[Dixielandjazz] Preservation Hall JB revisited

[Marek Boym]

Partly true, sure.  But it's only a part of the story.  I have not
died yet - but have long stopped listening to the PHJB, because it
stagnated.  After the olg musicians died, that band was only allowed
to play certain tunes, in a certain way.  Consequently, it always
sounded the same.  no spirit or originality.  And if it really sounds
now like the Rebirth Brass Band, then I'm not going to listen to it in
the future, either - can't take that noise (I've tried), and I do not
care how many people do.
And I don't care whether a "trad" band (what is it, anyway?  Condon?
George Lewis?  The Dukes of Dixieland?) uses banjos and tubas (The
Original Dixieland Jazz Band had neither) or a guitar and a double
bass (or nono of those), as long as it plays well and with gusto!
Cheers

On 24/06/07, Steve Barbone <barbonestreet at earthlink.net> wrote:
> Perhaps the issue is not whether PHJB is/was a good/bad jazz band? Consider
> this:
>
> There was a time when PHJB had an extraordinary audience count. MANY fans.
> Slowly over the years, that fan base shrank. Now they have re-invented
> themselves and seem to be expanding their fan base again.
>
> We might ask ourselves why their audience shrank. IMO, not because the
> perceived quality of the music, but rather because they did not appeal to
> the younger people. And the old folks like you and I were dying off. Who was
> getting the new audience? Rebirth Brass and Dirty Dozen. You could see that
> at N.O. Jazz and Heritage during the last decade where they all appeared.
>
> So, what does PHJB do? They RE-INVENT their offering and go after the new
> audience. Seems to be succeeding.
>
> Is their a lesson here? You bet your ass there is. "Fans are the mother of
> re-invention." VBG (ouch)
>
> Realize that the idiots who argue about what a trad band is or is not, are
> pounding sand. Like those who write letters to American Rag and disagree
> about whether a tuba/banjo must be present in a "trad" band, or whether the
> tuba can be replaced by a double bass. Totally stupid. Soon, those kinds of
> arguments will die off along with their perpetrators.
>
> Cheers,
> Steve
>
>
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