Fats Waller interview

I just found a blog by Agustín Pérez called Mule Walk & Jazz Talk that posts a lot of old source material about my favorite periods in jazz (it's a great URL too). For instance, check out this 1943 New York Times interview with Fats Waller--Fats offers some frank opinions on the state of jazz at the time. And in an interview cited in another post, Leonard Feather addresses some of the same topics.

I've added Mule Walk & Jazz Talk to the blog roll on my side bar. Check it out!

(Hat-tip to Falty on SwingDJs.com for the link.)

Setlist from Swing Set at Pasha 12/16/2009

Tonight was my first time at Swing Set, the new Wednesday night venue in the West Loop. Big City Swing hosts the evening at a Spanish restaurant called Pasha. It's a very nice space: wood floors, tasty apps, plenty of space. The crowd was a mix of swing scene-sters (some that I see at Fizz, some from other places) and folks I'd never seen before, presumably drawn by the beginner lesson and strikingly handsome DJ. See below for my setlist, which started at about 8:45 and ran 'til 11:00. (And here's the bpm sparkline and frequency distribution.)

1. Solid As A Rock - Ella Fitzgerald - Swingin' Ella - 3:00 - 145 (This and the next couple songs try to match the vibe of the music used during the lesson.)
   
2. I've Got A Feeling I'm Falling - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 3:13 - 160
3. Mumbles' Blues - Stompy Jones - The Swing Session - 2:39 - 160
4. Cool Kind Of Poppa - Mildred Anderson - Person To Person - 2:57 - 140
5. Things Ain't What They Used To Be - Barbara Morrison - Live At The Dakota, Volume 2 - 3:42 - 135 (Next one is a Big City Swing stand-by tune.)
   
6. It's De-Lovely - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Give Me Your Telephone Number - 4:04 - 150
7. Sure Had A Wonderful Time - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 3:00 - 135
8. Sent For You Yesterday - George Gee - If Dreams Come True - 3:32 - 165
9. Bli Blip - Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra - Live In Swing City: Swingin' With Duke - 3:16 - 135
10. Corner Pocket - Count Basie - April In Paris - 5:07 - 140
11. Onion - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympany Five, 1938-1940 - 2:55 - 170
12. Big John's Special - Benny Goodman - B.G. In Hi-Fi - 3:08 - 183 (This one had a lot of people on the floor, seemed to me like they were into it. I took a gamble on the next one, thinking it might work with the newbies.)
13. As Long As I'm Singin' - The Brian Setzer Orchestra - The Dirty Boogie - 4:03 - 220 (It didn't take.)
14. Lavender Coffin - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 4: Midnight Sun - 2:47 - 135
15. She Likes to Boogie Real Low - The Four Charms - Triskaidekaphobia! - 2:21 - 150
16. My Bad Luck Soul - Janiva Magness Band - My Bad Luck Soul - 2:10 - 160
17. Jump Session - Slim Gaillard - 1938-1939 - 2:35 - 160
18. Strictly Jive - Chick Webb - Stomping At The Savoy (Disc 3) - 3:19 - 170
19. When The Lights Are Low - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 1: Hot Mallets - 2:14 - 185
20. Flat Foot Floogee - Ray Bryant - Swing Dance Special - 2:42 - 160 (Was planning to start a piano-vibe with this song. It turned out to be more of a Dixie-piano mashup.)
21. South - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:17 - 182
22. When I Take My Sugar to Tea - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Jump for Joy - 4:00 - 165
23. Easy Does It - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:57 - 130 (This track is a guaranteed floor-filler. I keep the groovy thing going.)
24. I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water - Nicolas Bearde - Live At Yoshi's - a Salute to Lou - 4:16 - 125
25. Rock Me All Night Long - The Fabulous Treniers - The Hoss Allen Sessions - 2:41 - 155
26. Hey, Good Lookin' - Ray Charles - Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, Vols 1 & 2 - 2:10 - 175 (Mertz looked at me funny during this one. I admit that it was out of character for me.)
27. Hoodle-Addle - Ray McKinley Orchestra - You Came A Long Way From St. Louis - 3:21 - 140 (Starting a more classic jazz feel.)
28. Afternoon Of A Moax - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Swing Street Strut - 3:24 - 130
29. Minor Swing - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:16 - 200
30. Sweet Georgia Brown - Benny Goodman Trio - Very Best of Benny Goodman - 3:07 - 175
31. A Viper's Moan - Willie Bryant And His Orchestra - 1935-1936 - 3:25 - 150 (Starting a reefer-jazz feel.)
32. It's You Who Taught It To Me - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:42 - 160
33. Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Sidney Bechet - Sidney Bechet: 1949 - 3:20 - 175
34. Back Bay Shuffle - Artie Shaw - His First Three Bands: 1936-1940 - 3:15 - 190
35. It Takes Two To Tango - Lester Young - Lester Young : 1951-1952 - 3:14 - 100
36. Tain't No Use - Maxine Sullivan - The Lady's In Love With You - 3:48 - 125
37. Down south camp meeting - Svend Asmussen - Still Fiddling - 3:41 - 145
38. Ain't She Sweet - Sy Oliver - Sy Oliver et son orchestre: 1949-1952 - 3:13 - 120
39. Jump Through The Window - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 2:44 - 145 (The room is pretty mellow at this point--lots of folks sitting at tables and chatting.)
40. I Don't Care Who Knows - Catherine Russell - Sentimental Streak - 3:18 - 125
41. My Baby Just Cares For Me - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:48 - 130
42. All Of Me - Helen O'Connell - Great Girl Singers, Sing 22 Original Hits - 2:09 - 145
43. Savoy Blues - Kenny Ball And His Jazzmen - Trad Jazz Masters - 3:53 - 135
44. Perdido Street Blues - Louis Armstrong - The Complete Decca Studio Master Takes 1940-1949 - 3:08 - 145
45. St. Louis Blues - Benny Goodman - Don't Be That Way - 3:49 - 130
46. I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150 (Starting a New Orleans vibe, though it is interrupted by #48.)
47. My Bucket's Got A Hole In It - Papa Bues Viking Jazzband - Live In Copenhagen - 3:36 - 135
48. The Right Idea - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Swing Street Strut - 2:30 - 175
49. Four Or Five Times - Kid Ory's Creole Jazz Band - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:14 - 142