BACK TO AB FABLE
CORRECTIONS AND ADDITIONS TO AB FABLE CD LINER NOTES
AND OTHER LINER NOTES BY ANTHONY BARNETT INCLUDING
MOSAIC VERVE STUFF SMITH
FROG EDDIE SOUTH
JAZZ ORACLE EDDIE SOUTH
HEP STUFF SMITH
Small or obvious typos are not noted
Last updated May 2007
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ABCD2-004/5 Stuff Smith and Robert Crum, Complete 1944 Rosenkrantz Apartment Transcriptions
Crum did not follow Smith to New York in the autumn of 1944. In fact, he arrived in New York from Chicago in late spring or early summer, well before Smith’s August arrival.
read: . . . Gold Seal with ex-Joe Venuti drummer and Louis . . ., not Gold Star with Louis . . .
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ABCD1-006 Ray Perry, Complete 1944 C. W. French and 1945 Rosenkrantz Apartment Transcriptions
read: Wilson Ernest[ine] Myers, not Ernest Wilson Myers
read: “How High the Moon”, not “High High the Moon”
read: Sherman Freeman, not Jeremy Freeman
read: That year [1946], and again in 1947 and 1949–1950, he recorded boppish alto with Illinois Jacquet., i.e. add: and 1949–1950
read: A two-title recording on violin and alto of a trio including Jaki Byard is currently unlocated., not No other recordings are known.
Ray Perry did not die in the fanciful way we reported. He died of Bright’s disease, or glomerulonephritis. We are grateful to his daughter Jule Byrd and grandson Alton Byrd for setting the record straight, and we offer them our apologies.
We describe our c.1941 liner photo of Perry as showing him playing a Vega electric violin. This may not be true. The 1941 Down Beat ad to which we refer does indeed show him playing a Vega, but that is the Vega stick-like instrument known from a 1939 Vega catalogue (which also includes a different photo of Perry.) In our liner photo he is playing a conventionally-shaped violin with a pickup. We do not know whether or not this is an instrument personalized for him by Vega.
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ABCD2-007/8 Stuff Smith, 1944–1946, Studio, Broadcast, Concert and Apartment Performances
disc 1
tracks 15 / 16 read: 12” 78 V-Disc, not 10” 78 V-Disc.
Of the four Mildred Bailey shows on which Stuff Smith was a guest, two complete dress rehearsals are known to be extant: 1 September 1944; 24 November 1944. Had we known in time, the 24 November 1944 dress rehearsal for “Humoresque” could have been included, alongside the 1 September 1944 dress rehearsal “Bugle Call Rag” which is included.
Also missing from the CD is a newly located part of the lost 26 August 1944 Rosenkrantz apartment session with Jimmy Jones. The located part is included in limited edition not-for-sale advance subscription bonus CD AB Fable XABCD1-X013 Bownus 2005 Almost Like Being in Bop
disc 2
tracks 1 / 2: newly located incomplete dub lacquers incl. the beginning and ending of “Fugue in Swing” nevertheless include a more complete spoken intro and reveals that this intro is not spoken by Crum, but by mc Barry Ulanov.
Two further released titles from St Louis, December 1946, have come to light on 78 Town and Country 503 “Take a Walk” matrix 509 / “Won’t You Take a Lesson in Love?” matrix 511. Only one example of the disc is currently known. CD release scheduled 2008.
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ABCD1-009 Eddie South Solo, Trio and Orchestra, 1940–1947
tracks 19 / 20: the date is very late 1945, not ?October 1946. It is now known that the film was first released at least as early as 31 March 1946.
read: Zigeuner in Rhythm, not Ziguener. Konrad Nowakowski points out that although the published sheet music reproduced on our back liner reads “Tzigane in Rhythm” this may have been a publisher decision and South may well have preferred the form “Zigeuner in Rhythm” since this is how the mc introduces track 12, as well as this being the form found in the Columbia ledger for track 4. If so, our CD should be titled Zigeuner in Rhythm. However, track 18 is introduced by the mc as “Tzigane in Rhythm”.
read: cut in Columbus, Ohio, not Cincinnati
a second copy of 78 Franwil 1012 / 1013 has come to light
read: pressed in 1947, not in the early 1950s
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ABCD1-010 Ginger Smock, Los Angeles Studio and Demo, 1946–1958
Ginger Smock’s 1947 interview in which she said she had recorded for Exclusive is still not proven as this newly discovered session is for Excelsior. Unfortunately, the labels and discographies were listing her as E. Colbert [Emma Colbert—Colbert being her name from a brief marriage] and discographies were giving her instrument as clarinet, although the labels gives electric violin, which is how we came to overlook the following session, nevertheless inexcusably. This session predates her RCA Victor 1946 session previously cited as her first – research assistance courtesy Dieter Salemann; Klaus Teubig.
JOE ALEXANDER WITH RED CALLENDER QUINTET
Joe Lutcher (br), Ginger Smock [as E. Colbert] (el vn), Willard McDaniels (pn), Red Callender (sb), Lucky Enois (dm), Joe Alexander (vc)
Los Angeles, July or August 1946
a OR 172 A I Woke Up with a Teardrop in My Eye (René, Jeffries) – Alexander (vc)
b OR 173 B Donkey Serenade (Friml, Stothart) – Alexander (vc)
78 Excelsior OR-172/173 (a,b)
NOTE A / B do not represent takes, only discs sides, each one of which has a different number.
Ginger Smock is present on John Erby and John Costa, Jr’s 78 label A Natural Hit! 103 and 105, as well as 104 by Ray Wheaton which we describe, though do not include for space reasons, but date incorrectly. It was apparently released September 1949, not late 1948, though September is a little early for a Christmas coupling. 103 is, in fact, different takes of our unidentified “demo” tracks 11, 12 and explains why Smock thought, incorrectly, that the vocalist might be Wheaton. Extraordinarily, a copy of 103 came to light in a London junk shop in March 2006. 105 has not been auditioned. The following discographical detail is mostly, but not totally, contained in Bob Eagle, “Re-Discovered: Arranger, Composer, Teacher and Master Musician John Erby, The Singing Pianist”, Record Research, 121 (New York, March, 1973), 1, 3-5, and should be used to amend all relevant incorrect information in our liner. John Erby and Monette Moore were earlier briefly married – research assistance courtesy Derek Coller; Konrad Nowakowski; Howard Rye.
RAY WHEATON WITH THE HARMONY GIRLS
Ginger Smock (vn), Nina Russell (og), John Erby (celesta on (AN-5) only, pn on (AN-6) only, ar), Ray Wheaton (vc)
Los Angeles, released, according to Eagle, September 1949
a AN-5-8 This Christmas I Give Love (Costa, Erby)
b AN-6-2 I Offer You (Erby)
78 A Natural Hit! 104 (a,b) – released – Smock released copy viewed
MONETTE MOORE THE SALESLADY OF SONGS AND HER SALESMEN WITH THE HARMONY GIRLS
Tee Davis (ts), Ginger Smock (vn), Nina Russell (og), Jerome Tyrone Parsons (pn), Addison Farmer (sb), Freddie Baker-Jackson (dm), John Erby (md), James Ross (ar), Monette Moore (vc)
Los Angeles, released, according to Gart, July 1949
c AN-7-? Show Girl Blues (Moore, Costa, Erby)
d AN-8-2 That’s My Specialty (Erby)
78 A Natural Hit! 105 (c,d) – ?released – not viewed
JEROME TY PARSONS WITH HIS RHYTHM-ITES
Ginger Smock (vn), Jerome Tyrone Parsons (pn, vc, ar), Tee Davis on (f) only (celesta), Addison Farmer (sb), Freddie Baker-Jackson (dm)
Los Angeles, released ?1949
e AN-9-1 I Couldn’t Take It – CD released test
f AN-9-2 I Couldn’t Take It (Costa, Erby)
g AN-10-1 Guess I’d Better Knock on Wood – CD released test
h AN-10-2 Guess I’d Better Knock on Wood (Erby)
78 test (e,g) – Smock damaged test viewed
78 A Natural Hit! 103 (f,h) – released – released copy viewed
CD AB Fable ABCD1-010 (e,g) Ginger Smock – uses the damaged 78 test takes because the 78 release was not known at the time
track 20 read: Brazil [aka Aquarelo do Brasil], not [Aquarelo do] Brazil
tracks 25 / 26 add: ? (sb)
track 27 read: ? (sb)
read: Joe Pass was a Las Vegas colleague. , not LA colleague.
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ABCD2-011/12 I Like Be I Like Bop and accompanying booklet “Almost Like Being in Bop” herewith termed ALBB [not to be confused with the title of CD XABCD1-X013 which also carries the title Almost Like Being in Bop]
disc 1
track 3 personnel add: J. C. Heard (dm)
track 8, header read: Ginger Smock with Vivien Garry Quintet
track 12, track listings read: Wilk’s Bop, not Wilk’s Bob
track 22: Jack McKinney reveals in IAJRC Journal, 39/2 (May 2006) that he is the source of the Handy aircheck.
track 24 – see ALBB p32 fol.
track 25 personnel read: Julio Bella (vn), Billy Marr (pn), Andy Hallup (sb), Billy Kallao (dm) [Marty Kallao (gt) plays on some of the other LP Fortune tracks] – research assistance Lauren Slepsky, cousin of Bella and granddaughter of Hallup; Kevin Coffey – see also ALBB p33 fol.
disc 2
track 13, matrix no. read: K431, not K531
track 19: Dieter Salemann tells us that the “announcer” whose voice we edited out is, in fact, Helmut Zacharias himself, confirmed by Zacharias. Accordingly, we should not have edited him out. Also, Amiga was an East German label and should not be designated [DR].
ALBB
p6: When the “alternate” take of “Caravan” by Gillespie incl. Smith was first released on LP considerable obfuscation was caused. It is not, after all, rejected assumed take 1 but take 6, the last take. The original 78 released take is, in fact, mainly take 4 but with the tag ending of take 6 grafted on to replace a breakdown in take 4 during the recording of the tag ending. This makes a nonsense of our long-held belief that “Smith’s solo had yet to find the resolution of the searing master take” since the searing resolution took place before the LP released “alternate” take. This is an example of a seemingly informative liner note not being as accurate as one would like. It also posits the question: how much editing in the form of patching in, grafting on and the like took place during the 78 era—research assistance courtesy Chris Sheridan from his definitive Gillespie discography which is nearing completion.
p12: Ray Perry did not die in the fanciful way we reported. He died of Bright’s disease, or glomerulonephritis. We are grateful to his daughter Jule Byrd and grandson Alton Byrd for setting the record straight, and we offer them our apologies.
p16: We describe our c.1941 liner photo of Perry as showing him playing a Vega electric violin. This may not be true. The 1941 Down Beat ad to which we refer does indeed show him playing a Vega, but that is the Vega stick-like instrument known from a 1939 Vega catalogue (which also includes a different photo of Perry.) In our liner photo he is playing an onventionally-shaped violin with a pickup. We do not know whether or not this is an instrument personalized for him by Vega. Accordingly, our conjecture that Ginger Smock may have been the first to record jazz on a solid- or tune-body, in her case a stick-like Rickenbacker, would be wrong if Perry played the stick-like Vega on his Hampton recordings, though he may not have.
p17: We wrote: “Apparently, nowhere else in Europe during this period [late 1940s–early 1950s] . . . is there a discernable trace of bebop violin.” We are glad we wrote “Apparently,” because it is not quite true. Hans Westerberg has told us about Finnish violinist and alto saxophonist Kalevi Viitamäki. Viitamäki was dedicated to playing bebop in the late 1940s. In Helsinki in 1948 and 1949 he recorded two titles, “Groovin’ High” and “Northwest Passage”, with his accordionist brother Kauko Viitamäki. Unfortunately, from our point of view, he played only alto sax on these recordings. Later, he abandoned bebop and found his heart in swing and popular music. He recorded his own album, Grand Old Swing, mostly on violin, but also on alto and baritione sax, in Helsinki in 1997.
