[Dixielandjazz] Louis Armstrong was on the scene at the beginning.

[Stephen G Barbone]

Marek posted that Louis (Lewis not Louie) was on the scene in the  
early 1920s. Seems to me Louis was on the scene in New Orleans before  
1920. For example, he took King Oliver's place in Kid Ory's band there  
in 1918 when Oliver left N.O. for Chicago. Prior to that he was  
playing in the Honky Tonks like Henry Ponce's and Matranga's.

By 1919 he was playing moonlight cruises with Fate Marable on the  
Mississippi in N.O. In 1920, he went with Marable on the Steckenfus  
boats that cruised up and down the Mississippi. That was the first  
time he left N.O. They played HOT JAZZ as well as dance music.

As for White bands playing jazz and Black bands playing for dancing,  
that is indeed an over simplification. Both bands did both. In fact,  
jazz grew up as dance music whether played by the ODJB, Phil Napoleon,  
Jimmy Durante NORK, or by Ory, Oliver, Louis or Keppard.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband