[Dixielandjazz] Acker

[Marek Boym]

On 3 November 2014 16:01, Gary Lawrence Murphy <garym at teledyn.com> wrote:

> Acker Bilk explains the waistcoats:
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4858qdllxk#t=57
>

His explanation iw not much different from mine.  My main objection is that
"funny hats" and (especially in America) stripped suits made people
identify traditional jazz with them rather than music.
The video is most interesting, although there's little thant's new to me
(other than the Temperance Seven story, but it has never been a favourite
of mine).

At its worse, British "trad" sounded like banjo with instrumental
accompaniment.  It was not New Orleans or the California stye - it was a
style of its own, and that;s as it should be - try to imitate and create
something new!  This applies to the West Coast style (OKOM, not cool) as
well.  That's waht creativity means - not mere copying.
Cheers

>
> On Mon, Nov 3, 2014 at 6:20 AM, Marek Boym <marekboym at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Acker Bilk was an extremely funny person.
>> At some time, he had a regular programme on the BBC, "Anchors aweigh."
>> The
>> routine was one jazz number, one popular, often extremely humorous, song,
>> and funny remarks by Bilk in between.  I was addicted.  And I'll never
>> forget "My English Country Garden!"
>> As to waistcoats - they were a part of his pop star image rather than his
>> jazz side.  After all, for a long time Acker Bilk was extremely popular
>> with non-jazz audience, and recorded lots of non-jazz albums.  But his
>> greatest hit, "Stranger on the Shore," still sounded a lot like a jazz
>> musician with strings.
>> Cheers
>>
>> On 3 November 2014 12:55, Patrick Ladd <patrickjladd at hotmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> >
>> > Acker lived at Pensford. About 8 miles from my home and within easy
>> reach
>> > of Bath and Bristol. I couldn`t claim to have known him but he was
>> always
>> > around  `the scene`.
>> >
>> > Although `Stranger on the Shore` which was only the background music
>> for a
>> > TV series will always remind me of him, his appearance on  local TV News
>> > with his band when he had just returned from a tour in Germany which
>> really
>> > established him was the defining moment for me. His interview was
>> > hilarious. His thick Somerset accent and his sense of humour came
>> through
>> > clearly. The interview  closed with the expected `Will you play
>> something
>> > for us`. Acker picked up his clarinet, turned to the band and said
>> `Blow,
>> > you buggers` and played the show out.
>> > I knew a guy from Pensford who was in Ackers early group. He told me
>> that
>> > the band won a local talent contest in the very early days, and part of
>> the
>> > prize was the opportunity to play at the dance which followed the
>> contest.
>> > Unfortunately the band only knew two tunes, one of which they had won
>> the
>> > contest with and were stuck trying to be a `real  band ` for the
>> evening,
>> > more or less making it up as they went along. I was also told that
>> before
>> > the band had settled into its regular combination various musicians came
>> > and went and it was not unusual that an instrument which no one could
>> play
>> > was required for an arrangement.  Acker would depute someone to be able
>> to
>> > play  by next Saturday and an instrument would be borrowed or hired and
>> > someone in the band would learn the simple fingering  or a couple of
>> chord
>> > shapes well enough to be able to get through the number.
>> >
>> > One thing Acker never had a problem with was the waistcoats and bowler
>> > which seems to worry some of our listmates so much.
>> >
>> > Pat
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