Jazz and the Italian Connection
By Bruce Boyd Raeburn

During a recent academic conference held in New
Orleans there occurred an exchange which might
best be described as droll but which was intrinsically
didactic. The setting was a panel discussion on jazz,
and the panelists were all historians who were
actively researching and publishing on the subject.
Following the various presentations which were
devoted to the life-stories of musicians such as
Sidney Bechet, Buddy Bolden, Jelly Roll Morton. and
Lester Young, a gentleman from the back of -the
audience asked: "What about the ODJB, the first
band to record "jazz?" A hush fell over the room,
attended by looks of horror and pity emanating from
the podium. For a moment the panelists seemed
startled, until one launched into the by now almost
perfunctory response to the question, stressing that
the circumstances which had permitted the Original
Dixieland Jazz Band to make the first jazz recording
were anOther indication of the racist bias of the
recording industry and suggesting that, beyond that,
the question should not be dignified with further
elucidation. Somewhat nonplussed, and duly
ambushed, the gentleman returned to his seat, no
closer to an answer (or serious consideration) than
he had been at the outset. Yet one can only wonder
how historians who are trained to ask hard questions
could have contented themselves with such a
brusque and simplistic response to an apparently
sincere request to hear their views on the matter of
the ODJB and its influence. Had the gentleman been
better prepared to make a case for the importance of
the ODJB, he could clearly have done so, for the
evidence on their behalf is quite impressive. if
presently obscure. Why, then, should a question on
the ODJB be dismissed as 'politically incorrect?

The Original Dixieland Jazz Band .In Chicago in 1916, just before their historic trip to New York. Pictured. left to right, are Tony Sbarbaro,
drums; Eddie Edwards, trombone; Larry Shields, clarinet; Nick LaRocca, comet; and Henry Ragas, piano.
Photo from Harry Shields Collection

The answer can be traced back ·to the earliest jazz
studies In the late 1935 and to the aesthetic
predilections of the men who wrote them.
Jazz history has often been written from the
perspective of the "great man," emphasizing the
influence of musicians who enjoy widespread critical
acceptance. especially in retrospect and ignoring
the role of "lesser-artists whose activities are ipso
facto less important. In the case of the ODJB,However
personalities also became a factor. When
Marshall Steams' "The History of Swing Music"
appeared in Down Beat in twenty parts between
1936 and 1938, objections from the leader of the
ODJB that Stearns had denigrated the band's
significance in the original development of jazz
began to circulate within the jazz press. LaRocca's
Ietters to Down Beat, Metronome, and Tempo in the
fall of 1936 all argued that the ODJB had invented
jazz and disputed Steams' claim (based on
conversations with members of the New Orleans
Rhythm Kings) that the Original Creole Orchestra

had been first. In a personal reply to LaRocca dated
January 11, 1937, Stearns complained that "you
failed to give colored musicians a break; and that is
why I exaggerated the other extreme, since the
public is inclined to believe you and musicians of
your opinion." While considerable attention was
given to the ODJB by Charles Edward Smith in
Jazzmen, an early American jazz history published in
1939, his interest in the ODJB was not typical of the
general trends among "Hot jazz collectors.  Most of
them preferred the recordings of louis Armstrong,
Duke Ellington, Bix Beiderbecke, Joe Oliver, or Jelly
Roll Morton, considering the earlier records by the
ODJB to be rhythmically "stiff" and a little too
cacophonous. Since all the early histories were
written by "hot jazz collectors, such aesthetic
predilections had a bearing on historical perceptions,
relegating the ODJB to "second-class' status
aesthetically and therefore historically. Some fifty
years after the fact it Is apparent that a reappraisal
of the ODJB and its influence is long overdue.
Indeed, the reaction of American jazz scholars to
the ODJB has been remarkably similar to that of the
Columbia Phonograph Company which made the
first aborted·attempt to record the band in January
1917. Consider the account given by H.C. Brunn in
The Story of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band (1960):

The Interweaving strains of jazz bounced
from wall to wall until the resultant
reverberations became one continuous din.
The recording director closed the door to his
office from the inside. A gang of carpenters,
who were building shelves hi the studio.
laughed 'and threw their tools about to
contribute to the bedlam. After two numbers
the musicians were paid their $250 and
ordered from the studio. Columbia had
washed its hands of jazz. (pp. 64-65)

