For sentimental reasons...

Seeing Jerry's list inspired me to pull together a list of my own cliche, overplayed jams and songs that remind me of old times. Everyone knows that music can carry really strong sentimental value, but I think its something that DJs sometimes overlook (myself included). Also, no matter how into the latest trends you are, you've got to admit that our taste wasn't uniformly 100% all bad back in the day. Some of the stuff that got played was really quality music, and deserves a fresh listen, especially since dancers who aren't ancient (and crotchety old) bastards may never have heard them. So, here's my own selection of songs that bring back strong memories and tracks that will never get old in my book:

1. Swing Lover - Indigo Swing - Indigo Swing - 3:11 - 115 (You are not allowed to call yourself old school unless you can recite the introduction to this song verbatim, right now.)
2. It's Only A Paper Moon - Oscar Peterson - With Respect To Nat - 2:32 - 124 (This was the song playing week in and week out as everyone learned the lindy hop at Its All Swing Studio in Boston. It still makes me roll my eyes but I love it anyways.)
3. Oh! Babe - Lucky Millinder - Apollo Jump - 2:56 - 170 (The Love Dogs, Boston's favorite jump blues band at one time, used to do a rollicking version of this tune. Back when I was but a young pup, I remember being at a dance when Ed Scheer, the lead singer, stopped everyone in their tracks with his extended scat solo on this number.)
4. I Love Being Here With You - Ernestine Anderson - Ernestine Anderson - The Concord Jazz Heritage Series - 3:39 - 130 (Birthday jam song of choice at Monday Night Practice in Boston.)
5. St. James Infirmary - Lou Rawls - Lou Rawls Live! - 4:34 - 115 (Slick Mike, the MNP DJ for years, ended every dance with Lou Rawls. In the past year or two they have a new DJ crew there, so I'm not sure if that tradition continues.)
6. You Don't Know What Love Is - Rachelle Ferrell - First Instrument - 5:14 - 120 (This was my absolute favorite song back in the days of groove. I have a really vivid memory of dancing with my teacher, Marilee, to this song.)
7. Plenty (Feat. Erykah Badu) - Guru's Jazzmatazz - Streetsoul - 4:38 - 165 (If you started dancing in the last 6 or 7 years, you may not know this song. It may just blow your mind.)
8. Evil Gal Blues - Aretha Franklin - Aretha Sings The Blues - 2:43 - 118 (Blues Brian played this album all the time at the Wednesday night dance at MIT.)
9. Fever - Kenny Burrell & Jimmy Smith - Blue Bash! - 5:36 - 116 (Years ago, when Johnny & Becky came to Boston--you probably have no idea who they are...just picture Johnny as like the Peter Strom of the day, only he was about 5 foot 2, a very talented contact juggler, a little bit balding, and prone to wearing wife beaters. Anyways, Johnny & Becky taught a workshop and played this song over and over again, but Johnny refused to tell me who it was. It took me about 3 years to figure it out.)
10. Happy-Go-lucky Local (Night Train) - Oscar Peterson - Night Train - 5:00 - 110 (I still love the Ray Brown bass solo in this song.)
11. In the Mood - Glenn Miller - Best of the Lost Recordings & The Secret Broadcasts - 3:15 - 180 (Just to be crotchety, I enjoy pointing out that this version of In the Mood, recorded when Glenn Miller had his military band, is actually a pretty respectable piece of music.)
12. Meet Me in Uptown - The Mighty Blue Kings - Meet Me In Uptown - 2:59 - 145 (These guys were kings of Chicago at one time.)
13. Minor Swing - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:16 - 200 (Periodically I get it into my head that Stuff Smith was a better fiddler than Stephane Grappelli. And then I hear this track again and change my mind.)
14. Carioca - Artie Shaw - Self Portrait - 4:06 - 215 (People will still be dancing balboa to this tune 100 years from now.)
15. Bei Mir Bist Du Schane - Janis Siegel - Swing Kids - 4:11 - 150 (The crowning achievement of the Boston College Swing Kids was the routine we put together to this song. I think I had a Swango solo during the slow bit. Supposedly there's a video that exists to document this...)
16. Tutti Frutti - Slim Gaillard - 1938-46 - 2:38 - 170 (As you read this, there is a swing dance happening somewhere in the world, and this song is playing.)
17. Let Me Off Uptown - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz - 3:24 - 130 (This song is a DJ's best friend, because it starts out chill, has an appealing vocal, and goes out with a lot of energy.)
18. I Want a Tall Skinny Papa - Sister Rosetta Tharpe - The Gospel of the Blues - 2:52 - 140 (I played this song last Monday and my wife pointed out to me that it will soon be her jam, in a very literal sense.)

Greatest hits of lindy hop

Jerry Almonte just posted a nice piece about a recent "greatest hits of lindy hop" set he played at Jam Cellar, the regular Tuesday night dance in D.C. As he describes it:

Most DJ’s have a stash of overplayed hits they keep in reserve if a night isn’t going for them. I thought it would be fun just the wheel them out all at once especially since I haven’t heard a bunch of them in a long time. I’m not going to pretend like this was some great challenge or anything. In fact I’m pretty sure any tone deaf moron would have been able to keep any Lindy Hop floor full by putting the playlist below on shuffle. However, the last time I did something like this was a couple of years ago, but it was at a venue that has more beginner/intermediate level dancers. Most of them hadn’t heard any of the songs at all. The fun part was watching them react, and being reminded of why certain songs are just the jam. It was like re-watching the last 10 years of social dance compressed into 2 hours.

The post includes his setlist, which brought back a lot of memories, and reminded me of songs that I never really play. Here's some notes on a couple of the songs from his set:

• Nina Simone's "My Baby Just Cares for Me" never fails to put me in a sentimental mood, since I associate it so strongly with my college swing club where I first learned charleston and lindy hop.
• It's perpetually interesting how different scenes can have such different perspectives on songs. A bunch of the tracks that Jerry lists as played out in D.C. have seldom if ever been played in Chicago. Muggy Spanier's "Sister Kate" I've played all of three times at dances, and not once in the past 2 years. I'd put money on it that none of the other regular DJs in Chicago have ever played it. It is a great track.
• Same thing with Fats Waller's "Dark Eyes." I do love that tune and played Wingy Manone's version pretty often for a while.
• Same thing with Eddie Condon's "Madame Dynamite." I used to play this all the time. Last year my dance partner won a jack & jill once to this song (see here starting at 6:43) and so lately I've avoided playing it because nothing will ever match that dance.
• "I Didn't Like It the First Time," a.k.a. "The Spinach Song" by Julia Lee & her Boyfriends. Sure its cornball novelty. But it's sure fun to play when your audience is kids from the Moody Bible Institute.
• "Jump Through the Window" by Roy Eldridge. Ever since Skye & Frida did their routine to this song, probably every DJ in the country plays this song now. I love dancing to it, but have tried to be a little bit cautious about playing it too much because I didn't want to ruin it. I've often substituted Eldridge's version of "Little Jazz" when I get the urge to play "Jump."
• The only song off Jerry's list that I find really annoying is Ella doing "Smooth Sailing." It just grates on me. Please don't play it. Everything else I'm cool with and would actually love to hear given more air around town.

Fizz 10/11/2010

Here's my set list from last night (plus bpm sparkline and frequency distribution, both of which are kind of unusual for me):

