[Dixielandjazz] Muggsy Spanier

[Stephen Barbone]

Jim Beebe wrote: (polite snip)

"An amusing recollection.  I was just out of high school a couple of
years and pretty green as a jazz fan and musician.  I had started
collecting records, still the beloved 78s then.  I had Muggsy Spaniers
commodore recording of "Snag It" and I loved it with Pee Wee and all.
So, one night at the Hangover with Muggsy Spanier's band on deck I got
up my nerve and approached Muggsy.  I asked him if he would play "Snag
It."  Muggsy looked at me and said, "I'm sorry but we can't play it."  I
was dumb founded and I said, "Well, I have your recording of it."
Muggsy replied that it had been recorded with a different band and he
couldn't do it with his present band.  In my naivete I couldn' t
understand this and I continued to stammer along about having his
recording of it and why couldn't he play it.  Muggsy finally
got exasperated with his explanation not getting through to me and he
walked away."

List mates & Jim:

What a neat story. Shows how little we knew when we were young and green
about OKOM. We knew we loved it, but didn't know much about it. Even
those of us who had started to play it. Now, in our dotage, we can wax
eloquently about OKOM and it's nuances, and what the great players were
doing etc. But back then we were neophytes.

Not too different with the young audiences today.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone

PS. Wonder what Wild Bill, or Ruby Braff would have said in Muggsy's
place?