Pustoblogsky

Fizz setlist 1/16/2012

2012-01-17T08:26:00.000-08:00

Fizz last night got off to a slow start. The first few folks in the door asked if the heat could be turned on (my answer: no, because body warmth would be more than enough once things got going). The early arrivals ended up dancing in sweaters for a bit, because it was around 9:40 by the time the place felt like it was in full swing and adequately warm. Thankfully, once things got going, they didn't stop--lots of very energetic dancers kept the floor crowded and the room warm. In response, I played a set that was a bit faster than normal, though I also had the chance to dip into blues tunes for a bit. I also played "My Baby Can Dance" by Carsie Blanton (singer-songwriter-dancer), since it's been going viral on Facebook, and it produced squeals and shrieks of delight. Literally.

Here's the usual BPM sparkline and histogram. And here's the tunes:

Nice Work if You Can Get It - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Nice Work If You Can Get It - 3:19 - 170
Swingin' On Nothin' - Midnight Serenaders - Hot Lovin' - 3:50 - 200
Slow and Easy - Jim Cullum Jazz Band - Chasin' the Blues - 4:03 - 190
Piano Boogie - Kansas City All-Stars - KC After Dark - 2:32 - 170
Rosetta - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Nice Work If You Can Get It - 3:08 - 170
Dipsy Doodle - Larry Clinton & His Orchestra - G.I. Jukebox, Original Hits from the Swing Era, 1938-1946 - 3:03 - 175
Nona - Erskine Hawkins, His Orchestra - Vintage Dance Orchestras No. 277 - EP: Tuxedo Junction - 2:44 - 145
Bearcat Shuffle - Andy Kirk & His Clouds of Joy - 1930-1941 - 3:02 - 150
Honeysuckle Rose - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats (Remaster) - 2:56 - 170
Spreadin' Rhythm Around - Fats Waller - Fats Waller: 1935-1936 - 2:44 - 180
In The Groove (At The Grove) - Ella Fitzgerald - Live At The Savoy - 1939-40 - 2:35 - 195
Love Me or Leave Me - Banu Gibson - Let Yourself Go - 3:07 - 165
Georgia Grind - Lillian Boutté - Music Is My Life - 3:32 - 145
He Ain’t Got Rhythm - Bernard Berkhout - Doctor Bernard and His Swing Orchestra - 4:44 - 165
Four Or Five Times - Sy Oliver - Sy Oliver et son orchestre: 1949-1952 - 3:08 - 140
Shake That Thing - The Smoking Time Jazz Club - Quarter Note Vol. 1 - 4:25 - 125
Someday You'll Want Me To Want You - Catherine Russell - Cat - 3:13 - 145
My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
Some of These Days - Billie & DeDe Pierce - Gulf Coast Blues - 2:38 - 150
Heebie Jeebies - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - The Hurricane Sessions - 1:55 - 180
Hop, Skip And Jump - Engelbert Wröbel's Swing Society - Sophisticated Swing - 3:47 - 175
When You're Smiling - Mona's Hot Four - Live at Mona's - 3:33 - 195
Mr. Rhythm - Glenn Crytzer And His Sycopators - Harlem Mad - 4:08 - 130
Dear Old Southland - Sidney Bechet - Classic Sides 1931-1937 (CD A) - 3:03 - 140
The Harlem Stride - Ella Fitzgerald - Live At The Savoy - 1939-40 - 3:29 - 200
I Like Pie, I Like Cake - The Four Clefs - BLUEBIRD 8884 - 2:48 - 155
Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 5:16 - 150
Put A Lid On It - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ The Times - 3:13 - 170
When I Grow Too Old To Dream - Cats & The Fiddle - We Cats Will Swing For You - 2:47 - 200
Careless Love - Tuba Skinny - Tubaskinny - 4:25 - 135
Money Blues - Lavern Baker - LaVern Sings Bessie Smith - 2:53 - 103
My Daddy Rocks Me - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman et son orchestre: 1945 Vol.2 - 2:48 - 100
Billie's Blues - Billie Holiday - Blue Billie - 2:40 - 120
Baby Can Dance - Carsie Blanton - Buoy - 2:56 - 180
Shine On Harvest Moon - Pete Fountain - Dixieland's Kings - 2:50 - 160
Blue Lou - Chick Webb - Jazz After Hours - 3:12 - 180
Jump Through The Window - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 2:44 - 145
I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150

Blues DJ Set 1/14/12

2012-01-15T21:33:00.000-08:00

I will likely not post all my DJ sets, but this post is a follow up on my previous post on Blues Music 101.

People often ask about what would separate a great DJ to a good DJ. I feel a good DJ plays great music that the crowd likes and dances to. A great DJ plays great music, reads the crowd, and can shift the energy of the floor. I don't want to get into a lot on DJ theory during this post, but I wanted to shed some thoughts I have on some Blues DJ'ing since I cross over between the lindy hop and blues worlds.

First a few tips about blues DJ sets:

Blues music has a variety of different styles and tempos. I think too often blues DJ’s fall into playing only on genre. Everyone is going to have a favorite genre. For me, it’s slower Jazz. I love New Orleans Jazz and find myself most creative in dancing to it. I tend to play more what I would consider “classic/traditional” vs. contemporary music. I think it gets back to pure forms of the music and dance.

I think it’s important to switch up between the genres of music throughout a blues set. I try to expose students to all the different genres throughout lessons, especially during musicality exercises. The different genres call for different movements and moods. It’s important not to be a “roller coaster” DJ switching genres too quickly. The same applies for tempos. I think it’s reasonable to play songs at similar tempos over a period of 3-5 songs as long as the feel of the song is different. 15 minutes of the same tempo/genre/feel can easily kill the energy of a dance floor.

With that said, below is the most recent set I played. A few background notes/thoughts I was thinking about:

Audience: My audience consisted of mostly beginner dancers who had just learned basic blues dancing.
Music Selection: After discussion of blues music using food and other analogies to refer to sex, I was encouraged to play some of my “dirty” music. Maybe sometime, I’ll write about the “dirtiest songs” in my collection, but that will need to be another time. I repeated some artists to feature artists or tracks people asked about. Sound quality is important as old blues/jazz recordings aren’t the best sound quality. I also mixed in some songs used during the lessons.
Tempo: I varied tempo and varied genres throughout the 90 minute set. You will also see a portion where tempo was very close across 5 songs, but the feel of the music was different.
Length of Song: I generally try to vary time length. It was a smaller group at the dance so I attempted to keep the 4:00+ songs to a minimum to encourage switching partners and keep a “fresh” feeling among the room. I also wanted to build some confidence in case some of the new beginners didn’t feel they ran out of ideas or “moves” they could do.

I would say I was fairly conservative being I was playing for a beginner crowd and played some good standards. Overall, I got good feedback and response from the crowd.

1. "Tain’t Nobody’s Business if I do” - Ernestine Anderson - 77 BPM - 4:31

People just start arriving - trying to create ambiance with first 2 songs

2. "Need your love so bad” - B.B. King & Sheryl Crow - 76 BPM - 3:57

3. “(Night Time is) the Right Time” - Ray Charles - 81 BPM - 3:24

Time to get the dance kicked off with a classic

3. "I ain’t got Nobody” - Big Maybelle - 81 BPM - 2:53

Respond to “soulful” female vocal call/response to Ray Charles in previous song

4. "The World’s Jazz Crazy” - Claire Austin - 84 BPM - 2:45

Let’s move into some Jazz - song had symbolism in lyrics too

5. "When I get low, I get High” - Gordon Webster - 113 BPM - 5:27

Pick up tempo

6 "St. James Infirmary” - New Orleans All Star Stompers - 66 BPM - 3:07

Some of the beginners looked challenged by faster tempo, so slowed down with recognizable tune in a different style than traditional versions of this song

7. "Nobody Knows you when you’re down and out” - Bessie Smith - 92 BPM - 2:58

Transition song - classic Blues

8. “Walk on” - Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee - 115 BPM - 3:14

This song has a little speaking intro part - now playing with instrumental feel

9. "Dirty Low Down and Bad” - Keb’ Mo’ - 100 BPM- 3:07

Contemporary blues - keeping tempo moving - strong guitar sound

10. "I Got Rambling on my Mind” - Otis Spann - 89 BPM - 4:07

Chicago Blues - slowing down a little adding piano to transition to next song

The last 3 songs had guitar as a primary instrument, but had completely different feels.

11. "All Over Again” - B.B. King & Mark Knopfler - 83 BPM - 4:54

12. “My Handy Man Ain’t Handy No More” - Alberta Hunter - 103 BPM - 3:46

First of 3 “dirty” songs played by request/suggestion

13. Shave ‘Em Dry II” - Lucille Bogan - 115 BPM - 3:22

This is not the best version of the song, but I played it because this song doesn’t disguise the “dirty.”

14. "Three Time Lose” - Linda Hopkins - 82 BPM - 2:24

I was listening to a women in jazz/blues documentary so I think I was inspired to play some sassy “woman power” music

15. “How Many More Years” - Howlin’ Wolf - 99 BPM - 2:51

16. “Love in Vain” - Robert Johnson - 85 BPM - 2:21

17. “You Know My Love” - Otis Rush - 78 BPM - 2:42

18. “Blue Drag” - Django Reinhardt -111 BPM - 2:56

One of my favorite songs - it has a quiet intro so it worked as a great transition back into some Jazz

19. "Egyptian Fantasy” - Kenny Davern - 90 BPM - 4:01

Another favorite - played it in particular for my friend Justin who was DJ’ing next.

20. “Horn Man Blues” - Dr. Michael White - 73 BPM - 7:01 (faded this one out)

Song 3 of “dirty” - this starts the streak of “woman power”

21. "A Good Man is Hard to Find” - Big Maybelle - 86 BPM - 2:12

22. “Mannish Boy” - Muddy Waters - 72 BPM - 2:57

A little intermission and response to “woman power”

23. “Backlash Blues” - Nina Simone - 77 BPM - 2:29

24. “I’ll Never Be Free” - Lavern Baker - 72 BPM - 2:22

25. “Mean Old World” - Snooks Eaglin - 75 BPM - 3:51

Transition song

26. “Kind Hearted Woman” - Big Head Blues Club ft. Ruthie Foster - 75 BPM - 4:08

27. “Blues in the Night” - Eva Cassidy - 70 BPM - 4:08

Notice similar tempo of last 6 songs, but all had different feel. I played the Eva Cassidy track in response to a discussion to the unfortunate dancing “sexy” to her “popular” cover of the traditional gospel tune “Wade in the Water.”

Blues Music 101

2012-01-15T21:19:00.000-08:00

Long time reader, first time posting...I look forward to collaborating on this site. Responses, feedback, and thoughts are more than welcome!

I recently taught a beginner blues workshop and was asked where to begin if wanting to build a blues dance DJ’ing collection. I don’t see myself as the ultimate authority on any this, but I hope to provide some insight. If not, it will allow me to “geek out” a little on a topic I like discussing at lengths.

Some of the easiest way to find blues music is to create a Pandora station and find music that you like to download. There are some great compilations of blues music as including the Chess Box Set that I’d recommend. I find blues music interesting because not all blues music is what I would call “danceable” so I will list a variety of artists with a warning to be aware what could be considered “danceable” or not. There is plenty of blues music that I would enjoy listening to, but not dance to.

Below is a working categorial list of some artists within blues music. This is not an authoritative list, but more of how I think of things. I could narrow it down categories as some of the artists’ placements are debatable. Some categories can be split up as well. If anything, I feel this may be a good introductory starting list of artists to check out.

Here is a working list among some categories I separate artists into:

Classic Women of the Blues:

Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Mahalia Jackson (Gospel roots), Ethel Waters, Etta James, Dinah Washington, Billie Holliday, Big Maybelle, Big Mama Thornton, Lil’ Johnson, Lucille Bogan, Memphis Minnie, Ruth Brown, Victoria Spivey, Lucille Hegamin, Koko Taylor, Roosevelt Sykes, Georgia White, Bea Booze, Ida Cox

Other Female Favorites:

Alberta Hunter, Odetta, Lavern Baker, Nina Simone, Shemekia Copeland, Hadda Brooks

Chicago Blues/Electric Blues

Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Memphis Slim, Pinetop Perkins, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Bo’ Diddley John Lee Hooker, Slim Harpo, Otis Rush, T-Bone Walker, Amos Milbourne, Magic, Slim, B.B. King, Johnny Winter Jimmy Reed, Bobby Blue Band, Bo Diddle, Buddy Guy, Eurreal Montgomery, Junior Wells, Albert King, Freddie King, Lowell Fulsom, Z.Z. Hill

Delta Blues/Country Blues

Robert Johnson, Son House, Big Joe Williams, Skip James, Big Bill Broonzy, Elmore James, Sonny Boy Williamson, Sonny Terry, Snooks Eaglin, Bo Carter, Willie Johnson

Contemporary Blues Favorites:

Keb’ Mo,' Bonnie Lee, Janiva Magness, Susan Tedeschi, Bonnie Rait, Johnny Lang, Taj Mahal, Albert Collins, Eric Clapton (some of his is Pop music), Blind Boys of Alabama, Carey Bell, Carolyn Wonderland, Elvin Bishop, Eric Bibb, Johnny Lang

Jazz artists to check out

Sindey Bechet, Jelly Roll Morton Edmond Hall, King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Hot Lips Page, Pee Wee Russell, Ray Charles (wasn’t sure where to categorize him) Ernestine Anderson, Jimmy Rushing, Jimmy Witherspoon, Kid Ory, Earl Hines, Cab Calloway, Count Basie, Cootie Williams, Humphrey Lyttleton, Dr. Michael White, Duke Ellington, Lionel Hampton. A lot of other classic jazz artists have some great tunes.

What are your thoughts? Would you categorize something differently or separate categories more? Other favorites I missed?

There'll be some changes made...and introducing Bob & Chris

2012-01-15T07:08:00.000-08:00

Hello loyal readers. I want to let you know about some big, exciting changes coming to Pustoblogsky. First and foremost...you've heard about them in my posts, you may have heard them spinning music at dances around Chicago, and now they'll be joining me as official blog authors. Introducing:

Chris...a.k.a., the Mysterious Man with the Middles. Chris is my arch-rival in a quest to find the longest possible version of Tiger Rag. So far the best I've done is a paltry 5:25--I'm sure he's got me beat at the moment.
Bob...,a.k.a., DJ Thor. Because he brings the thunder to every dance he DJs. Bob is a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to dance music--he's sought-after for both blues and swing dances (and last I heard, he was working on his polka collection too).

I'll let them introduce themselves in more detail (and with actual aspects of their life, as oppose to stuff I just make up). I'm very excited to have them on board--I think it will lead to some great insights, conversations, and disputes that ultimately will need to be settled in the DJ booth or on the dance floor. And I anticipate that it will force me to begrudgingly increase my eMusic subscription level.

Taking on co-bloggers is a prelude to some other changes around here. Once we dream one up, the blog will be getting a new name, a new URL, and hopefully a face-lift. I'll keep you posted on all of these, so you can be sure to change your blog aggregators and bookmarks. And if you have suggestions for a suitably geeky name, please leave a comment!

First Friday at Big City Swing 1/6/2012

2012-01-07T05:10:00.001-08:00

Last night's dance at Big City Swing was a lot of fun, even if the crowd wasn't as large as it has been the past few months (probably because there was a live band playing elsewhere in the city). A mix of first-timers, students, a barbershop quartet from a local high school, visitors from Europe, & well-known scenesters kept things pretty lively. Here's the bpm sparkline and histogram, and here's my set list:

Sent For You Yesterday - George Gee - If Dreams Come True - 3:32 - 165
Savoy - Lucky Millinder - An Anthology Of Big Band Swing 1930-1955 - 3:04 - 164
Frenesi - Artie Shaw - His First Three Bands: 1936-1940 - 3:06 - 150 (Not sure why I thought it would be a good idea to play this song early in the night, since it has lots of weird little interludes in it. One person came up to me after it was over and asked "That was a swing song?" Of course, most people danced right through the weird bits, so it could be that nobody else noticed.)
The Back Room Romp - Duke Ellington - The Duke's Men: The Small Groups, Vol. 1 - 2:49 - 150
Swinga-Dilla Street - Echoes of Swing - Harlem Reflections - 4:24 - 155
Put A Lid On It - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ The Times - 3:13 - 170
Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175
Gang Busters - Cats & The Fiddle - We Cats Will Swing For You - 3:06 - 185
Choo Choo Ch' Boogie - Louis Jordan & His Tympani Five - Jukebox Hits Volume 1 - 2:45 - 165
Honey Pie - Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - Everybody's Talkin' 'Bout Miss Thing! - 4:10 - 150
Old Mother Hubbard - Ella Fitzgerald - Swingin' Ella - 2:44 - 145
Loose Wig - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 2: Flying Home - 3:04 - 140
Good Queen Bess - Johnny Hodges & His Orchestra - Passion Flower 1940-46 - 2:59 - 160
Tutti Frutti - Slim Gaillard - 1938-46 - 2:38 - 170
Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160 (By request from the barbershop quartet.)
One Is Never Too Old To Swing - Cats & The Fiddle - We Cats Will Swing For You - 2:55 - 210
Shine On Harvest Moon - Pete Fountain - Dixieland's Kings - 2:50 - 160
My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 150
Georgia Grind - Louis Armstrong - Satchmo: A Musical Autobiography Disc 1 - 3:19 - 115
Mr. Rhythm - Glenn Crytzer And His Sycopators - Harlem Mad - 4:08 - 130
Last Night On The Backporch - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Ol' New Orleans Home - 4:10 - 150
Let Me Off Uptown - Delta Rhythm Boys - The Best Of 1940-50 - 2:54 - 160
Wham! (Re-Bop-Boom-Bam) - Jimmie Lunceford - Lunceford Special - 2:51 - 175
Cement Mixer (Put-Ti-Put-Ti) - Jimmie Lunceford - Jukebox Hits 1935-1947 - 2:45 - 155 (The Lunceford double-header was intentional. Wanna make something of it?)
Ballin' The Jack - Earl Hines - Live Broadcasts From The Hangover Club - 4:00 - 145
Frankie & Johnny - Firehouse Five Plus Two - Firehouse Five Plus Two Story - 2:51 - 130
Joshua Fit the Battle - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:57 - 180
Twenty-Four Robbers - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:45 - 190
The Five Pennies - The Famous Castle Jazz Band - The Five Pennies - 2:52 - 205 (I'd forgotten how much fun this song is.)

First Friday at Big City Swing 12/2/2011

2011-12-03T08:02:00.000-08:00

Another fun night of dancing and DJing for me--two in one week!--last night, this time at Big City Swing. I had the early set, followed by my friend Bob "DJ Thor." A great, lively crowd of dancers made the job easy for both of us--of course it didn't hurt that quite a few people took advantage of the BYO policy. Here's what I played (plus the usual BPM sparkline and histogram):

I've Got A Feeling I'm Falling - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 3:13 - 160
Moppin' And Boppin' - Fats Waller - 100 Swing & Big Band Classics - 4:27 - 170 (I cut out the first thirty seconds, which is an extended drum solo.)
Sent For You Yesterday - Count Basie - The Complete Decca Recordings - 2:58 - 165
Apollo Jump - Lucky Millinder - Classic Big Band Jazz - 3:26 - 145
Did I Remember - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:03 - 140
Tuxedo Junction - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:14 - 155
All Of Me - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 4:10 - 165
Let's Get Together - Duke Ellington - Recollections Of The Big Band Era - 2:37 - 175
Let's Misbehave - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - You Do Something To Me - 2:52 - 188
It's You Who Taught It To Me - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:42 - 160
Put A Lid On It - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ The Times - 3:13 - 170
Milenberg Joys - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:45 - 190 (Man this song is fun!)
Georgia Grind - Lillian Boutté - Music Is My Life - 3:32 - 145
Alligator Meat - Joe Swift With The Johnny Otis Band - Swing Time Jive - 2:57 - 120 (By request)
Ooh-Shoo-Be-Doo-Bee - Stacey Kent - The Boy Next Door - 3:06 - 140
Harlem Air Shaft - Duke Ellington - Piano In the Background - 4:03 - 170
Rosetta - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Ol' New Orleans Home - 3:36 - 205 (People were singing along to this tune!)
You Can Have My Husband - Tuba Skinny - Six Feet Down - 3:48 - 140
I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm - Billie Holiday - Lady Day: The Master Takes And Singles - 2:58 - 140
You’ve Been A Good Ole Wagon - Ann Savoy & Her Sleepless Knights - Black Coffee - 2:45 - 115
Jersey Bounce - Bernard Berkhout - Doctor Bernard and His Swing Orchestra - 3:27 - 135
Yes Indeed - Slam Stewart - Slamboree - 3:35 - 150
Dark Eyes - Fats Waller - Happy Birthday Fats Vol. 1 - 3:22 - 160
The Dipsy Doodle - Chick Webb - Stomping At The Savoy - 3:15 - 184 (By request, for tranky doo)
Fiddle Dee Dee - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 1: Hot Mallets - 2:39 - 195
All of Me - Benoit Viellefon & His Orchestra - Swing à La Mode - 3:21 - 195 (Weird novelty song, in the genre of Muppet jazz--I played it to keep DJ Thor on his toes as he took over.)

Fizz setlist 11/28/2011

2011-11-29T18:00:00.001-08:00

Here you go, plus the BPM histogram* and sparkline**:

Parc On Summit - Glenn Crytzer And His Sycopators - Harlem Mad - 3:11 - 180
Zonky - Crytzer's Blue Rhythm Band - Chasin' the Blues - 3:49 - 215
Route 66 - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 4:24 - 150
Piano Boogie - Kansas City All-Stars - KC After Dark - 2:32 - 170
House Hop - Bernard Berkhout - Doctor Bernard and His Swing Orchestra - 3:45 - 205
When You're Smiling - Benny Goodman - Small Group Recordings - 2:37 - 156
What's Your Name? - Echoes of Swing - You've Got To Be Modernistic - 3:18 - 155
I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm - Billie Holiday - Lady Day: The Master Takes And Singles - 2:58 - 140
For Dancers Only - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 2:41 - 150
My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
Baby, What's The Matter With You? - Roy Eldridge Quintet - Little Jazz Giant - 3:20 - 140
I Like Pie, I Like Cake - The Four Clefs - BLUEBIRD 8884 - 2:48 - 155
When You Wore a Tulip - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Jazz Roots Elixir - 3:30 - 160
I Can't Believe You're in Love With Me - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Give Me Your Telephone Number - 3:52 - 167
Viper Mad - Sidney Bechet - Sweet And Lowdown - 3:06 - 172
Fortunate Love - Glenn Crytzer And His Sycopators - Harlem Mad - 2:54 - 130
Blue Drag - Earl Hines - Swingin' Down - 2:59 - 140
Yacht Club Swing - Fats Waller - Yacht Club Swing 1938 - 3:51 - 162
Madame Dynamite - Eddie Condon - Let's Swing It - 2:55 - 185
Solid As A Rock - Count Basie - Count Basie Et Son Orchestre 1950-1951 - 3:03 - 135
She Keeps It Up All The Time - Duke Heitger - Duke Heitger's "Krazy Kapers" - 3:11 - 110
Exactly Like You - Cecile Mclorin Salvant and the Jean-Francois Bonnel Paris Quintet - Cecile - 5:10 - 125
Jump Through The Window - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 2:44 - 145
Blues In Disguise - Mezz Mezzrow & his Orch. - Makin' Friends, 1928-37 - 3:16 - 150
Dipsy Doodle - Larry Clinton & His Orchestra - G.I. Jukebox - 3:03 - 175
When You're Smiling - Mona's Hot Four - Live at Mona's - 3:33 - 195
Jersey Bounce - Bernard Berkhout - Doctor Bernard and His Swing Orchestra- 3:27 - 135
Bassology - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:49 - 155
Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 5:16 - 150
Black Coffee - Harlem Hot Shots - Complete Brunswick & Vocalion Recordings Of Louis Prima And Wingy Manone (1924-1937) - 3:00 - 200
Let's Get Drunk And Truck - The Harlem Hamfats - Let's Get Drunk And Truck - 3:06 - 175
Moan You Moaners - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 4:46 - 130
Froggy Bottom - Kansas City All-Stars - KC After Dark - 4:04 - 100
Put A Lid On It - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ The Times - 3:13 - 170 (This last song was for the Swing I graduation dance.)

* The histogram is clumpy around 130-170 because it was grad night, so there were many beginners plus a bunch of folks who seemed comfortable lindy hopping around that tempo range.

** Wow it looks like I became increasingly volatile with tempos as the night progressed.

Spotify playlist archive

2011-10-15T14:46:00.000-07:00

Okay so rather than providing a separate Spotify playlist for every set that I post here, I'm gonna just add songs to one master playlist archive. Subscribe to it and it will be updated whenever I add a new track. Should be simpler for me and y'all too. Link to the Spotify playlist archive here or in the top panel of the sidebar.

CodeBLUE 10/14/2011

2011-10-15T07:13:00.000-07:00

Last night I spun the early set at CodeBLUE, which was moving into nice new digs at OuterSpace in Wicker Park. The change of address didn't appear to throw anybody off, since a healthy crowd arrived early on. Unfortunately we hadn't quite gotten the sound straightened out--the organizers had rented a good portable sound system, but the vendor hadn't provided all of the necessary cables, so I had to DJ off of one speaker for most of the evening. (Two frantic trips to the vendor later, and finally both were working, in time for the last 10 songs of my set.)

Thanks to organizers Tia, Anna, & Heather for inviting me to DJ--I had a lot of fun stretching outside my usual lindy hop box. Here's what I played (along with the usual sparkline and histogram):

Rock Me All Night Long - The Fabulous Treniers - The Hoss Allen Sessions - 2:41 - 155
Tight Like This - Tuba Skinny - Tubaskinny - 4:28 - 125
Shake That Thing - Wynonie Harris - Risque Blues - It Ain't the Meat - 2:17 - 135
Juke - Little Walter - The Best Of Little Walter - 2:45 - 135
Bad Bad Whiskey - Buddy Guy & Junior Wells - Buddy Guy & Junior Wells Play The Blues - 4:14 - 115
Yes Sir, That's My Baby - Earl Hines - A Monday Date - 3:00 - 140
Last Night On The Backporch - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Ol' New Orleans Home - 4:10 - 150
Love Me or Leave Me - Banu Gibson - Let Yourself Go - 3:07 - 165
If You'se a Viper - John Sinclair - No Money Down - 3:55 - 150
I Don't Care Who Knows - Catherine Russell - Sentimental Streak - 3:18 - 125
Tears Of Joy - Janiva Magness - My Bad Luck Soul - 3:08 - 110
Don't Go No Farther - Muddy Waters - The Chess Box - 2:56 - 105
Blooz ... First Thaingh 'Dis Moanin' - Wycliffe Gordon - Originals Only - 5:23 - 85
Summertime - Gordon Webster - Happy When I'm With You - 4:04 - 120
Bassology - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:49 - 155
Communications - Slim Gaillard - Slim Gaillard: 1947-1951 - 2:29 - 175
The Wild Mab Of The Fish Pond - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - 1941-Transcription Performance - 2:20 - 155
Chant Of The Groove - Fats Waller - Fats Waller 1941 - 3:05 - 185
Artillerie Lourde - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 5:28 - 140
That Ain't Right - Fats Waller - Last Testament - His Final Recordings 9-23-43 - 2:59 - 80
You Just Usin' Me for a Convenience - Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee - A Long Way from Home - 3:45 - 85
Ray's Cookie Dance - Gerry Hundt - Acoustic - 3:09 - 135
Lowdown Baby - Joe Morris - Best Of The Early Years - 2:56 - 70
Hesitation Blues - Dave Van Ronk - The Two Sides Of Dave Van Ronk - 3:32 - 115
When I Get Low - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 5:27 - 105
Honeysuckle Rose - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 2:56 - 170
Dark Eyes - Fats Waller - Happy Birthday Fats Vol. 1 - 3:22 - 160
Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen - Adrian Rollini - 1937-1938 - 3:12 - 215
Lumby - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Essential, Vol. 2 - 2:31 - 195
Blue Drag - Earl Hines - Swingin' Down - 2:59 - 140
Song With No Words - Asylum Street Spankers - Strawberry - 5:43 - 102
Little Red Rooster - Sam Cooke - The Rhythm And The Blues - 2:52 - 95
3 O'Clock In The Morning Blues - Ike & Tina Turner - Mississippi Blues - 2:40 - 60
Sure Hope You Mean It - Raphael Saadiq - The Way I See It - 3:40 - 100
Heart Of Steel - Galactic - Ya-Ka-May - 3:27 - 90

Fizz 10/10/2011

2011-10-11T17:38:00.000-07:00

I had the early set last night at Fizz, back in the saddle after nearly 2 months. It was a fun evening, not terribly packed, but the dance floor seemed comfortably full for most of the evening. (The bar area was quite crowded because the Bears were playing.) My friend John had the late set, and around 10:45 we started trading songs back and forth. More on that below.

Once again, I'm going to publish my setlist on Spotify, even though only about half the songs are available. Let me know if it works for you. The usual bpm sparkline and freq. distribution exclude the first five songs since I played them to an empty room. Here's the complete run-down:

Page Mr. Trumpet - Pete Johnson - NSC111 NATIONAL- - 2:52 - 165 (As usual, there was hardly anyone there when I started. Folks trickled in.)
Swing, Brother, Swing - Willie "The Lion" Smith - Willie "The Lion" Smith And His Cubs - 2:51 - 230
Baby Don't You Tear My Clothes - The Harlem Hamfats - Harlem Hamfats Vol. 2 1936-1937 - 2:42 - 160
I Got Rhythm - Django Reinhardt - The Swing Sessions Volume 1 - 2:16 - 280
Sweet Sue - Svend Asmussen - Musical Miracle Vol. 1: 1935-40 - 2:55 - 185
"Murder" He Says - Four Vagabonds - Four Vagabonds Vol. 3 (1943) - 2:31 - 150 (Folks are dancing by this point.)
Gettin' In The Groove - Al Cooper's Savoy Sultans - Al Cooper's Savoy Sultan: 1938-1941 - 2:58 - 140
Swing Low - Adrian Rollini - 1934-1938 - 3:05 - 175
Summit Ridge Drive - Buddy DeFranco - Plays Artie Shaw - 4:35 - 145
He Ain't Got Rhythm - Jimmie Lunceford - Life Is Fine - 2:45 - 174
The Right Idea - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Swing Street Strut - 3:13 - 185
Rosetta - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 4:34 - 165
Savoy Blues - The Wolverines Jazz Band Of Bern - Wolverines Of Bern At 35 - 3:56 - 140
Comes Love - Duke Heitger - Duke Heitger's "Krazy Kapers" - 4:34 - 150
All Of Me - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 4:10 - 165
Look-A There - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:17 - 180
Cement Mixer (Put-Ti-Put-Ti) - Jimmie Lunceford - Jukebox Hits 1935-1947 - 2:45 - 155
Afternoon Of A Moax - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Swing Street Strut - 3:24 - 130
Shout 'Em, Aunt Tillie - Duke Ellington - That Lindy Hop - 3:03 - 150 (This one didn't really take. Not right for the crowd.)
Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Sidney Bechet - Sidney Bechet: 1949 - 3:20 - 175 (So play a sure-fire winner to recover and climb the energy.)
Scram! - Echoes of Swing - Harlem Joys - 3:20 - 195
As Long As I Live - Catherine Russell - Inside This Heart of Mine - 3:33 - 120
Don't Get Around Much Anymore - Barbara Morrison - Live at the 9:20 Special - 4:16 - 140 (Since she was just in town, singing at WCLX)
It Takes Two To Tango - Lester Young - Lester Young : 1951-1952 - 3:14 - 100 (Because I'm no longer allowed to play this one at home.)
Sing On (Odessa Sing On) - Gaucho - Pearl - 5:07 - 135
Ballin' The Jack - Kid Ory - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:15 - 145
It's You're Last Chance To Dance - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - The Hurricane Sessions - 4:30 - 180
Yam Brown - Bob Hunt's Duke Ellington Orchestra - What A Life! - 2:43 - 225 (This one really didn't take. Too 20's charleston, too different I guess.)
I Like Pie, I Like Cake - The Four Clefs - BLUEBIRD 8884 - 2:48 - 155 (Again recover with a familiar floor-filler.)
Let's Get Drunk And Truck - The Harlem Hamfats - Let's Get Drunk And Truck - 3:06 - 175 (Because nobody was there to dance to the first Hamfats song I played.)
I'm Crazy 'Bout My Baby - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 4:28 - 162 (This one was John's pick.)
Jump Through The Window - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 2:44 - 145 (I counter with another trumpet feature.)
Wham! (Re-Bop-Boom-Bam) - Jimmie Lunceford - Lunceford Special - 2:51 - 175 (John's pick: "One good Skye & Frida routine deserves another.")
Swingtime in the Rockies - Bernard Berkhout's Swing Orchestra - nieuw album_41 - 3:15 - 220 (I wanted to peak here.)
Lucky Number - Artie Shaw - Greatest Big Band Classics - 2:42 - 190 (John's pick.)
Ain't Misbehavin' - Sidney Bechet - Perdido Street Blues - 2:52 - 145 (Birthday jam for Bob "DJ Thor" B, who is a big Bechet fan.)
Exactly Like You - Cecile Mclorin Salvant and the Jean-Francois Bonnel Paris Quintet - Cecile - 5:10 - 125 (I got a complaint and a request for something "smoother" so I played this.)
Mr. Rhythm - Glenn Crytzer And His Sycopators - Harlem Mad - 4:08 - 130 (John's pick.)
Broken Hearted Blues - Tuba Skinny - Garbage Man - 3:45 - 120 (from Meschiya Lake to Erika Lewis.)

First Friday playlist on Spotify

2011-10-09T16:34:00.000-07:00

I've been playing with Spotify for a couple of weeks now, but pretty casually, and I'm sure that I'm not taking advantage of most of the features. I think I've succeeded in publishing my playlist from last Friday's dance at Big City Swing. If you have Spotify, check it out:

2011-10-07 First Friday at BCS

From what I can tell, only about 2/3 of the songs that I played will be available for you to hear, but still that's better than nothing.

Please leave a comment if it works for you--or if it doesn't, tell me what happened. Depending on how well it works, I may start publishing more playlists.

First Friday at Big City Swing 10/7/2011

2011-10-08T16:09:00.000-07:00

Last night at Big City Swing was buckets of fun. Actually, they probably should have had some buckets on hand--it got so sweaty in there, condensation started forming on the ventilation near the ceiling, then dripping down on me and my laptop. I didn't really mind, I was having such a good time. Highlights of the night included out-of-town friends showing up (all of whom have become straight up Rock Stars when it comes to lindy hop), dancing with several awesome followers who have just moved to town, and a phenomenal tap performance by Bril Barrett of MaddRhythms.

Bril danced to an Oscar Peterson track and left everyone speechless. His dancing is amazingly confident and controlled, yet loose and relaxed. And his rhythms, in addition to being totally mind-blowing, had a very strong continuity to them. Sometimes when I watch tap-dancers--even very very talented ones--showing off their fancy steps, I find it hard to follow their variations because they seem to deviate from whatever pulse they had going. Not with Bril--every beat he made was clear, in the pocket, and you could hear how all his fancy rhythms were connected to each other. (Bril offers several levels of tap classes at Big City Swing. When he finished dancing, his comment was "You too can learn to do that in only four easy lessons.....of twenty years a piece.")

At the start of the evening, Jenna and I taught the taster lesson, and decided to use music that was a bit faster than usual. (For intro. lessons, we usually use music 150-160 bpm--last night we ranged up to 180.) That allowed me to play fast stuff for the first couple songs in my set, which put me in a really good position for the rest of the night. As you can see in the sparkline, I was able to ride the tempo up and down nicely, though looking at it now, I think I could have pushed the boundaries out more in both directions. More on this in the running commentary.

Here's the setlist (sparkline and freq. distribution):

Put A Lid On It - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ The Times - 3:13 - 170 (This was the transition from lesson to dance. My Swing 1 students from last month really dug this tune.)
Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175
When I Grow Too Old To Dream - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 2:55 - 190
My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 150
Meet Me in Uptown - The Mighty Blue Kings - Meet Me In Uptown - 2:59 - 145
Sure, Had A Wonderful Time - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 3:00 - 135
Route 66 - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 4:24 - 150 (First of two songs off this album that I played. Then Bob played at least one more during his set.)
Come On-A My House - Rosemary Clooney - The Essential Rosemary Clooney - 1:56 - 180
The Wild Mab Of The Fish Pond - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - 1941-Transcription Performance - 2:20 - 155
Georgia Grind - Lillian Boutté - Music Is My Life - 3:32 - 145
Big Fat Mama - Lucky Millinder - Apollo Jump - 3:08 - 135
A Viper's Moan - Willie Bryant And His Orchestra - 1935-1936 - 3:25 - 150 (Stoner swing interlude.)
Peckin' - Duke Ellington - The Duke's Men: The Small Groups, Vol. 1 - 3:09 - 160
Evenin' - Count Basie - Count Basie at Newport - 3:32 - 165
Everybody Rock - Ella Fitzgerald - Live At The Savoy - 1939-40 - 3:18 - 185
Milenberg Joys - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:45 - 190
Down south camp meeting - Svend Asmussen - Still Fiddling - 3:41 - 145
No Regrets - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 2:52 - 130
Southern sunset - Swing Parade South - Hommage a Sidney Bechet - 3:32 - 105 (Slowest song that I played all evening. Didn't seem to phase anyone. I probably could have played more stuff in this range.)
Six Appeal - Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five - Crazy Rhythm - 3:29 - 135
Skin 'Em Back - Skeets Tolbert - Skeets Tolbert 1931-1940 - 2:43 - 150
Wham (Re-Bop-Boom-Bam) - Glenn Miller - Perfect Swing - 3:36 - 165
8, 9 And 10 - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:43 - 175
I Can't Dance I Got Ants In My Pants - The Smoking Time Jazz Club - Quarter Note Vol. 1 - 4:13 - 210 (Fastest song of the set. Seemed to get people excited, leading in to a jam circle on the next song....)
Black Coffee - The Careless Lovers - Black Coffee - Single - 2:39 - 195
If You're A Viper - Kermit Ruffins - The Big Butter & Egg Man - 3:08 - 170
Everybody Loves My Baby - Sippie Wallace - Sippie - 3:11 - 145
Ochi Chornya - Wingy Manone - Wingy Manone: 1940-1944 - 2:54 - 165
Dear Old Southland - Sidney Bechet - Classic Sides 1931-1937 (CD A) - 3:03 - 140
Grabtown Grapple - Artie Shaw - 1944-45 - 3:00 - 190
Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160 (Shim-sham, timed to lead in to the tap performance.)

Vince Giordano & "Ragged Jazz"

2011-10-04T20:15:00.001-07:00

Check out this interview with Vince Giordano, leader of the Nighthawks 1920's jazz & dance orchestra, promoting the soundtrack to HBO's prohibition drama Boardwalk Empire. The Nighthawks are featured prominently in the series and on the soundtrack. It's a bit on the fluffy side, but there's one interesting bit where Vince explains the term "ragged jazz." He uses it for music that was on the cusp between ragtime and jazz. It's a great label, and now it makes me consider relabeling some of the genres in my iTunes database now....

A Great Day in Harlem

2011-09-30T20:04:00.000-07:00

You may already know about the famous 1958 photograph titled "A Great Day in Harlem" and featuring many of the greatest jazz musicians of the time. But did you know about the 1994 documentary of the same name? It's about how the photo came to be, and includes lots of behind-the-scenes photos shot by the musicians' wives and a good deal of archival interview footage from the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Milt Hinton, Marian McPartland, and Buck Clayton. My wife and I watched it a while back when we still had a Netflix subscription (it's still available there, on whatever they are calling it now). Definitely worth wasting an hour on.

I use the photo for my laptop wallpaper, so I spend a fair amount of time staring at it. My favorite parts are:

Dizzy Gillespie and Roy Eldridge (lower right hand corner), cracking each other up.
Count Basie sitting on the curb.
Stuff Smith, looking like he probably hasn't changed clothes since finishing last night's gig, smoking (who knows what?) with Coleman Hawkins
Drummers Jo Jones, Gene Krupa, and Sonny Greer all hangin' out. Jones was the drummer for the Count Basie Orchestra, Krupa for Benny Goodman (before leading his own band), and Greer for Duke Ellington.

Side effects may include geekiness

2011-09-28T16:06:00.000-07:00

Based on a couple recent conversations I've had about encouraging more people to take an interest in DJing, I'm wondering whether some folks out there may have a mis-impression about swing DJing. Being a good swing DJ does not require that you know a lot (or really almost anything) about music theory or jazz history. These are common side effects of DJing, not pre-requisites to getting into the club. Really, all you need to start is 1) some good music--maybe enough to get you through 2 hours without playing anything really shoddy--and 2) the means and the nerve to play that music in public. It's possible to start out really modestly--to just get a toe in the water--without even having a ton of music, decide whether you like it, and then gradually wade deeper and deeper in (the water, children....).

If and when you do get more into it, many DJs tend to start to get interested in jazz history, to read books like Good Morning, Blues and Pops, to start combing through the archives of SwingDJs.com, quoting early episodes of Hey, Mr. Jesse, wondering whether the correct spelling is janky or djanky, and fretting about copyright infringement while scouring Jazz-On-Line.com. But none of this is at all required.

It periodically occurs to me that Chicago could really use more low-pressure opportunities for people to DJ. Right now there's....Java Jive, maybe? Maybe something up at Northwestern? But nothing in terms of city venues.* In my mind, the ideal opportunity would be hour-long (or even less maybe) slots at venues that have a dependable core of dancers. Maybe the organizers could give the DJs a small tip or let them in for free, but beyond that, no compensation--just some experience, status if you can really win the crowd, and satisfaction from sharing your favorite music. I could see some venues including one or two of these slots every week/month, with the rest of the evening covered by a more experienced house DJ (swing DJ, not house).

Readers, what do you think? Would you give something like that a try if the opportunity was there? Organizers, what say you?

* Of the regular swing and blues events:

Fizz (Mon., weekly) has a group of decrepit old dudes who've been DJing there for ever.
Black Rock (Tues., weekly), I think Nicolle usually spins on non-band nights, though I'm not totally sure. She invited me to DJ there once--a Mardi Gras set--and I had a fun time.
Java Jive (Fri., weekly), I have no idea, never having been there.
First Friday at Big City Swing (monthly) I almost always DJ, along with Bob or Chris.
Lucky's Savoy Stomp (First Saturday, monthly) is a new venue, not sure who will be DJing.
CodeBlue (second Fri., monthly), the organizers cover some of the DJing but have also asked others to step up.
Saturday Swings (usually third Sat., monthly) usually hosts live bands, with the organizers DJing the band breaks.
Alhambra Palace (last Wed., monthly), always has a live band and somebody I don't know plays music during the set breaks.
Bluetopia (last Fri., monthly), not sure how they work.
Willowbrook (occasionally), I think it's probably mostly Riley.

Looking at this list now....man is this everything Chicago has going right now?!?! How many million people live in this city?

[Updated to revise the venue list.]

Tempo changes - more tunes

2011-09-25T18:30:00.000-07:00

Continuing on the theme of tunes that change tempo mid-song...

I associate tempo-changing tunes with older styles of music, from the early days of jazz when the tunes had crazy structures to them instead of just just straight 32 bar phrasing, and all of the New Orleans musicians still played in marching bands in addition to night clubs. Taking a slow tune out with a piping hot chorus must have be a standard Dixie trick.

As far DJing goes, tempo changers are almost always strictly novelties. I play them sparingly for fear of getting a reputation as a jerk who likes to mess with the dancers. But I do enjoy them myself, especially when you can feel the change coming on and dance through it. Here's my list of tunes with fun tempo changes, starting with the ones that all the DJs probably know:

All the Cats Join In - Jessica Molaskey - A Good Day - 4:15 - 125/250/125. Slinky, groovy, then all of a sudden really flipping fast, then back to groovy. Jessica Molaskey is really a Broadway singer, but she dabbles with jazzy stuff and is married to the guitarist John Pizzarelli.
Bei Mir Bist Du Shane - Janis Siegel - Swing Kids soundtrack - 4:11 - 150/90/180. There was a time when I watched this video over and over and over again. If you've been dancing for more than 8 years, admit it, you were watching it too.
Darktown Strutter's Ball - Alberta Hunter - Amtrak Blues - 5:24 - 90/150. More evidence that these sort of tempo changes come from old-time show music, since Alberta Hunter was there at the beginning. I know of one other version of this tune that mimics the tempo changes in this one: Jeff Healey - It's Tight Like That - 4:51 - 115/215. It's fun and peppy, though I don't care for the electric guitar in this (it's there because Healey was originally a rock guitarist, who turned to jazz only later) or the fiddle solo.

Tunes that I have DJed to good effect:

Honeysuckle Rose - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 2:56 - 85/170. The slow intro, featuring a seldom-heard verse of this tune, will fool people into thinking it's a blues. Then it doubles, forcing them to swing out. Hahaha gotcha. (You could also fade in after the slow intro.)
Yesterdays - Carmen McRae - Carmen McRae Sings Lover Man - 4:54 - 60/120. Starts as a very slow ballad, truly spell-binding. I could listen to nothing but Carmen McRae for days on end. Midway through, the tempo doubles to a very comfortable, groovy 120 bpm. Great song for transitioning and notching up the energy.

Old school jazz with crazy bits:

Honeysuckle Rose - Adrian Rollini - 1934-1938 - 3:13 - 105/185. A live recording that starts as a deceptively mellow vibraphone solo before jumping into a surprising, swinging jam session.
Swing It Way Down Low - Louis Prima - Complete Brunswick & Vocalion Recordings - 2:43 - 130/260/130/260. Danceable small combo jazz with one of Prima's distinctive vocals, plus extremely fast interludes.
Tin Roof Blues - Louis Prima -Complete Brunswick & Vocalion Recordings - 2:59 - 90/205. Classic Dixie blues number, with a peppy out-chorus.
Dear Old Southland - Sidney Bechet - Perdido Street Blues - 4:01 -90/215. Almost dirge-like blues, taking on a much more up-beat mood for the fast finish. (Note that Bechet recorded this tune many times, at different tempos. Another good version can be found on Classic Sides, 1931-1937, at about 140 bpm throughout.)
Ain't Misbehavin' - Fast Waller - The Very Best of Fats Waller - 4:00 - 100/260/100. Starts as a genteel, delicate piano feature, then adding Waller's vocal to one of his best known songs. A long, building drum-solo takes things into an exciting up-tempo chorus, then everything slows down again for the last little tag.
That's A Plenty - Ella Fitzgerald & Bing Crosby - Bing Crosby with Ella Fitzgerald & Peggy Lee - 2:24 - 185/230. Snobs will object to Bing Crosby being put on the same footing as Ella Fitgerald. Whatever. Before discovering this track, I didn't realize that there were lyrics to the tune. Ella & Bing do a nice duet, then there's a fast instrumental interlude, pure dixieland, and then a fast vocal verse for good measure.

Tunes that are too theatrical or showy to use for DJing:

Prince Nez - Squirrel Nut Zippers - Hot - 253 - 175/300+. I have a soft spot for this one (again, showing my age here). This starts as a duet, then has a minute-long outro that sounds like the finale of a Vaudeville show.
St. Louis Blues - The Deep River Boys - London Harmony - 2:50 - 120/300. This is like something out of a Vegas rat-pack show, complete with big brass arrangement and (I can imagine) flashy choreography for the Deep River Boys. And of course, since it's St. Louis Blues, you have the rhythm changes in addition to the tempo changes. A train wreck of a tune.
Bill Bailey - Patsy Cline - The Last Sessions - 2:48 - 70/140. Yeah, sure, Patsy is pure country. But the arrangement here is so jazzy, that I could almost play it at a dance. If only Patsy could have ditched her male backup singers.

So these are just a few that I had marked in my iTunes library. I know I must be missing many more, especially big band numbers (Chick Webb? Jimmie Lunceford?). Some commenters on the previous post have already added to the list. Let me know if you have a favorite tempo-changing swing tune by leaving a comment.

Tempo changes - After You've Gone

2011-09-24T17:54:00.001-07:00

For whatever reason, my latest obsession is songs that have tempo changes (purposeful...not just because the drummer can't keep steady time for three minutes). I remember years ago, my (future) wife and I were at the late night of an exchange in Portland, Maine, and the DJ played a slow, slinky version of "All the Cat's Join In" and everybody was getting into the groove of it when all of a sudden it doubled in tempo and basically the whole crowd went "WTF?!?!?" as the DJ cackled. I went up to him afterwards to ask what the song was (it was Jessica Molaskey, off the album A Good Day) and tell him that he was a jerk for taking everyone off guard.

When I think of tempo changes, the other thing that always comes to mind is the routine that Zach Richard & Carla Heiney did a few years ago, to the Titan Hot Seven's version of After You've Gone. They had to heavily edit the recording, since the original is way too long, but they did it quite seamlessly so all of the umpteen tempo changes sound natural. It's a great routine, made all the more engaging by the way they capture the different character of the slower and faster sections of the song.

After You've Gone is the quintessential tempo-changing tune. Of the 22 versions of the tune in my iTunes library, 6 have tempo changes:

Tuba Skinny - Tubaskinny - My current favorite. Starts off around 100 bpm, then doubles without feeling at all frantic.
Sidney Bechet - Blues in the Air - Great soloing from Bechet, at 90 bpm but with a lot of momentum. Then a short drum solo and it is suddenly TRIPLE time. Yes, a blazing 270 bpm. Don't mess with Bechet.
Fats Waller - Yacht Club Swing 1938 - This is only a snippet, barely 2 minutes long, just a glimpse of Waller & his Rhythm at their perfectly laid back, swinging best. The thing that kills me here is how Waller handles the ritards. At 0:58 he stretches out his break, then rolls into his solo at full time. Then at 1:12 he plays the same stretched out break, but this time it is a signal to move to half time. If only this were a full recording with a vocal! Two other recordings of his (both off the Definitive Fats Waller, Vol 1.) do have the full vocal treatment, but the tempo changes aren't handled as artfully.
Cecile Mclorin Savant - Cecile. I love this woman's voice. Great modern treatment of the tune, which I would totally play at a dance if it weren't for the extended drum solo that starts the fast section.
Katherine Whalen - Jazz Squad. This version goes from 75 to a relaxed 210 bpm, then back to 75 at the very end, handling the transitions nicely. The ensemble is an odd hybrid of a modern combo with Dixie leanings. Very danceable throughout.
LaVern Baker - LaVern Sings Bessie Smith. This version starts out really slow (under 65 bpm), acts as if it is wrapping up, and then finishes out at about 230 bpm (that's quadruple time!). The transition is a bit corny though, and the fast section has a stagey feel.

As you've probably guessed, I'm completely smitten with this tune at the moment, and have been driving my (present) wife nuts by playing all 22 versions on repeat all day long. Please leave a comment and let me know if you have a favorite version, so that I can continue obsessing.

Also, in a future post: other tunes with tempo changes.

First Friday at Big City Swing 9/2/2011

2011-09-03T19:41:00.000-07:00

Between the heat and the holiday weekend and other events going on, it ended up being a lighter night than usual for the First Friday dance. I didn't mind that, as it meant there was more space to dance and it didn't get as sweaty & stinky as it would have if it were packed. The crowd seemed to be an even mix of 6-count and lindy hoppers, and really seemed happiest in the 150-170 bpm range--I had a bit of a hard time dipping under or pushing it above that range, though I tried. I also tried to avoid playing much New Orleans style stuff, since my friend Chris was DJing after me. He's got an enviable collection of music from New Orleans bands, and I figured he would top whatever I tried to play, so why bother pushing my luck. Instead, I stuck to a lot of classic big band and small combo music, which was hardly a chore. Here's what I played (plus BPM sparkline and freq. distribution):

Nice Work if You Can Get It - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Nice Work If You Can Get It - 3:19 - 170 (Last song of the lesson)
Now Or Never - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:13 - 165
Dunkin' A Doughnut - Andy Kirk & His Clouds of Joy - An Anthology Of Big Band Swing 1930-1955 - 2:51 - 170
Rose Room - Artie Shaw - Artie Shaw, King Of The Clarinet - 2:43 - 155
I've Got A Feeling I'm Falling - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 3:13 - 160
South - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:17 - 180
Hey, Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:21 - 140
Georgia Grind - Lillian Boutté - Music Is My Life - 3:32 - 145
I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150
Yacht Club Swing - Fats Waller - Yacht Club Swing 1938 - 3:51 - 162
Rhythm Itch - Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five - Moppin' and Boppin' - 3:11 - 170
Bennie's Bugle - 4Beat6 - The band that plays the music of Benny Goodman - 3:01 - 195 (This song kills me.)
Miss Brown To You - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:15 - 145
Route 66 - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 4:24 - 150
Splanky - George Gee - Swingin' Live! - 3:18 - 135 (Oh splanky.)
Little Jazz - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 3:06 - 140
Bassology - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:49 - 155 (This really isn't the greatest dance tune, but I love Slam's bowed bass work so much that I had to play it.)
Baby, Won't You Please Come Home - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 2:54 - 165
Honeysuckle Rose - Adrian Rollini - 1934-1938 - 2:38 - 160
Dipsy Doodle - Larry Clinton & His Orchestra - G.I. Jukebox - 3:03 - 175
Back Bay Shuffle - Artie Shaw - His First Three Bands: 1936-1940 - 3:15 - 190
Too Darn Hot - Ella Fitzgerald - Mack The Knife: The Complete Ella In Berlin (Live) - 3:16 - 160 (This song has a longish intro where Ella sings "It's tooooo darnnnn hot. It's tooo-ooo-ooo darnnnn hot." The floor completely cleared during this, and for a second I was scared that people heard her singing and thought "You know, she's right. I should really go get a drink of water and then maybe go home and take a shower. )
Easy Does It - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:57 - 130
Melancholy Blues - Milano Jazz Gang - To Satchmo with Respect - 2:51 - 115 (Nice new version of a very old tune.)
Perdido Street Blues - Southside Aces - A Big Fine Thing - 3:54 - 135
It's You're Last Chance To Dance - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - The Hurricane Sessions - 4:30 - 180
Tain't What You Do - Sy Oliver - Sy Oliver et son orchestre: 1949-1952 - 3:07 - 155 (Shim-sham.)
I Can’t Dance (I Got Ants In My Pants) - Chick Webb - Stomping At The Savoy (Disc 1) - 3:00 - 205 (Slightly awkward Balboa demo.)
Tuxedo Junction - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:14 - 155
Summit Ridge Drive - Buddy DeFranco - Plays Artie Shaw - 4:35 - 145
Black Coffee - The Careless Lovers - Black Coffee - Single - 2:39 - 195

Fizz setlist 8/15/2011

2011-08-16T09:22:00.000-07:00

Last night was my first time DJing at Fizz, and only my second time attending, since de baby. So, lots of unfamiliar faces mixed in with those of some friends I hadn't seen in a while. It was a fun night, not too crowded but certainly energetic, and I felt good about how my set came out. I thought it was a good balance between familiar & fresh. Here's what I played (plus the usual BPM sparkline and freq. distribution):

Jam Session - Benny Goodman - The Birth Of Swing - 2:56 - 215 (The first few were to an empty room.)
Business in F - Gene Kardos & his Orchestra - VICTOR 22899 - 2:59 - 230
Ain't She Sweet - Pearl Bailey - 16 Most requested Songs - 2:59 - 170 (One couple on the floor, practicing their moves.)
8, 9 And 10 - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:43 - 175
Jazz O' Jazz - Adrian Rollini - 1934-1938 - 3:04 - 170
Dig That Crazy Chick - Sam Butera & The Witnesses - Ultra-Lounge, Vol. 5: Wild Cool & Swingin - 2:27 - 165 (Still one couple, and I thought they might like this one.)
Hit That Jive, Jack - Four Vagabonds - Four Vagabonds Vol. 3 (1943) - 2:26 - 190
I've Found A Brand New Baby - Nat King Cole - The Magic of Nat King Cole - 2:39 - 140
That's Right! - Eddie Cole & The Three Peppers - That's Right! - 2:24 - 140 (More people come in and put their shoes on.)
Sad Sap Sucker Am I - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 3:06 - 140
Four or Five Times - Joe Williams - For Dancers Only! (A Lindy Hop Compilation) - 4:48 - 135
I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150
Cabaret - Louis Armstrong - Louis Armstrong - 3:59 - 155
Baby, Won't You Please Come Home - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 2:54 - 165
Swingin' at the Sugar Bowl - Bob Crosby and His Orchestra - South Rampart Street Parade - 3:05 - 185
For Dancers Only - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Swingmatism - 2:34 - 160 (Moving into hi-fi big band territory.)
Alright, Okay, You Win - John Dokes - John Dokes Sings, George Gee Swings - 2:56 - 140
Splanky - George Gee - Swingin' Live! - 3:18 - 130
Duke's Place - Ella Fitzgerald - Something To Live For (Disc 2) - 4:13 - 140 (And out, into a New Orleans sound.)
Perdido Street Blues - Louis Armstrong - The Complete Decca Studio Master Takes 1940-1949 - 3:08 - 145
Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 5:16 - 150
Short Dressed Gal - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - New Orleans Preservation, Vol. 1 - 2:38 - 160
Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175
Black Coffee - The Careless Lovers - Black Coffee - Single - 2:39 - 195
Ballin' The Jack - Kid Ory - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:15 - 145
Georgia Grind - Lillian Boutté - Music Is My Life - 3:32 - 145 (From New Orleans to blues/boogie.)
Home To Mississippi - Otis Spann - Otis Spann: Best Of The Vanguard Years - 3:29 - 130
Good Rockin' Tonight - Jack McDuff & Jimmy Witherspoon - The Blues Is Now - 2:17 - 140
As Long As I'm Moving - Ruth Brown - The Essentials: Ruth Brown - 2:43 - 165
Killin' Jive - Cats & The Fiddle - We Cats Will Swing For You - 2:50 - 180 (And then back to more jazz.)
Bassology - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:49 - 155 (I love this track.)
Who Walks In When I Walk Out? - Louis Armstrong & Ella Fitzgerald - The Wonderful Duets - 2:21 - 135
Shiny Stockings - Count Basie - April In Paris - 5:17 - 120 (The composer of this tune, Frank Foster, just passed away last month.)
Little Jazz - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 3:06 - 140
Between The Devil & The Deep Blue Sea - Django Reinhardt - The Swing Sessions Volume 1 - 2:58 - 185
Jump Session - Slim Gaillard - 1938-1939 - 2:35 - 160
Hey, Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:21 - 140 (Birthday jam.)
Gimme A Pigfoot - Lavern Baker - Precious Memories / LaVern Sings Bessie Smith - 3:09 - 120 (Going away jam. Adeoye we'll miss you!)

First Friday at Big City Swing 7/8/2011

2011-07-09T08:11:00.000-07:00

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):

Shotgun Boogie - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:55 - 165 (Last song of the lesson. Tried and true.)
My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 150 (Another trusty old favorite)
Deed I Do - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:42 - 170 (My media player died here.)
Baby's Boogie Woogie - Stompy Jones - The Swing Session - 3:05 - 165
Jump Jive An' Wail - The Brian Setzer Orchestra - The Dirty Boogie - 2:53 - 200 (Obligatory.)
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.)
Shake That Thing - Wynonie Harris - Risque Blues – It Ain't the Meat - 2:17 - 135
Route 66 - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 4:24 - 150
When I Take My Sugar to Tea - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Jump for Joy - 4:00 - 165
Someday You'll Want Me To Want You - Catherine Russell - Cat - 3:13 - 145
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.)
Oh I'm Evil - Una Mae Carlisle - Una Mae Carlisle: 1938-1941 - 2:25 - 150
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.)
Savoy Blues - The Wolverines Jazz Band Of Bern - Wolverines Of Bern At 35 - 3:56 - 140
Potato Chips - Slim Gaillard - Laughing In Rhythm: The Best Of The Verve Years - 3:05 - 145 (This one takes me back.)
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...)
Calloway Boogie - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - How Big Can You Get?: The Music of Cab Calloway - 4:02 - 175
Bennie's Bugle - 4Beat6 - The band that plays the music of Benny Goodman - 3:01 - 195 (This is really a great track.)
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.)
Four Or Five Times - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:12 - 135
Six-appeal - Charlie Christian - Six-appeal - 3:20 - 145
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.)
Perdido Street Blues - Southside Aces - A Big Fine Thing - 3:54 - 135 (Off their latest album, just released.)
Chant Of The Groove - Fats Waller - Fats Waller 1941 - 3:05 - 185 (A jam broke out at the beginning of this track.)
Lindyhopper's Delight - Chick Webb - Strictly Jive - 2:45 - 195 (It felt like people wanted more, and this was the first tune at hand.)
Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160 (Shim-sham to broaden the focus.)
Come On Over To My House - Jay McShann - Jumpin' The Blues - 2:52 - 145 (And then get everyone back on the floor.)
Baby Won't You Please Come Home? - Crytzer's Blue Rhythm Band - Chasin' the Blues - 3:38 - 125
South - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:17 - 180
Toast My Bread - Wycliffe Gordon - This Rhythm On My Mind - 4:17 - 100 (Hehe.)

setlist from Saturday Swing

2011-06-26T11:37:00.000-07:00

Last night I spun at ARTTango studios for the Saturday Swing dance organized by my friend and fellow Stuff Smith enthusiast Thea. It's a very nice, inviting venue with plenty of space to dance and also to socialize. I was happy with my set in terms of the music, but I encountered a big technical problem with JRiver Media Center in the middle of the evening, which definitely detracted from my set as a whole. I still haven't managed to isolate the problem, but it seems to have to do with the gap-skipping functionality in JRMC. Normally, the program will automatically trim out leading and trailing silence from a track, but last night instead of trimming it, it would sometimes insert loud static in place of the silence. Then at the end of the evening, two songs before the end of my set, the program crashed all together, and I had to switch to iTunes as quick as I could. Lame, all around. I'll report back when I've figured out what is going on.

In the mean time, here's what I played (plus the usual BPM sparkline and frequency distribution):

Viper's Dream - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:17 - 170
Satin Doll - Anita O'Day - My Ship - 2:19 - 135
King Porter Stomp - Wynton Marsalis - Mr. Jelly Lord - Standard Time Vol. 6 - 3:09 - 180
My Blue Heaven - The Rosenberg Trio - Roots - 2:54 - 210
What's Your Name? - Echoes of Swing - You've Got To Be Modernistic - 3:18 - 155
Two O'Clock Jump - Harry James And His Orchestra - Trumpet Blues - 3:00 - 155
Gotta Be This Or That - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman '45 & '47 - 3:10 - 140
I Cried For You - Billie Holiday - Lady Day: The Master Takes And Singles - 3:14 - 155
I'm Beginning To See The Light - Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington - The Great Summit - 3:37 - 150
Splanky - Benny Goodman - The Yale University Music Library, Volume 7: Florida Session - 5:12 - 130
They Raided The Joint - Roy Eldridge Sextet - Little Jazz Giant - 3:18 - 145
Walk It to Me - Hot Lips Page - 67099 DECCA-7757 - 3:17 - 140
Someday You'll Want Me To Want You - Catherine Russell - Cat - 3:13 - 145
Jump Session - Slim Gaillard - 1938-1939 - 2:35 - 160
Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175
My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
Love Me or Leave Me - Banu Gibson - Let Yourself Go - 3:07 - 165
Everybody Rock - Ella Fitzgerald - Live At The Savoy - 1939-40 - 3:18 - 185
C Jam Blues - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 4:12 - 170
Are You All Reet? - Chu Berry - Classic Chu Berry Columbia And Victor Sessions - 3:09 - 155
Baby Won't You Please Come Home? - Crytzer's Blue Rhythm Band - Chasin' the Blues - 3:38 - 125
Perdido Street Blues - Southside Aces - A Big Fine Thing - 3:54 - 135
Last Night On The Backporch - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Ol' New Orleans Home - 4:10 - 150
Goin' To Chicago Blues - Ernestine Anderson - When the Sun Goes Down - 4:54 - 135
Bill Bailey - Ella Fitzgerald - Something To Live For - 3:26 - 130
Corner Pocket - Count Basie - April In Paris - 5:07 - 140
I'm Coming Virginia - Benny Goodman - The Yale University Archives, Volume 3: Big Band In Europe - 2:09 - 170
Route 66 - Linda Hopkins - Wild Women Blues - 3:05 - 160
Daddy - Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - Miss Smith To You! - 4:39 - 125
Exactly Like You - Carmen McRae - - 2:11 - 135
Smack Dab In The Middle - George Gee - Swingin - 3:00 - 140
Wailing Interval - Duke Ellington - The Private Collection: Volume Six, Dance Dates, California, - 3:39 - 160
Streamliner - The Bill Elliott Swing Orchestra - Swing Masters: Calling All Jitterbugs - 3:50 - 150
Savoy - Lucky Millinder - An Anthology Of Big Band Swing 1930-1955 - 3:05 - 165
Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 2:45 - 135
St. Louis Blues - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman: Very Best of Benny Goodman - 3:24 - 135
Fine Brown Frame - Lou Rawls - At Last - 3:05 - 125
It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day) - Erbie Bowser, T.D. Bell, and the Blues Specialists - Down Home Saturday Night - 4:13 - 125
My Bad Luck Soul - Janiva Magness - My Bad Luck Soul - 2:10 - 160
Georgia Grind - Louis Armstrong - Satchmo: A Musical Autobiography Disc 1 - 3:19 - 115
Shake That Thing - The Smoking Time Jazz Club - Quarter Note Vol. 1 - 4:25 - 125
Savoy Blues - Kenny Ball And His Jazzmen - Trad Jazz Masters - 3:53 - 135
Minor Swing - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:16 - 200
South - Hot Lips Page - Kansas City: Swing, Blues, Jive & Boogie - 2:48 - 200
Yes Indeed - Slam Stewart - Slamboree - 3:35 - 150
Fibre de verre - Paris Combo - Attraction - 3:39 - 135
Dat Dere - Oscar Brown Jr. - Sin & Soul ...And Then Some - 2:52 - 111
Keepin' Out A Mishif Now - Carling Family - 20th Jubilee - 3:32 - 120
My Bucket's Got A Hole In It - Papa Bues Viking Jazzband - Live In Copenhagen - 3:36 - 135
Duke & Dukie - The Rosenberg Trio - Roots - 3:28 - 200
A Smo-o-oth One - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:16 - 130

Story about Lionel Hampton

2011-06-18T11:28:00.000-07:00

My friend Bob (aka DJ Thor), writes in to share a story, and a tip on streaming great jazz over the internet:

When I can on Saturday mornings, I listen to riverwalk jazz (10am) and the swing shift (11am-1) on 90.9 or wdcb.org (You can stream it online). I thought you'd appreciate this:

The told a cool story on "riverwalk" this morning about Lionel Hampton's father serving in WWI. A few weeks into leaving for the war, Lionel's father was m.i.a. Lionel's mother attempted to write letters and find where he was, but there was no luck. Lionel went on to become a famous musician down the road and was talking to someone who said there's someone in the hospital claiming to be the father of the famous musician Lionel Hampton (this was 50 years after he had left for the war). The next day, Lionel went to visit this 70 year old man, who turns out to be his father. His father had lost part of his memory in the war, but as things came back when he returned to the US, he found that Lionel's mother had re-married, etc. and didn't want to bother the family. Lionel ended up taking him to New York with him where he spent the rest of his life with him.

Cool little jazz history story.

Watch this.

2011-06-12T16:52:00.000-07:00

Ellington on EMusic

2011-06-11T08:51:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately I am out of credits for the month, so I haven't actually purchased this two-disc Ellington set yet, but that needn't stop you. 100 tracks for $4.40--including Peckin', which is a favorite around our house--means you should probably snag it before somebody at EMusic notices the typo.

Joshua

2011-06-06T10:17:00.000-07:00

A while back my friend Bob (aka DJ Thor, because he brings the thunder) and I were talking about the tune Joshua fit de Battle of Jericho. Pretty much everyone knows the version by Sidney Bechet--it's been overplayed for years and years. As I understand it, it's true pretty much all over the country, which is impressive as overplay often tends to be a scene-specific phenomenon. Like all perennial favorite tunes, it is overplayed for a reason--it's a really killer track. The tune itself is a big part of it, I think. It's a great, moving spiritual, the lyrics and music in combination are quite dramatic, and it has an almost hypnotic rhythmic patter.

For fun, I thought I'd go through all of the versions of the tune in my collection, and add some commentary of my own. Next time you're thinking of hitting play on the Bechet version, perhaps you could consider one of the others I list here instead. From least to most favorite (for the moment):

Joshua Fit De Battle Of Jericho - Thelma Carpenter - Seems Like Old Times - 2:30 - 155. This version is pretty straight--Thelma's enunciation is impressive but maybe detracts from the performance. Together with the male back-up vocals and instrumentation, the recording sounds a bit too stagey to me. Borderline for playing at a dance.
Joshua Fight The Battle Of Jericho - Gérard Messonnier And The Hot Kings - The Best Of New-Orleans Vol. 1 - 3:15 - 165. This sounds to me like a Bechet rip-off. Or to be charitable, the group is very inspired by Bechet. A little plodding.
Joshua (1940) - Stuff Smith - Time And Again - 3:22 - 200. Typical Stuff Smith nonsense. He diverges from (forgets?) the original tune after about 8 bars, but man does this group swing like the dickens.
Joshua Fit De Battle Of Jericho - Delta Rhythm Boys - The Best Of 1940-50 - 2:32 - 215. Nice male vocal harmony version. It's just the Boys and a piano, so too mellow for dancing.
Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho - Kid Ory - In the Forties - 2:58 - 155. This version has a very folk-gospel feel to the vocals, but the instrumentals are chunky and driving like the rest of Kid Ory. Quite danceable.
Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Mahalia Jackson - I Wonder If I Will Ever Rest - 2:02 - 175. Bob played this version at a dance a while back, which is what got me thinking about the tune. Mahalia has an amazing voice (to make the understatement of the year), and sings this tune like she's leading the charge, or at least Joshua's second-in-command. Accompanied only by piano and snare drum.
Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Josh White - Josh White Vol. 5 (1944) - 2:32 - 105. Solo male vocal, self-accompanied on guitar. Very nice voice, intimate recording. This recording has some less well-known verses in it. It gets faster as it goes on, which adds to the drama.
Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Milt Hinton - Bassically With Blue - 3:19 - 215. This is a super groovy, deconstructed instrumental version, featuring amazing slap-bass from Hinton. He also has a virtuosic recording called simply "Joshua" for solo bass, on the album The Judge at his Best.
Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Sidney Bechet - Sidney Bechet: 1949 - 3:20 - 175. The version that everyone knows. Driving riff, great solos, great group improvisation. The moment that always gets me is right around 1:20, where everybody really starts to wail.
Joshua Fit the Battle - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:57 - 180. Current favorite. The tune is familiar enough to catch people's attention, but it has lots of interesting twists, a wide variety of voices, and a TON of energy (it's a live recording). The clarinet solo is sweet sounding (not quite so grating as Bechet's soprano sax). I love the moment around 1:45 that has a sort of second-line feel, and then around 2:20 when the rhythm section drops out.

And, as an homage to Hey Mr. Jesse, I'll even throw in a BONUS! Check out this video of a bunch of kids singing the tune with multi-part harmonies, on a subway somewhere.

Do you have a favorite version that I haven't listed? Leave a comment.

Clever

2011-06-05T20:36:00.000-07:00

A very clever idea from head Balboa DJ Kyle Smith: he ran an NCAA-style tournament to pick the top song for dancing balboa. Check out his bracket for 64 great tune recommendations, and to see which tracks made the final four.

First Friday at Big City Swing 6/3/2011

2011-06-03T22:09:00.000-07:00

Thanks to friends of ours who stepped up to babysit, my wife and I BOTH got to go out dancing on Friday! At the same time! Crazy. I also spun the early set (at the First Friday dance at Big City Swing). Going in, I knew it was going to be hot & crowded (it is Big Sweaty Swing, after all), and so I was anticipating riding the tempo wave up and down a bit faster than I might otherwise. I've noticed (through very unsystematic observation) that hot nights often tend to be more conducive to both fast & slow tunes, and that's how it seemed to work out. An extremely lively beginner lesson (Bigs, what did you feed those folks?!?) led into a fairly high-energy early part of the evening. When our friends from Madison showed up, that added another burst of energy--it seemed like they were on the floor dancing their faces off non-stop all night.

Here's what I played (plus the BPM sparkline and frequency distribution):

Rosetta - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Nice Work If You Can Get It - 3:08 - 170 (Off their new album)
Love Me or Leave Me - Banu Gibson - Let Yourself Go - 3:07 - 165
Shine On Harvest Moon - Pete Fountain - Dixieland's Kings - 2:50 - 160
In the Mood - Glenn Miller - Best of the Lost Recordings & The Secret Broadcasts - 3:15 - 180 (Pandering to the newbies)
I Sent For You Yesterday And Here You Come Today - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:09 - 160
Rose Room - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:09 - 150
Lumby - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - 1941-Transcription Performance - 2:43 - 180 (for Puppy)
Baby, What's The Matter With You? - Roy Eldridge Quintet - Little Jazz Giant - 3:20 - 140
Spoon Calls Hootie - Jimmy Witherspoon - Jimmy Witherspoon - 2:45 - 140
Dark Eyes - Fats Waller - Happy Birthday Fats Vol. 1 - 3:22 - 160
Back Bay Shuffle - Ella Fitzgerald - Live At The Savoy - 1939-40 - 4:14 - 185 (For Jon)
Six-appeal - Charlie Christian - Six-appeal - 3:20 - 145
Easy Does It - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:57 - 130
Exactly Like You - Carmen McRae - 135 - 2:11 - 135
Sing On (Odessa Sing On) - Gaucho - Pearl - 5:07 - 135
If You'se a Viper - John Sinclair - No Money Down - 3:55 - 150
All Night Long - The Blue Vipers of Brooklyn - Permanent Magic - 2:48 - 170
Sister Kate - Earl Hines & His Orchestra - Roots Of Jazz Scat Vocals - 3:05 - 99 (Trying to impress DJ Thor with this one)
Solid As A Rock - Count Basie - Count Basie Et Son Orchestre 1950-1951 - 3:03 - 135
Joshua Fit the Battle - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:57 - 180 (Holy Moly does this track drive. Seemed like the room felt it too.)
Big Apple Contest - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Swingmatism - 2:57 - 210 (I'd got it into my head that I wanted a Big Apple. We made it through the first half, through London Bridge, before people's memories petered out and it turned into more of a jam.)
Tain't What You Do - Sy Oliver - Sy Oliver et son orchestre: 1949-1952 - 3:07 - 155 (Right into a shim-sham, to incorporate more dancers into the spectacle)
I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150 (and then try to get everyone in the room dancing)
Knock Me a Kiss - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ the Times - 3:25 - 120
St. James Infirmary - Hot Lips Page - CO38291 HARMONY-Ha1069 - 4:34 - 95
Savoy Blues - Kenny Ball And His Jazzmen - Trad Jazz Masters - 3:53 - 135 (For the black bottomers)
Shake That Thing - Willie Mabon - The Comeback - 3:33 - 120
Rock Me All Night Long - The Fabulous Treniers - The Hoss Allen Sessions - 2:41 - 155
Shortin' Bread - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:41 - 190 >(For Dan, who suggested a good note to end on)

Happy Birthday Frankie

2011-05-26T09:24:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to Frankie Manning, who would have been 97 today.

H/t Swifty for the link to this new documentary about Frankie.

fodder for a charleston choreography

2011-05-20T19:55:00.000-07:00

Jennifer writes:

Thank you so much for your great blog! I'm wanting to choreograph a girls solo Charleston routine, but I've kind of hit a wall in terms of finding a song. I like Yam Brown by Bob Hunt's Duke Elington Orchestra, but I'm just not sure. Do you have any recommendations for a 2-3 min. charleston-ish song?

That recording of Yam Brown is really good--great janky feel from the banjo, great Bubber Miley-style trumpet solo at the start. The thing that makes this track really good for a choreography is all of the changes--it shifts mood several times, as if different characters were talking to each other.

A while back, my friend & sometime co-conspirator Jenna choreographed a fantastic routine to a recording of Shake That Thing by Vince Giordano's Nighthawks (check it out). What makes it so engaging is how she used the different voices in the piece as inspiration to create different characters in the dance--she and her troupe even have names for some of the characters. Without that sort of texture in the music, I think it is much harder to hold an audience's attention for 3 minutes. 2 minutes maybe, but 3 no. So Yam Brown is really good in this respect.

You might check out other Duke Ellington tunes like Demi-Tasse and Downtown Uproar, both off The Duke's Men: Small Group Recordings, Vol. 1. You might not be interested, but I would really like to see someone do a routine (partnered or solo) to the version of Caravan on the same album. One of my favorite Ellington compositions.

Here are some other suggestions:

South Rampart Street Parade - Bob Crosby and his Orchestra - South Rampart Street Parade - 3:34 - 225 bpm. It does sound like a street parade--a bit march-like for your taste, maybe--but it has lots of character.
Jitter Bug - Cab Calloway - The Early Years 1930-1934 - 3:12 - 230 bpm. More of a swing feel than charleston, but it's very driving and energetic. Actually, this would probably make a better partnered group routine than girls solo charleston.
Lawd, Lawd - Cecil Scott and his Bright Boys - Harlem Big Bands - 3:13 - 215 bpm. Great rhythm, though certainly a novelty tune.

In terms of contemporary bands, you might check out these:

Six Feet Down - Tuba Skinny - Six Feet Down - 3:25 - 235 bpm
I Can't Dance - The Smoking Time Jazz Club - Quarter Note, Vol. 1 - 4:14 - 210 bpm
Jada - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ DBA - 4:34 - 210 bpm

Picking a song for a choreo is a little bit like picking someone to go with on a two week long camping trip in the back country. The most important thing is definitely finding a tune that you find fun & interesting, because you'll be listening to it a LOT. In fact, you'll probably be sick of it by the time you've got it choreographed and taught to your girls. Don't worry about that though--even if you're sick of it for a while, you'll come back sooner or later and make friends again, and be glad that you took the trip together. Whatever you pick, let me know how it goes, and send video once you've performed it. Good luck!

P.S. If you're having trouble finding a song that's the right length (or just slightly too fast), you can always trim it down. If you're not familiar with sound editing, have a look at Audacity, a software program for editing digital sound. It's free, easy to use, and has lots of fancy features.

First Friday at Big City Swing

2011-05-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned, It's been about two months since I was last out dancing, so as you can imagine, I was pretty excited to get out of the house and DJ at Big City Swing. We had a crowd full of fresh new faces, which explains certain of my track choices below--yes, I played Zoot Suit Riot, and the crowd LOVED it. Early in the evening, I had some problems with JRMC (version 15) crashing on me and ended up having to DJ straight from iTunes, with no preview capability. That made for a little bit of a rough night, and also led to some sound quality issues. Here's my set (plus the usual BPM sparkline and frequency distribution):

My Baby's Sweet - Stompy Jones - The Swing Session - 3:08 - 155
Oo Poppa Do - Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - One Hour Mama - 3:13 - 160
I Cried For You - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:51 - 160
Put A Lid On It - Squirrel Nut Zippers - Hot - 2:39 - 198
Nice Work if You Can Get It - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Nice Work If You Can Get It - 3:19 - 170
Rosetta - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 4:34 - 165
My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
Bennie's Bugle - 4Beat6 - The band that plays the music of Benny Goodman - 3:01 - 195
5 Foot 2 - Davina & The Vagabonds - Songs From Thomas Ave. - 3:42 - 175
Cole Slaw - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 2:44 - 135
Zoot Suit Riot - Cherry Poppin' Daddies - Zoot Suit Riot - 3:53 - 185
Hey! Stop Kissin' My Sister - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:50 - 190
Banana Split for My Baby - Louis Prima - The Wildest! - 2:31 - 137
8, 9 And 10 - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:43 - 175
In the Mood - Glenn Miller - Best of the Lost Recordings & The Secret Broadcasts - 3:15 - 180
Take The "A" Train - Duke Ellington - The Blanton-Webster Band - 2:54 - 168
On Revival Day - Lavern Baker - LaVern Sings Bessie Smith - 3:16 - 143
Honeysuckle Rose - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:59 - 150
Money's Getting Cheaper - Jimmy Witherspoon - Jimmy Witherspoon - 2:59 - 135
At Long Last Love - Carmen McRae - The Great American Songbook - 2:27 - 132
Number Two - The Hot Club Of San Francisco - Yerba Buena Bounce - 3:42 - 180
Deed I Do - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:42 - 170
Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160
Peckin' - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:30 - 180
Blue Drag - The Blue Vipers of Brooklyn - Permanent Magic - 3:40 - 190
When I Get Low I Get High - Chick Webb - Stomping At The Savoy (Disc 2) - 2:29 - 205
Shake That Thing - The Smoking Time Jazz Club - Quarter Note Vol. 1 - 4:25 - 125
Short Dressed Gal - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - New Orleans Preservation, Vol. 1 - 2:38 - 160
Everybody Loves My Baby - Sippie Wallace - Sippie - 3:11 - 145
Flat Foot Floogee - Benny Goodman & His Orchestra - The Fabulous Benny Goodman - 3:22 - 160

Been busy with other things

2011-05-09T20:43:00.000-07:00

I realized that I haven't shared the news with all of my readers (meaning the three of you, besides my wife, who knows the news)...I've been a bit busy lately. Specifically, I've been DJing only for a very specific audience, and dancing a lot with one particular girl.

She's 6 weeks old now and rather fond of Django Reinhardt. Last Friday was the first night I went out dancing (and got to DJ) since she was born. I'll post my set-list from that soon.

Amazon mp3 jazz album deal

2011-05-02T18:24:00.001-07:00

On a tip from Swifty, I learned that Amazon has about 400 jazz albums on sale for $5 a pop during May. Most of it is stuff I'm not terribly interested in, but there's definitely some good music available there. Here are the two that I just bought:

Oscar Peterson with the Stephane Grappelli Quartet, vol. 1. Nearly every time I hear Stephane Grappelli, I 1) curse and 2) then think to myself, "Man, Grappelli really is the most swingin' jazz violinist in history." Of course, then I hear Stuff Smith, curse, and think to myself, "Stuff Smith is undeniably the world's greatest jazz violinist!" And then again I'm kind of partial to Ray Nance too. (He was the quadruple threat: trumpeter, violinist, vocalist, and dancer!)

Jimmy Witherspoon & Jay McShann - 24 tracks for $5.00! That's 21 cents a track. How can you not buy this one?

one cool dude

2011-05-01T12:31:00.000-07:00

Check this video out:

The singer is Matt Lewis, one of my favorite jazz musicians in Chicago. How cool is this guy, that he can just walk up to some street musicians in a foreign country and sound so good with them?!?!

Matt is often featured--as both a trumpeter and vocalist--with the Swing Shift Orchestra, the knock-your-socks-off big band that plays Thursdays at the Green Mill. I've been out on performance gigs with him many times, and the music he makes is always a pleasure to dance to--he's an amazing soloist and quite the showman as well. Oh and he swing dances too.

Here's Matt's website.

Finding & organizing music

2011-04-05T10:32:00.000-07:00

Danny writes:

I have started to DJ a bit outside of my college club and I was wondering if you had any tips. The main things I am wondering are (1) once you have a music base, how do you organize it and (2) what is your main source for acquiring new music/discovering new music. I read what you said about acquiring music, but I'm just wondering if you pick from all of those sites equally (do you use jazz-online.com?) or do you have one you use most?

My response:

My go-to source for finding tracks is definitely EMusic (followed by Amazon if it is not available on EMusic). I use jazz-online every now and again, especially if I am interested in exploring odd-ball tracks by a particular artist. For instance, I grabbed pretty much every Hot Lips Page off that site. He's got a fantastic rendition of St. James Infirmary that you should check out. I also buy a lot of music from current bands, either through BandCamp or directly from the artist webpages. When I'm at a weekend event with one or more good bands, I almost always buy some (or ALL) of their music.

As far as sources for finding out about new artists and music, I read blogs by other DJs and musicians (like Christian Bossert's, Sam Carroll's, Christian Frommelt's, Glenn Crytzer's, and of course Michael Steinman's). I listen to Hey Mr. Jesse and browse EMusic and Youtube. I've also found that reading about jazz musicians is a great way to discover new music--for instance, Count Basie has a fantastic autobiography, and there is a new biography of Louis Armstrong that is worth reading, and has a list of 30 essential Armstrong recordings.

Finally, as far as organization goes. I use iTunes to manage my music and JRiver Media Center to DJ. It's annoying to have to go back and forth, but I just can't work up the willpower to move everything over to JRiver. Regardless, I think that my organization scheme would be applicable to most music management software. I use the following fields: BPM (here's an online metronome), rating, comments, and grouping. I use the comment field to note anything peculiar about a track, such as an 8-minute introduction that can be skipped, or an extended drum solo. When I started out, I used the grouping field to describe the track as "lindy," "balboa," "blues," "charleston," etc. But as I gained experience, I realized that this was an inadequate (or irrelevant maybe) way to describe a tune. These days, I list the style of music (classic big band, small group swing, trad. jazz, modern combo) as well as whether there is a vocal (male and/or female) and any prominent instruments. Not that I list "clarinet" in every single Benny Goodman track, just anything that's not immediately obvious. I then create smart playlists that pull up styles, or I can search for tracks using the keywords that I've entered.

So there's my take. I'd be curious if there are other blogs or things that you find helpful. Leave a note in the comments!

Soul, Gospel, Ears

2011-04-03T18:34:00.000-07:00

Anyone who appreciates soul, or enjoys gospel music, or...pretty much anyone who has ears to hear with...should check out this article on Soul & Gospel from Sir Shambling's Deep Soul Heaven. The authors discuss the mutual influences between the styles of music and give a bunch of examples of gospel groups covering or adapting hit soul songs for sanctified purposes. There's samples (low fidelity, but complete tracks) of some really amazing, intense music. The Mississippi Nightingales' version of Devil Ride is awesome--certainly something you could play at a blues/soul latenight. Plus there's a version of Wade in the Water that you could spring on folks next time you get a request for it. Sit back and ask "What??!? You asked for this one--why aren't you dancing?"

Fat Tuesday set from the Black Rock Tavern

2011-03-31T12:02:00.000-07:00

I was invited to DJ on March 8th, Fat Tuesday, for the swing night at Black Rock Tavern. I'm just now getting around to posting the setlist...

