Fizz 4/26/2010

There were quite a few people at Fizz last night but not many actually dancing. Nights like that are hard to sort out for DJs. Sometimes they happen out of the blue, just because nobody really feels like moving. Other times, it's because you are not playing good music, or not playing the right music for that crowd at that time. Unfortunately I think last night falls into the latter category. I think most of the stuff I played was pretty good music, but it wasn't in the right order, or wasn't the best choice given the crowd. Because I couldn't find the right groove, I also ended up keeping the tempos fairly tame, with a few quick jumps above 200 BPM to please key constituencies.

One other note: Solomon Douglas, who was in town for a gig last Sunday, reminded me that the first anniversary of Frankie Manning's passing was today (Tuesday, April 27th). I announced this at about 10:30 and suggested that everyone do a Shim-Sham in honor of his memory. I followed that up with Shiny Stockings, one of Frankie's favorite tunes and one that many people associate with him.

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

1. Knock Me a Kiss - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ the Times - 3:25 - 118
2. Muddy Water - Davina & The Vagabonds - Live @ the Times - 2:29 - 123
3. Rose Room - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Ain't No School Like the Old School - 3:09 - 153 (from Solomon's latest album, to be released soon.)
4. What's Your Name? - Echoes of Swing - You've Got To Be Modernistic - 3:18 - 155
5. Shoot the Sherbert to Me, Herbert - Tommy Dorsey - Historic Jazz Recordings, Volume 4 - 3:24 - 145 (Following some mellow tracks, I wanted to bump up the energy a bit with the next track.)
6. Don't Be That Way - Benny Goodman - The Fabulous Swing Collection - 3:21 - 170 (But it turned out that this one was not the right mood. Too squarish big-bandy.)
7. All Of Me - Helen O'Connell - Great Girl Singers, Sing 22 Original Hits - 2:09 - 145
8. Yes Indeed - Sy Oliver - Yes Indeed - 3:13 - 128
9. Don't You Miss Your Baby - Jimmy Witherspoon - Jimmy Witherspoon & Panama Francis' Savoy Sultans - 3:55 - 140
10. Moten Swing - Barney Kessel - To Swing Or Not To Swing - 3:57 - 160
11. Jump Through The Window - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 2:44 - 145
12. Two O'Clock Jump - Harry James - Harry James and His Big Band - 2:19 - 150
13. Goody, Goody - Ella Fitzgerald - Something To Live For - 2:31 - 150
14. Solid As A Rock - Count Basie - Count Basie Et Son Orchestre 1950-1951 - 3:03 - 135
15. Ballin' The Jack - Kid Ory's Creole Jazz Band - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:15 - 145
16. Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho - Sidney Bechet - Sidney Bechet: 1949 - 3:20 - 175
17. Daphne - Django Reinhardt - Django Reinhardt 3: Minor Swing - 3:03 - 210
18. Life Begins When You're In Love - Billie Holiday - Lady Day: The Master Takes And Singles - 3:02 - 180
19. Jump Session - Slim Gaillard - 1938-1939 - 2:35 - 160
20. All I Know - The Countdown Quartet - Sadlack's Stomp - 2:56 - 125
21. I'm Alone Because I Love You - The Palmetto Bug Stompers - Live @ D.B.A. - 3:29 - 150
22. Everybody Loves My Baby - Asylum Street Spankers - What? And Give Up Show Biz? - 3:20 - 205 (In retrospect, this would make a great song for a routine, but it is a horrible song for social dancing.)
23. High Shelf Booze - Eilen Jewell - Letters from Sinners & Strangers - 3:38 - 125 (This is my latest vaguely Wade-in-the-Wateresque groove track.)
24. Down south camp meeting - Svend Asmussen - Still Fiddling - 3:41 - 145
25. Bizet Has His Day - Les Brown - Essential Jazz Masters - 2:22 - 165
26. I Sent For You Yesterday And Here You Come Today - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman - 3:09 - 160
27. Hoodle-Addle - Ray McKinley Orchestra - You Came A Long Way From St. Louis - 3:21 - 140
28. For Dancers Only - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 2:41 - 150
29. South - The Solomon Douglas Swingtet - Live at the Legion - 3:17 - 182
30. Shout, Sister, Shout! - Sister Rosetta Tharpe - The Gospel of the Blues - 2:41 - 145
31. It's You Who Taught It To Me - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:42 - 160
32. Sunny Side Of The Street - James Booker - A Taste Of Honey Vol. 1 - 2:43 - 125
33. Tain't What You Do - Jimmie Lunceford - Jimmie Lunceford - 3:06 - 160 (Shim Sham for Frankie, followed by one of his favorite tunes.)
34. Shiny Stockings - Count Basie - April In Paris - 5:17 - 120
35. I'm Beginning To See The Light - Ella Fitzgerald & Duke Ellington - Compact Jazz - 3:26 - 132
36. Hey, Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 3: Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop - 3:21 - 140
37. A Viper's Moan - Willie Bryant And His Orchestra - 1935-1936 - 3:25 - 150
38. Four Or Five Times - Jimmy Noone - Jimmy Noone - 3:08 - 160
39. Cole Slaw - Louis Jordan - Louis Jordan And His Tympani Five, Volume 1 - 2:44 - 135 (This last one was a birthday jam for Jonathan.)

Hawkeye Swing Festival, 4/9/2010

This past weekend I had the chance to DJ, teach (with Jenna), and dance myself silly at the Hawkeye Swing Festival in Iowa City, IA. It was a fantastic time, particularly due to the quality of the live music that was featured: Robert Bell and the Hot Swing Combo (who were captivating as always), Davina & the Vagabonds (first time I've heard them...more on that in another post), and the Solomon Douglas Swingtet. Since my DJ responsibilities were limited to band breaks and the competitions, I had plenty of time to dance, which was great. Below is a recap of the music I played on the band breaks and for the competitions.

Friday evening I played these songs during the first band break:

• Pick-a-Rib - The Bob Wilber & Dany Doritz Quintet - Memories of you : Lionel and Benny - 3:03 - 155
• You Can Stay But That Jive's Got To Go - Dusty Brooks - Dusty Brooks - Swing Time Jive - 2:38 - 155
• Honeysuckle Rose - Django Reinhardt - The Swing Sessions Volume 1 - 2:49 - 180
• Hey! Stop Kissin' My Sister - Fats Waller - The Unique Mr. Waller - 2:50 - 190
• Ain't Misbehavin' - Sidney Bechet - Perdido Street Blues - 2:52 - 145
• I'm Crazy 'Bout My Baby - Louis Armstrong - Satch Plays Fats - 4:28 - 162

Following that, we ran the Jack & Jill prelimary round. Just like last year, I tried to balance the tune selections across the two heats of dancers, playing about a minute and a half each of a medium, slow, and faster tune. Heat 1:

• Sent For You Yesterday And Here You Come Today - Benny Goodman - B.G. In Hi-Fi - 3:05 - 155
• Ballin' The Jack - Kid Ory's Creole Jazz Band - This Kid's The Greatest! - 3:15 - 145
• Back Bay Shuffle - Artie Shaw - His First Three Bands: 1936-1940 - 3:15 - 190

Heat 2:

• Two O'Clock Jump - Harry James - Trumpet Blues: The Best Of Harry James - 3:00 - 155
• Four or Five Times - Joe Williams - For Dancers Only! - 4:48 - 135
• Boo-Wah Boo-Wah - Cab Calloway - Are You Hep To The Jive? - 2:49 - 190

During the second band break, there was only time for two tracks of social dancing...

• Betcha Nickel - Ella Fitzgerald - My Heart Belongs to Daddy - 2:51 - 160
• Little Jazz - Roy Eldridge - Little Jazz Giant - 3:06 - 191

...before the finals of the Jack & Jill. The first song was an all-skate warm-up, the second song was for the spotlight:

• It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) - Lionel Hampton - Lionel Hampton Story 1: Hot Mallets - 3:15 - 180
• Stitches - Panama Francis & his Savoy Sultans - Gettin' in the groove (Paris 1971) - 2:41 - 205

I had to re-start "Stitches" once since it is only 4 choruses long (there were five couples in the finals, times two spotlights each, times eight 8-counts per spotlight makes 80 8-counts or 5 choruses). Picking spot-light songs is tricky--it's hard to anticipate what music will be best, since you don't know what sort of dancers will be in the finals until a couple minutes beforehand. I've found that it's definitely helpful to note down the length (in choruses) and phrasing of any songs you are considering for a spotlight competition. More on that later as well.

