At the Jazz Band Ball

Blues Fingerprints

Mon, 05 Oct 2026 19:27:47 GMT

Jazz and blues developed alongside each other, drawing on shared traditions and ideas, and were often played by the same musicians. It’s almost impossible to hear jazz without hearing some traces of the blues. MUSIC: - TEASER: Sidney Bechet’s Blue Note Jazz Men — “BLUE HORIZON” (1944) - THEME: Duke Ellington and His Orchestra — “DELTA SERENADE” (1934) SET 1: THE WHOLE FINGERPRINT - King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band — “DIPPER MOUTH BLUES” (1923) - Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five — “SAVOY BLUES” (1927) - Count Basie and His Orchestra, Jimmy Rushing — “Sent for You Yesterday and Here You Come Today” (1938) SET 2 — TAKE AWAY THE TWELVE BARS - Mattie Hite, vocal; Cliff Jackson, piano — “ST. JOE’S INFIRMARY (THOSE - GAMBLER’S BLUES)” (1930) - McKinney’s Cotton Pickers — “PLAIN DIRT” (1929) - Fats Waller and His Buddies — “THE MINOR DRAG” (1929) - Lonnie Johnson’s Harlem Footwarmers — “MOVE OVER” (1928) SET 3 — KANSAS CITY: THE BLUES AS OPERATING SYSTEM - Count Basie and His Orchestra — “SWINGIN’ THE BLUES” (1938) - Joe Turner, vocal and Pete Johnson, piano — “ROLL ’EM PETE” (1938) - Jay McShann, piano — “CONFESSIN’ THE BLUES,” Walter Brown, vocal (1941) - Count Basie and His Orchestra — “EVERY TUB” (1938) SET 4 — THE BLUES DON’T HAVE TO BE BLUE - Bix Beiderbecke and His Gang — “Goose Pimples” (1927) - Clarence “Pinetop” Smith — “PINETOP’S BOOGIE WOOGIE” (1928) - Billie Holiday and Her Orchestra — “Billie’s Blues.” (1936)

Jazz on the Radio, 1920s-40s

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 21:45:23 GMT

Jazz Remotes, Transcriptions, and Airchecks, 1920s-40s.

Lady Day and Prez

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 17:01:18 GMT

They met in Harlem in the 1930s and briefly overlapped in the Count Basie Orchestra. She called him “The President” — “Prez” — because she considered him the finest saxophonist of them all. He called her “Lady Day.”

Cleveland Club Hopping, 1920s-40s

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 18:37:31 GMT

Cleveland club hopping in the 1920s, 30s and 40s. Visit the Majestic Hotel, East 55th and Central, The Palace Hotel on Public Square, Short Vincent, the Trianon Ballroom, Val’s in the Alley, and the Cleveland Public Auditorium, where Django Reinhardt made his American debut.

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/posts/cleveland-club-152406853?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_fan&utm_content=web_share

Pittsburgh Jazz, 1920s-40s

Mon, 18 May 2026 17:06:09 GMT

Pittsburgh jazz in the early and mid part of the 20th century. Earl Hines, Mary Lou Williams, Billy Strayhorn, Lena Horne, Billy Eckstine, Roy Eldridge, Maxine Sullivan, Erroll Garner, and others.

Jazz in Harlem, 1920s-40s

Tue, 03 Feb 2026 03:15:43 GMT

Audio walking tour of Prohibition era Harlem, courtesy of illustrator E. Simms Campbell: A Night-Club Map of Harlem, 1932.

