[Dixielandjazz] Original Sheet Music was St Louis Blues, Whip Me, Worn Ou...

[Steve Barbone]

I hear you Ginny. I guess all jazz musicians have at least one so called fan
who corrects us if we do not meet his/her criteria for what "authentic" jazz
is. Or who plays it, or what instruments must be used etc., etc., etc. Or
who bends our ears about what he/she perceives jazz in general to be.

Best to smile sweetly and say; Look dummy, Bessie Smith did it differently
than W. C. wrote it, and Louis Armstrong was the trumpet backing her up on
the record in the 1920s. If it's good enough for them that way, it's good
enough for me. Then hand him your axe and ask him to play it "correctly".

Besides, W.C. Handy stole part of that song in the first place, so who knows
how it really should go.

Re  Josephine's second line, "When you musha, pleasa no pusha onna da bell."
Heck all of us old guys , especially Italian Americans, know that song.
Barbone Street's guitarist, Sonny Troy, played it often when he was with
Louis Prima years ago.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone

on 10/12/07 12:12 AM, Gluetje1 at aol.com at Gluetje1 at aol.com wrote:

And my sad story here in St. Louis involves a retired physician who knows
every word of every tune written per the sheet music for ragtime and Tin Pan
Alley.  He's fussing at me because some jazzer messed with St. Louis Blues
somewhere along the line and others followed.  He won't pay any attention to
me that it's not my personal fault.  Earlier tonight I thought I had him
distracted when I told him I had found a tune new to me today, "Josephine
Please No Lean on The Bell", but he started singing it to me.
Ginny

In a message dated 10/11/2007 5:03:15 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
barbonestreet at earthlink.net writes:
Hey Ginny:

See what happens when you don't have and/or follow the original sheet music?

You get the Worn Out Blues because someone Whipped You With Plenty of Love,
which resulted in a Harlem Fuss instead of a Minor Drag.

And to think, Bill Haesler brought it all up again because of a Dancing
Chicken that didn't follow the original sheet music either.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone