[Dixielandjazz] What happened to Dixieland 63'

[Falana1041 at aol.com]

Where were you in 63’?
In the program for the Monterey Jazz Festival for its 6th Birthday in 1963, I came across a small article that I found quite interesting. So is it true what they say about Dixie?

SYMPOSIUM: ”What Happened to Dixieland?”
  A symposium titled, “What Happened to Dixieland?” will be held at the Jazz Festival on Saturday afternoon, September 21, immediately following the scheduled matinee concert.
  Participants in this unusual discussion, to be moderated by Downbeat Editor Don DeMichael, will include Jack Teagarden, Pee Wee Russell, Joe Sullivan, Charlie Teagarden, Darnell Howard- all of whom are musicians once associated, often against their will, with “Dixieland” jazz.
  In recent years, so-called “Dixieland” jazz suffered severe economic reverses: several once-celebrated night clubs devoted to Dixieland, such as Nick’s in New York and San Francisco’s Club Hangover, have closed their doors. Musicians who were forced into the “Dixieland” mold to make a living, are often stigmatized with this label; in many cases, these artists actively loathed this type of music and bitterly resented the implication that they were incapable of playing other styles.
  Said Festival Manager Jimmy Lyons:
  “The Monterey Jazz Festival is committed to presenting neglected giants in jazz, and to reacquainting the public with their works. For example, Earl Hines, long written off by many as a “Dixieland” pianist, literally astounded the Festival audience in 1959 with his brilliant, imaginative and completely modern piano technique.”
  “I feel that this year’s Festival audience is going to experience the same sort of surprise upon hearing the Teagarden Brothers, Pee Wee Russell and Elmer Snowden, and we hope the symposium discussion will help clear the confusion that often surrounds “Dixieland” jazz.”

Any thoughts OKOM’ers?  
-Alana Shapazian
p.s. come to Fresno this weekend and enjoy the Blue Street 20th Birthday Festival. I am singing with the Raisin Babies and the Viper City Brass Band.


"When I am good, I'm very good, and when I'm bad, I'm better." --Mae West