Music: Cab Calloway. "Minnie the Moocher" Presenting Cab Calloway & His Orchestra. Minnie the Moocher (Theme Song) (78rpm Version), 1932; Duke Ellington and His Washingtonians. "Choo-Choo (Gotta Hurry Home)" Choo Choo. Blue Disc, 5001, 1924; Cab Calloway. "Reefer Man" The Best of Cab Calloway (various) . RCA, 1931; Chick Webb and His Orchestra. "Harlem Congo" The Chick Webb Collection . GRP/Decca Jazz Heritage, 1937; Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday; dir. Fred Waller - "Symphony in Black: A Rhapsody of Negro Life " Film short, music. Cult Cinema Classics, 1935; Gladys Bentley - "Worried Blues" (1928) - Roots 'N' Blues/The Retrospective 1925-1950; Fats Waller and His Buddies, "Harlem Fuss " Harlem Fuss. Victor V-38050-B, 1929; Nina Mae McKinney "Half of Me Wants to Be Good" Short film excerpt "The Black Network". Vitaphone, 1936; Garland Wilson, piano; Michel Warlop, violin "Limehouse Blues" Midnight Ivory - The Early Garland Wilson Recordings. ℗ 2025 Jazz Classics, 1938; Adelaide Hall. "As Time Goes By" Barry Humphries Presents So Rare 3. ℗ 2006 Bilarm Music Pty Ltd, 1943; Fats Waller and His Rhythm "Two Sleepy People " If You Got To Ask, You Ain't Got It!. Bluebird/Legacy, 1938; Bert Williams "Nobody " Nobody. Columbia, 1913; Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, "Doin' The Lowdown" Doin' the Lowdown - 78 rpm. Brunswick 12810, 1932.

Jazz in 1926

Sat, 03 Jan 2026 00:32:21 GMT

AT THE JAZZ BAND BALL - Ep. 44/ PRX #8

Episode Theme: Jazz in 1926

Total Running Time: Approx. 59 minutes

Theme Music: “Delta Serenade” (Duke Ellington) Music: Ethel Waters: A Hundred Years From Today (1933); Clarence Williams Blue Five (Eva Taylor, Louis Armstrong): "Squeeze Me" (1926), Fats Waller: Squeeze Me (1939); Jelly Roll Morton: "Black Bottom Stomp" (1926); Annette Hanshaw: "Black Bottom" (1926); Buffalodians (Jack McLaughlin, ldr, Harold Arlen, piano): "Here Comes Emaline" (1926); Buffalodians (Harold Arlen, voc): "How Many Times?" (1926 (Irving Berlin); Red Nichols and His Five Pennies: "Boneyard Shuffle" (Hoagy Carmichael) (1926); Duke Ellington & His Kentucky Club Orchestra: “East St. Louis Toodle-Oo” (1926); Duke Ellington & His Kentucky Club Orchestra: "Birmingham Breakdown" (1926); Duke Ellington & His Kentucky Club Orchestra: "Immigration Blues" (1926); Joe Venuti, violin, and Eddie Lang, guitar: "Stringing the Blues (1926); Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five: "Heebie Jeebies" (1926); Ethel Waters: "Sugar" (1926); Ethel Waters: "Dinah" (1926).

30 min. Holiday Jazz, 1920s-40s

Sun, 21 Dec 2025 03:48:40 GMT

MUSIC - Putney Dandridge - Santa Claus Came in the Spring (1935); Clarence Williams - Santa Claus Blues (1924); Bernie Cummins - I Told Santa Claus to Bring Me You (1937); Ella Fitzgerald, Chick Webb - Holiday in Harlem (1937); James P. Johnson - Snowy Morning Blues (1943); Fats Waller - Winter Weather (1941); Ozie Ware, Duke Ellington Hot Five - Santa Claus, Bring My Man Back (1928); Elzadie Robinson - Santa Claus Crave (1927).

Holiday Jazz, 1920s-40s

Mon, 08 Dec 2025 18:28:55 GMT

Sleigh rides in July, swinging Santas, holidays in Harlem, ca. 1920s-1940s. Music: Swingin' Them Jingle Bells (1936) - Fats Waller & His Rhythm; Santa Claus Came in the Spring (1935) - Benny Goodman & His Orchestra; Santa Claus Blues (1924) - Eva Taylor, Clarence Williams' Blue Five; I Told Santa Claus to Bring Me You (1937) - Bernie Cummins, Holiday in Harlem (1937) - Ella Fitzgerald, Chick Webb; Snowy Morning Blues (V-disc 1943) - James P. Johnson; Winter Weather (1941) - Fats Waller & His Rhythm; Snowfall (1941) - Claude Thornhill & His Orchestra; I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm (1937) - Billie Holiday; Christmas Morning Blues (1926) - Victoria Spivey, Lonnie Johnson; Santa Claus Crave (1927) - Elzadie Robinson; Santa Claus, Bring My Man Back (1928) - Ozie Ware, Duke Ellington Hot Five; At the Christmas Ball (1925) - Bessie Smith; Christmas Night in Harlem (1934) - Paul Whiteman; Winter Weather (1941) - Peggy Lee, Benny Goodman.