After the band's second set, I played a few more songs for social dancing:

• My Blue Heaven - Preservation Hall Jazz Band - Songs of New Orleans - 5:21 - 148
• Perdido Street Blues - Louis Armstrong - The Complete Decca Studio Master Takes 1940-1949 - 3:08 - 145
• Ya Gotta See Baby Tonight - Louis Prima - Louis Prima et son orchestre : 1945 - 2:24 - 145
• Georgia Grind - Louis Armstrong - Satchmo: A Musical Autobiography - 3:19 - 115
• 'Tain't No Use - Maxine Sullivan - The Lady's In Love With You - 3:48 - 125

At 1 in the morning, we ran the "Slow-Lindy/Blues" strictly competition. Here are the songs from the preliminary round:

• Evil Gal Blues - Aretha Franklin - Aretha Sings The Blues - 2:43 - 118
• Soothe Me - The Simms Twins - Sam Cooke's SAR Records Story: 1959 - 1965 (Disc 2) - 2:17 - 110
• Don't Go No Further - Koko Taylor - Old School - 3:39 - 100

And the finals:

• My Daddy Rocks Me - Benny Goodman - Benny Goodman et son orchestre: 1945 Vol.2 - 2:48 - 100
• It Takes Two To Tango - Lester Young - Lester Young : 1951-1952 - 3:14 - 100
• Blooz ... First Thaingh 'Dis Moanin' - Wycliffe Gordon - Originals Only - 5:23 - 85

Followed by one last tune for general dancing (I wanted to use this one in the slow contest, but decided against it because mid-way through the song, the tempo doubles):

• Minnie the Moocher - Duke Ellington - Recollections Of The Big Band Era - 2:46 - 100

New album from the Solomon Douglas Swingtet

Just got through listening to the new album from the Solomon Douglas Swingtet, called Live at the Legion. I'm very impressed and itching to start spinning it at dances. It's a live recording, so the tunes all have a great energy to them, and they're designed to be dancer-friendly. I'm sure the Fizz crowd is going to dig a lot of the tracks, especially "Splanky," "South," and "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo."

As on the his previous album Swingmatism, Solomon draws on classic jazz tunes from the best bands in history, including many that swing dancers are sure to be familiar with. Solomon arranged all the tracks on the album based on recordings from the Count Basie Orchestra, Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, and others. He seems to have focused on two different eras. First, there are a number of tracks from the New Testament 1950's/60's/70's period of both Basie and Ellington: tunes like "Splanky" and "I Needs to Be Bee'd With" that I tend to think of more appealing to dancers that like groovy tunes. "Splanky" is taken at a nice, comfortable clip, not too slow, full of energy and featuring a nice tenor sax solo from Galen Green.

The other period that Solomon focuses on is the early swing era, from 1928 to the early 30's, with arrangements like "South" (based on a Bennie Moten tune), "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" (from Duke Ellington), and "Singin' the Blues Till My Daddy Comes Home" (for which Solomon cites both a Beiderbecke/Trumbauer recording from 1927 and a Fletcher Henderson recording from 1931). It's really great to have some fresh recordings of old tunes like these with good, crisp recording quality. I LOVE early Duke Ellington, but I just can't play the original recording of "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" at a dance--the sound quality would be too much of a turn-off for most of the crowd. Speculating here, but these choices seem to be following the broader trend among bands (as on George Gee's latest album "If Dreams Come True") of exploring music that was popular during the earlier part of the swing era, and among many dancers who seem to have become interested in a broader range of music (one favorite example: this routine uses music from a 1929 recording by Margaret Webster and Clarence Williams).

All in all, a great outing from the Swingtet, a solid addition to any DJ's book, and an album I'd recommend to dancers for their personal collections--it even includes a BPM for each track. It makes me really eager to hear this group live at a dance...