[Dixielandjazz] Succession of young N.O. Dixielanders

[Charles Suhor]

Marek's mention of trumpeter Warren (not Walter) Luening having been described early on  as “A Young Man in Search of a Gimmick”  calls to mind his place in a succession of young white Dixielanders (all of them where white) who started out in the post-WWII years during the popular N.O. revival sparked mainly by Sharkey Bonano and Papa Celestin. Fairly distinctive, though overlapping in ages, these were (in my view) some of the best of the players in each of three waves—

--The Dukes of Dixieland—Frank and Fred Assunto. trp & trb; Pete Fountain; Stan Mendellson, pno (the original Dukes) ; George Girard. trp; Bill Crais, trb; Don Suhor, cl; Al McCrossen, trp; Jay Barry (Jack Barratini), trp.

--Connie Jones. trp; Larry Muhoberac (later aka Larry Gordon), pno, trb; Theresa Kelly, pno/vocals; Von Gammon, drs (the Dixiecats); Theresa Kelly, pno/vocals; Milton Bourgeois, bs; Charlie Suhor, drs.; Reed Vaughan, drs.

--Followed soon by Murphy Campo, trp, Pee Wee Spitelera, cl, Ronnie Dupont, pno; Paul Ferrara, drs,

Almost all the above were born in the 1930s. Most sat in as youngsters with Bonano (the Dukes of Dixieland idolized, even copied, and were named after, Sharkey’s Kings of Dixieland), and with Tony Almerico’s band, often outshining them, at the Sunday Parisian Room concerts.

Warren Leuning (born 1941) appeared during the decline of the local revival but was seen as a wunderkind—sat in with Almerico while still at Colton Jr. High. Many thought he was destined to follow in the footsteps of the Dukes, Pete Fountain and Al Hirt as the next N.O. artist to become wildly famous and a household name. Indeed, he was a featured solist on Lawrence Welk’s show before serving in the NORAD military jazz and dance band. In 1967 Pete opened the Storyville Club club on Esplanade Ave. as a platform for Warren’s mature talent.  I reviewed the group favorably for Down Beat (Jan. 1968), describing Luening as “New Orleans’ latest candidate for acclaim as a pop-Dixieland musician.” But he played most effectively in lovely modern style, with touches of Clifford Brown. I wrote that “it would take a miracle of promotion to launch him into the Fountain-Hirt-Dukes of Dixieland orbit. Essentially, Luening is selling good eclectic jazz trumpet. He does’t gyrate or grimace expressively on the bandstand….He isn’t an instrumental wizard like Hirt….In an era of smiling band leaders with long batons and tuxedos, he might have made it on his youthful good looks. At his point, however, Luening just looks like a versatile musician without a gimmick.” 
He went on to have a fine career as a much in demand studio player for major artists—not a bad way to make a living.

Charlie

> On Jul 23, 2015, at 3:00 PM, Marek Boym <marekboym at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> It's not a question of material, but rather of attitude.  Pee Wee Hunt recorded many "comatose" numbers with the Casa Loma and his own bands before becoming "Mr. Dixieland Himself" (this hype comes from a record title or advertisement).  Many years later I read an article about Walter Luening in a jazz magazine, and the title was "A Young Man in Search of a Gimmick."  
> What we tend to forget is that all the musicians mentioned played to make a living; hence "the desperate seeking of a commercial hit."  Some succeeded Bwithout greatly compromising the jazz content, like Jonah Jones with his "muted jazz" gimmick, which was decried by critics at the time, but has wihstood the test of time (actually, he became a favourite of mine after I heard "Swinging on Broadway").
> Cheers