[Dixielandjazz] Fw: Hines' broadcasts

Thu Jan 15 19:03:26 PST 2009

Oops...I just realized I sent this to Glen without ccing it to the list:
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Hal Vickery<mailto:hvickery_80 at msn.com> 
To: Glen Page<mailto:gpage at dccnet.com> 
Sent: Thursday, January 15, 2009 1:49 PM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Hines' broadcasts

I think Hines may have been in error as to the "Red Line" and "Blue Line"  NBC did have two stations in Chicago.  WMAQ was the Red Network station and WENR/WLS (shared time at 870, later 890 kHz) was the Blue Network station.  The Merchandise Mart was a broadcasting center in those days where many NBC network programs (Fibber McGee and Molly, Amos 'n' Andy, etc.) originated.  

They had two cables basically that carried programming.  The one that was colored red carried the Red Networks broadcasts.  The one that was colored blue carried the blue network broadcasts.  The Red Network eventually became NBC Radio (which went out of business when GE bought NBC--the name NBC Radio was bought by the guy who owned, and may still do so, Westwood One).  

NBC was forced in the early '40s to divest itself of its Blue Network.  It was bought by an individual who continued for a few years to be called the Blue Network, as opposed to the NBC Blue Network.  The Blue Network eventually became ABC.  

What Hines may be thinking of is that before that before transcriptions became common, network broadcasts were repeated for the west coast.  For example, the Jack Benny program heard in the east and midwest would be done at 4:00 PT.  Then the show was repeated (live) at 7:00 p.m. PT for the west coast.  This had nothing to do with the Red or Blue Networks.

There may have been two things going on that Hines remembered.  One is that they were doing broadcasts for both "coasts."  The other is that they might have had one broadcast on the Red Network and another on the blue network.

Now as to whether local broadcasts could be heard.  WMAQ and WENR/WLS were clear channels.  I remember listening to nighttime broadcasts on WMAQ that pointed out that they could be heard in 38 states and parts of Canada.  Someone in KC could certainly hear Hines broadcasts on either station.

Hal Vickery
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Glen Page<mailto:gpage at dccnet.com> 
  To: Hal Vickery<mailto:hvickery_80 at msn.com> 
  Cc: 'Dixieland Jazz Mailing List'<mailto:dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com> 
  Sent: Thursday, January 15, 2009 12:53 PM
  Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Hines' broadcasts

  Here is the promised followup to yesterday's post.

  Hines himself wrote in "The World Of Earl Hines"   "..We opened at the Grand
  Terrace on my birthday, 28TH December 1928" This will help to give the date
  of his broadcasting career some perspective when he addresses it some pages
  on.

  Hines continues "We started broadcasting out of the Grand Terrace just after
  the third year. We used to play on a small station they called the Cadillac
  station."He goes on to make comments that indicate this to be a very
  informal and folksy program. The next paragraph tells us a little more.

  "This went on until larger stations were interested.NBC had two
  stations,WMAQ and WNER, and they had what they called a blue line and a red
  line. The blue line went to New York and the red line from Chicago to
  California. So we would sign on in Chicago to New York at 11,play half an
  hour, sign off and then sign right back on the red line going to California.
  This red line took in quite a bit of Canada,so when we toured Canada there
  was   as much enthusiasm.It got to the stage where we were broadcasting
  every night and people were waiting up to hear us. ......I think that we had
  more air time than any other band in the U.S."

  I submit that the above answers both of your questions Ken. If you get a
  chance to have access to the book you will find a lot of information written
  both directly by Hines and many or his esteemed sidemen. 

  The chronology given at the back of the book also casts light on his
  activities as reported in the press at the time.Broadcasts on WEAF, New York
  in 1931,also in'31 over WSBC from the GT. This detailed chronology covers
  just about all his musical activities from 1914 to Nov. 1975.I was fortunate
  to be able to hear on a few occasions in the later 70s when he had a solo
  gig in a  hotel in Vancouver.

  -----Original Message-----
  From: dixielandjazz-bounces at ml.islandnet.com<mailto:dixielandjazz-bounces at ml.islandnet.com>
  [mailto:dixielandjazz-bounces at ml.islandnet.com] On Behalf Of Ken Mathieson
  Sent: January 14, 2009 5:08 PM
  To: glen page
  Cc: Dixieland Jazz Mailing List
  Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Earl Hines Big Band (was Time Machine)

  Hi Folks,

  In Don's post on the Time Machine thread, he mentions the great Earl Hines
  band of the 1930s, which got me thinking. A number of years ago I gave a
  record recital at the Glasgow Jazz Record Society, a venerable club dating
  back to the early 1930s, when the only way for most people in the UK to hear
  and learn about the classic American source material was by listening to
  records, which they did by getting together in clubs and listening to each
  other's discs.

  My topic was Lorenzo Tio Jr and his influence on jazz reed playing, and in
  my recital I followed the recording careers of his most illustrious pupils,
  including Omer Simeon with Jelly and later with Hines. Also in that Hines
  band was Darnell Howard, who, according to Harold Dejan, had also studied
  with Tio in Chicago. Both men played alto and soprano as well as clarinet
  and it is interesting to hear how the Tio clarinet approach translated to
  alto. There were the long lines, the assured technical control, the tasteful
  filigree ornamentation and, most notably, a time feel that was close to even
  eighths and markedly different from the standard swing feel deriving from
  Armstrong's time feel. All of these characteristics got carried over into
  early bop and my questions to list members are:
    1.. Did the Hines band play regular radio broadcasts from the Grand
  Terrace in the 1930s?
    2.. Did these reach as far as Kansas City?
  It's interesting to speculate whether these broadcasts, (if they could be
  picked up in KC),  were routinely listened to by Kansas City musicians and,
  if so, did Tio's influence extend into bop via Charlie Parker?

  Cheers,

  Ken Mathieson
  www.classicjazzorchestra.org.uk<http://www.classicjazzorchestra.org.uk/>  
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