I play a lot of New Orleans-flavored music during most of my sets (which was why I was invited, I think), and that night I went even further. In the spirit of Mardi Gras excess, I played almost exclusively music by New Orleans artists. It wasn't that hard, considering so much music from throughout jazz history came and continues to come from there. Here's my set (along with the usual BPM sparkline and frequency distribution):

Indian Sagua - George Lewis Band - Jimmy Yancey / Jazz At Preservation Hall / Pure Blues - 2:20 - 220
My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 148
Flat Foot Floogie - Louis Armstrong - Swinging With The Mills Brothers - 3:02 - 185
Four Or Five Times - Jimmy Noone - Jimmy Noone - 3:08 - 160
If You're A Viper - Kermit Ruffins - The Big Butter & Egg Man - 3:08 - 170
Going Back to New Orleans - Joe Liggins And The Honeydrippers - Joe Liggins And The Honeydrippers - 2:52 - 175
Last Night On The Backporch - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Ol' New Orleans Home - 4:10 - 150
Fat and Greasy - Fats Waller - Ain't Misbehavin - 3:09 - 160
All Of Me - Sidney Bechet - The Fabulous Sidney Bechet - 4:08 - 110
You Can Have My Husband - Tuba Skinny - Six Feet Down - 3:48 - 140
Just A Gigolo - Duke Heitger - Duke Heitger's "Krazy Kapers" - 3:41 - 85
Ballin' The Jack - Kid Ory - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:15 - 145
Wrap Your Trouble In Dreams - Preservation Hall Hot 4 with Duke Jean - Putumayo Presents: New Orleans - 4:49 - 110
Sugar Blues - Clarence Williams - Boogie Woogie Blues - 3:40 - 135
Drop That Sack - Louis Armstrong - The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings - 2:49 - 180
That's Where the South Begins - Louis Prima - Complete Brunswick & Vocalion Recordings of Louis Prima and Wingy Manone (1924-1937) - 3:25 - 138
Rhythm On The Radio - Louis Prima - Complete Brunswick & Vocalion Recordings of Louis Prima and Wingy Manone (1924-1937) - 2:33 - 210
Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives To Me - Sidney Bechet - The Fabulous Sidney Bechet - 5:43 - 145
Joseph! Joseph! - Meschiya Lake And The Little Big Horns - Lucky Devil - 3:03 - 185
Gimme A Pigfoot - Meschiya Lake And The Little Big Horns - Lucky Devil - 3:17 - 100
Heebie Jeebies - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - The Hurricane Sessions - 1:55 - 180
Short Dressed Gal - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - New Orleans Preservation, Vol. 1 - 2:38 - 160
Bucket Got a Hole In It - Kid Ory - In the Forties - 2:30 - 144
Shake That Thing - The Smoking Time Jazz Club - Quarter Note Vol. 1 - 4:25 - 125
Sunny Side Of The Street (Live) - James Booker - A Taste Of Honey Vol. 1 - 2:43 - 125
Hip Shaken' Mama - Irma Thomas - Soul Queen Of New Orleans - 3:13 - 73
St. James Infirmary - Hot Lips Page - CO38291 HARMONY-Ha1069 - 4:33 - 95
Yes Sir, That's My Baby - Earl Hines - A Monday Date - 3:00 - 140
Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me - Evan Christopher, Spanky - The Sidney Bechet Society Jam Session Concert - 4:05 - 80
Milenberg Joys - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:45 - 190
Joshua Fit the Battle - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:57 - 180
Way Down Yonder In New Orleans - Bill Coleman - Bill Coleman In Paris 1936-1938 - 3:17 - 175
All That Meat And No Potatoes - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 5:16 - 107
Ain't Misbehavin' - Bobby Charles - Walking To New Orleans - 2:10 - 75
Comes Love - Meschiya Lake And The Little Big Horns - Lucky Devil - 3:15 - 170
New Orleans Bump - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:35 - 119
Some of These Days - Billie & DeDe Pierce - Gulf Coast Blues - 2:38 - 150
Moan You Moaners - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 4:46 - 130
New Orleans - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 4:40 - 105
Crazy People - Boswell Sisters - Greatest Hits Of The 1930s - 2:41 - 210
Swing Pan Alley - Duke Heitger - Swing Around The World - 2:27 - 219
Georgia Grind - Louis Armstrong - Satchmo: A Musical Autobiography Disc 1 - 3:19 - 115
Muddy Water - Aretha Franklin - Aretha Sings The Blues - 2:31 - 120
Sure Hope You Mean It - Raphael Saadiq - The Way I See It - 3:40 - 100
5-10-15 Hours - Ruth Brown - Rockin' In Rhythm - Best Of - 3:13 - 120
Heart Of Steel - Galactic - Ya-Ka-May - 3:27 - 90

Fizz setlist 2/14/2011

2011-02-15T07:22:00.000-08:00

I had a very, very subtle theme running through my set last night. See if you can pick it out. It may be so obscure (and such a unique idea!) that nobody will be able to spot it. If you can't figure it out after puzzling for an hour or so, feel free to leave a comment and maybe I'll give you a hint.

The night got off to a slow start, and it was never very crowded. I took the chance to play a wide range of stuff (on the secret, most original theme, you'll recall), some of which was pretty far outside my box--mostly towards the groovy end. Regular readers will see what I mean. (WTDianaKrall James?!?!) Here's the setlist (BPM sparkline and freq. dist.):

Happy Valentine's Day - Outkast - The Love Below - 5:23 - 100 (This was before anyone had arrived, I promise.)
You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me - Jeff Healey - Adventures In Jazzland - 5:03 - 120
I Can't Give You Anything But Love - The Mills Brothers - Chronological Vol. 2 - 2:51 - 145
The Right Somebody To Love - Willie Bryant And His Orchestra - 1935-1936 - 3:14 - 195
Somebody Loves Me - Stuff Smith - Cat On A Hot Fiddle - 3:42 - 150
Hep Cat's Love Song - Cab Calloway - Are You Hep To The Jive? - 3:03 - 160
Easy Does It ['40] - Count Basie - America's #1 Band - 3:29 - 145
I Love The Life I Live - Royal Crown Revue - Mugzy's Move - 3:37 - 115 (This one provoked shock, it was so out of character for me.)
Cement Mixer - Don Byas - Jazz In Paris: Bebop - 2:54 - 135
Baby, What's The Matter With You? - Roy Eldridge Quintet - Little Jazz Giant - 3:20 - 140
It's De-Lovely - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Give Me Your Telephone Number - 4:04 - 150
Love Me or Leave Me - Banu Gibson - Let Yourself Go - 3:07 - 165
My Baby Just Cares For Me - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:48 - 130
Bye Bye Baby, Bye Bye - Barbara Morrison - Johnny Otis Presents Barbara Morrison - 3:16 - 135
Oke-She-Moke-She-Pop - Big Joe Turner - Things That I Used To Do - 4:01 - 125
Don't Get Around Much Any More - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 4:14 - 145
Savoy Blues - The Wolverines Jazz Band Of Bern - Wolverines Of Bern At 35 - 3:56 - 140
Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 5:16 - 150
Fibre de verre - Paris Combo - Attraction - 3:39 - 135
All Of Me - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 4:10 - 165
You Can Have My Husband - Tuba Skinny - Six Feet Down - 3:48 - 140
Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives To Me - Sidney Bechet - The Fabulous Sidney Bechet - 5:43 - 145 (Evidently this is a "James song.")
Put A Lid On It - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ The Times - 3:13 - 170
L.O.V.E. - Bria Skonberg - Fresh - 2:34 - 150
The Way You Look Tonight - Frank Sinatra - The Very Good Years - 3:23 - 130
Alright, Okay, You Win - John Dokes - John Dokes Sings, George Gee Swings - 2:56 - 140
Are You All Reet? - Chu Berry - Classic Chu Berry Columbia And Victor Sessions - 3:09 - 155
Loveless Love - Louis Armstrong - Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Handy - 4:30 - 145
Chant Of The Groove - Fats Waller - Fats Waller 1941 - 3:05 - 185
Sing On (Odessa Sing On) - Gaucho - Pearl - 5:07 - 135 (Featuring Tamar Korn of the Cangelosi Cards on vocals. Bob, here's a link to emusic.)
Getting Myself Ready For You - Janet Klein & Her Parlor Boys - Ready For You - 2:59 - 160
Hit That Jive Jack - The Four Charms - Flatland Boogie - 3:13 - 195
When You're Smiling - The Blue Vipers of Brooklyn - Forty Days and Forty Nights - 3:51 - 215
Let's Fall In Love - Diana Krall - When I Look In Your Eyes - 4:19 - 125

Setlist from First Friday (a bit late)

2011-02-15T07:10:00.000-08:00

A bit late in getting this set posted (sorry to any of you who were obsessively clicking "refresh" and wondering when it would appear). It was a fun night, on the relaxing side of things because there was only one floor going. I had the early set, directly after teaching an intro lesson. Since most of the crowd for the first hour had been there for the lesson--brand-spankin'-new dancers--I played quite a few "cliche" tunes. They seemed to go over well. People applauded after "In the Mood." Here's my set (bpm sparkline and freq. dist.):

Jump Jive An' Wail - The Brian Setzer Orchestra - The Dirty Boogie - 2:53 - 200
Oo Poppa Do - Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - One Hour Mama - 3:13 - 160
Who Ya Hunchin'? - Chick Webb - Jazz After Hours - 2:55 - 175
Hello, Dolly! - Louis Armstrong - Ken Burns Jazz - 2:24 - 155
I'm Coming Virginia - Benny Goodman - The Yale University Archives, Volume 3 - 2:09 - 170
A Viper's Moan - Willie Bryant And His Orchestra - 1935-1936 - 3:25 - 150
My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150
Let's Misbehave - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - You Do Something To Me - 2:52 - 188
In the Mood - Glenn Miller - Best of the Lost Recordings & The Secret Broadcasts - 3:15 - 180
Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160
All Right, Okay, You Win - Joe Williams - The Definitive Joe Williams - 3:05 - 132
Old Mother Hubbard - Ella Fitzgerald - Swingin' Ella - 2:44 - 145
Beaver Junction - Count Basie - America's #1 Band - 2:57 - 158
The Spinach Song - Julia Lee & Her Boy Friends - Kansas City's First Lady Of The Blues - 2:59 - 160
Behave Yourself - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - Small Group Recordings Vol. 3 - 3:00 - 135
Stuffy - Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five - Jammin' the Blues - 3:46 - 150
I've Got A Feeling I'm Falling - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 3:13 - 160
Gang Busters - Cats & The Fiddle - We Cats Will Swing For You - 3:06 - 185
Somebody Loves Me - Stuff Smith - Cat On A Hot Fiddle - 3:42 - 150
Shotgun Boogie - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:55 - 165
My Bucket's Got A Hole In It - Papa Bues Viking Jazzband - Live In Copenhagen - 3:36 - 135
San Francisco Bay Blues - Lu Watters' Yerba Buena Jazz Band - Blues Over Bodega - 3:41 - 160
Shake That Thing - The Smoking Time Jazz Club - Quarter Note Vol. 1 - 4:25 - 125
Joshua Fit the Battle - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:57 - 180

Using JRiver as a DJ platform

2011-02-14T07:50:00.000-08:00

For most of my DJ gigs, I use the program JRiver Media Center. I've been fairly happy with it, but there's definitely an initial investment in getting it set up how you like it. I recently upgraded to version 15, and had to fiddle for a quite a while with all the settings. Rather than allowing you to suffer through the same headache, I thought I'd record my process so you can just follow along. In what follows, I make a couple of assumptions about your equipment and how you're going to use MC. Specifically:

Since I manage my library using iTunes (I know, I know, not hip...), the steps below assume that you do the same.
I assume that you'll want to take advantage of MC's zones feature, so that you can preview in your headphones while simultaneously sending different audio to an external sound card. To do this, you'll obviously need to have an external card. Here's a cheap one; I'll leave it to you to research fancier gadgets if you are so inclined.

My friends Doug and Thea, both of whom are also MC jockies, were kind enough to look over this post and share some tips of their own. Thanks to them. Now without further ado...

Pusto's handy guide
to setting up JRiver Media Center (MC) for Swing DJing

Install the program. (You can try it free for 30 days.)
In order to get all your files from iTunes into MediaCenter's database, you'll need to use MC's import tool. Go to Tools -> Import... and point it towards the folder(s) where your music lives. If you have thousands of songs, the import process will take a LONG time. In the mean time, you can continue with the steps below.
In order to get MC to play Apple's file formats (.aac and .m4a), you'll need to get the right audio codec. I recommend installing the Combined Community Codec Pack. Be sure to read the instructions first. Also, the JRiver wiki states that you should uncheck the option to install the FLV splitter.
In MC, go to Tools -> Options -> File types. Select "AAC audio." In the panel below, set the playback method to "JRiver audio engine (using DirectShow filter)."
Go to Tools -> Options -> Audio. Under "Track Change," set "switch tracks" to your prefered method. I use "Standard (gapped) - 2 seconds." (Unlike nightclub DJs, most swing DJs do not use crossfades between tracks.)
Go to Tools -> Options -> General. Under "Behavior," set "Double Click" to "Add to Playing Now (to end)"; set "Play button," to "Play Playing Now"; and uncheck "Start playing when files added to playing now."
Go to Player -> Zones -> Add zone.
Close MC, plug in your external sound card, reopen MC. Go to Player -> Zones -> Zone 2, then select Player -> playback options -> Audio. Under "Audio Options," choose "Output mode settings." Change the device to your external sound card.
In the upper left-hand corner of MC, click on the volume button. Be sure "Internal volume" is checked.
Go to Player -> Zones -> Zone 1 (or hit control-T), then select Player -> playback options -> Audio. Under "Audio Options," choose "Output mode settings." Change the device to your computer's internal audio device.
In the upper left-hand corner of MC, click on the volume button. Be sure "Internal volume" is checked (for zone 1). You now have two independent zones, each of which can play a different playlist.
Configure the way that you view files and your "Playing now" playlist. Go to View -> Split view and choose "Show 2 views." Depending on your laptop, you may want to choose the split views to be in rows or columns. (I use rows, since I don't have a lot of screen real estate on my netbook.)
Configure the track info display. Right-click on the display (top-center) and choose "Customize display." Select the fields you'd like displayed, for instance:
Title: [Name] - [Artist] - [Album]
Status: [Elapsed Time] // [Total Time] - [BPM] BPM [PN Position] of [PN Tracks] - [Zone]
If you like, import your playlists from iTunes. I think you have to export them one at a time, but you can import them into MC all at once.
Set some column presets. I use two: one for previewing while I'm spinning, the other for exporting my setlists (so that I can post them here). To set up a column preset, select a playlist. Right-click on one of the column headings (such as "Artist" or "Album"). Check the columns that you want to be visible, uncheck the ones you don't. Arrange the columns in the order you like. When you've got it how you like it, right-click on a column heading again. Go to Preset -> Save and give it a name.
If you are interested in exporting your playlists to a blog and creating nerdy little charts, see this post for my (admittedly kludgy) method.

Please leave a comment and let me know how this worked for you!

Fizz setlist 1/3/2011

2011-01-04T08:03:00.000-08:00

One piece of advice I give to newbie DJs is that they should be patient when introducing new music, because dancers (at least at local dances) are more conservative than one would expect when it comes to familiar music. They seem to like hearing a lot of familiar tunes, much moreso than your average DJ. So for the first Fizz of the new year, I knew I would be breaking my own rule when I resolved to play nothing but music I'd never before played at Fizz.

Going in, I was aware that the challenge would be not allowing myself to rely on any old standbys or guaranteed floor-fillers. I tried to mitigate the unfamiliarity by finding some songs that were different renditions of familiar tunes, and some songs that were quite familiar but that I had never played (e.g. Indigo Swing). Here are the results, plus the usual BPM sparkline and frequency distribution:

Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives to Me - New Orleans Moonshiners - New Orleans Moonshiners - 5:21 - 215
Clementine - Marty Grosz And His Hot Combination - Hooray For Bix! - 4:03 - 164
You Can Have My Husband - Tuba Skinny - Six Feet Down - 3:48 - 140
Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho - Kid Ory - In the Forties - 2:58 - 155 (This tune has a vocal verse in it, making it sound much more like the old spiritual that it is than the more common Sidney Bechet version. I followed it up with another vocal with a spiritual feel.)
Something Got A Hold On Me - Carrie Smith - Gospel time - 3:09 - 137
I Want A Big Butter and Egg Man - Louis Armstrong - Satchmo Plays King Oliver - 3:41 - 155
Keep The Rhythm Going - Mills Blue Rhythm Band - Mills Blue Rhythm Band: 1933-1936 - 2:51 - 170
Walkin' And Swingin - Andy Kirk & His Clouds of Joy - Kansas City: Swing, Blues, Jive & Boogie - 2:56 - 180 (This was a dud.)
Let This Be A Warning To You, Baby - Bunny Berigan - Gangbusters - 3:06 - 135
Fascinating Rhythm - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman et son orchestre: 1945 Vol.2 - 3:00 - 140 (This tune is really unusual because the melody consists of a 7-count phrase, repeated twice. The first time through it starts on 1, the second time it starts on 8. Not a tune for folks who are still working on finding the top of a phrase.)
Let Me Off Uptown - Delta Rhythm Boys - The Best Of 1940-50 - 2:54 - 160 (This was an even bigger dud. Time to switch gears...)
(Today's The Day) I'm Glad I'm Not Dead - Indigo Swing - All Aboard! - 4:03 - 120 (Memories of 2000 and my college swing club.)
One Monkey Don't Stop No Show - Big Maybelle - The Okeh Rhythm & Blues Story 1949-1957 - 2:50 - 125
Honeysuckle Rose - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 3:59 - 150
I Cried For You - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:51 - 160
Way Down Yonder In New Orleans - Bill Coleman - Bill Coleman In Paris 1936-1938 - 3:17 - 175
Alright, Okay, You Win - John Dokes With The George Gee Swing Orchestra - John Dokes Sings, George Gee Swings - 2:56 - 140 (New version of a very familiar tune. The next two, I tried to stick to the hi-fi brassy big band sound.)
But She's My Buddy's Chick - Sy Oliver - Sy Oliver et son orchestre: 1949-1952 - 2:48 - 130
Two for the Blues - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:18 - 110
It's You're Last Chance To Dance - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - The Hurricane Sessions - 4:30 - 180
Sugar Foot Stomp - Randy Sandke - We Love You, Louis! - 3:04 - 194
Last Night On The Backporch - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Ol' New Orleans Home - 4:10 - 150
Savoy Blues - The Wolverines Jazz Band Of Bern - Wolverines Of Bern At 35 - 3:56 - 140 (Another alternate version of a familiar tune.)
Trouble In Mind - Davina & The Vagabonds - Songs From Thomas Ave. - 4:04 - 113 (This went over really well. Go Davina.)
It Takes Two To Tango - Lester Young - Lester Young : 1951-1952 - 3:14 - 100 (The one tune that I'd played before at Fizz.)
Dolemite - Erskine Hawkins - Bluebird-10812A - 3:33 - 130
Shout'Em, Aunt Tillie - Duke Ellington - That Lindy Hop - 3:03 - 150
A-Well-A-Take-Um-A-Joe - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 3:05 - 175
Roll 'Em - Andy Kirk & His Clouds of Joy - 22 Original Big Band Recordings - 2:55 - 210
Come And Get It - Fats Waller - Fats Waller 1941 - 2:42 - 190 (I should have skipped this.)
Holiday In Harlem - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Fitzgerald: 1937-1938 - 3:11 - 165
Milkman's Matinee - Mora's Modern Swingtet - 20th Century Closet - 3:40 - 130
A Woman's Intuition - Stompy Jones - Stompy Jones - 3:17 - 140 (By request.)
Heebie Jeebies - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - The Hurricane Sessions - 1:55 - 180 (This is an unusual track because it is solo banjo and vocal. Probably most folks were waiting for the band to kick in the whole time.)
When I Get Low - Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia - 5:27 - 105 (I thought this would work better than it did. I think my lead-in didn't set things up right.)
Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175 (Birthday jam. Happy Birthday Audra!)

Louis Armstrong vs. Joe Oliver

2010-12-30T07:31:00.000-08:00

I just finished reading Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong by Terry Teachout. Thought I'd share one moment that struck me. It's about Armstrong and his mentor Joe "King" Oliver, who at the time were playing at clubs across the street from each other in Chicago.

One night [in 1926], according to cornetist Wild Bill Davison, the two men dueled on the bandstand of the Sunset Cafe, playing "125 choruses of Tiger Rag--exchanging choruses. People went insane--they threw their clothes on the floor--it was the most exciting thing I ever heard in my life"....Eddie Condon later wrote that there was so much hot music to be heard in that part of town that a passerby standing on the corner of 35th and Calumet "could hold an instrument in the middle of the street and the air would play it."

Adding this to the itinerary for our next time-traveling vacation. Incidentally, 35th and Calumet is in the neighborhood called Bronzeville. That location now hosts a Meyer's Ace Hardware (where the Sunset Cafe used to stand) and a Popeye's Fried Chicken:

View Larger Map

Gordon Webster's latest: A great stocking stuffer for the DJ in your life

2010-12-17T17:52:00.000-08:00

I'm waiting eagerly for Gordon Webster's latest album to arrive in my mailbox, but can't wait that long to tell y'all to get one too. I got to preview two tracks off the album, and feel confident saying--on the basis of those two by themselves--that you really really need to get a copy of the album for yourself. Or several.

One of the tracks I got a listen to is called Milenburg Joys. It starts out with the trumpet, trombone, and clarinet improvising without any rhythm section, which really grabs your ear. Then the band kicks in and makes you want to explode, it swings so nice. It's about 185 bpm, energetic without being loud or heavy, and has an appealing vocal and killer solos. Basically, the most perfect tune you could imagine for a great social dance. I played it at Fizz this week but didn't really get to observe how it went over on the crowd, because I couldn't resist dancing to it myself. So judging solely by how much fun I had dancing (thanks Kat!), this tune is dynamite.

The other tune is a rendition of Bei Mir Bist Du Shane, and is also sweet for social dancing. You can download it for free from Gordon's website, where you can also stream previews of all the tracks on the album. But really, don't bother with all that. Just order the album now.

You could order it as a stocking stuffer for your favorite DJ. I bet they'd like that. Actually, you could also order it as a gift for a DJ that you don't even like, because then they'd at least have 45 minutes of good, very social-danceable music in their collection. Don't order it for me though because I already have a copy coming.

I'll report in again once I've had the chance to listen to it from start to finish.

Fizz setlist 12/13/2010

2010-12-14T07:35:00.000-08:00

It was moderately crowded at Fizz last night--a decent turnout, considering the weather. I had a lot of music picked out that I was excited to play, and so was feeling pretty impatient because nobody showed up 'til about 9:30. Even then, there were only a few folks in the room, so I kept the music on the relaxed side. (I tend to dislike it when brash, punchy big band music gets played to an almost empty room--it just doesn't fit the vibe.)

