Dekadans: The Big Apple from Keep Punching

Tonight it is time again to dance at Dekadans where Jonas Pettersson will be the swing disc jockey.

The dance starts at 20 o'clock but if you get there already at 19 Jonas will also give a lesson teaching the Big Apple (as seen in the movie Keep Punching) at no extra charge.

Check out this Big Apple video clip from Keep Punching:


If I'm not misinformed they will still have the scenes built for the the play that is performed there: "And Then There Were None" based on the book by Agatha Christie. That decoration makes the room look extra cool, check it out.

By the way, what did you think of the Big Apple video clip?

Rémi Toulon at Uppsala Winter Swing

Rémi Toulon, a jazz pianist from France, played in the John Högman International Group at Uppsala Winter Swing.

With a combination of skill and luck I had the fortune to have front row seats at both their sets. Watching them was really a treat because this, I think, is jazz at its best. Talented musicians that communicate so well with eachother, trading ideas and really listening to eachother. A clever and witty conversation set to music. It swung!

In the group were also: Laurence Allison (song), Ulf Johansson Werre (trombone), Thomas Arnesen (guitar), Martin Sjöstedt (bass) and Calle Rasmusson (drums).

The photo is taken by me and may not be used elsewhere without my permission.

Did you also see this group at the jazz festival? What did you think? Tell me.

Laurence Allison at Uppsala Winter Swing

Yesterdays jazz festival, Uppsala Winter Swing, was so much fun. An overdose of jazz was just right. Thanks to the organizers I had the opportunity to photograph many of the musicians. Thank you, Björn Sjödin!

There's a lot to tell but for now I'll have to gather my thoughts and sort through all the pictures. Expect more stories and photos in the coming week.

Here is a picture of Laurence Allison, a great singer from France. The photo is taken by me and may not be used elsewhere without my permission.

Where you at Uppsala Winter Swing? What was you favorite moment? Tell me.

Uppsala Winter Swing 2007

Tomorrow the jazz festival Uppsala Winter Swing will take place. It features 12 hours of jazz, 18 bands and over 200 musicians. It's estimated that approx. 1300 people will attend the event.

List of bands at Uppsala Winter Swing.

I will be there listening, dancing and taking a lot of photographs and I'm planning to give you some reviews of Uppsala Winter Swing next week.

If you want to attend it's not too late to get a ticket, you can buy them at UNT City or at the door, 380 kr. If you only can attend in the evening you get a discount after 20 o'clock: 200 kr (160 kr if you have a UNT-card).

I'm looking forward to tomorrow. If you're going there, come up to me and chat a little, maybe tell me what you think of this blog.

One o'clock jump with Count Basie and Ella Fitzgerald

Enjoy this video with Count Basie playing his theme song One o'clock jump together with a scating Ella Fitzgerald. And man, listen to those bass lines by Cleveland Eaton. Mmmm.



What do you think of the video? Tell me.

Canal Street Syncopators cd: No strings

Swing disc jockey David Kågedal dj:ed last night at Dekadans. He is also a member of a jazz orchestra in Uppsala: Canal Street Syncopators. Canal Street Syncopators has just released a cd called No strings.

David played some tunes from the album and they sounded good. I liked the song "Ráda Zpívám Hot" sung by Liv Stenström.

The photo was taken by me and may not be used elsewhere without my permisson.

Do you have this cd? What do you think of it? Tell me.

Dance at Dekadans tonight

Tonight it's dancing at Dekadans where David will be the swing dj. Go there, dance, have fun and listen to good swing music.

Eva Cassidy: Wade in the water: Songbird

Cd review

Singer Eva Cassidy had a magical voice like no other. Too bad she passed away too young. One of the songs that have been played a lot at swing dances is "Wade in the Water" which is originally a gospel song but Eva Cassidy makes this song swing.

"Wade in the Water" has also been used by lindy hop instructors because it has such clearly recognisable breaks in the music.

You can find the song on the album Songbird which has all kinds of beautiful melodies but "Wade in the water" is the only swinging song.

