[Dixielandjazz] Melody

[Stephen G Barbone]

On Aug 30, 2011, at 3:00 PM, dixielandjazz-request at ml.islandnet.com  
wrote:

> Don Ingle <cornet at 1010internet.com>
>
> Perhaps the greatest advice on inportance of playing the melody to
> establish a tune is the famous sign placed in the main recording  
> studio
> fo the old Decca Hollywood studio (by Bing Crosby one source claimed)
> that simply asked:
>
> "WHO'S GOT THE MELODY?"


Certainly not Jimmy Durante who led the original New Orleans Jazz Band  
back around 1920. Here's what he said about melody when talking about  
the various New York City Bands that were then imitating ODJB. His  
band was also working in  NYC at that time.

"In some of those bands the cornet player played the melody. In some  
others the clarinet played the melody. In our band nobody played the  
melody."

I think he was only half joking. Back then(per Richard Sudhalter)  
melody and music were less important than noise and novelty. He quotes  
Ralph Berton as saying the general band idea was "Lets get loaded and  
see how nutty we can sound."

He also points to Yellow Nunez (clarinet with the Louisiana Five)  
sounding purposely like a dog baying at the moon  in their big hit   
Yelping Dog Blues. Etc, etc., etc.

Yessir, jazz evolved, got melodic, and is now devolving. (definition 2  
or 3:  to degenerate through a gradual change or evolution where order  
devolves into chaos.)

Or maybe it's just going back to the roots? <grin>

Cheers,
Steve Barbone

www.barbonestreet.com
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband