First Friday at Big City Swing 7/8/2011

Crazy night at Big City last night. Jenna & John's taster lesson was crowded and quite boisterous, which always makes my job easier. I thought I was all set to roll through a bunch of energetic, beginner-friendly tunes, but then my stupid netbook decided to give me trouble again. JRiver just crashed on me outright, so I had to switch over to iTunes and preview separately through my iPod. That threw me a bit, and I ended up with not-the-greatest set I've ever played. The room was packed pretty much the whole night through, lots of beginners and also a bunch of lindy-hoppers who danced to just about everything. A jam broke out on its own, and lots of folks went in--not just your usuals--which was cool.

As far as I the music, I stuck in a (mostly modern) small group swing groove for most of the evening, because the crowd seemed to be responding to it and because I was concerned about playing hi fidelity tracks with clear rhythm sections so that the newer folks would stay engaged. Upon reflection, I think I could have branched out more in terms of the styles I played and the range of tempos (note the longish stretch in the middle my set that was pretty much all 140-165 bpm). If you were there, let me know what you think. Here's the setlist (BPM sparkline and freq. distribution):

1. Shotgun Boogie - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:55 - 165 (Last song of the lesson. Tried and true.)
2. My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 150 (Another trusty old favorite)
3. Deed I Do - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:42 - 170 (My media player died here.)
4. Baby's Boogie Woogie - Stompy Jones - The Swing Session - 3:05 - 165
5. Jump Jive An' Wail - The Brian Setzer Orchestra - The Dirty Boogie - 2:53 - 200 (Obligatory.)
6. That Chick's Too Young To Fry - Louis Jordan - Jukebox Hits Volume 1 1942-1947 - 2:26 - 190 (This was too lo-fi for the crowd, esp. after JJ&W.)
7. Shake That Thing - Wynonie Harris - Risque Blues – It Ain't the Meat - 2:17 - 135
8. Route 66 - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 4:24 - 150
9. When I Take My Sugar to Tea - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Jump for Joy - 4:00 - 165
10. Someday You'll Want Me To Want You - Catherine Russell - Cat - 3:13 - 145
11. They Raided The Joint - Roy Eldridge Sextet - Little Jazz Giant - 3:18 - 145 (Mellowed out here, which worked okay, but I should have picked a different Roy Eldridge tune.)
12. Oh I'm Evil - Una Mae Carlisle - Una Mae Carlisle: 1938-1941 - 2:25 - 150
13. Wailing Interval - Duke Ellington - The Private Collection: Volume Six, Dance Dates, California, - 3:39 - 160 (Wrong call. I love this tune, but it's not good for newer dancers.)
14. Savoy Blues - The Wolverines Jazz Band Of Bern - Wolverines Of Bern At 35 - 3:56 - 140
15. Potato Chips - Slim Gaillard - Laughing In Rhythm: The Best Of The Verve Years - 3:05 - 145 (This one takes me back.)
16. All Of Me - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 4:10 - 165 (Announcement about ticket give-away to BBVD's upcoming Chicago concert, followed by obligatory BBVD tune...)
17. Calloway Boogie - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - How Big Can You Get?: The Music of Cab Calloway - 4:02 - 175
18. Bennie's Bugle - 4Beat6 - The band that plays the music of Benny Goodman - 3:01 - 195 (This is really a great track.)
19. For Dancers Only - Duke Ellington - Recollections Of The Big Band Era - 3:04 - 145 (Starting around here I think I started to hit my stride. I like how the rest of the set went.)
20. Four Or Five Times - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:12 - 135
21. Six-appeal - Charlie Christian - Six-appeal - 3:20 - 145
22. She Keeps It Up All The Time - Duke Heitger - Duke Heitger's "Krazy Kapers" - 3:11 - 110 (I liked how this slower tune went over.)
23. Perdido Street Blues - Southside Aces - A Big Fine Thing - 3:54 - 135 (Off their latest album, just released.)
24. Chant Of The Groove - Fats Waller - Fats Waller 1941 - 3:05 - 185 (A jam broke out at the beginning of this track.)
25. Lindyhopper's Delight - Chick Webb - Strictly Jive - 2:45 - 195 (It felt like people wanted more, and this was the first tune at hand.)
26. Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160 (Shim-sham to broaden the focus.)
27. Come On Over To My House - Jay McShann - Jumpin' The Blues - 2:52 - 145 (And then get everyone back on the floor.)
28. Baby Won't You Please Come Home? - Crytzer's Blue Rhythm Band - Chasin' the Blues - 3:38 - 125
29. South - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:17 - 180
30. Toast My Bread - Wycliffe Gordon - This Rhythm On My Mind - 4:17 - 100 (Hehe.)