If you want to hear more of Eva Cassidy's jazz and blues repertoire, you should get her album "Live at Blues Alley" or "The Other Side" which she made together with Chuck Brown. All of her albums features several music styles besides jazz and blues, for example folk songs and soul music.

Songbird is also the title of her biography: Eva Cassidy: Songbird: Her Story by Those Who Knew Her.

Finally: A large resource for information about Eva Cassidy.

Do you have these albums? What do you think of them? Tell me.

The Jazz Image: Masters of Jazz Photography by Lee Tanner

Book review

Yesterday I saw a really nice book with and about jazz photography in a local store (Trolltyg): The Jazz Image: Masters of Jazz Photography by Lee Tanner.

In the book there are some jazz photos by one of my favorite photographers: Gjon Mili. Gjon Mili was the photographer who took photos of lindy hoppers for the 1943 Life Magazine cover story on Lindy Hop. He was a real innovator when it came to capturing movement with his camera.

This is the kind of pictures that I would like to make myself. To try to capture the essence and feeling of the performance and to make a portrait of the jazz musicians.

Do you have this book? What do you think of it? Got any tips about other jazz photography books?

Music is my mistress by Duke Ellington

Do you want to know more about Duke Ellington?

Book review: Music is my mistress is an autobiography by Duke Ellington about his life, his career and his music.

Did you know that his piano teachers name was Mrs Clinkscales?

In the book Duke Ellington writes about the people he worked with: Billy Strayhorn, Jimmy Blanton, Ben Webster, Alice Babs and Cootie Williams among others.

You can find this book in Swedish translation at Uppsala City Library where it is called "Jag älskar musik".

Have you read this book? What do you think? Got any tips about other jazz biographies? Let me know.

Excerpts from Social Dancing in America

This is the third part of an interview with Ralph G. Giordano who recently published his book Social Dancing in America: A History and Reference Volume 2 Lindy Hop to Hip Hop, 1901-2000.

[Part 1: How come you wrote a book about social dancing in America?]
[Part 2: Which dances do you write about in the book? ]

Part 3: Can you share some interesting facts about Lindy hop?

I can give you some excerpts from the book:

"Most Americans only saw the Lindy Hop in newsreels of the Harvest Moon Ball competitions and movies such as A Day at the Races (1937), Buck Privates (1941), Hellzapoppin’ (1941), Ride ‘Em Cowboy (1942), Groovie Movie (1944) a nine-minute movie short, and Killer Diller (1948). Each provides some of the best acrobatic performance and smooth style versions of the dance ever filmed.

The acrobatic aerial dance movements were eye-catching stellar performances by the best professional Lindy Hop dancers in the country. They were extremely fast paced and choreographed for maximum effect on the movie scene and definitely not for simple enjoyment on a social dance floor."

"The comedy A Day at the Races, starring the Marx Brothers did well at the box office. At the time, the Marx Brothers were one of the top Hollywood box office attractions. Scenes in the movie offer an excellent contemporary singer Alan Jones singing in the "crooning" style made popular by Bing Crosby. In various dance scenes Groucho Marx performs a Tango, Fox Trot, Rhumba, and Charleston.

The film also has an ensemble dance scene between Harpo Marx and some African American children and another scene of African Americans adults performing the Lindy Hop. Unfortunately a large segment of America did not get to see either the Harpo scene or the Lindy Hop scene. Since these scenes involved "racial mixing," they were censored out of distribution copies throughout the south and other areas of the United States. (At that time, this was a common practice of all Hollywood movies).

Copies with deleted scenes continued to air well into the 1970s on television stations. It was not until the very late 20th century that the movie was shown intact. By that time the age of the movie regulated it to specialty cable stations dedicated for movie buffs that regulated the segregation to obscure trivia status."

Township jazz 'n' jive - South African jazz music

Cd review

When I was swing disc jockey at Dekadans on Tuesday I played some songs from the album Township Jazz 'n' Jive which has swing jazz music from South Africa from the 50s.

The tunes definitely have a certain African feel to them and many of them are based on the music style Kwela. Kwela has a simple music structure and can feel repetitive if you play songs back to back but once or twice during an evening works nice.

Good jazz tunes on this album are Something New In Africa by Solven Whistlers, Baby Are Yeng by Nancy Jacobs & Her Sisters and Tihapi Ke Noga by Dolly Rathebe.