Sheet music cover to the ODJB'a first big hit. Note the discrepancy
in titles-Victor was supposed to label the band's first release as
"Barnyard Blues' because two former members, Ray Lopez and
A1cide Nunez, had hurriedly published Livery Stable' under their
own names in Chicago, The failure of Victor to make the
substitution led to litigation between the contending parties. but
the cue was ultimately thrown out.
From the Nick LaRocca Collecti0n

But Columbia's attitude changed dramatically when
the band's "Livery Stable Blues,' recorded soon after
by Victor. surpassed the million-and"a-half sales
mark for that company within months of its release.
By August 1917 Columbia's ODJB version of
"Darktown Strutter's Ball" was vying for the attention
of record buyers on the shelves, and newspaper
advertisements for both Victor and Columbia
products by Maison Blanche in New Orleans show
how important they were as harbingers of a jazz
revolution which was only just beginning. Maison
Blanche left little doubt as to why "Livery Stable' was
so popular: "Here is positively the greatest dance
record ever issued. Made by New Orleans musicians
for New Orleans' people, it has all the 'swing' and
'pep' and 'spirit· that is so characteristic of the
bands whose names are now a by-word ,at New
Orleans dances. It is more proof that New Orleans
sets the pace for 'Wonderful' dance music--a fact
that is recognized and commented upon the country
over." The "Darktown" copy was comparable: 'It's
played by New Orleans boys, too, for here is where
'Jazz' music originated and it has been the craze
the country over." Mercantile hyperbole
notwithstanding, the overriding theme of these
advertisements is that the ODJB was representative
of New Orleans music and a model for further
development. As it happened, the influence of the
ODJB on New Orleans musicians, both white and
black, can be extensively documented and serves as
a useful counterpoise to the usual historical accounts.

The context for any discussion of an ethnic
"connection" to New Orleans musical culture, be it
Italian, Irish, Creole, German, Latin' American, or
African-American, is the process of transculturation
Which fused diverse traditions into a distinctively
regional blend. Demographic patterns which created
a "crazy quilt" of mixed neighborhoods also yielded
an extremely eclectic musical amalgam, and in a
town renowned for its festival traditions, all citizens
had access to the music which was performed on
the streets, at the camps at West End, and in the
cabarets and dance halls which fed the
neighborhoods.

Nick LaRocca on daddy's knee, well before the issue of the cornet came up.
Photo from the Nick LaRocca collection

Consequently, one of the essential
features of an Italian connection to New Orleans jazz
was that it was not intended for the sole enjoyment
of Italians but contributed instead to the
development of a New Orleans style of playing
improvised music,duly enriching it. WIthin the ODJB
there were Italians (LaRocca, Sbarbaro), Irish
(Shields). anQ English (Ragas, Edwards), but what
they played was a New Orleans sound which
exceeded the sum of its parts. Local reactions to the
recordings of the ODJB tended to be enthusiastic,
and far-ranging. John Wigginton Hyman (Johnny
Wiggs), by his own recollection, had first gravitated
to jazz after hearing Joe Oliver at subscription
dances at Tulane in 1916 and was applying what he
could pick up with the Invincibles, a string band
made up of middle-class youths from the uptown
area Yet it was hearing the ODJB that
revolutionized his conception of the music: "In
1917 the Original Dixieland Jazz Band released
their first. record on Victor. This was too much for
the Invincibles and we began to yearn to play
'real jazz." Throughout his long career Wiggs
rubbed shoulders with various Italian musicians
who shared his dedication to "real jazz," including
Tony Parenti, Charlie Scaglionl, Leon Roppolo,
Santo Pecora,and Sherwood Mangiapane,and
as a child he had played street comers with
young Joseph Manane for small change. For
him, the ODJB was a model for nascent jazzmen
to follow, and there is plenty of evidence to
suggest that he was not alone in this opinion.
The impact of the ODJB on black New
Orleanians was no less telling. When Dink
Johnson, a drummer and clarinetist who worked
with the Original Creole Orchestra, Jelly Roll
Morton, and Kid Ory, was interviewed by Floyd
Levin in 1950, he had some interesting
observations concerning his reaction to the
ODJB: ·1 was actually a drummer, you know. I
had always wanted to play the clarinet since
hearing Larry Shields with the Original Dixieland
Jazz Band." The effect of the ODJB's recordings
on the most popular black dance band in New
Orleans in 1917, Kid Ory's, is another case.!n
point. What was known as the Ory-Oliver band
included future stars such as Joe Oliver, Johnny
Dodds, and occasionally Louis Armstrong and
held forth at dance halls like the Economy and
Cooperators, where its popularity was unassailable.
Testimony by Manuel Manetta, the violinist in Kid
Ory's band. illustrates what happened throughout
the city in the wake of the ODJB recordings. The two
"readers' in the band were Oliver and Manetta, with
the latter serving as "straw boss' for Cry in 'the
selection of material and direction of the band. Yet
Manetta was fired because "Joe Oliver and Kid Ory
wanted to follow the format of the Dixieland Jazz
Band and use only five pieces." Prior to 1917, many
New Orleans dance bands either carried or were led
by violinists. After that year. violins all but
disappeared. Manetta ended up dropping violin,
offering saxophone, trumpet, trombone, and piano to
prospective employers. The success of the ODJB
through the medium of the phonograph completed
the revolution in dance-band instrumentation begun
by Buddy Bolden two decades earlier. supplanting
violinists with cornetists and standardizing 'the jazz band
lineup. The success of the ODJB vindicated
-taking' and fused the term -jazz' to the New Orleans

