[Dixielandjazz] Double Bass in New Orleans Jazz

[Stephen G Barbone]

In addition to banjo/tuba popularity in jazz bands prior to electric  
recording technology, jazz recording history may have been altered in  
other ways. ( As Ulf and others have said the double bass could not be  
picked up via the early recording technology)

There is a story going around that Freddie Keppard's band (black)  
would have been the first to record jazz, except that Keppard turned  
down Victor's offer because he did not want people to copy his music.  
However, here is what happened according to George Baquet, a  
clarinetist who had joined Keppard's band after a stint with Buddy  
Bolden.

In an interview,  December 1941 "Down Beat",  Baquet relates the story  
of why Freddie Keppard was not the first band to record jazz. Victor  
had asked Keppard several times, to record starting in 1915.

According to Baquet, Keppard began to get annoyed with the Victor  
company when they expressed doubts as to whether Bill Johnson's string  
bass playing could be recorded on the recording equipment of the time  
(1916!). Victor's doubts were real considering that on those famous  
King Oliver records of seven years later Johnson's string bass was  
replaced by banjo and brass bass and the bass drum was not used, due  
to the same technical problems, which were hard to overcome by the  
acoustical recording process in use before 1925/26.

Victor wanted the band to go into the studio to make a test to  
ascertain this point, but this "condition" was to take place without  
payment. "Keppard couldn't understand playing a date and not being  
paid for it", said Baquet. Keppard said "We've been kicked around so  
much we don't want to record. We'll do if you give us money, right  
away".

Victor declined the terms, and the course of jazz recording history  
was altered. This may have been the opportunity for the first  
generation of black jazz musicians from New Orleans to preserve the  
sound of their music on record for posteriority and, in today's view,  
may have led to document the intense jazz activity on the South Side  
of Chicago before 1920.



Cheers,



Steve Barbone

www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband