Jazz Focus

Louis Armstrong's first recordings in Chicago after over a year away in New York - the first Hot Fives and accompaniments to Hociel Thomas, Chippie Hill and Blanche Calloway.

Louis Armstrong recorded a little of everything over a career in the studios that spanned almost a half a century.  Here are examples of Cuban, Mexican, French, Irish and African songs he made his own!

Great sides from 1927-34 led by and featuring Hawaiian musicians active in Los Angeles and New York- Andy Iona, Sol K. Bright, Sol Hoopi, King Nawahi and others using traditional steel guitar and string ensembles enlivened by horns in most cases.

Great sides featuring the largely forgotten pianist with Punch Miller, Darnell Howard, Cicero Thomas, George James, Bill Johnson and W.E. Burton among others!

Great selection of duos and rhythm section sides with the great Boston pianist backing major soloists!

Second set of great recreations of Louis' 1920's small group recordings done in 1956 - with Yank Lawson and George Barnes in addition to the All-Stars (Louis, Trummy Young, Edmond Hall, Billy Kyle, Squire Girsh, Barrett Deems)

Great recreations of Louis' 1920's small group recordings done in 1956 - with Yank Lawson and George Barnes in addition to the All-Stars (Louis, Trummy Young, Edmond Hall, Billy Kyle, Squire Girsh, Barrett Deems)

Two sessions by Freeman (with Dick Cary, George Barnes, Don Lamond) for Capitol and the rest of the George Wettling session featuring Freeman, Jonah Jones, Milt Hinton and Dave Bowman from 1955.

Two Delmark albums featuring the septuagenarian reed player Jackson with Beebe's Chicago Jazz (Bob Neighbor and others) and the octogenarian Jackson with the Salty Dogs (Lew Green, Tom Bartlett, Kim Cusack, John Cooper, Jack Kuncl, Mike Walbridge, Wayne Jones and Neighbor) playing swing tunes, originals and New Orleans standards, still at the top of his game.  

Four recordings done by Louis with Andy Iona's Islanders, one ("Song of the Islands") from his Autobiography album and three non-Louis sides by Mannie Klein and His Swing-Hulas!

Live sides with Louis back to his roots leading a New Orleans styled jazz band - Edmond Hall, Albert Nicholas, George Brunies, Pops Foster, Danny Barker, Baby Dodds, Art Hodes, Ellis Larkins, Wild Bill Davison, Irving Randolph, Henderson Chambers, Johnny Williams and Jimmy Crawford

The great trumpet player in a selection of mainstream sides done for Vogue with Alix Combelle's band (including Jean-Claude Pelletier), his own sextet for Bethlehem (with George Clarke, Urbie Green, Kenny Kersey, Milt Hinton and Osie Johnson) and a Jazztone session with Sammy Price's Kaycee Stompers with Price, Vic Dickenson, Pete Brown, Milt Hinton and Osie Johnson.

Al Sudhalter was one of the busiest musicians on the dance band scene in Boston in the 1920's and 30's . . .he refused chances to go to New York or London.  Here is he heard in radio broadcasts on WNAC with a jam session group, Herb Marsh and His Orchestra and his own Voice of the Saxophone program from 1932.  The rest is from several Ristic albums made in England in 1968 and 69 with the Anglo-Ame...

The great trumpeter Jones is here featured on two sides with Bechet for Blue Note (with Jimmy Archey, Wellman Braud, Manzie Johnson and Buddy Weed) and several for Vogue (with a French rhythm section including Andre Persiany) in addition to his own sextet recording for Bethlehem (with Edmond Hall, Vic Dickenson, Kenny Kersey, Pops Foster and Osie Johnson)

Louis' first recordings after his return from Europe in 1935 inaugurated his career as a crooner . . pop tunes featuring him with the Luis Russell band.

Recordings of a variety of Gershwin tunes featuring Louis Armstrong with Oscar Peterson and Ella Fitzgerald.

Many piano players took advantage of player-piano technology to record their own compositions during the Jazz and Blues era of the 1920's.  While the playback didn't give a true sense of the performer (no dynamics), it can show a lot of what made those piano players integral to the New Orleans, New York and Chicago scenes.  Featuring Clarence Jones, Clarence "Jelly" Johnson, Lem Fowler, Steve Lewi...

Long-lived band from Buenos Aires, the Fenix Jazz Band recorded frequently during the 1980's and 90's and demonstrated a commitment to 1920's Jazz and Ragtime with driving performances of tunes associated with Ellington, Clarence Williams, Morton, Oliver, Armstrong, Bix and many others.

The short-lived barrelhouse pianist recorded a handful of solos and great blues accompaniments heard here - with Sodarisa Miller, Monette, Moore, Priscilla Stewart and Alexander Robinson, but mostly Jimmy Blythe!

Two Victor sessions before and during the filming of the film New Orleans.  With Vic Dickenson, Kid Ory, Barney Bigard, Charlie Beal, Bud Scott, Allan Reuss, Red Callender, Zutty Singleton and Minor Hall.

First sessions by the All-Stars for Victor, with Jack Teagarden, Bobby Hackett, Peanuts Hucko, Ernie Caceres, Dick Cary, Cozy Cole, Al Casey, Arvell Shaw, Sid Catlett, Barney Bigard.

Two GHB and one Stomp Off album present the Portland/Atlanta cornetist fronting a group drawn from the classic Salty Dog lineup - Tom Bartlett, Kim Cusack, Wayne Jones and Mike Walbridge with Debbie Schreyer, Bill Rutan and West Coast vests Bill Carroll, Wally Rose, Pete Clute and Bob Helm.  Great West Coast Trad!

Four great 1944 sessions for Commodore featuring Muggsy Spanier's Ragtimers - with Miff Mole, Lou McGarity, Pee Wee Russell, Ernie Caceres, Dick Cary, Gene Schroeder, Boomie Richman, Eddie Condon, Bob Casey, Bob Haggart, Joe Grauso and George Wettling . . style-setting Dixieland!

Glenn Miller's first lead alto player Hal McIntyre left that group in 1941 to form his own big band, which owed much more to Ellington's sound.  Tenor saxophonists Dave Matthews, Johnny Hayes and Willie Baker, trombonist Jim Emert, trumpeters Sal La Perche, Bobby Guyer and Joe Weidman and arrangers Matthews, McIntyre, Dan Hurd and Howard Gibbeling all contributed to an immensely talented but under...

Great sides recreating some of Louis' earlier recorded hits - with JC Higginbotham (tbn), Charlie Holmes (alto), Bingie Madison (clt), Joe Garland (tenor), Luis Russell (p), Pops Foster (bass), and Sid Catlett (drums)