Here's the BPM sparkline, which looks funny due to the fast stuff I played right at the start of the night, to an empty room. Same with the frequency distribution, from which you may note that I kept things quicker than usual. Here's what I played:

Swing, Brother, Swing - Willie "The Lion" Smith & His Cubs - Willie "The Lion" Smith And His Cubs - 2:51 - 230
Yam Brown - Bob Hunt's Duke Ellington Orchestra - What A Life! - 2:43 - 225
Number Two (none) - The Hot Club Of San Francisco - Yerba Buena Bounce - 3:42 - 180
Yankee Doodle Never Went to Town - Chu Berry - Classic Chu Berry Columbia and Victor Sessions - 2:46 - 160 (A few people were just coming in at this point.)
Comes Love - Duke Heitger - Duke Heitger's "Krazy Kapers" - 4:34 - 150
Swinga-Dilla Street - Echoes of Swing - Harlem Reflections - 4:24 - 155
That's What I Like - Julia Lee & Her Boy Friends - Kansas City's First Lady Of The Blues - 2:47 - 150 (There was a group showing each other 6-count moves in the corner, so I figured they would like some boogie.)
Choo Choo Ch' Boogie - Louis Jordan & His Tympani Five - Jukebox Hits Volume 1 1942-1947 - 2:45 - 165
On The Sunny Side of the Street - Benny Goodman - The Yale University Archives, Volume 3 - 3:11 - 135
All Of Me - Gordon Webster - Happy When I'm With You - 4:07 - 150
Baby, What's The Matter With You? - Roy Eldridge Quintet - Little Jazz Giant - 3:20 - 140
Stuffy - Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five - Jammin' the Blues - 3:46 - 150
Love Me or Leave Me - Banu Gibson - Let Yourself Go - 3:07 - 165 (This one was for Mary, and served as a transition from small-combo jazz to jankier stuff.)
8, 9 And 10 - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:43 - 175
When You Wore a Tulip - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Jazz Roots Elixir - 3:30 - 160
I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150 (And this one was for Jason.)
Milenberg Joys - Gordon Webster - Live in Philadelphia - 3:45 - 185 (Holy House-rocking, Batman! This track is AMAZING. More on Gordon Webster soon. I was dancing during this song, and so didn't have time to adjust course: I should have pushed the tempo & energy higher on the next song, rather than let it fall.)
Billie's Blues - Tuba Skinny - Tubaskinny - 3:19 - 135 (Now transitioning from jank to big band.)
The Back Room Romp - Duke Ellington - The Duke's Men: The Small Groups, Vol. 1 - 2:49 - 150
Vine Street Rumble - Ernie Krivda - The Band That Swings - 3:10 - 160
King Porter Stomp - Kansas City All-Stars - KC After Dark - 4:38 - 170
Ain't Misbehavin' - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 4:01 - 170 (This track is high-energy. I wanted to go up one more notch, but didn't want to push it immediately. Instead, I gave it a breather with the next song, which has a more relaxed feel even though it's not that much slower...)
I Sent For You Yesterday And Here You Come Today - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:09 - 160 (..then after that I kicked it up. This illustrates a pet theory of mine about how to climb tempos. I feel like it works, though I only have impressionistic evidence.)
Undecided - Ella Fitzgerald - Live At The Savoy - 1939-40 - 3:06 - 210
Shiny Stockings - Count Basie - April In Paris - 5:17 - 120
They Raided The Joint - Roy Eldridge Sextet - Little Jazz Giant - 3:18 - 145
Accentuate The Positive - Bill Henderson - Complete VeeJay Recordings - Vol. 2 - 3:19 - 120 (Not Lou Rawls.)
St. Louis Blues - Benny Goodman - Very Best of Benny Goodman - 3:24 - 135
Ya Gotta See Baby Tonight - Louis Prima - Louis Prima et son orchestre : 1945 - 2:24 - 145
Blue Drag - Earl Hines - Swingin' Down - 2:59 - 140
Dark Eyes - Fats Waller - Happy Birthday Fats Vol. 1 - 3:22 - 160 (Will I ever tire of this tune? I think not. But to brighten the mood after the last two--both of which were "dark" sounding--how about a shim-sham?)
Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160
Dipsy Doodle - Larry Clinton & His Orchestra - G.I. Jukebox, Original Hits from the Swing Era, 1938-1946 - 3:03 - 175 (After Dipsey Doodle, we had a "holiday burlesque" performance from Rachel & John. They called it "How Santa Got his Groove Back." Not to spoil the secret, but it ends on a rather Jewish note. Had I been quicker-witted, I would have followed up immediately with #36.)
Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175
Madame Dynamite - Eddie Condon - Let's Swing It - 2:55 - 185
Bei Mir Bist Du Schon - Slim Gaillard - Ice Cream on Toast - 2:10 - 180
Don’t Be That Way - Chick Webb - Stomping At The Savoy - 2:35 - 205

The Big Apple

2010-12-05T14:49:00.000-08:00

By request,below are my notes describing the moves in Frankie Manning's Big Apple choreography. There are many good YouTube videos that break this choreography down too:

And here are two film clips of Whitey's Lindyhopper's dancing it:

One final note, there are several songs that are commonly used for this choreography. It used to be that everyone danced it whenever Lionel Hampton's Flying Home came on. Lately, everyone seems to be using Solomon Douglas's re-creation of the music to The Big Apple Contest from Keep Punchin'. And with some slight modifications, it also fits well to Count Basie's Jumpin' At The Woodside. (These notes fit with Flying Home, which has an extra eight-count between phrases 12 and 13. If you dance it to Keep Punchin', you end up doing the skates at the top of phrase 13, and everything after that gets shifted slightly.)

Phrase 1
* jump around (3 eight-counts)
* half-break, cross, & turn

Phrase 2
* pulls
* spank & fall back
* rocks
* drunken sailor

Phrase 3
* boogie backs
* apple jacks
* apple jacks (facing out from circle)
* gaze afar

Phrase 4
* suzie-q
* suzie-q (tap 7, fall 8)
* fall-off-the-log to rusty-dusty (towards the middle, then back out)
* rusty-dusty (to your partner, then back out, triple-step on 7&8)

Phrase 5
* spank the baby (counter-clockwise around the circle, 3 eight-counts)
* spank the baby (kick-step on 7-8, turn in to face the center of the circle)

Phrase 6
* jump charleston
* jump charleston
* jump charleston (double-pump on 5, 7, step 8)
* rock-step, kick-step, fishtail, fishtail

Phrase 7
* fishtail, fishtail, boogie back, boogie back
* boogie forward, boogie forward, breeze in the knees
* fishtail, boogie back (away), boogie back (to your "fake partner"), boogie back (away)
* ride the pony (with your "real partner")

Phrase 8
* step 1, step-slap 3 4, step-slap 5 6, step-fall 7 8
* fall off the log to lock arms with your partner
* truck clockwise
* turn and truck counter-clockwise

Phrases 9 & 10
London Bridge: truck under london bridge; once you're under, add to the bridge; use running-in-place footwork

Phrase 11
* Claps & finger-wag
* Claps & finger-wag
* Claps & finger-wag
* Leads: step-scoot left 1 2, step-scoot right 3 4, cross left behind right on 5, unwind (counterclockwise) on 7
Follows: step-scoot left 1 2, step-scoot right 3 4, cross 5, uncross 7

Phrase 12
* Siska-boom-ba, siska-boom-ba
* Rock step (right-left) 1 2, cross right over left 3, unwind (counterclockwise) on 5, scoot back 7, step 8
* Kick-step 1 2, banana-peel kicks 3 4 5 6, cross right over left 7, scoot back 8
* Step 1, kick 2, rock-step (left-right) 3 4, cross left over right 5, turn (clockwise) 7

Extra 8-count
* Skates left 1 2 3 4, sailor right 5 6 7, stomp-off 8

Phrase 13
* Step backwards right left right 1 2 3, fall-off-the 4 5 6 (turning clockwise), stomp-off &7
* Fall-off-the-log 8 1 2 3, rock back 5, rock forward 7
* Rocks
* Boogie backs with rotation

Phrase 14
* Shortie George 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
* Shortie George 1 3 5 6 7
* Shortie George 1 3 5 6, kick-step (left) 7 8
* Charleston (starting with kick forward on right)

Phrase 15
* Around-the-world charleston
* rock-step (left-right) 1 2, step 3, slap 4, triple-step slap on & 6 7 8,
* triple-step slap & 2 3 4, triple-step slap & 6 7 8
* Cross left over right (bending down low) 1, uncross right 3, spring up 4

Phrase 16
* suzie-q's to the left
* modified jump charleston - leads travel right, pass behind follows
* suzie-q's to the left
* modified jump charleston - follows travel right, pass behind leads

Phrase 17
* Peck
* Jump around
* Jump around
* half-break, cross, & turn

Phrase 18
Break-a-leg and exit

Fat Babies

2010-11-24T08:03:00.000-08:00

I'm at a bit of a loss for words, other than cusses. Last night was the best night of music I've heard in months...maybe even in a year. I went to the Black Rock Tavern, not far from my house, where Nicolle Wood (of the Galaxie) was hosting a dance with a live band called the Fat Babies. The line-up was as follows:

Andy Schumm--cornet

John Otto--clarinet

Dave Bock--trombone

Joel Paterson--guitar

Beau Sample--bass

Alex Hall--drums

They were brilliant. Masterful, energetic, and joyous. They played a lot of familiar trad. jazz tunes, in a style that was pitch-perfect for dancing. And the crowd there was appreciative, hooting and hollering after solos, applauding and screaming until they gave an encore, which makes it even more fun. Several times during the night folks stopped dancing during a song just to listen and clap along--I know that's become common in many places but it is a rare happening in Chicago.

There was one particular moment in the middle of the second set. In the middle of the tune, the rhythm section dropped out entirely, leaving just the horns and clarinet to play a sort of instrumental "a capella." I've heard bands do this before, though I'm not sure what it's called. It was such a striking change that I just stopped dancing to listen, along with several other couples around me. This sort of collective improvisation is really striking for its intricacy, the way they keeps the rhythm going just by implication, the tension that builds because you worry that they're going to end the number by trailing out. Then of course when the full band came back in it bowls you over like your big brother in a backyard wrestle-fest: ferocious but in a loving way. Knocked-off socks were strewn everywhere after that one.

What a night. I can't wait to hear more from this group.

CodeBLUE contest music

2010-11-13T12:34:00.000-08:00

Last night I went dancing at CodeBLUE, the newest venue addition to the Chicago dance scene. The organizers had invited me and Jenna to judge the low-key strictly lindy contest that evening (they've been running a series of different contests at the dances), and we were happy to oblige. We've got some fairly developed opinions about contests and contest music--not just from a competitors point of view but also in terms of how contests affect an event. We tried our best to keep to our guns: choose music that will make the competitors look good, have somebody to count them in for spotlights, make the whole thing as short & snappy as possible.

Here's a run-down of the music and a play-by-play of the contest:

Look-a-There - Slim Gaillard - The Very Best Of - 2:18 - 180. After clearing a space and telling the competitors how the contest was going to work, we introduced all 8 couples and did a short all-skate warm-up. Then line back up and get ready for a spotlight round.
Moppin' & Boppin' - Fats Waller - 100 Swing & Big Band Classics - 4:27 - 170. The spotlights were a standard jam format, with each competitor getting eight 8-counts. Since there were 8 competitors, that meant the song had to be 4 choruses long to squeeze everyone in. I knew Moppin' & Boppin' was long enough, and had a good energy, but the drum solo introduction slipped my mind. It's ten 8-counts long (ugh!), so we just let it run before the first spotlight. Unfortunately that meant leaving Phil & Jame in the middle of the floor waiting to start--sorry you two!
Lindyhopper's Delight - Chick Webb - Strictly Jive - 2:45 - 195. We did another round of spotlights with this song. I picked this one because it's an old standby--probably all of the competitors have heard it a zillion times before, so they'd be very comfortable with it--but I bet many people in the audience were not very familiar with it.
Forty Days & Forty Nights - The Blue Vipers of Brooklyn - Forty Days & Forty Nights - 2:52 - 215. We had planned to just do a very short all-skate at the end, but on the spur of the moment, we decided to do make it a tap-out. All eight couples started dancing, then we tapped them out one at a time until there were only two couples left. The audience cheered for their favorites between these two, and then we tapped out one of them to leave a winner.

The top three couples were:

3rd - Phil & Jame
2nd - Blake & Kristine
1st - John & Kathryn

Congratulations to all eight couples who competed--you all looked great and pulled out some great dancing.

On the whole I think things went down pretty well, though the whole thing could have been slightly shorter, and there was the one hiccup with the music I picked. Start to finish, I think the contest took about 15 minutes. With a little more forethought/coordination, we might have been able to get it down to 10 or 12 minutes. I'm not sure how we could have made it shorter than that, since I wouldn't have wanted to shorten it to one spotlight a piece, and we didn't really have enough couples to do a prelim round. Hmmm....

Fizz 11/08/2010

2010-11-08T21:52:00.000-08:00

With the crowd last night at Fizz, a monkey with an iPhone probably could have kept the floor full. People seemed very eager to move. On nights like this, it can be hard to tell whether you're actually doing an amazing job and are the Best DJ Evar or are just a lame DJ whose music everyone puts up with because they have no choice. On the basis of very ephemeral impressions, I'm gonna go ahead and categorize last night in the former category. I felt like I flowed in and out of different feels well, I covered a variety of styles, and rode the wave over a big tempo range, and people came up to the booth to ask about the tunes I was playing. Pusto +1.

Here's what I played, along with the BPM sparkline and frequency distribution:

Slap That Bass - Adrian Rollini - 1937-1938 - 2:48 - 195
Blues my naughty sweetie gives to me - Gene Krupa - E0VB5554 RCA-20-4026 - 2:21 - 250
Fuzzy Wuzzy - Three Peppers - 64820 DECCA-2239A - 2:45 - 205 (The room was literally empty for the first few tracks, so I just played stuff I'd like to hear but knew I'd never work in to my set.)
Gettin' Some Fun Out Of Life - New Orleans Jazz Vipers - Hope You're Comin' Back - 5:30 - 120 (For Dan.)
I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150 (Chris Aubin and I have been going crazy on the New Orleans music lately, but last night I'd decided that I wanted to try to avoid going down that route for more than a tune or two. My hunch was bolstered because this tune didn't get a great response. Despite the title, the next tune has more of a groovy-smooth feel than janky NOLA sound.)
Good Morning New Orleans - Kermit Ruffins - Livin' A Tremé Life - 3:34 - 120
Cool Kind Of Poppa - Mildred Anderson - Person To Person - 2:57 - 140 (Stuck with the groovy feel, now moving into more classic big band.)
Empty Glass - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:07 - 140
No Regrets - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 2:52 - 130
He Ain't Got Rhythm - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 2:49 - 155
Christopher Columbus - Duke Ellington - Recollections Of The Big Band Era - 3:03 - 165
South - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:17 - 182
Comes Love - Duke Heitger - Duke Heitger's "Krazy Kapers" - 4:34 - 150
Baby Won't You Please Come Home? - Crytzer's Blue Rhythm Band - Chasin' the Blues - 3:38 - 125
St. Louis Blues - Benny Goodman - Don't Be That Way - 3:49 - 130
All Right, Okay, You Win - Count Basie - Count Basie at Newport - 2:45 - 145
Bizet Has His Day - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:43 - 155
Honeysuckle Rose - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 2:56 - 170
Harlem Shout - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:02 - 195
Sweet Georgia Brown - Django Reinhardt - Swing From Paris - 3:07 - 210
Big Fat Mama - Four Vagabonds - Four Vagabonds Vol. 1 (1941-1951) - 2:05 - 150
I Don't Care Who Knows - Catherine Russell - Sentimental Streak - 3:18 - 125 (Vikram this was the song you asked about. Moving into a bit of a rock&roll feel for the next three songs.)
Move Me Baby - Jimmy Witherspoon & The Lamplighters - Retro High School Party - 2:33 - 135
Buzz Buzz Buzz - The Mighty Blue Kings - Meet Me In Uptown - 3:07 - 140
Billie's Blues - Janiva Magness - My Bad Luck Soul - 3:14 - 110
Stuffy - Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five - Jammin' the Blues - 3:46 - 150
My Blue Heaven - Delta Rhythm Boys - The Best Of 1940-50 - 2:32 - 165
Jump Session - Slim Gaillard - 1938-1939 - 2:35 - 160
Madame Dynamite - Eddie Condon - Let's Swing It - 2:55 - 185
The Jive is Jumpin' - The Four Clefs - BLUEBIRD 8297 - 2:26 - 200
Cement Mixer - Don Byas - Jazz In Paris: Bebop - 2:54 - 135
I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - New Orleans Preservation, Vol. 1 - 4:26 - 125
I Ain't Gonna Play No Second Fiddle - Lavern Baker - LaVern Sings Bessie Smith - 4:05 - 90
Sugar Blues - Clarence Williams - Boogie Woogie Blues - 3:40 - 135 (I hadn't pulled this track out in ages--it seemed to get a good response.)

Recent gigs

2010-11-07T14:59:00.000-08:00

My friend Jenna and I have been spending some long hours on the road lately (listening to music ranging from this to this), since we've been teaching lindy hop all over the Midwest. I decided to map out all the places I've taught workshops (with either Jenna or Mary), hoping that if I connected the dots it would make a funny picture or something. No such luck, it's just a triangle:

View Midwestern lindy hop tours in a larger map

First Friday at Big City Swing 11/5/2010

2010-11-06T09:50:00.000-07:00

Last night was pretty crazy. There were about 40 very enthusiastic people in the intro lesson, and by the time I got there, as the lesson was rapping up, it was already pretty steamy in the studio. More people showed up just as the dance began, so fortunately we had both floors open for dancing (otherwise there wouldn't have been room to even sway back and forth). I had the first set of the night, and knew that I needed to cater to all the folks that were there for the first time. Nearly all of the most seasoned dancers (including our friends in from Madison, WI) migrated upstairs immediately in search of room to swing out, so I had a room full of folks who were rocking their 6-count and charleston. Consequently, I kept the tempos between about 140 and 180--comfortable for 6-count--while trying to push it a bit higher. The more uptempo numbers didn't seem to take though.

I'd also decided to throw my high-falutin' taste out the window and play music that the newest dancers would connect with and have fun to. That's why I kicked it off with BBVD, threw in In the Mood, and gave a nod to Sinatra. Here's what I played, plus the usual BPM sparkline and frequency distribution:

How Big Can You Get? - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - How Big Can You Get?: The Music of Cab Calloway - 4:05 - 160
Baby Drives Me Wild - The Mighty Blue Kings - Meet Me In Uptown - 2:18 - 170
Choo Choo Ch' Boogie - Louis Jordan & His Tympani Five - Jukebox Hits Volume 1 1942-1947 - 2:45 - 165 (I was trying to max out on "catchy" and "familiar" with these.)
Apollo Jump - Lucky Millinder - Classic Big Band Jazz - 3:26 - 145
Are You All Reet? - Chu Berry - Classic Chu Berry Columbia And Victor Sessions - 3:09 - 155
In the Mood - Glenn Miller - Best of the Lost Recordings & The Secret Broadcasts - 3:15 - 180 (My wife reported overhearing someone exclaim "I love this one!" as this tune started.)
Sent For You Yesterday And Here You Come Today - Benny Goodman - B.G. In Hi-Fi - 3:05 - 155
The One I Love Belongs To Somebody Else - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - You Do Something To Me - 3:45 - 160
Solid As A Rock - Count Basie - Count Basie Et Son Orchestre 1950-1951 - 3:03 - 135
All Of Me - Della Reese - Cocktail Classics - 2:01 - 160
Yes Indeed - Slam Stewart - Slamboree - 3:35 - 150
Shotgun Boogie - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:55 - 165 (This track may be the most perfect East Coast swing tune ever. DJ's best friend.)
Sugar - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:57 - 182
Put A Lid On It - Squirrel Nut Zippers - Hot - 2:39 - 198
Miss Brown To You - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:15 - 145
Did You Mean It? - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 2:22 - 150
I Get A Kick Out Of You - Frank Sinatra - The Very Good Years - 3:14 - 175
All Right, Okay, You Win - Count Basie - Count Basie at Newport - 2:45 - 145
Rose Room - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:09 - 153 (I got a surprisingly good reaction to this track--I always thought of Rose Room as an anonymous, relaxed tune, but evidently folks were listening really closely and liked what they heard.)
Yacht Club Swing - Echoes of Swing - Harlem Joys - 3:19 - 160
Oh! Babe - Lucky Millinder - Apollo Jump - 2:56 - 170
Killin' Jive - Cats & The Fiddle - We Cats Will Swing For You - 2:50 - 180
Minor Swing - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Give Me Your Telephone Number - 3:41 - 195
If You'se a Viper - John Sinclair - No Money Down : John Sinclair's Greatest Hits , Volume One - 3:55 - 150
Last Night On The Backporch - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Ol' New Orleans Home - 4:10 - 150
Hello, Dolly! - Bobby Darin - Ultra-Lounge, Vol. 5: Wild Cool & Swingin - 3:14 - 165
Onion - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympany Five, 1938-1940, Volume 1 (Disc - 2:55 - 170
Walk 'Em - Buddy Johnson - Jukebox Hits 1940-1951 - 2:53 - 125
It Ain't The Meat - The Swallows - Risque Rhythm: Nasty '50s R&B - 2:35 - 140 (It was after 10 p.m., and I didn't see any children in the room, so I figured this was okay.)
Cement Mixer (Put-Ti-Put-Ti) - Jimmie Lunceford - Jukebox Hits 1935-1947 - 2:45 - 155
Swing Brother Swing - Count Basie - America's #1 Band - 1:50 - 150
Cavernism - Mora's Modern Rhythmists - Mr. Rhythmist Goes To Town - 3:24 - 185
Let's Misbehave - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - You Do Something To Me - 2:52 - 188 (This song was a performance from Big City's Solo Charleston class. They were awesome.)
T'aint What You Do - Sy Oliver - Yes Indeed - 3:02 - 165 (Right into the shim-sham.)

My friend Bob took over after this, around 10:30. He'd promised to "bring the thunder" and I'd say he delivered. I may have to start calling him Thor.

Rock Ya Body

2010-11-02T09:14:00.000-07:00

This past weekend Jenna and I taught at Truman State College in Kirksville, Missouri, at an event called Rock Ya Body. It was fun to work with such an enthusiastic group of dancers--doubly so because they picked stuff up really quickly and because they had some very clever Halloween costumes.

Here's the song we used for the routine class on Sunday Morning:

Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Sidney Bechet - Sidney Bechet: 1949 - 3:20

You can get the mp3 on Amazon here. Here's the (fast) song we used for the Big Apple:

The Big Apple Contest - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Swingmatism - 2:58

You can get Solomon's albums from CDBaby here, on Emusic here, or Amazon here. Do yourself and your friends a favor by getting the whole albums, because they have lots of great music.

For sentimental reasons...

