[Dixielandjazz] Lou-Easy-An-Ia

[Bill Haesler]

 Gary Kiser asked:
> Can someone provide me with some history, insight or anecdotes concerning Joe Darenbourg's "Lou-Easy-An-Ia"? The Anderson book has it with this spelling written in 1949. I have seen it spelled differently elsewhere (without the Easy). Does anyone know the real spelling?

Dear Gary,
In his 1987 autobiography 'Jazz Odyssey (As Told to Peter Vacher)', Joe Darensbourg confirms the George Buck story quoted in the Salty Dogs' CD notes.

"After we closed at the Hangover in San Francisco in 1949 I was driving back down to Los Angeles by myself. It was always in my mind to write a tune of something about Baton Rouge or Louisiana, preferably Baton Rouge, but what rhymes with Baton Rouge?   ...maybe I can write something by spelling it out, and gradually it came . . . Lou-easy-an-ia. In fact I'd heard that expression before. That's the way it happened an it all seemed to be very easy. The words just came and as soon as I got back home I wrote 'em down and took out my horn and made up a little melody.. I got a piece of manuscript paper and sketched a lead, but I hadn't wrote the verse at that time — that came later. I don't really write too much but I can do enough to get a lead down so as not to forget it. Even at that time when Pete Daily made the first record of Lou-easy-an-ia in 1950 for Capitol, I hadn't wrote the verse. So we didn't use a verse on that. Red Fox wrote the lead sheet out with the chords and everything. I have the original copy on the wall at home here. Pete picked the tune just from making 
After Pete recorded it a lot of bands here and in Europe followed on. I would say the first real recording of it was by George Lewis; on the flip side was Monette Moore doing Burgundy Street Blues..."

There's more regarding recordings, Acker Bilk, royalties, publishing, ASCAP, Beechwood and BMI.
Note the phonetic spelling, Lou-easy-an-ia, used throughout by Joe Darensbourg. 

Dick Baker (as usual) has nailed the copyright and initial label spelling. 
> Looks like that record was Capitol 1370, rec. 12/20/50, with Johnson Rag on flip side.
> Well, the copyright has no hyphens and no extra 'i' at the end:
>        LOUISIANA; w, m & (c) Joseph Darensbourg 27Oct50 EU220282.
> I found the original Capitol 1370 label, and indeed, the title there is LOUIS-I-AN-IA.  I've
> put on my web site for you to check for yourself, at 
>    http://dickbaker.org/stompoff/Louis-i-an-ia--Capitol-1370.jpg

> George Lewis, he recorded it twice in 1953, the first as the bizarre Lou-easy-an-i-a-i,
> the second as Louisian-i-a, which does most accurately mimic the pronunciation
> of the word in the lyrics, and must be the version that most later bands have followed.

The reference to the "first real recording of it was by George Lewis; on the flip side was Monette Moore doing Burgundy Street Blues" is bothering me. More later.
Very kind regards,
Bill.