style of instrumental ragtime. collectively improvised,
which had been developing since the turn of the
century. The term itself became a rallying point for
New Orleans musicians of all ethnic and racial
backgrounds. creating conditions for the formation of
a community of interest in support of the new music.
which was perceived as a local product. While the
roots of jazz were undoubtedly nourished largely
within the African-American community (Which was
itself extremely diversified), its subsequent
development before 1917 was a more broadly
communitarian phenomenon, drawing on a variety of
musical cultures extant in New Orleans. Music. in
other words, brought people of all affiliations
together. in spite of the social conditions which were
often designed to keep them apart
In addition to the success of their records. the
ODJB were the first link between jazz and the youth
culture that emerged in the wake of the First World
War. Indeed, the band had caught the doughboys
going and coming. first as the hottest ticket in New

York City 1917·18 when the city served as a major
port of embarkation, and later in London in 1919 at
the Hippodrome and the Armistice Ball, where they
played for the returning servicemen and their
generals. The same celebration of the joys of self expression
that was present in jazz was also found
In the interpretation of Freud as a means to health
through the unrestrained libido or In the fashions of
the flapper, mutually reinforcing the reaction against
the formalism of the victorian Era Comparison of the
early musical experiences of Italians such as Nick
LaRocca or leon Roppolo with those of creoles of
color like Sidney Bechet or Freddie Keppard reveals
the operation of a generation gap which presaged
the general rebellion of youth in the 19208.
LaRocca's father forbade him to practice comet and
destroyed several, even though he himself was a
player. Roppolo came from a long line of Italian
clarinet virtuosi, who urged him to take up the violin
because there was no money to be made playing
clarinet in America Keppard rejected violin in order
to take up comet in the manner of Bolden. Bechet
started with clarinet but eventually gravitated to
soprano saxophone, largely because it enhanced his
ability to predominate in ensemble situations. In each
case, young players opted for faking over the more
traditional formal pedagogy which was prescribed by
their parents, creating similar situations in the
households of Italians and creoles of color. Jazz
was, after all, a musical vehicle for the expression of
personality, and the tribulations of the Roppolo and
Keppard families were later experienced by the
Beiderbeckes and the Toughs in Iowa and Illinois.
But there was one major difference. New Orleanians
such as Bechet, Keppard, LaRocca, and Roppolo
were reacting to the music they heard all around
them; Beiderbecke and Tough got their first
exposure by listening to ODJB records, which led
them to seek out other New Orleans bands such as
King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band and the New Orleans
Rhythm Kings in Chicago.
There is still much to be learned about jazz history
and its early development from the story of the
Original Dixieland Jazz Band, and fortunately a
reassessment of its contributions is already
underway. if we are serious about understanding the
culture which produced jazz in New Orleans, then it
is incumbent upon us to broaden our horizons to
include each and every thread in this complex
tapestry. The Italian connection was but one strand
of many, yet the presence of Italian musicians in so
many of the early New Orleans jazz bands tells us

