From the Studio #10 - DinahFrom the Studio #10 – Dinah – Here is a jam on Dinah. The tune is from Akst-Lewis-Young and was published in 1925. Ethel Waters sang it, and Jean Goldkette’s Orchestra made an instrumental record. Other memorable versions are the ones of Bing Crosby with (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #201 - Memories of YouFrom the Record Shelves #201 – Memories of You – Even if I often delve into more obscure things, I now and then have to play a Louis Armstrong record just to set things straight. Like many other successful artists in the US, he and his managers could choose to (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Studio #6 - C’est si bonFrom the Studio #6 – C’est si bon – C’est si bon was recorded by Yves Montand and had, as far as I know, a moderate success in France, but when Louis Armstrong did his version, “C’est si bon, people say that in France,” (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #191 - Alligator BluesFrom 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 #175 - On the Sunny Side of the StreetFrom the Record Shelves #175 – On the Sunny Side of the Street – This is a great recording, but somehow hidden. I don’t think that I ever had it on an LP, but I had it recorded on reel-to-reel tape from the radio. In the beginning of the 30s, Louis Armstrong (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #174 - Joe Turner BluesFrom 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 #166 - Lazy Woman's BluesFrom the Record Shelves #166 – Lazy Woman’s Blues – I used to transcribe what Louis Armstrong played and then go to our rehearsal place a few houses down the street and practice it. There is a lot to learn from those tracks; Armstrong’s choice of notes (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #158 - Someday You’ll Be SorryFrom the Record Shelves #158 – Someday You’ll Be Sorry – It must be decades since I’ve listened to this album, but way back then I did it a lot. As it happens most often when you listen to something with Louis Armstrong, your foot starts going up and down (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #135 - Adam and Eve Had the BluesFrom 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 #127 - So TiredFrom the Record Shelves #127 – So Tired. I have an inevitable association with this record. In the beginning of the 1980s the English very elegant and polished Pasadena Roof Orchestra came to Malmö to play an engagement during couple of weeks. I went to listen (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #116 - Santa Claus BluesFrom the Record Shelves #116 – Santa Claus Blues. Christmas is not fun if you’re alone and cannot participate in the warm embrace of your family and friends. Luckily it never has happened to me but here’s a reminder that it’s the situation for some (…) read more and listenread more and listen

From the Record Shelves #109 - I Ain’t Got NobodyFrom the Record Shelves #109 – I Ain’t Got Nobody. This volume three in the complete output on records by the blues singer Ida Cox has a lot of good music. There are the duets with Papa Charlie Jackson and also “Coffin Blues” one of the saddest tales ever put on a disc. (…) read more and listenread more and listen