When it rains it pours. No that won't due. This isn't "rain" at all. Good
things come in threes.
Anyway, don't rent a movie tonight. Ken Burns' documentary "Jazz", is on
again. Tonight it's Episode 3, "Our Language", covering 1924 - 1928.
To say that I'm enjoying this is another understatement. Remember the scene
in Cameron Crowe's movie "Almost Famous", when he bumps into the Zeppelin
fan in New York City? The guy just keeps saying:
"It's all happening!"
Lama
PS- You can jump into this series anywhere and still get something. If you
missed episode 2, (1917-1924) Edward Kennedy Ellington left the dizzying
variety of social groups in Washington D.C. for New York. He was such a
natty dresser that he acquired the nickname, "The Duke". (I learned that
Harlem is almost next to Manhattan, separated only by Central Park.) Blacks
and whites were not integrated in bands yet. The white king of Jazz in NY
(Paul Whiteman) and the black king of Jazz in NY (Fletcher Henderson) traded
arrangements and played after hours, after the speakeasies closed.
Louis Armstrong was being coaxed to leave King Oliver's band in Chicago by
his new wife, Lil Harden. She wanted her husband to play first chair
instead of supporting King Oliver. At the end of the episode, Louis
Armstrong brought his Nawlins / Chicago experience to Fletcher Henderson's
band in New York and started backing up vocalists on recording dates.
After listening to the Whiteman band for a long time, Gershwin incorporated
Jazz elements into a new piece called "Rhapsody In Blue". Is this all cool
or what?