that It was a significant factor in the development of
the music and deserves recognition. la Rocca and
Sbarbaro with the ODJB, Roppclo with NORK, Curly
Uzana with the New Orleans Jazz Babies, Charlie
Cordilla with the Halfway House Orchestra, or the
subsequent activities of Joseph "Wingy" Manone,
Sharky Bonano, Tony Parenti, louis Prima, Irving
Fazola (an honorary Italian), and others all attest to
an Italian jazz connection which was deep and
abiding. To dismiss any of this body of wane as
imitative or derivative is to appease the critic at the
expense of the historian and to remove from
discussion some of the music's most colorful and
charismatic personalities.

Bruce Boyd Raeburn


Source.:
Brunn, H.O. The Story at tfJe Original Dixieland Jazz.
Band (Baton Rouge: LSU Press, 1960),
Jazzmen. Charles Edward Smith and Frederic
Ramsey, Jr., eds. (New York: Harcourt, Brace &
Co., 1939),
Levin, Floyd, 'Mystery Shrouds Kid Ory 1920s
LA. Recordings," West Coast Rag
(November 1990): 17-20.
Manetta, Manuel. Taped interview, March 21,
1957, Hogan Jazz Archive, Tulane University.
Menville, Myra 'Wiggs - Self-Explained,' The
Second Line, 29 (Spring 1977): 3-13.
New Orleans Times-Picayune, April 15, 1917.
New Orleans TimeS-Picayune, August 8,1917.
Welbum, Ronald G. American Jazz Criticism,
1914-1940. Unpublished Ph.D, dissertation,
New York University, 1983.

One of the places I've become interested in is the Dreamland Dance at 540 S. Main in Los Angeles. Located on the second floor of the Burbank Theater, which went through many stages throughout it's history, from the art deco facelift in 1937 to turning into a Burlesque house.

The property today just holds memories of it's past...

540 S. Main, Downtown Los Angeles today...

I've been doing some research lately which lead me to dig through my matchbook collection. I thought i would share a couple of my favorites.

The Meadowbrook Ballroom was one of the many great ballrooms in Culver City. During the early 1940's it thrived hosting a who's who of legends that not only broadcasted but also recorded countless sides.

Boureston's is legendary among the greatest dancers to ever step foot on a

floor in Los Angeles.  Between the years 1943 and 1945, the weekly dance was the

hottest location for the best to have their showdowns.

 

Another one the greatest ballroom's which so many have mentioned over the years
in their interviews. It was owned at one time by Harry James, before Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey took it over in the 1940's.

The Whip Story

This was originally written in 2003 appearing on California Jazz Dance Foundation's website.


The Whip, possibly the most distinctive pattern in swing dancing identifiable with one person, Dean Collins.This article is about origin of what has become known as "The Whip" because I find it fascinating and it puts the truth in perspective and the influence of Irene Thomas.

Dean Collins, we can start with him, The Lindy Hopper from New York now in Los Angeles. He had been searching for a steady partner to work to no avail. Dean would dance with anyone when it came to a job, however, if it represented him he was strict on who and how his partner would dance. Little did he know he would come to meet the most influential people in his life.

It was 1939 and already the 2 leading females in Los Angeles were Irene Thomas and Jewel McGowen. Jewel had been dancing with Bill Alcorn on and off and Irene was in the show "Meet the People". It was her last year at Hollywood High school and in between her shows and stage gigs performing,acting and tap dancing she would commonly go out dancing and hang out with friends. it was during this time she danced with Dean and got a sense of the Lindy Rhythm.

I guess one would have to understand Irene's sense of dance, her technical ability to break things down, and they fact she can lead as well is amazing. From "Meet the People" in 1939 , she became a star solo Tap act. Her biggest ambition was stage and clubs and during WW2 she toured with Bing Crosby's USO shows as the headline tap act.

Irene was a star amongst her friends and looked up to by all during these years , it was known that the girls would copy her steps while the guys (at least,the ones with guts) lined up to "take a lesson" .It was at the Casino Gardens Lenny Smith just a youngster would reach out asking for a dance with his "trembling hand" after being put up to task by friends. While it was Dean teaching these younger dancers like Lenny, Wally Albright and Lou Southern it was the skilled follows that really taught them the most, and Irene was the queen.

Irene was dancing with Eddie Markwell and trying to teach him Dean's Lindy when they encountered the first "whip" , Eddie was really modest about having anything to do with it at first but eventually said it was Irene who made him do it, he was just "over doing it".
The push out allowed Irene to use the tension for variations in her footwork which was something she enjoyed. For Eddie to Achieve this push at his novice ability he over exaggerated his shoulder movement by stepping into it.

It was here Irene got the concept of the whip, and force needed with the lead hand, to push off into open position from the leader. It was no secret Dean allowed his dance partners to shine and look good and Irene was just the showoff needed for Dean's performances. When working together they adjusted for each other to bring out the best on Stage and This whip action she asked for was no different, Dean just adjusted to adapt to her needs.

These needs are witnessed through Irene's dancing, especially in the clips with her Boyfriend and Partner, Don Gallagher. Most of their tricks are called by her , and lead by her via calls and shoulder Motions. Dictating as to when to start leading. Unfortunately, Irene couldn't dedicate the time to Dean to be his regular partner because she was too busy in show business, however she would continue to perform for big events and whenever the scedule allowed.

The next couple years, 1940 and 41 would of found Dean mastering this "whip", he started dancing regularly with Jewel McGowan during this time and really getting it to where the follow and leader both use each other perfectly balanced, other times it would be the leader just forcing the follow through it (the follow not taking advantage of that lead push). Dean wasn't the only one doing trying to capture this "Whip" in the early stages. Another dancer was Willie Desatoff who has always been said to "do Dean's whip better then him" another was Eddie Rankin who before had been struggling horribly with Lindy Hop Before Dean's arrival.

Dean obviously laid it down in stone in the motion picture "Buck Privates". He showed what this whip had developed into once mastered not by just the lead but by the follow who takes advantage of it to allow herself extra liberties . Once studied from the demands of a follower , From which Irene's first demands were met, the technical actually needed to achieve anything even close to what Dean and Jewel do is amazing. From Dean to dancers like Bill Alcorn, Johnny Archer, Lenny Smith, Lou Southern and Wally Albright to the Movies and a generation of leaders and followers tweaking the whip every which way. They all used the basic same technical, and eventually it became known as just Dean's Lindy.

Just after WW2 , Irene left Los Angeles for New York to headline in the biggest nightclubs with her Partner, doing what she called a Boogie Tap act. On this trip she went out dancing at Roseland Ballroom and the biggest difference she noticed was the leaders didn't pull you all the way in (and around them) and then whip you out, rather they came forward and caught you in the middle making it very uncomfortable if your not used to it.

Many of these dancers from the early days have continued dancing at the LA swing Club at Golden Sails , Dancers Like Bart Bartolo and Bobby Hefner, even Gil Brady is No exception to Learning "The whip" from Dean Collins. At over 90 years old, John Mills throws down what he calls "Dean's Whip" as well . If you've ever walked into Golden Sails you would see the impact that one motion has created , the dancers from the 40's,50's,60's each generation and dancer bringing their own style to what eventually has became a technic and not a style.

About 5 or 6 years ago at our local dance held at a place called Alpine Village on Monday nights, I asked Eddie about these first moments and dancing with Lola Cogan, he showed me the subtleties of that first motion he did with Irene, all the while exclaiming he was nothing compared to Dean and it was all Irene...

Last Days of 2010

Well, I thought I'd post one more time for 2010...I'd actually like to talk about a few dance things, like our Monday nights which are doing great.  Meschiya Lake had the idea one night, as we were drinking at Mimi's and we made the proposal....what i didn't know was Mimi's loves dancing, so anyways, Every monday night we have our free dance class at 9:30 which is about 30 minutes.

"Mimi's in the Marginy" as it's called, is just a short bike ride from the French Quarter, straight down Royal street, until you hit Franklin, the perfect distance not to be a tourist trap, yet close and easy enough to get to that you voice directions to anyone, and walk it.

Unlike other "drop in" classes, we normally teach a different dance every week, something like Shag, Charleston, Two Step maybe Swing, basically just historical dances that are easy to do socially. Allow everyone to find themselves through dances and steps, instead of just teaching people one thing. We certainly don't dance to one rhythm like other places, so it's important to have the tools to dance to all rhythms as well.

Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns are the house band on Mondays, which allows for the perfect atmosphere, at Mimi's. The Bar flows, the lights down dim, smoke fills the air as Meschiya's delivers song after song. Behind her we can always count on Jason Jurzak on Bass to give the dancers their needed "slap,boom,slap,boom". Mondays are great, cause it's more locals, and people have a different kind of fun.

Another fun thing, that has started is Meschiya Lake, Laura Manning and Mia Goldsmiths monthly Variety Show and Dance at One eyed Jacks. Again, with the Little Big Horns playing live, we have all kinds of great acts put together in a show that is simply awesome. I could go on and on, about the Holiday show they just did, but having the band dressed in their Santa outfits in the Balcony playing Christmas songs like the Salvation army will be hard enough to beat next month, not to mention the 3 girls singing Alvin and Chipmunks songs! Meschiya brings us back to her circus days, with some of her old fire acts, which are crazy! Dante the magician, Trixie Minx, Ally Ooops, Nola Jitterbugs....The whole evening is simply awesome, they actually have Taxi dancers for leaders and followers.
If your going to visit New Orleans, do it on the weekend were you can catch this show at One Eyed Jacks!

August 2010...back home again.

Swing Crash Como Italy

It's been a long summer, Starting with Swing Crash in Como Italy. Like last year, it focused on great bands and social dancing, with very few dance classes. Thanks to the event, classes don't start until around 2:00 in the afternoon! Talk about "it takes one to know one", I can tell a lot by the event, by it's schedule...that's for sure.

The Carling's from Sweden, was in full force in Italy which is always a good thing, and the local band leader did an amazing job arranging charts, for the Show we did, which included the Duke Ellington number from Cabin in the Sky, however we had taught all the students this, and had them planted, so we actually had that whole outdoor area following.

from Milano to Sweden, my bags were lost thanks to Czech Airlines, for the second time this year.  They eventually found it, but it took 3 weeks!!!!

I relaxed in Stockholm for a week before heading to the Country side of Herrang, which is an hour drive north. I drove one of my friends cars, a MG convertible, popped in a CD that Lady Kamikaze gave me at Swing Crash and had the most enjoyable drive i've had in many years.

Herrang, for 5 weeks....could be whole book. The first Day of the Camp, rehearsing for a Show, I dislocated my shoulder pretty bad, and it's still not too good as I write this, it looks like Surgery in getting to be more and more unavoidable. Lucky for me i was in Sweden where getting meds and help is easy as hell.

My girlfriend Katja, finally showed up from Slovenia, So we could teach week 2 together. That was no doubt awesome..but weird! (in a good way), I'm so used to teaching with Mia, that we have this certain rhythm of talking in class, and not to have that same rhythm caused some funny moments that's for sure. Because of my Shoulder we did a lot of Balboa, serious body to body leading, and a few lefty type moves i had sorta come up with while out trying to social dance with one arm.

While this Camp was going on through the weeks, there was a Musical every Sunday and Monday for 5 weeks. I got asked to do it, while back in Stockholm by Lennart and Fatima, so of course I gave it my all. I went from playing the Devil to a Gay Tailor, which which i won best supporting actor one of those shows. It was no doubt a blast...and being surrounded by the great young talent made it enjoyable.

My Friends band from New Orleans "Tuba Skinny" came to Herrang, and blew the place away. It was the first time I remember the floor being crushed against the stage to watch and not dance, holy smokes that in it's self was amazing, all the members had their little fans, or following by the next day, which was so hilarious to hear about. Come friday night we had a awesome Jam session during the Party, which was their last gig before heading back to the USA. 