Moving on to the mid 1950s, Dieter Salemann has drawn our attention to Polish-born German violinist Helmut Weglinski who made several bop-inflected recordings, in particular, of relevance to us, in 1955–1956, including “Esquire Bounce”, one of which should have found a place in I Like Be I Like Bop.
p19 where appropriate add: Bacsik, uncredited, plays lead violin with The Hungarian Gypsy Orchestra on the 1966 New York Audio Fidelity album Nora Kovach and Istvan Rabovsky’s Zigani Ballet.
p28 read: with Stuff Smith on a 1950 telecast., not . . . a late 1940s telecast.
pp31, 60: There were, in fact, nine, not eight, titles recorded by Vinnie Burke with Gerry Mulligan incl. Dick Wetmore, though only eight were originally scheduled for unreleased LP World Pacific WP1252 Stringtime. All nine titles have now been released, five for the first time, on 3CD Mosaic Select MS021Gerry Mulligan.
p32: The scheduled title of the unreleased Dave Coleman Transition LP was These Things by Dave Coleman. Apparently it was to contain four extended compositions. All but “Backstreet” are reputed to have been erased.
p33: Julio Bella’s real name was William Julius Margitza, as was his father Bela Ziggy’s. He was born Pittsburgh, 18 July 1934 and died Dearborn, Michigan, 16 April 1988. A cousin is tenor saxophonist Rick Margitza – research assistance courtesy Bella’s cousin, Lauren Slepsky; Kevin Coffey.
p.38: Bacsik’s year of birth is confirmed as 1926, though he liked to tell people he was ten years older.
p39: It is understood that Bacsik himself was not a father. The loss of two sons could refer to the children, fathered by another, of a companion of the time with whom he had taken up in France or it may have been a fanciful story.
p39: Bacsik’s concert on violin and guitar at Salle Walgram, Paris (photos are extant) on the same bill as Grappelli was 1963, not 1964; Bacsik appeared with his own group; it is not known for certain whether Bacsik and Grappelli also played together on stage or were simply on the same bill; they are, however, known to have played together in some informal situation or other. An earlier concert with Bacsik on guitar, tracks of which have been released, appears to date from 1962 at Antibe.
pp53–54: Regarding Paul Whiteman’s notional 1938 “All-America Swing Band”, the following year, in association with votes cast by radio editors, Whiteman ousted Al Duffy, and Stuff Smith was after all sitting alongside Venuti, South and Malneck.
p54: Smith’s 1940 “Body and Soul” aircheck is now released on CD ABCD1-015 Stuff Smith Tenor Sax Septets 1937–1942
p55: Bruce Hinkson worked in African-American concert orchestras in New York. He took solos with huge orchestras led by pianist Barry Harris at Symphony Space Theatre, New York during the 1980s. The violinist and tenor saxophonist was one and the same. He is believed to have been born 3 August 1911 and to have died 19 February 1995. Research assistance courtesy Gayle Dixon, Alan Lucas for Barry Harris.
p58: read Django . . . CD Gitane, not LP Barclay
p60: Stringsville . . . CD Collectables
p61: read: CD Dreyfus, not Drefus
p62: read: Bird and Dizzy: A Musical Tribute, not A Tribute
p74: read: Gegè Di Giacomo, not Giacome
p74: Bacsik also doubled on bass
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XABCD1-X013 Bownus 2005 Almost Like Being in Bop
read: “Thank you, Charlie”, not “Hallo, Charlie”
read: Dominique Chanson (fl on (8) only, ts on (9) only), not other way round
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ABCD1-014 Ray Nance 1949–1949 Non-Ducal Violin Featuring Ben Webster
tracks 2–8: location is very likely Dunbar Hotel. ¶The presence of Fred Guy (gt) has been questioned, in particular by Ellington specialist Bjarne Busk: “The CD with a.o. the private recordings from 1941 with Ben Webster on clarinet together with Nance, Blanton, Greer and a guitarist is out now on AB Fable ABCD1-014. The notes say that the guitar player ‘almost certainly’ is Fred Guy. It may be so, and it would be interesting to see the indications that lead to this conclusion. / If this is Fred Guy on the guitar, these recordings are the only recorded examples of solo playing by him, except a few recorded breaks with Duke Ellington. He plays intro on most of the titles, and a long solo on ‘Swingin’ in 4’. / Ken Steiner’s original research of the Ellingtonian movements in these days gave me the idea that the guitarist might be someone else, namely Alvin Junior Raglin, who of course later became Blanton’s successor in the Ellington band. / Junior Raglin lived on the West Coast at that time, and the article that Ken Steiner found and brought to our attention is Ken Freeman, ‘Music and Musicians’, California Voice (28 November 1941), p 5, where Raglin’s joining the Ellington orchestra after Blanton is reported, together with a ‘review’ of the same Junior Raglin’s fine solo guitar playing on an earlier date, apparently around June 1940 at a jam session at Frisco’s Dawn Club. / It would be fine if further research could lead to an affirmation of the identity of the guitarist on these sensational recordings, Fred Guy or Junior Raglin or somebody else.” ¶AB reponse: Because even the solos are all only chorded we firmly believe the guitarist is Guy. Henrik Wolsgaard-Iversen, of the Ben Webster Foundation, adds: “I remember that Ben once talked about Freddy Guy and said: ‘Oh, Freddy, he could play a lot of guitar—but Duke never used him as a soloist, preferred the horns . . .’” ¶There has also been some suggestion that (sb) is Junior Raglin. However, Brooks Kerr played the relevant tracks to Leonard Gaskin on 11 April 2006. Here is Gaskin’s response, relayed courtesy Steven Lasker: “Blanton but under-recorded. I detect the diatonic system peculiar to him which he invented.” ¶Dan Morgenstern recognizes Greer as the voice that encourages “Play it Ray” on track 6. ¶Our claim that these are the only known clarinet recordings by Webster is not quite right; also extant are a couple of other home recordings from a different session, though probably roughly contemporary.
track 12: in fact, Nance also plays (tp) momentarily at the very end
photo: a crop of the Apollo session photo first appeared in Esquire’s 1945 Jazz Book
sheet music folio: Nance’s Modern Rhythm Choruses, No. 2 was published by Robbins rather than Miller. It is possible that both were published by both and/or that Robbins took over Miller’s publications. Examples of the Nance in the AB Fable Archive read Miller for the original (first) series and Robbins for the new (second series). Format is similar and ads for the complete series by “Star-Soloists” are identical in both examples.
acknowledgements: read Henrik Wolsgaard-Iversen, not Iwersen
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ABCD1-015 Stuff Smith Tenor Sax Septets 1937–1942
Our set is not as complete as we thought: 78 tests of unissued take 2s of all four titles at the second Varsity session have been discovered and are now in the AB Fable Archive. We await a suitable occasion to release them.
Track 12 read: Gettin’ in the Groove (Cooper) [aka Ready, Get Set, Jump aka Ready, Set, Jump (Cooper, Raye)], not In a Little Riff (Smith)
Kjell Svahn tells us that the tune we titled “In a Little Riff” is not a Smith original but is, in fact, “Gettin’ in the Groove” by Al Cooper first recorded by Cooper’s Savoy Sultans in 1938. Later recordings, incl. ETs, of the same composition by, for example, Tiny Bradshaw, Dardanelle, Tony Pastor are variously titled “Ready, Get Set, Jump” and “Ready, Set, Jump” credited, where credit is given, to Al Cooper and Don Raye, the latter presumably lyricist.
read: Only Jonah Jones remained from the old band. (i.e. delete: . . . and bassist John Brown . . .)
read: Cole recorded the tune first, with Calloway on 17 July 1939. . ., not 1938
Al Casey in his 1962 interview with Sanley Dance reprinted in The World of Swing, says: “[. . .] Charlie Christian was my god. [. . .] I didn’t start all the single-string stuff I do now until after Fats [Waller] died [in 1943].” Casey’s 1942 airchecks with Smith show that he was, in fact, playing in this way at least a year earlier.
The photo of the Smith band with Ben Webster in which we question the identity of the pianist is confirmed as showing Sammy Price, not Clyde Hart. Location is probably Hi-Ho Club or possibly Merry-Go-Round, New Jersey, c.autumn 1938.
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ABCD1-016 Rex Stewart and Stuff Smith
“Take a Walk” turns out to date from much earlier than we thought. Smith first recorded his composition, with vocal, in December 1946 for the St Louis Town and Country label. Only one example of the disc is currently known.
We are informed that Stewart and Smith were sitting on the floor throughout this session.
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Mosaic MD4-186 The Complete Verve Stuff Smith Sessions
This release has been withdrawn because of insoluable licensing difficulties. Examples turn up occasionally at auction. Corrections were originally posted on the Mosaic website where they are no longer available. Only corrections of substance are included here.
Smith with Morton 1928, not 1923
The location of the 1951 Dizzy Gillespie Dee Gee session was Chicago, not New York
1953 WMGM airchecks eminate from L’Onyx Club, not Birdland
78 Town & Country “Nights Falls Again” coupled “Up Jumped the Devil” was recorded December 1946, not 1949. Two further titles from the same St Louis session have come to light: “Take a Walk” coupled with “Won’t You Take a Lesson in Love?”.
“Time and Again” recorded by Kenny Preston with Dud Bascomb is not Smith’s composition of the same title but an entirely different composition
The 1957 session with Oscar Peterson did find partial stereo release on two Verve tapes. Some titles on the tapes were never released on the LP while some on the LP were not on the tapes.
“Watcha Gonna Do . . .”: Smith registered his composition at Library of Congress in 1961 under the title “Whatcha Gonna Do When You Dance Past Forty-Two, Dad?”
Henri Chaix’s 1968 LP is entitled Remembers the Greats, not Salutes the Greats; it was released on Philips, not Polydor
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Frog DGF36 Eddie South: Black Gypsy: The Complete Victor, Gramophone and ARC Recordings, 1927–1934
12 March 1929 dating error
read: 22 February 1929, not 12 March 1929 – the error is ubiquitous but the EMI matrix ledger gives 22 February
read: Sterling Conaway (cornet –1 [as well as guitar]), not Possibly Arthur Briggs
27 September 1931
read: Stanley Wilson (tenor gt), not Everett Barksdale (bj)
It has been quite logically suggested that Nino (which means Baby) and twenty-year-old Cuban Sergio Barreto, now known conclusively to be the drummer brought back from Europe by South, are one and the same.
read: Marchéta (A Love Song of Old Mexico) (Schertzinger), not Marcheta (Shertzinger)
23 November 1934
read: At the Ball, That’s All (J. Leubrie Hill), not At the Ball (Unknown . . .)
Zinky Cohn (pn) may be a more likely contender than either Spaulding or Smith, neither of whom seem likely, but the truth is whoever it is is mere speculation.
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Jazz Oracle BDW8054 Eddie South: 1933 Cheloni Broadcast Transcriptions
disc 3, track 3: Throw a Little Salt on the Bluebird’s Tail: composers: (Robin, Whiting). From Fox film Handle with Care. Sheet music publ. Movietone Music Corp., New York (1932)
p.2: South and his musicians, incl. Cuban drummer José Isidro Sergio Barreto, returned to USA on SS Leviathan sailing Cherbourg, 28 August 1931, arriving New York, 3 September 1931. The drummer in the two photos is therefore pretty conclusively Barreto. It has also quite logically been suggested that Nino (which means Baby) and twenty-year-old Sergio are one and the same. Research assistance courtesy Kevin Coffey, Howard Rye.
p.4: According to The Metronome (October 1931), 23, South’s September opening personnel at the new Rubaiyat on St Clair, the near north side, was King, South, Spaulding, Sterling Conway [sic: Conaway], Jerome Burke [sic: Bourke] percussionist de luxe. Various other reports of the venue give Wilson, and the other drummers, so there seems to have been quite a bit of toing and froing. Research assistance courtesy Steven Lasker.
p.15: An uncropped original print of the 1931 South International Orchestra photo has come to light revealing that it was taken by, though not necessarily at, Maurice Seymour Studios, Chicago.
pp.16, 34 Program 7: Vas Villst du Haben?