1. Lucky Devil - Bria Skonberg - Fresh - 3:45 - 60
2. Christopher Columbus - The Flat Cats - Big Show Tonight - 3:29 - 170
3. The Devil With the Devil - The Red Stick Ramblers - Right Key, Wrong Keyhole - 3:25 - 195
4. Hey Sweet Potato - Buddy Johnson & His Orchestra - The Best of Buddy's - 2:43 - 130
5. Comin' In On A Wing And A Prayer - Four Vagabonds - Four Vagabonds Vol. 1 - 2:52 - 135
6. Growling Dog - Harlem Hamfats - Let's Get Drunk And Truck - 2:40 - 120
7. Sweet Substitute - Meschiya Lake And The Little Big Horns - Lucky Devil - 3:23 - 110
8. Jumpin' At The Woodside - Alix Combelle - 1935-40 - 2:56 - 210
9. I'se Muggin' - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 1: Swing Guitars - 3:07 - 170
10. My Bucket's Got A Hole In It - Papa Bues Viking Jazzband - Live In Copenhagen - 3:36 - 135
11. It's You Who Taught It To Me - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:42 - 160
12. I Can't Believe That You're in Love With Me - Sidney Bechet - Jazz in Paris: Sydney Bechet et Claude Luter - 2:40 - 145
13. When I Take My Sugar to Tea - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Jump for Joy - 4:00 - 165
14. Miss Brown To You - Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - Miss Smith To You! - 2:58 - 130
15. Good Evenin' Good Lookin' - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:10 - 150
16. Everything Is Jumpin' - Artie Shaw - The Very Best Of Artie Shaw - 5:09 - 165
17. South - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:17 - 180
18. The Darktown Strutters' Ball - Alberta Hunter - Amtrak Blues - 5:23 - 150
19. Home To Mississippi - Otis Spann - Otis Spann: Best Of The Vanguard Years - 3:30 - 130
20. Call The Police - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Ol' New Orleans Home - 4:43 - 200
21. Jeep Jockey Jump - Glenn Miller - Inspirational Swing! - 2:13 - 200
22. As Long As I Live - Catherine Russell - Inside This Heart of Mine - 3:33 - 120
23. Jump Session - Slim Gaillard - 1938-1939 - 2:35 - 160
24. Let Me Off Uptown - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz - 3:24 - 130
25. Gettin' In The Groove - Panama Francis & his Savoy Sultans - Gettin' in the Groove - 3:06 - 130
26. I Want a Tall Skinny Pappa - Sister Rosetta Tharpe - The Gospel of the Blues - 2:52 - 140
27. Smack Dab In The Middle - The Deep River Boys - London Harmony - 2:59 - 130
28. T'aint What You Do - Sy Oliver - Yes Indeed - 3:02 - 165
29. Ain't Misbehavin' - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 4:01 - 170
30. All Right, Okay, You Win - Count Basie - Count Basie at Newport - 2:45 - 145
31. Wade In The Water - Tommy Dorsey Orchestra - The Era Of Tommy Dorsey - 3:24 - 135
32. Knock Me a Kiss - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ the Times - 3:25 - 118
33. My Sweet Hunk O' Trash - Louis Armstrong - The Complete Decca Studio Master Takes 1940-1949 - 3:20 - 95
34. My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
35. Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175
36. Put A Lid On It - Squirrel Nut Zippers - Hot - 2:39 - 198
37. Some of These Days - Billie & DeDe Pierce - Gulf Coast Blues - 2:38 - 150
38. Shake That Thing - Vince Giordano's Nighthawks - The Aviator Music From The Motion Picture - 3:00 - 225
39. I'm Alone Because I Love You - Meschiya Lake And The Little Big Horns - Lucky Devil - 3:42 - 125

More from First Friday

My friend Chris just passed on his setlist from First Friday. He had the opening set, from 8:45 to about 10:30, before my set (which you can find here). Lately (actually for about a year now I think), he's been really focused on New Orleans music. He's built up a great collection of music by current bands from New Orleans, enough to make me pretty dang jealous. You'll note that tracks 17 through 29 are all from contemporary NOLA bands, except for #27 and #28 (#27 is a famous Chicago sax player, #28 is by a New Orleans group, but not contemporary). Here are Chris's picks:

1. For Dancer's Only - Jimmie Lunceford and his Orchestra
2. (Keep It) in the Groove - Andy Kirk & Mary Lou Williams
3. Shoo Fly Pie - Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five, featuring Hilary Alexander
4. C Jam Blues - Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra
5. Le Jazz Blues - Jimmie Lunceford
6. 9-20 Special - Jonathan Stout and Campus Five, Featuring Hilary Alexander
7. Douce Ambience - Hot Club of New Orleans
8. Betcha Nickel (Single) - Ella Fitzgerald
9. Well Alright Then - Jimmie Lunceford
10. Wham - Johnny Hodges
11. Puddin' Head Serenade - Andy Kirk
12. Rose Room - Jimmie Lunceford and His Orchestra
13. Perdido Street - Sidney Bechet
14. Watch Out - Duke Heitger and His Swing Band
15. Savoy - Lucky Millinder & Quincy Jones & His Orchestra
16. Sing You Sinners - Fletcher Henderson & His Orchestra
17. How Come You Do Me Like You Do - Palm Court Jazz All-Stars
18. Blues Skies - Miss Sophie Lee
19. I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers
20. Shake That Thing - The Smoking Time Jazz Club
21. Billie's Blues - Tuba Skinny And His Tiny Men
22. Down In New Orleans - Fritzel's New Orleans Jazz Band
23. Me Myself And I - Miss Sophie Lee
24. My Sweet Substitute - Preservation Hall Jazz Band
25. On The Sunny Side of the Street - Duke Heitger And His Swing Band
26. Do Your Duty - Tuba Skinny
27. Sugar Foot Stomp - Franz Jackson And The Original Jazz All-Stars
28. Joshua Fit The Battle of Jericho - Sidney Bechet
29. Joshua Joshua - Meschiya Lake And The Little Big Horns

First Friday at Big City Swing 10/8/2010

I played the second half of the dance at yesterday's First Friday at Big City (yes, it was the 2nd Friday of the month--delayed because WCLX was the weekend before). My friend Chris had the first half of the night, causing me to have to delete about 2/3 of the songs on my shortlist of stuff to play. It's a nice problem to have--his set was killer! (UPDATE: Chris shared it with me, so check it out here.)

Here's what I ended up playing (along with the usual BPM histogram and sparkline):

1. Minor Swing - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:16 - 200
2. Hit That Jive, Jack - Four Vagabonds - Four Vagabonds Vol. 3 (1943) - 2:26 - 190
3. Sweet Georgia Brown - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman: Very Best of Benny Goodman - 3:07 - 175
4. St. Louis Blues - Benny Goodman - Don't Be That Way - 3:49 - 130
5. Miss Brown To You - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:15 - 145
6. Easy Does It - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:57 - 130
7. My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 148
8. Big John's Special - Don Neely's Royal Society Jazz Orchestra - Radio Rhythm - 3:18 - 170
9. Number Two - The Hot Club Of San Francisco - Yerba Buena Bounce - 3:42 - 180
10. Cement Mixer - Don Byas - Jazz In Paris: Bebop - 2:54 - 135
11. Shout'Em, Aunt Tillie - Duke Ellington - That Lindy Hop - 3:03 - 150
12. Let The Good Times Roll - Linda Hopkins - Wild Women Blues - 3:26 - 140
13. Hey Little Girl - Big Joe Turner - Things That I Used To Do - 4:36 - 130
14. Lean Baby - Illinois Jacquet - Flying Home - 3:05 - 125
15. Flat Foot Floogee - Ray Bryant - Swing Dance Special - 2:42 - 160
16. Communications - Slim Gaillard - Slim Gaillard: 1947-1951 - 2:29 - 175
17. Give My Regards To Broadway - Pete Fountain - Dixieland's Kings - 2:37 - 170
18. I found a million dollar baby - Benny Goodman - COLUMBIA 36136 - 2:57 - 200
19. When You Wore a Tulip - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Jazz Roots Elixir - 3:30 - 160
20. Who's Making Love - Johnnie Taylor - Stax Gold - 2:50 - 115
21. Tightrope - Janelle Monáe - The ArchAndroid - 4:22 - 165
22. Sermonette - Earl Grant - Singin' & Swingin': The Best Of Earl Grant - 2:42 - 125
23. Chant Of The Groove - Fats Waller - Fats Waller 1941 - 3:05 - 185
24. Heart Of Steel - Galactic - Ya-Ka-May - 3:27 - 90
25. Take Your Shirt Off - T-Pain - Step Up 3D Soundtrack - 3:48 - 95
26. Smooth Criminal - Michael Jackson - Number Ones - 4:17 - 110