Week 4, Started by me running the Meeting because Lennart was off watching Daniel and Asa get married, that was freakin weird. Classes with Mia went great, although my shoulder was killing! We taught everything the scene doesn't not do, from Tops and Wilda to Hal and Betty...

week 5, "Swing Orchestra" track was offered by the Carling Family, so i dropped in to take notes, and got sucked in! that was it, week 5 was going to be a downhill cruise of relaxing and partying, but instead it was classes all day for 5 days on music, structure, improvising and so forth. It was certainly the most amazing music class I'll ever be in, and to even trying and describe it here would never do it justice. The class was broken into smaller bands which all performed at the end of the week, and then we had a Parade from the school area to the folkets hus, end it all with a St. Philips Street Breakdown....

Back in Stockholm, was spent eating at Olssons, Garlic and shots...with the best of friends, the flight home no problem, and now i'm back in New Orleans! I landed, jumped in a cab, through my bags in my house, put air in my Tires and was at Mimi's in no time,  drinking a cold one, watching the Little Big Horns....life is good.

Back in New Orleans

      I finally got back home after all the flight delays and cancellations, thanks to Iceland's friendly volcano. Balboa on the Promenade was a nice event, the floors spoiled me, as i had forgotten momentarily how easy dancing is on nice floors.

      I was quickly reminded of how horrible the floors can be here, throw that in with the harsh conditions and lack of etiquette and we have a completely opposite world of dancing. The obvious difference is, between entering into a bar where the majority of people are tourist, or entering a dance, where the majority (i think it's safe to guess 100%) is there to dance with partners.

     The nice thing about going out within the swing scene, be it, Lindy, Balboa, Blues or Swing dances is the floors are always nice, normally there is room to do whatever dance it is your at, and of course you get whatever music the owner of dance chooses, (this can be good but it's most often bad in my opinion), and lastly, you can meet like minded people at these "dances" where dance is the focus. 

     As i was hanging outside the Spotted Cat, while one of the bands went into a barn burner i quickly grabbed a girl and squeezed into the front of the band stand. It was a hot humid night, the Tourist were loud, drunk and screaming as the band went from chorus to chorus, I couldn't help but think of all those years hanging out at the Derby in Hollywood.

The Derby had 2 places to dance, the front room which was a tiny floor like the Spotted Cat (at least the Derby had a good wood floor!) and then there was a back room as well which fit a few hundred , but that would be standing room only as well.

This was at a time in my life when dancing was all about showing off, and i needed space to do all my tricks and stretch out my dancing like the old time Jitterbugs did. Coming, up so to say in this atmosphere is something i look back to as being the most awesome learning process a person can have. It didn't take long for me and my friends, to work the crowd, knowing how to make space, dance small, and because it was live music we also knew how to dance a long time.

This was nothing like going to a dance sponsored or put on by a dancer, this was different, this was, well...the "Real world", as opposed to the "Dance world"of everything made perfect with nice floors, nice music, nice mirrors, nice lockers, nice people, nice dancing, nice nice...


I guess it's fine and dandy for some people to have this sporting type environment, but one thing is for sure, i would have never of been interested in the first place , let alone learned how to dance in that atmosphere....however, the Spotted Cat or DBA , now those are places to learn! Cramped, all tempo's, mixed rhythms, obnoxious people in the way...yeah! Now we talking!

Like my earlier days, we didn't take lessons, instead we would show up nightly and stake out our little corner of the floor, and that's it...mess around all night. Night after night, tourist pack the clubs coming to see New Orleans Jazz, and in the 90's for us, it was Swing Music, a disgusting comparison to say the least, But the parallel for someone going out to dance in a overly cramped bar in a sea of drunk tourist is undeniable.

What Challenged the dancers in the 90's was the amazing tempo's some of these bands could play, although we had no idea how to dance properly, hell if we didn't try! more often then not in those days i was just running as fast as i can around my partner, or holding her close and frantically kicking.

The styles of music changed through out the week, from Jump Blues, 1920's bands, New Swing, Be Bop and various Rockabilly styles of bands, something we were lucky to have and embrace, allowing us the chance to learn various historical dances and actually use them while out having fun.

