower and upper registers, was a superb blues player, and held his own with Louis Armstrong (no mean feat) on his classic Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings. He did not start on clarinet until he was 17 but caught on fast, being mostly self-taught. Dodds was with Kid Ory's band during most of 1912-1919, played on riverboats with Fate Marable in 1917, and joined King Oliver in Chicago in 1921. During the next decade, he recorded with Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong, and on his own heated sessions, often utilizing trumpeter Natty Dominique. He worked regularly at Kelly's Stables during 1924-1930. Although Dodds continued playing in Chicago during the 1930s, part of the time was spent running a cab company. The clarinetist led recording sessions in 1938 and 1940, but died just before the New Orleans revival movement began." (Allmusic.com) Enjoy! +

Tracks

01. Bohunkus Blues
02. Buddy Burtons Jazz
03. Perdido Street Blues
04. Gate Mouth
05. Too Tight
06. Papa Dip
07. Mixed Salad
08. I Can't Say
09. Flat Foot
10. Mad Dog
11. Messin' Around
12. Adams Apple
13. East Coast Trot
14. Chicago Buzz
15. Idle Hour Special
16. 47th Street Stomp
17. Stock Yards Strut
18. Salty Dog
19. Ape Man
20. Your Folks
21. House Rent Rag
22. Memphis Shake
23. Carpet Alley - Breakdown
24. Hen Party Blues

Chicago Mess Around

I believe I picked up this one solely because it was produced by Classics. Ah, the power of packaging and marketing! From Allmusic.com, "One of the first important female bandleaders in jazz, Lovie Austin deserves to be much better known. After studying music in college, she toured on the vaudeville circuit, settling in Chicago in 1923. During 1924-1926, she recorded frequently with her Blues Serenaders, a group that at various times had Tommy Ladnier, Bob Shoffner, Natty Dominique, or Shirley Clay on cornet; Kid Ory or Albert Wynn on trombone; and Jimmy O'Bryant or Johnny Dodds on clarinet, along with banjo and occasional drums. Fortunately, a Classics CD has collected all of those recordings. Austin (as house pianist for Paramount) also backed many blues singers (including Ida Cox, Ma Rainey, and Alberta Hunter). But after 1926, her recording activity largely came to a halt. Austin worked for 20 years as the musical director for the Monogram Theatre and later on as a pianist at a dancing school, only returning to record in 1961 as part of Riverside's Living Legends series. Although mostly an ensemble pianist, Lovie Austin was a skilled arranger." Enjoy. +

Tracks

1. Jelly Roll Blues
2. Skeeg-A-Lee Blues
3. I'm Three Times Seven
4. Steppin' on the Blues
5. Traveling Blues
6. Charleston Mad
7. Charleston (South Carolina)
8. Heebie Jeebies
9. Peepin' Blues
10. Mojo Blues
11. Don't Shake It No More
12. Rampart Street Blues
13. Too Sweet for Words
14. Jackass Blues
15. Frog Tongue Stomp
16. Who's Gonna Do Your Loving (When Your Good Man's Gone Away)?
17. Nobody Else Will Do
18. Sunday Morning Blues
19. You Don't Mean Me No Good
20. Out Bound Train Blues
21. Walk Easy 'Cause My Papa's Here
22. Chicago Mess Around
23. Gallon Stomp
24. In the Alley Blues
25. Merry Maker's Twine