Classical Fingerprints

Sat, 29 Nov 2025 00:38:13 GMT

"In a Mist": Jazz expanded its world with classical music beginning in the 1920s — borrowing attributes, techniques and sometimes making arrangements. Music: Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five: West End Blues (rec. 1928), Cornet Chop Suey (rec. 1926); Debussy: "Voile" Prelude Book 1, No. 2 (1910) (Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli); Bix Beiderbecke: In a Mist (1927); J.S. Bach 2-Part Invention No. 1 in C Major, BWV 772 (Angela Hewitt, piano); Louis Armstrong and Earl Hines Weather Bird, (rec. 1928); Summer Ridge Drive - Artie Shaw and His Gramercy Five (rec. 1940); Jelly-Roll Morton and His Red Hot Peppers Pontchartrain (1930); Jack Teagarden, Stars Fell On Alabama (rec. 1933); Duke Ellington & The Jungle Band Mood Indigo; John Kirby Sextet: Bounce of the Sugar Plum Fairy (rec. 1941), Lucia Sextet (rec. 1940), Mr. Haydn Gets Hip (1940); Raymond Scott: Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals (1937);

Halloween Jazz

Thu, 30 Oct 2025 01:16:15 GMT

Halloween’s ghosts and goblins found a natural home in New Orleans — cradle of jazz, city of spirits and second-line magic, and where the music can rouse the dead… or at least get the ghosts dancing.

Music: The Skeleton in the Closet - Louis Armstrong, Jimmy Dorsey Orch. (1936 ); Theme: Delta Serenade - Duke Ellington (1940); I'm a Jazz Vampire (1920) - Marion Harris; Dry Bones -Fats Waller and His Rhythm 1940; Skull Duggery - Hot Lips Page and His Band (1938); Boogaboo - Jelly Roll Morton (1928); A Ghost of a Chance - Mildred Bailey (1939); Mr. Ghost Is Goin’ to Town - Louis Prima (1936); The Ghost of Smokey Joe - Cab Calloway (1939); Abercrombie Had A Zombie - Fats Waller and His Rhythm (1940); Haunted House Blues - Bessie Smith (1924); Blue Spirit Blues - Bessie Smith (1929); Ghost of Yesterday - Billie Holiday (1940);

The Henderson Style

Mon, 20 Oct 2025 05:21:33 GMT

Music: "Wrappin' It Up" (1934); "Wha-Cha-Call ’em Blues" (1925); "D Natural Blues" (1928); "An American in Paris" (1928) (excerpt); “Radio Rhythm” (1931); “Tidal Wave” (1934); "Happy As The Day Is Long" (1934); "Hotter Than ’Ell" (1934); “Wrappin’ It Up” (1935); "Down South Camp Meeting” (1934, 1936); "King Porter Stomp" (1932, 1935); "Stealin' Apples" (1936, 1937); "Can You Take It" (1933); "The Stampede" (1937).

Composers/Arrangers: Don Redman, Fletcher Henderson, Bill Challis, Horace Henderson, Benny Carter, Nat Leslie, Russ Morgan, Harold Arlen, Fats Waller, George Gershwin, Jelly Roll Morton.

