[Dixielandjazz] Roy Eldridge clips

[Charles Suhor]

And there's the great story about Red Rodney going on tour (with Bird, 
I think) and at the black clubs they booked hims as "Albino Red." It 
just occurred to me that that's just two letter-substitutions away from 
Alvino Rey. A gem of irony, whether it was intended or not.

Charlie

On Dec 23, 2006, at 9:14 PM, Steve Barbone wrote:

> on 12/23/06 6:09 PM, JBruno868 at aol.com at JBruno868 at aol.com wrote:
>
> I might have missed it if anyone posted but my interest was when did 
> Gene
> start using Blacks in his band? Was he one of the first? The movie was 
> made
> in 1941 and I thought that was rather early for mixed bands.
>
> Thanks
>
> Jazz Hugs
>
> Judie
>
>
> I don't exactly know about the makeup of Krupa's bands, but 1941 would 
> have
> been among the early mixed bands if his included Eldridge. Especially 
> in a
> movie, which may have been why you saw the solo only and not Eldridge
> sitting in a regular band chair. The  censors may well have killed most
> references like that.
>
> However, Benny Goodman had played with Teddy Wilson in some small 
> studio
> bands organized by John Hammond as early as 1934. I think they 
> recorded in
> trio form shortly thereafter. Goodman kept him in the trio, while still
> using Jess Stacy in the big band. Downbeat then praised Jess Stacy for 
> his
> "noble gesture" for living, if only for a few numbers a night, "in the
> shadow of a coloured man".
>
> John Hammond put Benny Goodman together with Billie Holiday on her 
> first
> recording in 1933.  It is rumored that Benny and Billie started 
> dating, but
> they were never confirmed.
>
> Goodman then hired Lionel Hampton  around 1935/6 and the trio became a
> quartet. Two white, Goodman & Krupa and two black, Wilson and Hampton. 
> Their
> first record "Moonglow" was a huge hit.
>
> I don't think Goodman was doing it to be noble, I think he did it 
> because he
> was fixated on musical perfection and Teddy Wilson and Lionel Hampton 
> fit
> his musical thoughts better than any white players at that time.
>
> Artie Shaw hired Billie Holiday in 1938 and Roy Eldridge around 
> 1942/3, but
> Eldridge later quit the band because it caused some racial friction 
> when
> hotels would not let a black man stay there with the rest of the band.
> Eldridge was very sensitive to racial friction.
>
> However the first black musician to record with a white band was, I 
> believe,
> Jelly Roll Morton who cut 6 sides with The New Orleans Rhythm Kings. 
> For
> Gennett, no less, in Richmond Indiana, a town noted for KKK activity. 
> Georg
> Brunies recalls the NORK telling Gennett that Jelly Roll was a Cuban. 
> That
> would have been around 1923, I believe, Bill Haesler can supply the 
> exact
> date.
>
> I suppose some Creoles of mixed blood, might have passed for white and
> played with white bands even earlier than that. And some whites may 
> have
> passed for Creoles and played with black bands.
>
> In that vein, In the late 20's, Fletcher Henderson used say to 
> Teagarden;
> "Hey Tea, why is a black man like you playing with white bands? Come 
> over
> here with us where you belong." Henderson would not believe that Tea 
> was
> white.
>
> Likewise, when people would ask Eddie Condon if Edmond Hall was black, 
> he
> would reply; "I don't know, I never asked him."
>
> On thing for sure, the music is colorblind and so are most jazz 
> musicians.
>
> Jazz Hugs back at ya,
> Steve Barbone
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