[Dixielandjazz] FW: George Lewis ~ Impact

[Jim Kashishian]

> What about you folks who were already listening to the likes of 
> Watters, Murphy, Scobey , FH5 + 2 on the West Side.

I wasn't merely listening...I was playing, and our band was based on the San
Francisco sound (all of the above sounds).  However, I had/have a more
melodic streak, and felt equally at home with The Dukes, etc., although I
can honk in the rough & ready style of Murphy if the song calls for it. 

One should remember that Audio Fidelity Stereo recordings often were offered
free if you bought stereo audio equipment (the first were heavily marketed
in 1958/59), and The Dukes of Dixieland were one of their most prized
groups.  So, that exposed a lot of people to that particular style of
Dixieland.  It was hard to go into an audio section of a large department
store without hearing them.

I was listening to all of the above, plus Kid Ory, who I heard live at the
Berverly Caverns soon after the FH5 gig there (Mutt Carey was on trumpet,
but I don't remember any others). And, of course, my favorite...Teddy
Buckner's band which I heard 3 nites a week for about a year & a half (the
other 4 nites I was playing...or, was it listen 4, play 3...it was a long
time ago!).  

J.J. Johnson & Kai Winding had an influence on me, as did Rosolino.  I heard
Rosolino in Seal Beach (from outside the back door 'cause I was too young to
get in, in 1957!), and later at Shelley Manne's "The Manhole" niteclub in
L.A., with Shelley on drums.  

I knew of George Lewis, particularly because there were 4 songs of his on a
record I bought that had 4 different bands on it, but one can see from all
the above, my interests lie in other directions.  

Jim
P.s.  In the 1970's I finally heard Kai Winding live here in Madrid.  Great!
He did one part of a song without his backing band, and he swung more than
the whole lot of them put together!  Later, I was introduced to him, and he
humbly said he "had heard a lot about ME!"  Now, that's a twist!!!