[Dixielandjazz] Dixielandjazz Digest, Vol 53, Issue 27/The not so authentic 20s music

[Jeanne Brei]

Dear Rose,
    I was once hired for a party at Bill's Gay 90s in New York and 
specifically was asked to make it a Gay '90s show with music from the 
1890s -- so I did my research and discovered that RHYTHM didn't come into 
music until about 1902! You can't possibly play an entire party and expect 
people to have fun without having songs with rhythm! So I called back the 
party planner and explained the dilemma and the more we talked, the more I 
realized that what she REALLY wanted was all the old Shakey's pizza parlor 
sing-a-long songs I learned as a kid at the Golden Bee honky-tonk piano 
sing-a-long at the Broadmore Hotel in Coloorado Springs. So, I threw in a 
couple of songs from the 1890s (She's Only A Bird In A Gilded Cage and She's 
More to Be Pitied Than Censured) for "flavor" and then we had a rockin' time 
singing songs from the "aughts" & "teens" - 5'2", Bill Bailey, etc.
    I think the same thing would happen if you talked to the party planner 
from the Gangster party -- if you asked him/her to name some of the songs 
they're looking for -- they'll name songs from movies they've seen about 
gangsters regardless of the era but you can be sure that the movie 
soundtrack had them in the Roaring 20s style -- which is far more important 
than when the tune was written/copyrighted/charted etc.
    In all honesty, I think it would be a godsend if we could STOP 
classifying music by when it was written or charted and STARTED classifying 
it by style - so that it would be okay for boogie-woogie or walkin' bass to 
be currently popular even if it wasn't written yesterday. I pray that 
Internet Radio continues on -- for the FIRST time, you can choose radio 
stations by STYLE -- from Dixieland Gumbo to Canucktuch Crooners (both are 
on www.live365.com) instead of what's currently on the charts (commercial 
radio).
Jeanne Brei

Jeanne Brei
Tin Pan Alley Cat Entertainment
Las Vegas, NV
http://www.jeannebrei.com
NEW! I'm on YouTube! Click here to sing John & I singing!
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=tinpanalleycat
EVEN NEWER! Check out my BLOG! http://jazzinwithjeanne.blogspot.com
http://www.viewnews.com/2002/VIEW-Jun-28-Fri-2002/Summerlin/19044673.html



----- Original Message ----- 
From: <ALOHArose at aol.com>
To: <tinpanalleycat at cox.net>
Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Tuesday, May 15, 2007 10:32 AM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Dixielandjazz Digest, Vol 53,Issue 27/The not 
so authentic 20s music


> Dear Bob,
> As I said, <<Perhaps i am overreacting>> That said, I remain more than 
> tired
> of misdirection, deception and promoting anything as something it is not; 
> in
> other words, the New American Style.
>
> In this last decade we have been inundated with deception and 
> misinformation
> and one can see that the desire to deceive has become a fundamental 
> resource
> for many.   I find that unacceptable and corrupting, and will fight it 
> where i
> find it. There is an obligation to oppose the deceptive fog and 
> misdirection
> that pervades our lives-- in product info, in advertising, on the internet 
> and
> in everyday negotiations. When I came across your mildly stated 
> misdirection
> regarding 20s songs, it really spoke to me because it concerns my true 
> passion,
> music; unfortunately, i've been particularly sensitive to this trend 
> toward
> 'simplification' which is actually a cultural 'dumbing down' that levels
> everything to the   generic with no distinction.
>
> The kids entered into this thread through the back door because this is a
> group that continually states a desire to attract young people to the 
> music, and
> it is hard to imagine wanting to attract young persons to anything but the
> real thing; misdirection is antithetical to that [separate] goal of 
> attracting
> the young; authenticity is the key.
>
> My comment did not address one gangsta event, kids or not, but the degree 
> of
> integrity necessary to attract all fans. Not unlike when one experiences a
> truly outstanding performance...authenticity or 'rightness' is a huge part 
> and
> contagious. The idea of faking the 20s is incompatible with the concept of
> attracting fans because it reduces music to the generic, and I really 
> wanted to
> underscore that.   Why not strive to do the real job of presenting real 
> 20s
> music?
>
> I probably care about this kind of thing more than most, but regret
> overstating my case in an overt response, and sincerely apologize for 
> giving offense,
> and that extends to anyone else with a preference for placid.   I'm not a 
> big
> fan of placid when significant matters are on the table.   I've seen many
> brutally candid and testosterone driven responses here and wonder why the 
> 'netique'
> lesson is only pulled out for *ladies* in a snit.
>
> Alas, Bob, for my failed attempt at a humorous chide regarding your 
> precision
> with subject lines, mentioned only because that precision regarding minor
> tasks did not extending to songs, which are an important musical element 
> (for
> women). You may recall that your previous focus on the subject line was 
> never a
> problem for me; the lack of consistency just amused me, and I tried to 
> pass
> that on when I should have passed on that. Mea Culpa/Mea bad.
>
> And I did sign my post using ALOHA!   -More bad?
> ALOHA
> aka Sharon Lee Rosewoman-Godwin
>
>
> **************************************
> See
> what's free at http://www.aol.com.
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