King and ensemble do indeed sing in German, of a sorts, as announced, and English, not in Yiddish as given in error in the liner notes. Confusion arises because of what looks like Yiddish orthography in the title line, “Vas villst” instead of “Was willst’, of this composition by Bryan and Monaco (New York, Walter Donaldson, 1932) featuring English lyrics with single German expressions. The orthography of the title line probably simply shares Yiddish orthography in the wish to ensure for native English speakers the pronunciation of a German instead of an English “w”. In sum, the orthography in the sheet music, and presumably on most record labels, is impossible in German but possible in Yiddish, whereas there is nothing Yiddish either in what King and ensemble sing or in the published sheet music. Nevertheless, anyone coming across the cover of the sheet music would reasonably assume that it was Yiddish—see published lyrics, and the South version, fol.
The South version surprises not only because they sing it almost entirely in German, not in English as in the published sheet music, but also because of the introduction and the second chorus following the instrumental solo. The introduction is the melody and the first words of the song “Ach [or “Oh”] du lieber Augustin”, which is Viennese. This introduction has nothing to do with “Vas Villst Du Haben?” itself. The Augustin song, or rather the story behind it, known to everyone in Vienna, is a sort of hymn to the Viennese character: you fall into a pit filled with the bodies of plague victims but if you are drunk enough it will not harm you. Just don’t take it all too seriously—see adapted Wikipedia entry, fol.
After the Augustin introduction they go into a rendition of the first set of chorus lyrics in the sheet music, with Fritzie and Mitzie dancing, but translated into German. However, after the instrumental solo, instead of the second set of chorus lyrics in the sheet music—which includes the un-Viennese pumpernickel [the sheet music prints “pumpernickle”], pretzels and pickle apparently fed to the children—they enter a Viennese Gasthaus: “Vas villst du haben, mein Herr?” is what the waiter now asks, and the ensemble vocal answers “Ein Wiener Schnitzel.” The “sweetest music to mein ear” [the sheet music reads “my”] is no longer the question “Vas villst du haben?” as in the sheet music, apparently from a child’s perspective, but the answer “Ein Wiener Schnitzel.” This is repeated with “Ein grosses Helles”, which is beer. Fritzie is no longer dancing. Instead, she arrives with the schnitzel, which makes her the waitress.
The question arises how the South orchestra came to sing it in German at all and how it came to be about Vienna, not only with the unexpected “Augustin” introduction but also with the “Wiener Schnitzel”. The idea of changing it into a conversation with the waiter is also a departure from the published sheet music. It sounds very much as if they are making fun of the American novelty song. Whether South and his musicians concocted their version or found it in an earlier written or recorded version cannot quite be substantiated but all the indications point to it being uniquely theirs. It appears very unlikely that there was ever a German version of the lyrics, published or recorded, because only very simple things appear in German while the rest is in English with German pronunciation. There are also several grammatical inaccuracies. Certainly, someone decided to turn the published song into an excursion to Vienna, a city which South, King and Spaulding knew very well indeed. It should also be noted that this song, with its Viennese “Augustin” introduction, opens a program that includes another Viennese song “Liebe Was Es Nie”, which has a genuine German-language original, which King choses to sing, although it is announced under the title of its published English version: “Take Me in Your Arms”.
*
“Vas Villst Du Haben?” words by Al Bryan, music by James V. Monaco (New York, Walter Donaldson, 1932), courtesy example in the Konrad Nowakowski archive.
What a lovely night tonight,
Don’t you think so Lena?
Look at Fritzie holding Frieda’s hand!
Make it one big night tonight,
Let’s get happy, Lena,
Never mind the music of the band
Vas villst du haben?
My heart is throbbin’,
the sweetest music to my ear is
vas villst du haben!
Vas villst du Heinie?
Ask your Maedchen kleinie,
the sweetest music to my ear is
vas villst du haben!
Oompapapa, Oompapapa,
Papa look at Fritzie,
My papapa, Your papapa,
Dancing with his Mitzie.
Just let the bubbles,
Drown all your troubles,
The sweetest music to my ear is
Vas villst du haben! haben!
Plenty noise and plenty fun,
Gets good friends together,
Makes the world one happy family!
Let it rain and let it pour,
Never mind the weather,
If the food is good and music free.
Vas villst du haben?
etc
Come on Lena, Come on Lena,
Have some pumpernickle [sic],
Pass the pretzels, Wilhelmina,
Have a sour pickle.
Just let the bubbles,
etc
*
“Vas Villst Du Haben?” sung by Clifford King and ensemble with Eddie South (1933) – transcribed more or less as pronounced incl. ungrammatical usages
piano intro: melody of “Ach, du lieber Augustin”
ensemble: Ach du lieber Augustin Augustin Ah
ensemble:
Oompa oompa oompapa
Oompa oompa oompapa
Oompa oompa oompapa
Oompa oompa oompapa
Vas villst du haben?
Mein Herz ist trobbin’
Du schweetest music to mein ear ist
Vas villst du haben!
Vas villst die Heinie?
Frag dein Mädchen kleinie
Du schweetest music to mein ear ist
Vas villst du haben!
Oompapapa oompapapa
Papa schau auf Fritzie
Mein Papapa dein Papapa
Tanzt mit de Mitzie
Joost let your bobbels
Drown’d all your troubles
Du schweetest music to mein ear ist
Vas villst du haben!
Vas villst du haben?
instrumental solo
spoken: Vas villst DU haben mein Herr?
ensemble: Ein Wiener Schnitzel!
Du schweetest music to mein ear ist
ensemble: Ein Wiener Schnitzel!
spoken: Vas villst DU haben mein Herr?
ensemble: Ein grosses Helles!
Du schweetest music to mein ear ist
ensemble: Ein grosses Helles!
Oompapapa Oompapapa
Papa hier kommt Fritzie
Mein Papapa dein Papapa
Kommt mit die Schnitzeln
spoken: Vas villst DU haben mein Herr?
ensemble: Ein grosses Helles!
Du schweetest music to mein ear
ensemble: One glass of light beer!
*
Adapted entry from Wikipedia: “Oh [often “Ach”], du lieber Augustin” is a Viennese folk song. In 1679 the bubonic plague became epidemic in Vienna. Lieber Augustin was a popular street musician who, according to legend, late one night when he was drunk, fell into a pit filled with the bodies of plague victims. Augustin did not contract the disease, which may have been because of the influence of the alcohol. The story lives on in the song “Oh, du lieber Augustin” with lyrics and melody by Marx Augustin (1679):
Oh, du lieber Augustin, Augustin, Augustin,
Oh, du lieber Augustin, alles ist hin.
Geld ist weg, Mäd’l ist weg,
Alles hin, Augustin.
Oh, du lieber Augustin,
Alles ist hin.
Rock ist weg, Stock ist weg,
Augustin liegt im Dreck,
Oh, du lieber Augustin,
Alles ist hin.
Und selbst das reiche Wien,
Hin ist's wie Augustin;
Weint mit mir im gleichen Sinn,
Alles ist hin!
Jeder Tag war ein Fest,
Und was jetzt? Pest, die Pest!
Nur ein groß’ Leichenfest,
Das ist der Rest.
Augustin, Augustin,
Leg’ nur ins Grab dich hin!
Oh, du lieber Augustin,
Alles ist hin!
*
p.34 Program 7 read: Liebe, not Libe; read: Markusch, not Markush
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Hep CD1085 Stuff Smith, The Complete 1936–1937 Sessions
True take 1 of “I’se a Muggin’ [Part 2] Musical Numbers Game” was indeed withdrawn soon after release in USA
Jonah Jones on the background to opening at the Onyx in John Chilton, Hot Jazz, Warm Feet (London, Northway, 2007): “ ‘All of us except Stuff were sceptical about going to New York but he was very eager and knowing we were doubtful he went ahead and started fixing a new line-up consisting of New York-based musicians, but word of this reached the New York bookers and they came down hard and said, “We want the regular band from Buffalo.” Next thing I know a tough-looking little guy calls on me. I’d never seen him before and I’ve never seen him since. He looked straight at me and said, “It would be very good for you to go and play in New York, and very, very bad for you to stay here in Buffalo.” It was a threat but I wasn’t worried, I thought I’ll go down to the musicians union and they’ll sort all this out. So in all innocence I went to the Union in Buffalo and said, “Some guy is pressurising me into going to New York.” the union guy looks at me and gives a sickly sort of smile and says, “I think you better do what the man says.” It was like a bad movie. It was all sewn up that I was going to New York, so I did.’ ” This throws a rather different light on Smith’s efforts to recruit new musicians.
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