[Dixielandjazz] Igor's Question

[David Richoux]

Igor,

Please remember that  the "alternative" songs you list are about 40  
years - or more - old (Blue Bayou is the most recent, I think.)  
Attracting "Boomers" to listening to this kind of music is tough,  
getting folks who are now in their 20s and 30s can be even harder!
The California Repercussions do songs by Brittany Spears ("Toxic,")   
Megadeath ("Enter Sandman" - which is in a medley with "Mr.  
Sandman" ;-) and several "New Swing" songs from Big Bad Voodoo Daddy  
and the like. Our arrangements are close to the original versions -  
we don't camp it up much (that is hard to do instrumentally with a 50  
piece wind band.) However, our rendition of "Y.M.C.A." had the rather  
mature audience on their feet, waving their hands in the air at  
Sacramento a few years ago. (I was pleasantly surprised!)

Dave Richoux

On May 8, 2008, at 12:37 PM, Igor Glenn wrote:

> I had asked a question about meeting younger generations halfway by  
> playing songs other than those from 1920-49.  What if we picked  
> specific songs that have a similarity to specific established Trad  
> songs?
>
>   I'm not suggesting trying to force any and all tunes into a Trad  
> style; that can be awkward to the point of being ridiculous.   
> However, there are a few widely-recognized songs that already have  
> an intrinsic character of "Trad".  This is based on a similarity of  
> rhythmic pattern, melodic contour, chord progressing and lyric.
>
>   From and for the "Boomers", I submit the following alternatives:
>
>   Saints Go Marching In  -  Put Your Hand in the Hand of the Man  
> Who Stilled the  Waters
>   St. James' Informary Blues  -  House of the Rising Sun
>   Birth of the Blues  -  King of the Road
>   Closer Walk with Thee  -  We Shall Overcome
>   Bill Bailey  -  Riding on the City of New Orleans
>   Georgia Camp Meeting  -  Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport (!)
>   Ain't Misbehaving  -  When I'm 64
>   Tin Roof Blues  -  Night Life (Ain't no good life but it's my  
> life...)
>   Sleepy Time Down South  -  Blue Bayou
>   Naughty Sweetie Blues  -  Those Were the Days
>
>   Some songs from the "Boomer Era" actually were or became Trad:
>
>   Midnight in Moscow
>   San Francisco Bay Blues   (My typist loves the Eric Clapton version)
>   Hello Dolly
>   Cabaret
>   Entertainer Rag
>   Winchester Cathedral
>   See See Rider
>   Washington Square (banjo solo)
>   Mardi Gras Mambo
>
>   Also note that recognizable lyrics can help the un-initiated  
> connect to "our style" of music.  (My typist detests the "OKOM"  
> term.)  What are some other alternatives from other eras?  Why did  
> we stop being eclectic?
>
>   IGOR
>
>
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