[Dixielandjazz] Cornet Education for Bill Biffle

[Jim Beebe]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <TCASHWIGG at aol.com>
>
> Hi Mike:
>
> With all due respect:
>
> Maybe Wynton and a lot of other Excellent Black musicians that have been
> totally ignored by the Dixieland Music Industry for so long have a right
to be
> opinionated, after all Nick La Rocca did not invent Dixieland Music as
many
> people who play it believe.

  Tom, Tom...where are you coming from?  What is this weirdness about 'Black
musicians totally ignored by the Dixieland Jazz Industry?' With all due
respect, Tom, methinks that you don't really know much about the history of
Dixieland Jazz.  That is ok because not many people do.  Most of the
attendees and many of the players at the Trad Jazz Fests around the country
are clueless as to the history of this music.  As for Nick La Rocca, he and
the others in the ODJB ( Original Dixieland Jazz Band) had a hell of a lot
to do with the early development of Dixieland Jazz.  They wrote most of the
original tunes and were the first to record them. Some of the early black
musicians would not record because that had this notion of others 'stealin
their stuff. ( this is not a joke but was a common fear with many
musicians.)


>   Authentic History proves that it started down in New Orleans with guys
Like
> Jelly Roll Morton and King Oliver, Buddy Bolden and many others that never
> saw a line of print.

   "Never saw a line of print"...   Buddy bolden was very well known.  My
god...King Oliver was known all over the south and in Chicago.  Jelly Roll
Morton was as well known as any musician in the country.  He made and blew a
fortune more than once.  Unfortunately, most musicians despised him as he
couldn' t stop bragging about himself and conning them out of money. Both
Morton and Oliver were very successful  for periods and traveled a lot with
their groups.

 If it had not been for the great undeniable success of Louis Armstrong
their
> just might not be any Dixieland music at all.  Which in My opinion is the
main
> reason he is included in the Great Trumpet Players list.  You can't even
> recognize this music and Not recognize Louis Armstrong and his
contributions.

Tom, this simply is not so...that there might not be Dixieland Jazz without
Armstrong.  I think that many people don't realize that New Orleans was not
just 'Blacks and 'Whites.  New Orleans was probably the most racially and
ethnically mixed city in the world.  Within the 'colored section there were
shades of distinctions with blacks, yellow, high-yellows, mulattoes, creoles
and others.  Other citizenry included French, Italian, Irish Mexican and on
and on.  They all figured in the mix. Jelly Roll Morton is a good example.
He certainly was not black but of a very mixed parentage. Many of the early
Dixieland Jazz musicians were Italian.  How many studies have you read on
this? Many of the early great 'colored' clarinetists had french or italian
music teachers.

Man...don't get me started on this.

> Whether or not we wish to admit it, these Black originators of Jazz music
> were relegated to mostly back street juke joints and Brothels to play
their music
> and not allowed uptown in the White Dance Halls.

  Again this is simply not true. You are buying into the popular New Orleans
jazz mythology. Young musicians, especially those from europe love this
stuff with the 'brothels' and tough joints.  But I temper this by saying
again that this was a very layered society in New Orleans... There really
weren't any 'White Dance Halls'  To state that 'Black's were the originators
of Jazz music is overlooking the many creole, mulatto, Italiian, Portugese,
etc, etc. that were also in the mix.


> Wynton Marsalis is not one of my heroes or even favorite players, but I do
> not deny him his success and his opinions, which speak volumes for those
who
> were denied their rightful place in History.  Many of them paid a dear and
hard
> price for Wynton to achieve what he has done, as well as one of my former
> trumpet players, John Faddis at Carnegie Hall.

   Tom...who is it that you think has been denied their rightful place in
history?  I would agree that the early Italian muscians have been denied
their place.  You certainly won't hear wynton Marsalis mention them.

> It's About time they got some respect they earned it and did not get there
> just because they are Black or because of Affirmative Action.  They are
Good,
> and Wynton is doing more for Traditional Jazz than 90% of all the So
called Jazz
> Societies in the World.

  Who told you this...Wynton?

>   Anyone who thinks not should ask why did Ken Burns not come seek us out
for
> our opinions on who is Hot in Jazz rather than Wynton who is a highly
> respected professor of Jazz studies in Louisiana, besides being a fine
trumpet
> player.

   Ken Burns did go to others beyond Wynton and Crouch but he didn't use
anything they had to say. Why not?  Because Burns is pushing his social
agenda...that 'Blacks are still downtrodden and need his help to gain their
rights. Hence in his 'Jazz' series we got loads of pictures of KKK meetings,
Nazi rallies, lynchings etc.  Many musicians were portrayed as drug addicts
and drunks.

Wynton Marsalis is a fine musician.  His 'Carnival' album with the Eastman
Wind Ensemble was superb.  He is the first jazz musician that I know of who
could bring off  "The Carnival of Venice" and he did so beautifully.  But I
must wonder at what he is teaching in his Jazz studies.

> Many of us loved to Hate Ken Burns and even threw a few verbal stones at
him
> on this list, but fact is he did something and most of us did not.  Thanks
to
> him many of the bands and musicians on this list are currently enjoying a
> great resurgence in live performing opportunities to play this great
music.
> Perhaps this time we won't blow it.
>
> I have personally worked with many good musicians that I hated on a
personal
> level, but I would not deny them their opinions.  After all That is pretty
> much what Jazz is all about anyway, opinions, musically and otherwise.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Tom Wiggins

  Tom, I hope that my comments have not been too abrasive.  I don't mean to
be but I am an abrasive jerk at times. That I suppose is from not being able
to get out and blow it out the horn anymore.  I respect you as a fine and
successful musician and  I salute you for having the guts to put your
thoughts out here.

Incidentally, Louis Armstrong was fond of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band
and said so many times.

Jim Beebe