Unusual Instruments

Wed, 08 Oct 2025 02:48:33 GMT

Put And Take (Adrian Rollini, bass sax, hot fountain pen, Joe Venuti's Blue Four, 1930); Delta Serenade - Theme (Duke Ellington, 1940); I'm Coming Virginia (Sidney Bechet, sop sax, & His New Orleans Feetwarmers, 1941); Wang Wang Blues (Rollini, "goofus", The Goofus Five, 1927); Knockin' on wood (Red Norvo, xylophone, 1933); Jazz Me Blues (Adrian Rollini Trio, vibes, chimes, 1950); Girls Like You Were Meant For Boys Like Me (Red McKenzie's Mound City Blue Blowers, comb, 1930); For No Reason at All in C (Frankie Trumbauer, C melody sax 1927); Wild Cat, (Joe Venuti, Eddie Lang, 1927); Junk Man (Jack Teagarden, Caspar Reardon, harp, 1934); Sweet Sue (Dave Apollon, mandolin, 1933); Sugar (Alberta Hunter, Fats Waller pipe organ (1927); Summit Ridge Drive (Artie Shaw and His Gramercy Five, Johnny Guarnieri, harpsichord, 1940); Mr. J.B. Blues (Jimmie Blanton, bass, Duke Ellington, 1940).

Jelly Roll Morton (60 min.)

Mon, 22 Sep 2025 18:57:25 GMT

A 60 min. version of the Jelly Roll Morton episode. More tunes! More details.

Music: (Original) Jelly Roll Blues (1910; rec. 1923); King Porter Stomp (1923); Alan Lomax Library of Congress Interviews (1938); Black Bottom Stomp” (1926); The Crave (1910; rec. 1938); The Pearls (1927); Maple Leaf Rag (1899; rec. 1938); Grandpa’s Spells (1926); Shreveport (Stomp) (1929; Freakish (1929); Hyena Stomp (1927) Sidewalk Blues (1926); Mamie’s Blues (1900; rec. 1938); Doctor Jazz (1926).

Performers: Jelly Roll Morton, The Red Hot Peppers.

Jelly Roll Morton

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 12:44:35 GMT

Whether or not Jelly Roll Morton actually invented jazz, as he famously claimed, his remarkable journey from Storyville to the Library of Congress is worth reconsidering. Blends commentary, historic recordings, and interviews to reveal Morton’s genius, contradictions, and enduring role in shaping the sound and story of early jazz. Music: "Original Jelly Roll Blues" (1924), “King Porter Stomp” (1923), Alan Lomax interviews, Library of Congress (1938), “Black Bottom Stomp” (1926), “The Pearls” (1926), "Maple Leaf Rag" (1899), “Grandpa’s Spells" (1926), “Shreveport Stomp” (1929), “Freakish” (1929), "Mamie's Blues" (1900), “Doctor Jazz” (1926). Performers: Jelly Roll Morton, The Red Hot Peppers.

Talent Scout

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 19:37:23 GMT

John Hammond was a visionary jazz producer and talent scout who discovered or championed Billie Holiday, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Fletcher Henderson, and Lester Young. A tireless advocate for integration, he helped break racial barriers in jazz, produced historic recordings, and brought Black artists to wider audiences through concerts and radio.

Music: Count Basie: "One O'Clock Jump" (1937), Bessie Smith: "Downhearted Blues" (1923); Garland Wilson: "St. James Infirmary/ When Your Lover Has Gone" (1931); Billie Holiday: “Your Mother’s Son-in-Law” (1933); Billie Holiday: "What a Little Moonlight Can Do" (1935); Benny Goodman: "After You've Gone" (1935); From Spirituals to Swing, 1938.

Jazz bassists 1920s-40s

Sat, 21 Jun 2025 03:12:19 GMT

Bassists: Pops Foster, Wellman Braud, Thelma Terry, Walter Page, June Rotenberg, Slam Stewart, Jimmy Blanton. Music: Mahogany Hall Stomp, Washington Wobble, Freeze and Melt, Starlight and Tulips, Pagin' The Devil, Blue Devil Blues, Hesitation Boogie, Play Fiddle, Play, Jack the Bear.

The Empress

Wed, 05 Jun 2024 01:26:07 GMT

Bessie Smith (1894-1937), the Empress of the Blues. Featuring: Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out, St. Louis Blues, Beale Street Mama, Cake Walkin' Babies From Home, Backwater Blues, After You've Gone, Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl, Gimme a Pigfoot (and a Bottle of Beer).

Mr. Haydn Gets Hip

Tue, 06 May 2025 20:06:31 GMT

Classical meets jazz. Featuring: John Kirby Sextet, George Gershwin, James P. Johnson, Duke Ellington, Carl Maria von Weber, Benny Goodman, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Art Tatum, Fats Waller. Music: Mr. Haydn Gets Hip, Beethoven Riffs On, Rhapsody in Blue, You've Got To Be Modernistic, excerpt from Black, Brown, and Beige, excerpt from Invitation to the Dance, Let's Dance, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (Var. 15), Honeysuckle Rose.

Jazz drummers, 1920s-40s, pt 2

Fri, 04 Apr 2025 00:48:13 GMT

Early jazz drummers, pt. 2. Featuring: Buddy Gilmore, Chick Webb, Sonny Greer, George Wettling, Dave Tough, Gene Krupa, Papa Jo Jones.

Music: Castle House Rag, Vote for Mr. Rhythm, Liza (All The Clouds'll Roll Away), Jumpin' Pumpkins, Drummer's Delight, Three Little Words, Shine, Sing Sing Sing, Drum Boogie, Sent for You Yesterday (And Here You Come Today), Delta Serenade.

Jazz drummers, 1920s-40s - part 1

Thu, 13 Mar 2025 21:39:41 GMT

Featuring: Baby Dodds, Zutty Singleton, Sid Catlett, Viola Smith, Sidney Bechet, Louis Armstrong, James P. Johnson, Pee Wee Russell; Songs include: Spooky Drums, China Boy, Sugar Foot Strut, I Found a New Baby, Moppin' and Boppin', Rose Room, Mop Mop, Steak Face.

Benny Carter

Sun, 09 Feb 2025 05:17:51 GMT

Benny Carter, alto sax, trumpet - Rambling in C (1937), Plain Dirt (1929), That's How I Feel Today (1929), Six or Seven Times (1929), Keep a Song in Your Soul (1930), Chinatown My Chinatown (1930), Keep a Song in Your Soul (1930), Symphony in Riffs (1933), Waltzing the Blues (1936), When Lights Are Low (1936), Cow Cow Boogie (1942). Featuring: McKinney's Cotton Pickers, The Little Chocolate Dandies, Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, Benny Carter and His Harlem Club Orchestra, Benny Carter and His Swing Quartet, Ella Mae Morse with Freddie Slack and His Orchestra.

Jazz in 1925

Wed, 08 Jan 2025 02:36:46 GMT

Featuring: Louis Armstrong, California Ramblers, Coon-Sanders Original Nighthawk Orchestra, Art Tatum, Fats Waller, Bix Beiderbecke, Bessie Smith.

Songs: Dinah, Gut Bucket Blues, Clap Hands! Here Comes Charlie!, Flamin' Mamie, Tea For Two, Squeeze Me, Davenport Blues, St. Louis Blues.

Christmas Jazz 1920s 30s 40s

Sun, 01 Dec 2024 03:22:29 GMT

Holiday jazz featuring: Peggy Lee, Ella Logan, Victoria Spivey, Lonnie Johnson, Bessie Smith, Ella Fitzgerald, Julia Lee, Fletcher Henderson, Claude Thornhill, John Kirby, Putney Dandridge, and Fats Waller.

Songs include: Jingle Bells, Winter Weather, Santa Claus Came in the Spring, There's Frost on the Moon, Every Day's a Holiday, Snowy Morning Blues, Snowfall, Arab Dance, Bounce of the Sugar Plum Fairy, Christmas Spirits, Chistmas Without Santa Claus.

BONUS show - Christmas Jazz, 20s-40s

Sat, 23 Nov 2024 20:00:25 GMT

Bonus show, Christmas jazz 1940s. Featuring: Peggy Lee (with Art Lund and Benny Goodman): Winter Weather (1941) and Julia Lee and Her Boyfriends (1948): Christmas Spirits. Regular Christmas show to appear in a couple of weeks. Enjoy!

Halloween Jazz - 1920s, 30s, 40s.

Tue, 08 Oct 2024 02:13:59 GMT

Jazz as "The Devil's Music," 1920s, 30s, 40s. Featuring: Louis Armstrong, Marion Harris, Fats Waller, Hot Lips Page, Jelly Roll Morton, Mildred Bailey, Louis Prima, Cab Calloway, Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday.

Songs: The Skeleton in the Closet, I'm a Jazz Vampire, Dry Bones, Skull Duggery, Boogaboo, Ghost of a Chance, Mr. Ghost is Going to Town, The Ghost of Smokey Joe, Haunted House Blues, Ghost of Yesterday,

James P. Johnson

Sun, 08 Sep 2024 21:30:36 GMT

The Father of Stride Piano. Featuring: Carolina Shout, Harlem Strut, The Charleston, Jingles, Blue Spirit Blues, You've Got to be Modernistic, Snowy Morning Blues, Yamekraw.

Fats Waller Duets

Thu, 01 Aug 2024 02:44:34 GMT

Featuring collaborations with: James P. Johnson, Alberta Hunter, Elizabeth Handy, Herman Autrey, Una Mae Carlisle, The Deep River Boys, Myra Johnson, Lee Wiley, Ada Brown.

Fats Waller

Fri, 12 Jul 2024 22:37:41 GMT

Music's big bundle of joy. Featuring: I Ain't Got Nobody, Carolina Shout, That's All, Sugar, Squeeze Me, (What Did I Do to Be So) Black and Blue, Ain't Misbehavin', Honeysuckle Rose, Then I'll Be Tired of you.

Jazz Smiths

Sun, 05 May 2024 20:31:05 GMT

A prevalent American surname, ”Smith" also shows up frequently in jazz. Assembled together in one show, Bessie, Pinetop, Willie "The Lion," Viola, Stuff, Clara, Mamie, Trixie... make up an extraordinary lineup.

Jazz trumpet, 1920s-40s

Mon, 01 Apr 2024 12:28:15 GMT

Great jazz trumpet playing from the 20s, 30s, and 40s, featuring: Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, Bubber Miley, Roy Eldridge, Jabbo Smith, Hot Lips Page, and others.

Ella Fitzgerald

Mon, 11 Mar 2024 19:28:13 GMT

A loving look at the career and times of The First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald. Featuring songs: Love and Kisses, A Tisket-A-Tasket, Flying Home, How High the Moon, Stompin' at the Savoy, Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most.

Early Cleveland Jazz

Wed, 21 Feb 2024 16:57:04 GMT

Live and early recorded jazz from Cleveland, OH. Featuring Andy Kirk, Woody Herman, Bix Beiderbecke, Will Marion Cook, Noble Sissle, Artie Shaw, Art Tatum, Perry Como, Tad Dameron, Sarah Vaughan,

Jazz Soundies, 1940-46

Mon, 05 Feb 2024 20:16:57 GMT

Early music video soundtracks, 1940-1946, featuring: Louis Jordan, Duke Ellington, Roy Eldridge, Anita O'Day, The International Sweethearts of Rhythm, et al.

Early Louis Armstrong, 1923-1930.

Tue, 23 Jan 2024 00:47:21 GMT

Louis Armstrong's earliest recorded solos resonated with personality, charisma, and rhythmic swing — enough to transform both instrumental and vocal jazz. Featuring "Chimes Blues," "Snake Rag," "Heebie Jeebies," "Sugar Foot Stomp," "West End Blues," and many others.

Detroit Jazz Clubs, 1920s-40s

Mon, 08 Jan 2024 22:01:53 GMT

Detroit has a remarkable jazz tradition starting in the 1920s. Venues both palatial (Graystone, Fox, Club Plantation, Paradise) and small (Band Box, Palms) hosted great jazz. Featuring Jean Goldkette, McKinney's Cotton Pickers, Chocolate Dandies, Earl Hines, and Billie Holiday.

Christmas Jazz, 1920s-40s

Thu, 30 Nov 2023 22:55:03 GMT

Jazz and blues music from the 1920s-40s. Featuring: Louis Prima, Jack Teagarden, Bessie Smith, Elzadie Robinson, Fats Waller, Benny Goodman, and others.

Chicago Jazz Clubs, 1920s-40s

Tue, 14 Nov 2023 20:24:28 GMT

Chicago jazz and night clubs, from mob-protected speakeasies to the Dreamland Ballroom. Featuring: Joe King Oliver, Jelly Roll Morton, Fats Waller, Fletcher Henderson, and Anita O'Day.

New York Jazz Clubs, 1920s-40s

Tue, 31 Oct 2023 01:30:01 GMT

New York dance halls, jazz clubs, and speakeasies, in 1920s-40s. What did people hear at the Cotton Club? Connie's Inn? Small's Paradise? How about the Ubangi Club? What did the Savoy Ballroom sound like? Music by Duke Ellington, Chick Webb, Ella Fitzgerald, Gladys Bentley, and others.

Bix Beiderbecke

Fri, 13 Oct 2023 01:15:15 GMT

On today's show we'll appreciate Bix Beiderbecke, a shy young man with a horn from Davenport, IA, who lived just 28 years (1903-1931). He played cornet lyrically and deliberately. We'll listen to several memorable recordings made during this remarkable, too-brief career.

W.C. Handy and Clarence Williams

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 22:55:11 GMT

This week, W.C. Handy and Clarence Williams as shapers of early jazz. Composer and bandleader, W.C. Handy introduced blues form as a standard feature in jazz music. As a promoter, Williams helped enable the careers of Black performers and gave voice to jazz through avenues of publishing and recording.

Jazz Guitarists, 1920s-1940s

Sat, 02 Sep 2023 03:00:49 GMT

This week we're listening to early jazz guitarists who faced individual and societal struggles, even resistance by the jazz world to their chosen instrument. Guitarists Eddie Lang, Lonnie Johnson, Nick Lucas, Big Bill Broonzy, Charlie Christian, and Django Reinhardt will be featured.

Jazz Pianists, 1920s-1940s

Sat, 19 Aug 2023 23:55:23 GMT

With performances of Earl "Fatha" Hines, James P. Johnson, Fats Waller, Teddy Wilson, Stephanie Trick, and Dorothy Donegan we'll tickle some ivories — but only scratch the surface of — recorded piano delights from the 1920s through the 1940s.

Jimmie Lunceford

Tue, 01 Aug 2023 17:35:09 GMT

The Jimmie Lunceford band, in existence from the early 1930s to the late 1940s, was an extremely well-rehearsed and cohesive group. It was famous for for its sharp appearance onstage, its fancy showmanship and choreography—throwing and catching instruments and twirling mutes—their glee club style singing (everyone of its players could sing), and its danceable but extremely intricate rhythmic arrangements. For ten consecutive years, starting around 1934, the group's hit recordings sold in the hundreds of thousands, and was a favorite among black and white audiences.

Female Vocalists, 1920-1940

Fri, 30 Jun 2023 18:41:41 GMT

We’re listening to great female vocalists of the 1920s, 30s, and 40s this week, but we’re going to stretch our definition of “jazz” a bit. There are so many great singers to choose from, like Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald, of course, but I also love some of the more mainstream, popular singers of the day. Annette Hanshaw, Ivie Anderson, Nina Mae McKinney, Connie Boswell, Mildred Bailey, and others.

Drop Me Off In Harlem

Tue, 20 Jun 2023 20:47:15 GMT

This week we're heading to Harlem, circa 1932, for a tour of some of the great jazz and dance clubs as mapped out by African American cartoonist Elmer Simms Campbell. He drew a map, titled "Night Clubs of Harlem, 1932" and published in Manhattan Magazine, The map faces southwest, bounded by 110th street, and runs along Central Park's northern edge. It concentrates on Lenox Avenue and Seventh Avenue — or "heaven" as Simms called it. Performances by Ellington, Lunceford, Webb, Fitzgerald, and McKinney.

Fletcher Henderson

Wed, 07 Jun 2023 20:36:56 GMT

This week, the Fletcher Henderson Band, led by one of the more unlikely and reluctant leaders in jazz, but easily one of the most talented. Fletcher Henderson, nicknamed "Smack," for the way he smacked his lips, apparently even in his sleep, was born in Cuthbert, Georgia, in 1897 to a middle-class African American family. In 1922 he formed his own band. His first steady gig with his band was at the Club Alabam on Broadway in 1924, but only after the band's players—not Henderson—talked their way into auditioning for their first long-term engagement.

International Sweethearts of Rhythm

Fri, 26 May 2023 16:15:59 GMT

In May 1941 the International Sweethearts of Rhythm, an all-female, integrated high school swing band out of Piney Woods, Mississippi, was out on the road doing dance gigs, when they decided to break free, appropriating the bus and taking charge of their own careers — destined to become one of the best swing bands in history.

At the Jazz Band Ball promo

Sun, 27 Apr 2025 03:08:27 GMT

At the Jazz Band Ball is a podcast devoted to jazz from its earliest days through the 1940s. Every show is an exploration of an artist, a venue or an instrument. Louis Armstrong at Connie's Inn in Harlem, Duke Ellington at the Cotton Club, Bix Beiderbecke at the Palace Theatre in Cleveland, and lots more. Join me on Substack, Spotify, Apple, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

EXTRA: Benny Carter Interview Clips 1992, Smithsonian Jazz Oral History

Sun, 23 Feb 2025 15:16:01 GMT

Benny Carter Recorded June 14, 1992, Courtesy of Smithsonian Jazz Oral History

This native New Yorker made memorable impressions as a great bandleader and improviser. Largely self-taught, Benny Carter's first instrument was the trumpet, although the alto saxophone eventually became his principal instrument. He participated in tours with Jazz at the Philharmonic and wrote arrangements for singers including Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald, and Louis Armstrong. Carter received numerous awards, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987.

Complete Transcript (145 pages) View PDF

Clip 1: MP3 Family Musical History

Clip 2: MP3 First Saxophone

Clip 3: MP3 Meeting Count Basie

Clip 4: MP3 First Arrangements

Clip 5: MP3 Why the Saxophone

Clip 6: MP3 1932’s First Orchestra

Clip 7: MP3 Dizzy Gillespie’s Impact

Clip 8: MP3 Writing for Film and TV

Benny Carter Photo Provided Courtesy of Ed Berger

AJBB Extra! Bubber, Bix, and Hoagy.

Sat, 21 Sep 2024 16:21:43 GMT

AJBB Extra! Bubber, Bix, and Hoagy Carmichael and His Orchestra. "Rockin' Chair" (1930). What a band: Benny Goodman (Saxophone, Clarinet) Bud Freeman (Tenor Saxophone) Tommy Dorsey (Trombone) Jimmy Dorsey (Alto Saxophone) Jack Teagarden (Trombone) Bix Beiderbecke (Cornet) Bubber Miley (Trumpet) Joe Venuti (Violin) Irving Brodsky (Piano) Eddie Lang (Guitar) Gene Krupa (Drums). Enjoy!

Mary Lou Williams

Tue, 09 May 2023 15:24:02 GMT

Mary Lou Williams is one of the great figures in jazz — pianist, arranger and teacher. We'll listen to some of Mary Lou Williams' earliest recordings as a stride pianist, then as a pianist and arranger as a member of the Andy Kirk band, and later the Benny Goodman, and Duke Ellington bands. We'll hear some of her work with the beboppers of the late 1940s. We'll also sample an interview she did in the 1970s with Marian McPartland, and we'll finish with a live recording she did at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1978.

Jazz on the Radio

Sun, 06 Sep 2026 19:26:19 GMT

Jazz broadcasts, airchecks, and transcriptions from 1920s-40s

Spring Songs

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 12:43:21 GMT

At the Jazz Band Ball - Kevin McLaughlin
Jazz spring songs 1920s-40s, and commentary.