2010-10-16T16:37:00.000-07:00

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:

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.)
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.)
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.)
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.)
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.)
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.)
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.)
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.)
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.)
Happy-Go-lucky Local (Night Train) - Oscar Peterson - Night Train - 5:00 - 110 (I still love the Ray Brown bass solo in this song.)
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.)
Meet Me in Uptown - The Mighty Blue Kings - Meet Me In Uptown - 2:59 - 145 (These guys were kings of Chicago at one time.)
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.)
Carioca - Artie Shaw - Self Portrait - 4:06 - 215 (People will still be dancing balboa to this tune 100 years from now.)
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...)
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.)
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.)
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

2010-10-15T18:03:00.001-07:00

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

2010-10-12T16:18:00.001-07:00

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

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

More from First Friday

2010-10-10T16:05:00.000-07:00

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:

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

First Friday at Big City Swing 10/8/2010

2010-10-09T09:18:00.000-07:00

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):

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

Fizz 9/13/2010

2010-09-14T09:08:00.000-07:00

I had the early set at Fizz last night. I felt like I was kind of all over the place, but in the end I was reasonably happy with this set. I played a couple of streaks--several songs in a row by the same artist, but with a variety of feels. I ended up playing 4 (!) Ellington tracks, which is unusual for me. My friend John (affectionately known as DJ Puppy) was in the booth with me, watching over my shoulder and suggesting tracks. Some of the picks below are his.

Here's the BPM sparkline and frequency distribution (a long-tailed distribution for once! nice and symmetric too), and here's the run-down:

I Don't Care Who Knows - Catherine Russell - Sentimental Streak - 3:18 - 125
Pick-a-Rib - The Bob Wilber & Dany Doritz Quintet - Memories of you : Lionel and Benny - 3:03 - 155
Stuffy - Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five - Jammin' the Blues - 3:46 - 150
Savoy Blues - Duke Heitger - Duke Heitger's "Krazy Kapers" - 4:11 - 100
Did I Remember - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:03 - 140
My Blue Heaven - Django Reinhardt - Django In Rome, 1949 /1950 (Disc B) - 3:32 - 185 (For all the bal dancers)
Empty Glass - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:07 - 140
The Back Room Romp - Duke Ellington - The Duke's Men: The Small Groups, Vol. 1 - 2:49 - 150
Ain't Misbehavin' - Kermit Ruffins - Putumayo Presents: Kermit Ruffins - 4:36 - 140
If You're A Viper - Helen Humes - Deed I Do - 3:41 - 100 (For Dan)
Little Jazz - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 3:06 - 140
Hey, Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:21 - 140
Betcha Nickel - Ella Fitzgerald - My Heart Belongs to Daddy - 2:51 - 160
Mood Hollywood - Don Neely's Royal Society Jazz Orchestra - Radio Rhythm - 3:31 - 170
Blue Lou - Benny Goodman - B.G. In Hi-Fi - 2:51 - 195
Ballin' The Jack - Kid Ory - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:15 - 145
My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 148 (Played this tune twice--whoops! Different feels though.)
Bli-Blip - Duke Ellington - The Blanton-Webster Band - 3:09 - 150
Harlem Air Shaft - Duke Ellington - Piano In the Background - 4:03 - 170 (I was on the fence about going one more with Ellington--it would have been Main Stem, which is a kick-ass track but a challenge for most dancers. Opted for Glenn Miller instead. Sigh.)
Jeep Jockey Jump - Glenn Miller - Inspirational Swing! - 2:13 - 200
Apollo Jump - Lucky Millinder - Classic Big Band Jazz - 3:26 - 145
Hey Sweet Potato - Buddy Johnson & His Orchestra - The Best of Buddy's - 2:43 - 130
Wailing Interval - Duke Ellington - The Private Collection: Volume Six, Dance Dates, California, - 3:39 - 160 (Puppy's suggestion.)
Boogie Woogie (I May Be Wrong) - Count Basie - The Complete Decca Recordings - 2:50 - 172
Behave Yourself - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - Small Group Recordings Vol. 3/2 (CD 06) - 3:00 - 135
Vibraphone Blues - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:23 - 85
Georgia Grind - Louis Armstrong - Satchmo: A Musical Autobiography Disc 1 - 3:19 - 115 (Another Puppy pick.)
Do Your Duty - Tuba Skinny - Tuba Skinny - 3:46 - 120 (For Bob B.)
Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175
Forty Days & Forty Nights - The Blue Vipers of Brooklyn - Forty Days and Forty Nights - 2:51 - 215
Short Dressed Gal - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - New Orleans Preservation, Vol. 1 - 2:38 - 160 (More Preservation Hall, I know. These guys are so good though.)
Goodnight Moon - Shivaree - I Oughtta Give You a Shot in the Head for Making Me Live in This Dump - 4:03 - 115 (This one was for a birthday jam, by request. I usually wouldn't play this, because it's both too long for a birthday jam and also it's not swing music, not even remotely. The birthday dude's friends pleaded with me to play it, and since there weren't any other birthdays that I knew of, I conceded.)
Fibre de verre - Paris Combo - Attraction - 3:39 - 135 (Trying to follow up the feel of the last track, but bring it back towards jazz.)
Soul Swinga Nova - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:54 - 135 (Evidently I should be burned at the stake for playing this tune. Everybody's a critic.)
Fiddle Dee Dee - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 1: Hot Mallets - 2:39 - 195 (For Thea.)

Madison Invasion

2010-09-14T09:03:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I was up in Madison for their Jumptown Invasion. Saturday night's dance featured Patty and the Buttons, an amazing combo from Minneapolis, MN. They are incredibly talented, rather sardonic, very tuned in to making dance music, and have great taste in music. I danced pretty much the entire time they played, then had to take a break and play music between their sets. Here's what I played during the first short break:

Four Or Five Times - Kid Ory - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:14 - 142
Stuffy - Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five - Jammin' the Blues - 3:46 - 150
If You're A Viper - Helen Humes - Deed I Do - 3:41 - 100
A Smo-o-oth One - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:16 - 130
One O'Clock Jump - Delta Rhythm Boys - The Best Of 1940-50 - 2:40 - 180

During the second break we had a little jack & jill contest. Here's the tracks I picked out for the contest. They were supposed to be medium, slow, and fast tempo. The second track isn't all that slow but it is groovier. The third track isn't all that fast--I picked it at the last second (as the slow track was playing) because I thought it would be better to play something comfortable for the dancers in the contest than to make them all sweat too much.

My Baby Likes To Be-Bop - Ella Fitzgerald - Swingin' Ella - 2:45 - 139
I Don't Care Who Knows - Catherine Russell - Sentimental Streak - 3:18 - 125
You Talk a Little Trash - Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five - Crazy Rhythm - 3:55 - 170

Congrats to all the contestants! And thanks a bunch to Jumptown for having us out. We had a great time dancing with y'all.

BPM graphs

2010-09-08T15:32:00.000-07:00

Someone asked about how I make the BPM sparklines and frequency distributions that I post with each of my sets, so I thought I'd explain. It isn't a very elegant method: I export each setlist from my media player, copy it into Excel, and use a spreadsheet that I have set up to generate Google Chart API code. The code is embedded in the links I post, so the graph is generated when you click the link. To do this yourself, you need JRiver Media Center (or some other way of exporting setlists) and Excel.

Create a customized view in your J-River Media Center. Under View->Customize View, select the following Columns to show, in this order: Name, Artist, Album, Duration, BPM. Click on Preset, save this view as "Setlist Export."
Play a set, save it as a playlist. When viewing the playlist, select View->Customize View, then click on Preset and select "Setlist Export." Hit okay.
Select File->Export Playlist, choose "Text File, delimited" and include fields "Only Visible Fields." Remember where the file is going to be saved, then hit okay.
Download this excel file that I created, open it up, and select the tab called "set data."
Find the set list file you just saved, open it in a text editor. Select all, hit Ctrl-C to copy it, and paste it into cell A1 of the excel sheet. It should automatically open the Text-to-Columns dialogue box. Enter "|" as the delimiter, hit okay. Your set should now appear in columns C through G of this sheet.
Go to the "output" tab. Enter a title for your set into cell B1. Copy the contents of cell B4 and paste it into your internet browser. You should see a sparkline. Do the same with cell B5 to get the frequency distribution.
Exclaim something nerdy. "Neato!" or "Mwaaaaaaahhhahaha!" would be appropriate.
Go to column K of the tab "set data." Fill down to the end of your set, then copy-paste this into your blog entry to get the nicely formatted setlist.
Leave a comment to this post and let me know how it works. Also let me know if you have improvements or alternative methods that work better.

By the way, back when I was using a Mac, I had a series of AppleScripts that did all this stuff. It was a bit cleaner than using Excel.

Swing, IN 2010

2010-09-06T07:06:00.001-07:00

This past weekend Jenna and I were at Swing, IN in Indianapolis to teach and to play music and to dance and dance and dance and dance. Many of my favorite people were all in the same place at the same time, which was an all- too-rare treat for me. (Plus I get some them again next weekend!)

The Saturday night dance featured the Boilermaker Jazz Band in very fine form--I'm not a huge fan of most sax solos, but Paul Cosentino effectively persuaded me otherwise that night. I played during the band breaks--both short, as you can tell from the lists below. Here's the music from just after the first set:

Moten Swing - Barney Kessel - To Swing Or Not To Swing - 3:57 - 160
I Love Jazz - Louis Armstrong - Louis Armstrong - 4:40 - 170
My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
Daphne - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:03 - 210
The Back Room Romp - Duke Ellington - The Duke's Men: The Small Groups, Vol. 1 - 2:49 - 150

And here's the tracks from after the second set (between the team comps and the strictly):

Peckin' - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:30 - 180
Blue Drag - Earl Hines - Swingin' Down - 2:59 - 140
He Ain't Got Rhythm (Jimmy Rushing, Vocals) - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 2:49 - 155
The Right Idea - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Swing Street Strut - 3:13 - 185
Mood Hollywood - Don Neely's Royal Society Jazz Orchestra - Radio Rhythm - 3:31 - 170

Sunday night brought us a dj'ed dance, featuring tunes picked by Jason Zabinski, Brian Tietz, and me. Jason's taste is impeccable (up to and including his choices for men's and women's deodorant), so of course I enjoyed his set. I'd never met Brian before but I was quite impressed by all of his sets. He opened the Friday late night and hit just the right note, keeping the music solidly swinging and energetic until the jack and jill finals. He read the room well on Sunday evening too. At one point he played an uptempo swing version of the Super Mario Brothers theme, and initially I was thinking, "really did he just go there?" but once I saw the reaction from the crowd (and the jam that broke out) I concede that it was a perfect call.

I played the last set of the evening dance on Sunday, and didn't think too hard about my picks. Mostly I was sorting my music by rating and picking all the tracks that I'd rated as 4 or 5 stars. Here's my set, along with BPM sparkline and frequency distribution:

Fiddle Dee Dee - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 1: Hot Mallets - 2:39 - 195 (I like using songs with unusual introductions as the first track of a set, especially if I'm picking up after announcements or something. It gives people a chance to find a dance partner, and hopefully catches their ear. This one has a mysterious introduction that lasts for about 45 seconds, and then it starts to swing like hell.)
Good Queen Bess - Johnny Hodges - Perfect Swing - 3:02 - 155
Ochi Chornya - Wingy Manone - Wingy Manone: 1940-1944 - 2:54 - 165 (also known as Dark Eyes.)
Spreadin' Rhythm Around - Billie Holiday - Swing Brother Swing - 2:52 - 195 (For Bigs.)
On The Sunny Side of The Street - Dizzy Gillespie - Dizzy Gillespie et son orchestre : 1951-1952 - 3:07 - 135 (For Tigert.)
Georgia Grind - Louis Armstrong - Satchmo: A Musical Autobiography Disc 1 - 3:19 - 115
Solid As A Rock - Count Basie - Count Basie Et Son Orchestre 1950-1951 - 3:03 - 135
My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 148 (For Jason.)
The Five Pennies - The Famous Castle Jazz Band - The Five Pennies - 2:52 - 205
Shine On Harvest Moon - Pete Fountain - Dixieland's Kings - 2:50 - 160
Gettin' In The Groove - Panama Francis & his Savoy Sultans - Gettin' in the groove (Paris 1971) - 3:06 - 130
Little Jazz - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 3:06 - 140 (Because Jump Through the Window had already been played about 8 times.)
Cole Slaw - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 2:44 - 135
Just A Gigolo, I Ain't Got Nobody - Louis Prima - Louis Prima - Retro High School Party - 4:43 - 125 (I had one person come up and thank me for playing this one because it's her favorite. I also had one person come up and tell me that they think this song is annoying as hell, but they had an amazing dance to it just now. So there.)
The Darktown Strutters' Ball - Alberta Hunter - Amtrak Blues - 5:23 - 150 (I heard someone exclaim "Yes!" when this one came on.)
Sweet Georgia Brown - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman: Very Best of Benny Goodman - 3:07 - 175
Minor Swing - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:16 - 200 (Never gets old.)
Ridin' And Jivin' - Earl Hines - Rosetta - 2:39 - 155
Perdido Street Blues - Louis Armstrong - The Complete Decca Studio Master Takes 1940-1949 - 3:08 - 145 (Forgot that this song was played already this weekend.)
Somebody Loves Me - Stuff Smith - Cat On A Hot Fiddle - 3:42 - 150
My Daddy Rocks Me - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman et son orchestre: 1945 Vol.2 - 2:48 - 100
Put A Lid On It - Squirrel Nut Zippers - Hot - 2:39 - 198
Beans And Corn Bread - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 2:50 - 215 (This song was stuck in my wife's head all weekend.)
Heart Of Steel - Galactic - Ya-Ka-May - 3:27 -
I've Been Loving You Too Long - Otis Redding - Good To Me: Recorded Live At The Whiskey A Go Go Volume 2 - 5:51 -

DJing for newer dancers

2010-08-22T08:54:00.000-07:00

dogpossum, an Australian DJ, recently posted some interesting thoughts about how to DJ for newer dancers. I agree with nearly all of what she says. The only thing I might push back on is the tempo stuff--I'd say that the rule on tempo should always be to feel it out based on the crowd at the moment. So I agree in principle that there should be no rules for tempo, but some nights you will find that the crowd just won't dance to anything over 175. On nights like that, you should just give them what they want, rather than trying to push the boundaries to demonstrate that "there are no rules."

Also, maybe it's a difference in scenes, but I'm in a really weird place right now with neo swing. I'd guess that most lindy hoppers around here would react with something like "Are you f-ing kidding me?" if they heard neo at Fizz or some other venue around town. But lately my dance partner and I have been....yes, I admit it...kind of okay with a little neo flavor every now and again. Just every once in a while, it can be fun in a cheesetastic sort of way. Even more, I kind of wish someone would play Cherry Poppin' Daddies or something like that at the big events, just to remind everyone not to take themselves too seriously. Since after all, we are swing dancers, not Alvin Ailey...and swing is awesome and all but honestly swing dancing gives you just slightly more respect than being really good at Magic: The Gathering.

stupid iPod

2010-08-19T21:00:00.000-07:00

So last Monday at Fizz I stepped in to DJ at the last minute, and all I had was my iPod. I DJed by continually adding songs to an on-the-go playlist. It's a very handy feature that I use all the time, but it has one very irksome glitch. If you add songs to the end of a playlist while the playlist is already going, the iPod will not cycle through the whole list. Instead, it will give the appearance of cycling through the list, but actually go back and start playing the first track again. So for instance, say that I set up a playlist with four songs on it:

1. Louis Armstrong - Georgia Grind

2. Lavern Baker - Gimme a Pigfoot
3. Artie Shaw - Everything is Jumpin'
4. Duke Ellington - Peckin'

Then I hit play, and as Lavern Baker is going, I add two more songs to the list:

5. Cab Calloway - Wah De Dah
6. Jay McShann - Gone with the Blues

So after Duke Ellington finishes, the iPod gives the appearance of playing Cab Calloway. But the music coming out of the wire is actually the start of Louis Armstrong again.

Anybody else had this problem? Is there anything you can do about it?

Fizz setlist 8-16-2010

2010-08-19T20:42:00.001-07:00

Last Monday I stepped in to DJ the late set at Fizz after a super-last-minute cancellation. I only had my iPod with me, and I had to be up fairly early the following day, so I volunteered with the understanding that I'd DJ for an hour, then set a playlist and go home, retrieving my iPod later. As the early DJ, my friend Chris, finished his set, I frantically set up an on-the-go playlist for after I left, then saved it and cleared the on-the-go playlist so that I could spin live. I hung around for about an hour, fiddling with my iPod. (I had the usual difficulties with on-the-go playlists. More details to follow.)

As I was getting ready to set a playlist and take off, I decided that the list I'd already put together would be a disaster, so I ended up picking entirely different tracks to play after I'd taken off. I felt like the crowd was going in a different direction than I'd anticipated, so I tried to pick some songs that would match the mood. Not sure if it made any difference--I was pretty much just taking shots in the dark. Here's all of the tracks I played, both before and after I left, along with BPM sparkline and frequency distribution.

For Dancers Only - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Swingmatism - 2:34 - 159
St. Louis Blues - Earl Hines - Earl Hines/Jimmy Rushing: Blues & Things - 4:38 - 150
One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer - Jimmy Witherspoon - Jazz Me Blues - The Best of Jimmy Witherspoon - 3:00 - 120
Shake That Thing - Wynonie Harris - Risque Blues - It Ain't the Meat - 2:17 - 135
Solid As A Rock - Count Basie - Count Basie Et Son Orchestre 1950-1951 - 3:03 - 135
Posin' - Jimmie Lunceford - Jukebox Hits 1935-1947 - 3:01 - 190
Life Is So Peculiar with Louis Jordan - Louis Armstrong - The Wonderful Duets - 3:24 - 115
On the Sunny Side of the Street - Dizzy Gillespie - The Champ - 3:09 - 137
Take My Love With You - Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves - (Am I Just) Fooling Myself? - 3:37 - 138 (This was the first song of a soul/blues interlude that seemed to go over pretty well.)
You Can Have My Husband - Koko Taylor - The Earthshaker - 2:47 - 130
The Deacon's Moan - Wycliffe Gordon - The Gospel Truth - 6:42 - 90
Every Day I Have the Blues / Goin' to Chicago Blues - The Four Tops - Lost and Found: Four Tops "Breaking Through" (1963-1964) - 3:50 - 138
Four Or Five Times - Kid Ory - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:14 - 142 (Back to jazz.)
Lavender Coffin - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 4: Midnight Sun - 2:47 - 135
Bring It On Down - The Baby Soda Jazz Band - Cures Everything But The Blues - 2:34 - 175
Come On Over To My House - Jay McShann - Jumpin' The Blues - 2:52 - 145 (I finished setting up a playlist and then left during this song.)
Shiny Stockings - Count Basie - April In Paris - 5:17 - 120
It Takes Two To Tango - Lester Young - Lester Young : 1951-1952 - 3:14 - 100
I Don't Care Who Knows - Catherine Russell - Sentimental Streak - 3:18 - 125
Centerpiece - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 5:06 - 111
Honeysuckle Rose - Katherine Davis - Dream Shoes - 3:14 - 145
All Of Me - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 4:10 - 165
Hello, Dolly! - Louis Armstrong - Ken Burns Jazz - 2:24 - 155
Ballin' The Jack - Eddie Condon - We Called It Music - 2:18 - 180
Billie's Blues - Billie Holiday - Blue Billie - 2:40 - 120
My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
Just A Gigolo, I Ain't Got Nobody - Louis Prima - Retro High School Party - 4:43 - 125
Hey Spo-Dee-O-Dee - Wild Bill Moore - Retro High School Party - 2:44 - 160
Move Me Baby - Jimmy Witherspoon & The Lamplighters - Retro High School Party - 2:33 - 135
If You a Viper - Erin McKeown - Sing You Sinners - 4:19 - 90
When You're Smiling - The Blue Vipers of Brooklyn - Forty Days and Forty Nights - 3:51 - 215

First Friday at Big City Swing 8/6/2010

2010-08-07T11:03:00.001-07:00

Here's my set-list from last night's dance at Big City Swing (BPM sparkline and freq. distribution):

Ya Gotta See Baby Tonight - Louis Prima - Louis Prima et son orchestre : 1945 - 2:24 - 145
My Baby's Sweet - Stompy Jones - The Swing Session - 3:08 - 155
Pink Cadillac - The Mighty Blue Kings - Meet Me In Uptown - 2:23 - 165
I May Be Wrong - Jimmy Witherspoon - Jimmy Witherspoon & Panama Francis' Savoy Sultans - 3:21 - 165
All Of Me - Helen O'Connell - Great Girl Singers, Sing 22 Original Hits - 2:09 - 145
Oo Poppa Do - Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - One Hour Mama - 3:13 - 160
Ain't Misbehavin' - Kermit Ruffins - Putumayo Presents: Kermit Ruffins - 4:36 - 140
Let The Good Times Roll - Linda Hopkins - Wild Women Blues - 3:26 - 140
Old Maid Boogie - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson - Meat's Too High - 2:38 - 150
She's Never Satisfied - George Gee - Buddha Boogie - 4:59 - 150
Wailing Interval - Duke Ellington - The Private Collection - 3:39 - 160
The Spinach Song - Julia Lee & Her Boy Friends - Kansas City's First Lady Of The Blues - 2:59 - 160
Rhythm Itch - Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five - Moppin' and Boppin' - 3:11 - 170
Old Mother Hubbard - Ella Fitzgerald - Swingin' Ella - 2:44 - 145
I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150
St. Louis Blues - Delta Rhythm Boys - The Best Of 1940-50 - 2:36 - 225
Shine On Harvest Moon - Pete Fountain - Dixieland's Kings - 2:50 - 160
The Flat Foot Floogie - Slim Gaillard - 1938-46 - 2:50 - 175
South - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:17 - 182
Bli Blip - Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra - Live In Swing City: Swingin' With Duke - 3:16 - 135
It's You Who Taught It To Me - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:42 - 160
My Blue Heaven - The Cangelosi Cards - Clinton Street Recordings, I - 4:11 - 145
Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160
Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Sidney Bechet - Sidney Bechet: 1949 - 3:20 - 175
Anything Goes - Mora's Modern Rhythmists - Goblin Market - 2:45 - 165
Just A Gigolo, I Ain't Got Nobody - Louis Prima - Louis Prima - Retro High School Party - 4:43 - 125
Now Or Never - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:13 - 165
Heebie Jeebies - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - The Hurricane Sessions - 1:55 - 180
Jump Through The Window - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 2:44 - 145
Ja-Da - The Famous Castle Jazz Band - The Five Pennies - 3:07 - 150
Put A Lid On It - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ The Times - 3:13 - 170

Catherine Russell with the Jim Cullum Jazz Band

2010-07-16T12:46:00.000-07:00

Check this out: the Riverwalk Jazz website (click here, or here for the Youtube channel) now features nine videos of a performance by Catherine Russell, in concert with the Jim Cullum Jazz Band and Dick Hyman. I loved Catherine Russell before. After watching these videos, I really have a crush on her. She's very expressive, with her hands as well as her voice, and she seems to be having a really good time on stage. I play her tunes at dances pretty regularly, particularly the following tunes (albums in parentheses):

I Don't Care Who Knows (Sentimental Streak, available on Amazon)
Someday You'll Want Me to Want You (Cat, available on Amazon, EMusic)
As Long as I Live (Inside This Heart of Mine, available on Amazon, EMusic)

I like these tunes because they have really broad appeal. Lindy hoppers who like slower vocals and bluesy jazz will go for these, and they also have a nice chunka chunka in the rhythm section (some of her tunes even feature a ukulele, I think) that makes them work as a transition from classic swing.

