[Dixielandjazz] Harry James

[Ken Mathieson]

Hi all,

Following on from the debate about whether Harry James was a *real* jazz 
trumpeter or not, my view is that he most emphatically could be when the 
occasion demanded. He was a consummate trumpet player and a fine, 
flexible musician who could play sensitively or brassily in a wide 
variety of idioms, but, non-players should never forget the reality of 
having to make a living in a notoriously fickle and changing music business.

I certainly don't grudge him his highly commercial moments as he had to 
eat and pay the rent like everyone else (there was also the small matter 
of large alimony payents to a sizeable number of former wives and the 
attendant legal fees). However when he was in the right musical company 
he could demonstrate serious jazz chops.

Here's a question for Robert Calder: did you hear the Harry James Band 
in the Motherwell Civic Centre in the mid 1970s? At that time, he had 
Neal Hefti writing for the band, Sonny Payne on drums, so it was a band 
very much in the style of the great Basie bands of the 1960s. 
Unfortunately, the rest of the band is now a blank, but I remember it as 
a cracking night of top quality big band jazz.

Sonny was on a riser at the back of the stage and, during his solo 
feature he was doing his show-biz schtick of bouncing a stick off the 
floor and catching it above his head etc while still thundering away 
with the other hand. One of the sticks flew backwards and disappeared 
off the back of the stage, but in trying to catch it as it flew past him 
he amost fell off the back of the stage. He fished another stick out of 
his stick bag and carried on after a few stuttery moments, but meanwhile 
the rest of the band (Harry included) were having a right good laugh at 
Sonny's antics. At the end of the number, Sonny took his bow before 
jumping down backstage to recover the errant stick. He was quite a short 
man and it was quite a long way down, so he fell when he hit the deck, 
then had a heck of a struggle to get back up on stage. Obviously the 
band couldn't miss another opportunity for taking the p*ss, but Sonny 
was raging (I suspect he was angry at himself for screwing up his act, 
rather than at the band, as I know he was held in great regard by the 
other musicians, in particular by Harry).

Regards to all and stay safe and well,

Ken