[Dixielandjazz] follow up to Steve Voce's note-- re Eddie Condon Gang-- especially Wild Bill Davison

[Norman Vickers]

To:  Musicians and Jazzfans list;  DJML

From:  Norman Vickers, Jazz Pensacola

 

Re:  Follow up to Steve Voce's note re Eddie Condon Gang

 

Voce wrote:

Date: Tue, 25 Jul 2017 15:03:04 +0100

From: Steve Voce <stevevoce at virginmedia.com>

 

Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Eddie Condon

Message-ID: <b922c21e-95b2-2698-1b9e-c186e13344ba at virginmedia.com>

 

Some of the most rare jazz film you'll ever see is in Mosaic's 'Jazz
Gazette' this week. During and after World War II there was a bi-monthly US
news film called 'The March Of Time', which chose a different subject for
each issue. On one occasion in 1946 the subject was Eddie Condon's club in
New York. Alas, the film never survived.

 

But some of the practice sequences shot at the time have just emerged, and
Mosaic have put them up for us all to watch. The band is: Wild Bill, Brad
Gowans, Tony Parenti, Gene Schroeder, Condon, Jack Lesberg and Dave Tough
(the exact band that at that time recorded 'Improvisation For The March Of
Time' and 'Farewell Blues' for Decca/Brunswick). This is I think the only
film of Parenti, a fine clarinettist indeed, and the wonderful Brad Gowans,
who plays a valide. This is a valve trombone with a slide, and it's
fascinating to watch him switching from valves to slide. Don't miss this!

 

Steve Voce

 

Norman responds with own anecdote-  Thanks to Steve Voce for his story about
Eddie Condon and gang.

 

Of course, I never had a chance to meet  cornetist Wild Bill  Davison.  But
I had read about his escapades-with the music, women, and booze. I knew that
he had been diagnosed as having an aortic aneurysm and that because of his
age and poor health, the prognosis was grim.  But it was decided that
surgeons would try to repair the leaking aorta--- as the expression
goes-chances slim to none.  Davison apparently died on the operating table.

 

Fast forward to the late  1990s.  I was in Los Angeles for a jazz event.
Milt Hinton was being honored for his many achievements-bassist,
photographer and all around good guy.  I was in company of jazz benefactor
and author Floyd Levin who said he wanted to introduce me to the widow
Davison.  Anne  Davison, fifth and  last wife, had made it her career to
travel with Bill and try to keep him out of trouble with women and minimize
his drinking.

She was an attractive woman in her 70s with gray hair and a black sheath
dress with one string of pearls-fashionable wear.  Floyd, using my title
said, "Dr. Vickers, I want you to meet Anne Davison."   Mrs. Davison greeted
me with a smile and said, " The doctors killed my husband!" ( Wow!  I've
never been greeted like this before.  How does one respond to that?) So, the
best response I could come up with was, "  I'm sorry to hear that Mrs.
Davison; I wasn't there!"    Then the group of us moved on to other topic
and the rest of the evening went smoothly!

 

Thanks for listenin'!

 

Norman

 

F.Norman Vickers

5429 Dynasty Drive

Pensacola, FL 32504-8583

Home 850-484-9183; cell 850-324-5022

Jazz Society of Pensacola 850-433-8382

www.jazzpensacola.com <http://www.jazzpensacola.com/> 

nvickers1 at cox.net

http://jazzpensacola.com/vickers/

Member Jazz Journalists Association

 

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