As i travel around the world, i rarely see anything that resembles that environment and if there is some type of place it's not often, and certainly not 7 nights a week, and then add another club...and another...Those Hollywood years of dancing among tourist is long gone...

 A night on Frenchmen street, here in New Orleans brings those years all back, especially after arriving home from a Balboa Festival.

The bands in New Orleans don't need tempo's to challenge a dancer, their rhythms alone can be a roller coaster of call and responses and breaks, blues, and latin's...the crowds tend to be drunker then the tourist in Hollywood but they can just as easily be corralled, and the floors...well, even if you get a small section of wood at DBA, expect beer all over it.

Lastly, and the most important is knowing how to dance, it's really not so much an ability, as it is an etiquette or knowledge. We see great dancers show up all the time and simply fall into the category of reckless, and while everyone enjoys a good time , it's that "everyone" part, that some forget, starting with the person they are dancing with and ending with those around you.

One of the responsibilities of a knowledgeable dancer is controlling the floor to protect the musicians, from drunk dancers, and wild dancers showing off. Most commonly protecting the trombone player, and at places like the Spotted Cat the Piano player as well.

While this can be the ultimate atmosphere to learn how to dance, it's certainly not ideal for "Lindy Hoppers", who tend to need more space to dance, and have troubles knowing where their feet are. 

Remember a Tourist is just that, someone coming through for some entertainment, normally they get drunk, often extremely drunk, and it's not surprising when they do something stupid, it's almost expected...but dancers are different, regardless if they are coming through town, local or otherwise, for the simple fact they already have a respect for the music and those that play it.

well, i'd expect they would...however, not all dancers feel like this, and those that don't fall into the "tourist" category, while other dancers fall into "musicians" category, being they are there for the music, they dance to the music as one of the musicians and are aware of the surroundings.

Musicians see they have someone on the floor looking out for them and can feel more relaxed, instead of being scared and jumping every second someone does something flashy in fear of slamming into their instrument and splitting their lip. 

Unfortunately, things happen, bottles break, people fall, it's all in fun...and then someone kicks the tip jar...not cool. Tourist, ok, whatever...expected,  but, but a dancer? There is no excuse for dancer, to kick the Tip Bucket, and aside from scrambling to collect the money, the first thing you should do is buy everyone in the band a drink.

This happened at Preservation Hall, and the dancers where blind to the fact they even did it. The situation was discussed, and while the Band decided to continue to allow dancing, it was clear what type of dancer was to blame and the type of dancing. Thanks to who ever that was, we were reminded on why there would ever be signs that say "No Lindy Hopping".

If you want to learn how to be an exhibition dancer, that's good for you, but don't be surprised when a big Jarhead beats the shit out you after you accidentaly kick him. It might be fine to kick each other at dances, studio's and festivals but in the real world all bets are off....

Lucky enough, this atmosphere is the best to learn, and while teachers can show you what they do, it's best to let the music tell you or guide you, and the more time you spend on the floor the better, that's the real teacher. With the music here, and the amount of dancing you can do, anyone can get great at dancing in no time...... if they have the will to do so.

The most valuable lesson on being respected in the real world has nothing to do with skill, it's purely etiquette...

In the real world, nobody cares if your a beginner dancer, expert, fireman or doctor, republican or Hippie, everyone is just in the Bar celebrating Jazz Music....and the only thing nobody likes are people kicking over the Tip bucket.

Need i not remind you New Orleans is probably the most famous place on planet earth for drunk, barfing, stumbling Tourist...all it takes is one, well....you know.

The smokey Bars, tiny amounts of space, the concrete floors.....ah, yes, obstacles....all kinds, i love em all...and i haven't even mentioned the music yet..... that is what makes this place the greatest place on earth.

I mentioned earlier, "The real world" , as opposed to the "dance world" (dance studio, events and festivals, where everyone can get together and do the same standardized dance) and the truth is, very few people on the planet get to dance in the real world, and i don't mean just visit, I'm talking on a daily basis...and that is what makes this place so Amazing.  Damn, it's great to be back....!!!!

I'll end this ramble with a joke:

Q: "whats the difference between a Lindy Hopper and a drunk tourist dancing?"
A: "Drunk Tourist dancing don't kick over the tip Bucket!"