WTJU Marathon

The WTJU Jazz Marathon was a marathon that Bob helped to host in 1990. Over the course of this marathon, Bob shows an impressive amount of knowledge about jazz music in the 1920s and 1930s.

Transcript:

(The segment with Bob begins at Disc 2)

Timiny: K, you're listening to the WTJU jazz marathon for 1990, my name is Timiny (sp?), I'm here in the studio with Bob Chandler, who's prepared an excellent show for us today, of music including jugs, kazoos and washboards. Some really dynamite stuff from between-made between 1928 and 1934. So I'm gonna go ahead and turn the mic over to Bob and I wanna urge everybody in the audience to make a pledge for support of community radio here in Charlottesville, Virginia. The numbers down here to make a pledge are 924-3418 and 924-3959. And Bob, if you'd be so kind, tell us about this music you're about to play for us.

Bob: OK, this is jazzy jugs, kazoos and washboards. It's a style of American jazz that's been far too long overlooked. The musical is a jug, a bottle or even a pipe will serve as well. The hat spitting, and vocalizing into the player can produce a brooding, resonant sound. Not dissimilar to that of a tuba or a string bass. Larger glass vessels and earthenware demijons does produce a full boom. The player may alter the sound by blowing into the jug at different angles. Singers who like to vocalize through a kazoo, a submarine-like look-like toy (?) then imparts a buzzing sound to the vocal sound similar to that of a comb and paper. One who would want to give it more volume might add an oral funnel, which gives it direction, and carries it further. Another related domestic item, the corrogated (?) washboard, a rubbing board, gave rise to the noted rubbing sounds of the washer window. Its surface gives a stacatto beat on a board or similar implement is drawn across the washboards, and its potential as a rhythm instrument was not missed. The players often wore metal thimbles on his fingers to obtain a crisp, rattling sound, more satisfying to the Blues era than the drums were. Cowbells, wood blocks, pans, wire brushes, wooden rods, and other embellishments were added to create excitement and tone color for the rhythmic beat of the music. So here they are, fifteen obscure performances, from 1928 to 1934. Performance number one, is "Farewell Blues", August the 17th, 1934, New York Personnel, The Georgia Washboard Stompers. Chick Webb is the celebrated trumpeteer, Taft Jordan is the star of the session, surrounded by saxophonists Dave Page, Ben Smith and Carl Wade. Clarence Prophet is at the piano, Steve Washington is doubling banjo and guitar, Ghost Howell is on the bass, and Jake Fenderson is on the washboard, makes this performance really swing! You listen for good breaks by all the personnel in the band, and good, good rhythm by Fenderson on the washboard.

("Farewell Blues" plays)

Bob: Okay, now we goin' on performance number two, which is Tight Like That. This is November the 9th, 1928 with Chicago Personnel, Tampa Red's Hokum Jug Band. It's a great group of Chicago musicians featuring kazoo, guitar and jug by Hudson Whittaker. Tampa Red's guitar, Thomas A. Dorsey's on the piano and the washboard, Frankie "Half Pint" Jackson, vocals interact to make this a great session. Listen for some very good kazoo and jugs, and notice how Half Pint Jackson laughs like scat singing. Very unusual.

("Tight Like That" plays)

Bob: Okay, now we goin' performance number three. Barrelhouse Stomp, which was done March 13th, 1931. Again with Chicago people, the State Street Ramblers. Alfred Bell is singing and strumming washboard, as well as playing the kazoo, Roy Palmer is on trombone, Darryl Howard of New Orleans is on clarinet, Jimmy Blythe, the great Jimmy Blythe is on piano, and Ed Hudson on banjo. The talking is by Alfred Bell. You listen for Howard's clarinet feature, kazoo takes the place of the trumpet throughout so if you think you hear a trumpet, you're not hearing a trumpet, you're hearing a kazoo. (Light laugh) Very good washboard and kazoo. Notice how the trombone takes the place of the jug and string bass when the kazoo takes the lead.

("Barrelhouse Stomp" plays)

Bob: OK, the next one is "Forty and Tight". This was recorded on July 24th, 1929 by Chicago personnel, The Beal Street Washboard Band. The legendary Johnny Dodds is on clarinet, Herb Moran is on cornet, Frank Melrose is on piano, and Warren "Baby" Dodds is on washboard. Now, this is unusual because you normally hear him on drums. The teaming of the Dodge brothers when they were at their best. You listen for Baby Dodds, who's not often on the washboard, and very good interplay between the personnel, and each individual instrument of the group can be heard at any time, even if they're all playing at once. I feel this is very unselfish, and if they weren't so good, they wouldn't even try to overplay the other.

("Forty and Tight" plays)

Timiny: The Dodds brothers...hot stuff, huh? I'd like to remind you, you're listening to the 1990 Jazz Marathon. We're on the air to entertain you and also to elicit your support for community radio here in Charlottesville, Virginia. All of this music is, of course, a type that you never hear anywhere else, er, probably you've never heard anything like this in your lives, but you have to admit this is really hot jazz. We have a lot more ahead of us, um, Bob's got a whole bunch of tunes lined up. We'd like to hear the phones ring down here, it's sorta like the calm before the storm. The game isn't over yet, and there aren't too many people..active and alive, but we know you're out there, so before everything gets hot, give us a call down here, 924-3418, 924-3959, and support WTJU, so I'll turn the mic over to Bob.

Bob: This is performance number five coming up. "Sweet Lizzie" was done on October 27, 1930 by Chicago personnel again, and it was called James Cole's Washboard Band. A sizzling fiddle, of all things, by James Cole, and he's backed up by Eddie Dennis, mandolin, washboard and kazoo, Tony Bradley on guitar, you listen for the sizzling fiddle by James Cole, and good rhythm by Bradley on guitar, and the kazoos and the washboards, (laughs), they just can't be, undercut cuz they're great.

("Sweet Lizzie" plays)

Bob: And can you imagine, that that was all done with a violin, a mandolin, a kazoo and a washboard? It-it's just amazing. The next performance is known as "Crazy Blues". It was done on October the 3rd, 1934, in New York, by the Alabama Jug Band. Now, (laughs), this-this name and the people don't seem to go together but, uh, at any rate, it-it spots the eccentric cigar chewin' Willie "The Lion" Smith on piano, and includes Ed Allen's cornet, Cecil Scott's clarinet, Ikey Robinson on banjo, Cyrus St. Clair on bass, Clarence Todd on kazoo, Floyd Casey on washboard, and Clarence Williams blowing zany, highly emotional notes into his jug. It also adds a Ham and Cabbage Trio composed of Williams, Robinson and Todd. Listen for some great jug by Williams, and very interesting washboard by Floyd Casey, which sounds almost like brushes on a snare drum.

("Crazy Blues" plays)

Links:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdlHvwJ22mM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jn19ZFhN97E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clMw0ntg384 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRGeCpPBE38 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkaZd6IS93A http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TD-olCmSWuk