Johnny Dodds Archives - Paul – and some of that Jazz

From the Record Shelves #224 – Indigo Stomp – There have been clarinet players all over the world who wanted to play like Johnny Dodds. I’ve had the pleasure of playing gigs with a few of them. Cy Laurie from England, Matthias Seuffert from Germany, and Claus Forchhammer (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #191 – Alligator Blues – Today I listen to a 78 rpm record with material from a classic session. Between May 7th and 14th, 1927 Louis Armstrong recorded one masterpiece after another when his studio group had been augmented from (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #181 – Dippermouth Blues – The two musically sympathetic Dorsey brothers could still cooperate when these sessions were made. Both were already experienced in the jazz idiom and had a technique on their instruments that few could match (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #174 – Joe Turner Blues – This is another lucky day, starting with the big round sound from the great Johnny Dodds’ clarinet coming out of the speakers. In 1927, “Johnny Dodds’ Black Bottom Stompers” made an attempt to revive (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #140 – Too Tight. Even if the main ingredient is missing, there is a lot of King Oliver connections in this band that played at Kelly’s Stable in Chicago and recorded for Victor in 1929. Five of the six musicians were members of King Oliver’s (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #135 – Adam and Eve Had the Blues. Side two of the LP has eight numbers where Louis Armstrong and Jimmie Noone played together in the accompanying group, with many glimpses of their virtuosity. I may come back to that, but today (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #117 – The Joys. Jimmie O’Bryant (1896-1928), was a today obscure almost forgotten clarinet player. Though he was not at the very top he still was able to do performances on record that were mistaken for the great Johnny Dodds (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #115 – High Society. I have an extensive double CD with the Six and Seven-Eight String Band, but today I play the LP that that was my first encounter with this classic New Orleans group. When you read the line-up of the band (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #108 – It’s Murder. There’s a lot of good jazz with New Orleans roots here, by Johnny Dodds, Red Allen and Lil Armstrong as leaders. And it’s the last mentioned with her “Swing Orchestra” that I choose to listen to today (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #65 – Chicago Mess Around. When Paramount made recordings in Chicago in the 20s the musical direction was given among others to Lovie Austin. She had a solid musical education and was at the time working at the Monogram Theater in the city (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #44 – Salty Dogs. When Johnny Dodds arrived in Chicago from New Orleans he was not so young, 28 years and with a fully developed clarinet style. He had the ability to (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #26 – 29th and Dearborn. Like another icon of early jazz, pianist Jelly Roll Morton, Johnny Dodds was unfortunate to have his life ended just before the revival took place. After leaving New Orleans to join King Oliver at 28 years of age (…) read more and listenread more and listen