Slim & Slam in super-stereo

2010-07-16T12:42:00.000-07:00

Check this out, it's a mash-up of several Slim & Slam tunes (Flat Foot Floogie, Jump Session, and Tutti Fruiti) all at the same time. The guy's got a point. But I love Slim & Slam all the same.

Fizz 7/5/2010 featuring the Cangelosi Cards

2010-07-06T15:32:00.001-07:00

Last night was a treat at Fizz: Tessa (the organizer) booked the Cangelosi Cards, an amazing and very unique band from New York City. The band is pretty well known on the lindy hop circuit by now, and they have a recent album out--I guess you'd call it an EP, since it's 8 tracks--that you can pick up at their website. Also check out reviews of the album from Eve Polich and Michael Steinman.

The band was great. In particular, the vocalist, Tamar Korn, was a wonder. Her style is utterly personal, expressive, and captivating. Together with the old-time jazz tunes that the band serves up, she creates music that is charming and joyful. And very danceable, as evidenced by the packed house, in spite of the hot, humid weather. At one point I could feel the floor of Fizz bouncing up and down from all the shuffling and swinging. Yikes. Also, most everyone there was a big sweaty mess by the end of one set. Personally I changed shirts twice over the course of the evening. Again, yikes. With a different band, I think many people would have decided to stay home cuddled up with their air conditioners. But when you heard the Cards, you can't help but want to move, and to smile, and decide screw it, I'm gonna dance.

I was on call to DJ beforehand and during set breaks. I haven't done a lot of band-break sets, so my theories about what works are pretty tentative. Last night, I was trying to play tunes that fit in stylistically with the Cards sound, while providing some more moderate tempos and also shorter songs. Here's what I played, along with the usual BPM sparkline and frequency distribution: The first five tunes were done before anyone showed up, so really the dancing started with the sixth tune.

How'm I Doin', Hey-Hey - The Mills Brothers - The Mills Brothers: Chronological Vol. 2 - 2:16 - 215
Billie's Blues - Billie Holiday - Blue Billie - 2:40 - 120
Papa De-Da-Da - The Wolverines Jazz Band Of Bern - Wolverines Of Bern At 35 - 3:32 - 115
Jubilee Stomp - David Ostwald's Gully Low Jazz Band - Blues In Our Heart - 3:21 - 275
Panama - David Ostwald's Gully Low Jazz Band - Blues In Our Heart - 3:52 - 240 (People showed up en mass at the end of this song.)
Little Jazz - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 3:06 - 140
Strictly Jive - Chick Webb - Stomping At The Savoy - 3:19 - 170
Life Begins When You're In Love - Billie Holiday - Lady Day: The Master Takes And Singles - 3:02 - 180
Sent For You Yesterday And Here You Come Today - Benny Goodman - B.G. In Hi-Fi - 3:05 - 155
Charleston Alley - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - 1941-Transcription Performance - 2:46 - 155
Yes Indeed - Sy Oliver - Yes Indeed - 3:13 - 128
Honeysuckle Rose - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 4:47 - 140
Miss Brown To You - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:15 - 145
Good Queen Bess - Johnny Hodges & His Orchestra - Johnny Hodges & His Orchestra - Passion Flower 1940-46 - 2:59 - 160
Daphne - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:03 - 210
Someday You'll Want Me To Want You - Catherine Russell - Cat - 3:13 - 145 (This was the last song before the band started, around 10 p.m. The next 7 songs were played between the first and second sets.)
Dark Eyes - Fats Waller - Happy Birthday Fats Vol. 1 - 3:22 - 160
Bucket Got a Hole In It - Kid Ory - In the Forties - 2:30 - 144
Artillerie Lourde - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 5:28 - 140 (This was a poor choice--the song has this very distinctive riff in it, fun for musical dancers but a challenge for 6-count swing, and the riff gets old after a short while. Also, it's too long.)
All I Know - The Countdown Quartet - Sadlack's Stomp - 2:56 - 125
Hey, Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:21 - 140
For Dancers Only - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Swingmatism - 2:34 - 159
Let The Good Times Roll - Helen Humes - Let The Good Times Roll - 3:02 - 155 (Last song before the second set. The band's next set was mostly up-tempo. Even the last song, a blues tune, was pretty peppy. After the second set, I started with some slower tunes to let things relax.)
Careless Love - The Storyville Jassband - Storyville Jubilee - 3:29 - 100
Gimme A Pigfoot - Lavern Baker - LaVern Sings Bessie Smith - 3:09 - 120
Six Appeal - Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five - Crazy Rhythm - 3:29 - 135
Too Darn Hot - Ella Fitzgerald - Mack The Knife: The Complete Ella In Berlin - 3:16 - 160
Jive At Five - Count Basie - The Complete Decca Recordings - 2:51 - 175
Don't Cha Go Way Mad - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Fitzgerald 1936-1950 - 3:20 - 125
Smack Dab In The Middle - The Deep River Boys - London Harmony - 2:59 - 130
Krum Elbow Blues - Mora's Modern Swingtet - 20th Century Closet - 2:45 - 155
The Flat Foot Floogie - Slim Gaillard - 1938-46 - 2:50 - 175
Exactly Like You - Carmen McRae - - 2:11 - 135 (Last song before the third set. Afterwards, there was time for just a couple more tunes.)
Home To Mississippi - Otis Spann - Otis Spann: Best Of The Vanguard Years - 3:30 - 130
Muddy Water - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ the Times - 2:29 - 123
Buzz Buzz Buzz - The Mighty Blue Kings - Meet Me In Uptown - 3:07 - 140
Chant Of The Groove - Fats Waller - Fats Waller 1941 - 3:05 - 185
Sermonette - Gordon Webster - Happy When I'm With You - 3:40 - 115 (I liked this as a set-closer.)

Chicago give-away (#1)

2010-07-05T14:35:00.000-07:00

My wife and I are moving apartments (still in the neighborhood, just new digs), so today I drastically reduced the size of my CD collection. I'm selling most of the popular and classical music, getting rid of all of my jewel cases, and I've got a stack of music to give away. So, rather than donating it or throwing it out, I thought I'd give away some of the stuff. Would you like some new (to you) music?

The first set I'm giving away is a three-pack of blues music:

Muddy Waters: The Real Folk Blues
Pinetop Perkins: Ladies Man
Otis Spann: Best of the Vanguard Years

All three of these albums have a lot of great music for blues dancing, and a few tracks that are good for lindy hopping too. The Pinetop Perkins album is almost all duets with famous blues women like Marcia Ball, Ruth Brown, Susan Tedeschi, and Odetta, and it is a scream. That dude knew how to work it with the ladies, even at age eighty-something.

This first give-away is open to Chicago-area dancers. (Later on I'll do one or two that are open to anyone in the U.S.) Chicago dancers, if you'd like to have these albums, leave a comment telling me your favorite song for blues dancing or lindy hopping, along with why you like it or why it's your favorite. Do it by next Sunday, July 11th. I'll pick a comment at random and contact you if you win.

First Friday at Big City Swing 7/2/2010

2010-07-03T07:43:00.000-07:00

Last night at Big City was kind of an odd night. It was pretty hot & sweaty (Big Sweaty Swing!), so after the beginner lesson people gradually drifted upstairs, where the air conditioning was stronger. By about 10 p.m., there was hardly anyone dancing downstairs, and I was playing for an empty room. Someone came up and requested "At Last," which isn't something I get asked for very often (or ever), but I figured why not, since there wasn't anyone else dancing. (I also made the mistake of asking the guy and the girl who was with him whether they were getting married, since At Last is such a common first dance song. I figured they might be taking wedding dance at Big City, and wanted to practice to the song they'd picked. But evidently not. I got blank stares, followed by an embarrassing silence. Whoops.)

So here's the music I played, some of which was played to a basically empty room. (And here's the sparkline and frequency distribution.)

Stompin' At The Savoy - Benny Goodman - B.G. In Hi-Fi - 3:15 - 150
Old Mother Hubbard - Ella Fitzgerald - Swingin' Ella - 2:44 - 145
Tuxedo Junction - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:14 - 155
Choo Choo Ch' Boogie - Louis Jordan & His Tympani Five - Jukebox Hits Volume 1 1942-1947 - 2:45 - 165
Baby Drives Me Wild - The Mighty Blue Kings - Meet Me In Uptown - 2:18 - 170
A Woman's Intuition - Stompy Jones - Stompy Jones - 3:17 - 140
My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 148
All Of Me - Frank Sinatra - The Essential Frank Sinatra (The Columbia Years) - 2:40 - 130
Sure, Had A Wonderful Time - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 3:00 - 135
It's Been So Long - Duke Heitger And His Swing Band - Rhythm Is Our Business - 3:34 - 155
Shotgun Boogie - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:55 - 165
Jump, Jive, An' Wail - Louis Prima - Ultra-Lounge, Vol. 5: Wild Cool & Swingin - 3:31 - 200
When I Take My Sugar to Tea - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Jump for Joy - 4:00 - 165
Someday You'll Want Me To Want You - Catherine Russell - Cat - 3:13 - 145
Did I Remember - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:03 - 140
Gettin' In The Groove - Panama Francis & his Savoy Sultans - Gettin' in the groove (Paris 1971) - 3:06 - 130
Apollo Jump - Lucky Millinder - Classic Big Band Jazz - 3:26 - 145
Duke's Place - Ella Fitzgerald - Something To Live For - 4:13 - 140
Twenty-Four Robbers - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:45 - 190
For Dancers Only - John Lewis, The American Jazz Orchestra - The Music Of Jimmie Lunceford - 4:34 - 145
At Last - Barbara Morrison - Live At The Dakota, Volume 2 - 6:37 - 50
The Feeling Music Brings - Susan Tedeschi - Austin City Limits: Live From Austin, TX - 5:20 - 120
That's Rhythm - Rex Stewart - Jazz Foundations, Vol. 62 - Rex Stewart - 2:52 - 145
Taking a Chance on Love - Anita O'Day - Anita Sings the Most - 2:24 - 135
Little Jazz - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 3:06 - 140
Swinga-Dilla Street - Echoes of Swing - Harlem Reflections - 4:24 - 155
Mood Hollywood - Don Neely's Royal Society Jazz Orchestra - Radio Rhythm - 3:31 - 170
I'm Crazy 'Bout My Baby - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 4:41 - 160
Singin' the Blues Till My Daddy Comes Home - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:25 - 128

More DJ theory

2010-06-24T06:36:00.000-07:00

Here's a nice post from Kyle Smith about what DJs should be going for when they're spinning for an evening. Kyle has been head DJ for All Balboa Weekend for a long time, and really knows his stuff.

Fizz setlist 6-21-2010

2010-06-22T06:31:00.000-07:00

It was a hot, sweaty night at Fizz, thanks to the humidity and the full house. I was subbing for my friend Chris, whose laptop died. (Back up your music now, folks!) In comparison to last week, I felt like I wasn't able to stay ahead of the crowd to the same degree, but I was still pretty happy with how this set turned out. The tempos tended to be slower, because of the heat, but I still had a good range (as you can see from the sparkline and frequency distribution, which is more gamma than gaussian) and a good diversity of music (including some old chestnuts). Here's the set:

Apex Blues - The Wolverines Jazz Band Of Bern - Wolverines Of Bern At 35 - 4:29 - 110
Sit Down Baby - Susie Arioli Band - Pennies From Heaven - 3:29 - 130
I'll Always Be In Love With You - Benny Goodman - 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert Plus 1944-47 - 3:11 - 135
Spring Cleaning - Fats Waller - Portrait Vol. 2: Old Plantation - 2:27 - 165
If You're A Viper - Kermit Ruffins - The Big Butter & Egg Man - 3:08 - 170
Don't Be That Way - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 1: Hot Mallets - 2:35 - 132
Did I Remember - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 3:03 - 140
She's Got The Blues For Sale - Billy Eckstine - Timeless Billy Eckstine - 3:01 - 140
The Spinach Song - Julia Lee & Her Boy Friends - Kansas City's First Lady Of The Blues - 2:59 - 160
Sure, Had A Wonderful Time - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 3:00 - 135
My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 148
A Viper's Moan - Mora's Modern Rhythmists - Call Of The Freaks - 3:30 - 140
Papa's In Bed With His Britches On - Cab Calloway - Are You Hep To The Jive? - 2:32 - 167
Big John's Special - Benny Goodman - B.G. In Hi-Fi - 3:08 - 183
Worry Bird - Johnny Hartman - The Johnny Hartman Collection 1947-1972 - 2:40 - 125
Taking a Chance on Love - Anita O'Day - Anita Sings the Most - 2:24 - 135
Sad Sap Sucker Am I - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 3:06 - 140
I Can't Believe You're in Love With Me - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Give Me Your Telephone Number - 3:52 - 167
Get Rhythm In Your Feet - Mora's Modern Rhythmists - Call Of The Freaks - 2:20 - 185
One O'Clock Jump - Count Basie - Swinging The Blues: 1930-1939 - 3:03 - 171
Did You Mean It? (Ella Fitzgerald, Vocals) - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 2:22 - 150
Hey, Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:21 - 140
Gimme A Pigfoot - Lavern Baker - LaVern Sings Bessie Smith - 3:09 - 120
Summertime - Hep Chaps - Swingin' On Nothing - 4:01 - 135
Jump Through The Window - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 2:44 - 145
Smack Dab In The Middle - George Gee - Swingin - 3:00 - 142
Flat Foot Floogee - Ray Bryant - Swing Dance Special - 2:42 - 160
Twenty-Four Robbers - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:45 - 190
No Regrets - Stephanie Nakasian - Billie Remembered: The Classic Songs Of Billie Holiday - 2:52 - 130
Strictly Instrumental - Harry James - The Best Of Big Bands - 2:56 - 135
Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160
In the Mood - Glenn Miller - Best of the Lost Recordings & The Secret Broadcasts - 3:15 - 180
Go Harlem - Chick Webb - Spinnin' the Webb - 2:19 - 210
Solid As A Rock - Count Basie - Count Basie Et Son Orchestre 1950-1951 - 3:03 - 135
Sermonette - Earl Grant - Singin' & Swingin': The Best Of Earl Grant - 2:42 - 125
My Daddy Rocks Me - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman et son orchestre: 1945 Vol.2 - 2:48 - 100
Singin' the Blues Till My Daddy Comes Home - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:25 - 128
Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives To Me - Sidney Bechet - The Fabulous Sidney Bechet - 5:43 - 145
Smooth Sailing - Ella Fitzgerald - Bluella: Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Blues - 3:08 - 128

The last song was a birthday/Ph.D. jam. (Congratulations, Sophia!)

My jazz can beat up your jazz

2010-06-16T06:36:00.000-07:00

Heh. I just found Glenn Crytzer's blog. Crytzer is a musician and band leader from Seattle, a guy who is really interested in swing-era jazz. It's great stuff, especially if you (like me) want to learn more about swing music. His passion comes through really clearly, as does his sharp tongue:

"I just like to move to the music, I don't really care what it is" doesn't equate to "I'm a free spirit and just love the feeling of movement, all music is wonderful cause it's amazing", it actually equates to "Shucks Ma, why's I got to learn to read, I just likes lookin at the picters." If you're not dancing to the music (or not deliberately dancing NOT to the music for our modern dance friends), you're not dancing, you're just moving around - take an aerobics class.

Zing! I'd recommend starting here, with an enlightening posts about what makes swing music swing music. Then here, with an explanation of the contrast between different styles of jazz (trad. jazz, swing, bebop, etc.).

Fizz setlist 6-14-2010

2010-06-15T06:20:00.000-07:00

Fun night at Fizz last night. This past weekend was CUBE (the Chicago Underground Blues Experience, which organizes around the Chicago Blues Festival), so there were a number of blues dancers in the house. I tried to mix in some blues and bluesy-sounding material starting around 10:15--not sure that they approved, but whatever. On the whole, my set turned out to be a bit faster than normal; see here and here for the data. I was pretty happy with this set, I felt like I was leading the crowd the whole time--giving them styles that they wanted to hear, and then moving on to the next thing, before they got sick of the first. I also had quite a few people coming up and talking to me, asking questions, and complimenting the music (always nice!). I ended up passing out a few cards. (So if you took one and are now reading this...welcome to the blog! Leave a comment!) Here's what I played, from 9:00 to about 11:30:

Tuxedo Junction - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:14 - 155
Snatch And Grab It - Julia Lee & Her Boy Friends - Kansas City's First Lady Of The Blues - 2:56 - 180
You Can Stay But That Jive's Got To Go - Dusty Brooks - Dusty Brooks - Swing Time Jive - 2:38 - 155
Pick-a-Rib - The Bob Wilber & Dany Doritz Quintet - Memories of you : Lionel and Benny - 3:03 - 155
Now Or Never - Katharine Whalen - Jazz Squad - 2:13 - 165
Strictly Jive - Chick Webb - Stomping At The Savoy - 3:19 - 170
Stay Cool - Count Basie - Blues By Basie-One O'Clock Jump - 3:12 - 155
Choo Choo Ch' Boogie - Louis Jordan & His Tympani Five - Jukebox Hits Volume 1 1942-1947 - 2:45 - 165 (By request)
Rock Me All Night Long - The Fabulous Treniers - The Hoss Allen Sessions - 2:41 - 155
Shotgun Boogie - Paul Tillotson the Love Trio - Lindy Hop Blues - 2:55 - 165 (The boogie music seemed to be a hit with folks.)
All Of Me - Barbara Morrison - Live At The Dakota, Volume 2 - 3:34 - 175
Pennies From Heaven - Sy Oliver - Yes Indeed - 4:03 - 180
Old Maid Boogie - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson - Meat's Too High - Blues, Boogie & Bebop - 2:38 - 150
Cole Slaw - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan & His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 2:44 - 135 (Start of a long build.)
I Want a Tall Skinny Pappa - Sister Rosetta Tharpe - The Gospel of the Blues - 2:52 - 140
Ballin' The Jack - Kid Ory - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:15 - 145
When I Take My Sugar to Tea - The Boilermaker Jazz Band - Jump for Joy - 4:00 - 165
Functionizin' - Fats Waller - If You Got To Ask, You Ain't Got It! - 3:05 - 170
San Francisco Bay Blues - Lu Watters' Yerba Buena Jazz Band - Blues Over Bodega - 3:41 - 160
Pantin' In The Panther Room - Fats Waller - Fats Waller: 1940-1941 - 3:04 - 180
Diga Diga Doo - Artie Shaw - The Very Best of Artie Shaw - 2:40 - 200
I Like Pie, I Like Cake - The Four Clefs - The Jive Is Jumpin' - 2:51 - 155
My Blue Heaven - Stuff Smith - Swingin' Stuff - 3:46 - 160
Boys from Harlem - Randy Sandke And The Nagel Heyer Allstars - Uptown Lowdown - 3:33 - 160
She's Never Satisfied - George Gee - Buddha Boogie - 4:59 - 150
Hey, Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:21 - 140 (This was my transition to bluesy-sounding stuff.)
Country Man - Carrie Smith - When You're Down and Out - 3:46 - 145
Twenty-Nine Ways - Koko Taylor - South Side Lady (Live in Netherlands 1973) - 3:53 - 125
My Bad Luck Soul - Janiva Magness Band - My Bad Luck Soul - 2:10 - 160
The Feeling Music Brings - Susan Tedeschi - Austin City Limits: Live From Austin, TX - 5:20 - 120
Back Water Blues - Lavern Baker - LaVern Sings Bessie Smith - 4:41 - 100 (Meant to play a different song here, not quite so long...but my mp3 player spat it out and I scrambled to grab this one.)
Honeysuckle Rose - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 2:56 - 170 (I've used this transition trick in the past...this song starts out at about 110 for the introduction, then jumps to 170.)
She's Got The Blues For Sale - Billy Eckstine - Timeless Billy Eckstine - 3:01 - 140
For Dancers Only - Duke Ellington - Recollections Of The Big Band Era - 3:04 - 145
Ridin' And Jivin' - Earl Hines - Rosetta - 2:39 - 155
Sent For You Yesterday - Count Basie - The Complete Decca Recordings - 2:58 - 165
Lumby - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - 1941 Transcription Performance - 2:43 - 180 (GDubs, did you work it?)
There's Rhythm In Harlem - Mills Blue Rhythm Band - Mills Blue Rhythm Band: 1933-1936 - 3:11 - 205
That's Rhythm - Rex Stewart - Jazz Foundations, Vol. 62 - 2:52 - 145
It's You Who Taught It To Me - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:42 - 160
Minor Swing - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:16 - 200
On the Sunny Side of the Street - Harold Nicholas - Jazz In Paris: Chanteurs-Chanteuses - 4:01 - 110
All Of Me - Twin Cities Hot Club - Twin Cities Hot Club - 4:10 - 165
Life Begins When You're In Love - Billie Holiday - Lady Day: The Master Takes And Singles - 3:02 - 180