Do you know of some other good African swing, jazz or blues music? Let me know.

Herräng Dance Camp 2007

Herräng Dance Camp is the worlds largest dance camp for lindy hop, boogie woogie, balboa and tap dancing.

This year they celebrate their 25th anniversary and the dance camp will be going on for five (five!) weeks this summer. Unbelivable! Herräng dance camp is truly the Mecka of swing dancing where people from all over the world come to dance. Here you can find the best instructors and there is just so much going on in Herräng that you can dance 24-7 if you like. Here are live music with swing and jazz bands, great swing disc jockeys and also blues nights.

This year, besides a massive amount of lindy hop, there are more balboa courses than last year and they have added some African-Cuban dancing (Rhumba, Mambo, Cha-Cha).

If you heard rumours about Herräng dance camp - they are probably true - it's a fantastic place to be. And, just like Mecka, if you're a swing dancer you must go here at least once in your life. Chanses are that you will be coming back.

If you want to read more about what Herräng Dance Camp is like, check out Lloyds stories from previous years.

Social dancing in America: List of dances included in the book

This is the second part of an interview with Ralph G. Giordano who recently published his book Social Dancing in America: A History and Reference Volume 2 Lindy Hop to Hip Hop, 1901-2000.

[Part 1: How come you wrote a book about social dancing in America?]

Part 2: Which dances do you write about in the book?


Chapter 1: Animal Dances, The Castles, and Ragtime: 1901–1919
- Cakewalk, 1890 to 1900 (African American)
- Two-Step, 1890 to 1910 (American vernacular)
- Texas Tommy, 1901 to 1905 (African American)
- Ballin’ the Jack, 1901 to 1905 (African American)
- The Slow Drag, 1901 to 1905 (African American)
- Animal Dances: 1910 to 1920 (American vernacular)
Turkey Trot,
Chicken Scratch,
Monkey Glide,
Grizzly Bear,
Bunny Hug.
- Fox Trot, 1910 to 2000 (American vernacular)
- The One-Step, 1910 to 1920 (American vernacular)
- The Castle Walk, 1915 to 1920 (American vernacular)
- Hesitation Waltz, 1910 to 1920 (American vernacular)
- Apaché, 1910 to 1920 (Paris)
- Maxixe 1910 to 1920 (Brazil)
- Argentine Tango, 1905 to 1920 (South America / Caribbean.)
- Tango, 1905 to 1925 (South America / Caribbean.)

Chapter 2: The Charleston, Flappers, and Jazz: 1920 – 1932
- Black Bottom, 1919 to 1927 (African American)
- The Charleston, 1922 to 1929 (American vernacular and African American)
- Fox Trot, 1910 to 2000 (American vernacular)
- Lindy Hop, 1927 to 1945 (American vernacular)
- Rhumba, 1930 to 2000 (Cuba)
- The Quickstep, 1921 to 1929 (American vernacular)
- The Shimmy, 1922 to 1924(African American)
- Varsity Drag, 1927 to 1929 (American vernacular)

Chapter 3: The Lindy Hop, Jitterbug, and Swing: 1932 – 1947
- The Big Apple, 1938 to 1940 (American vernacular and African American)
- Conga, 1938 to 1945 (Brazil and South America)
- Fox Trot, 1910 to 2000 (American vernacular)
- Jitterbug, mid-1930s to 1945 (American vernacular)
- The Lambeth Walk, 1938 to 1940 (Northern Europe)
- Lindy Hop, 1927 to 1945 (American vernacular)
- Rhumba, 1930 to 2000 (Cuba)
- Samba, 1939 to 2000 (Brazil)
- The Shim Sham, mid-1930s to 1945 (American vernacular)


Chapter 4: The Mambo, American Bandstand, and Rock ’n’ Roll: 1947 - 1960
- The Bop, late-1950s (American vernacular)
- The Bunny Hop, 1953 to 1960 (American Vernacular)
- Cha-Cha, 1955 to 2000 (Cuba)
- The Fish, late-1950s (American vernacular)
- The Hand Jive, late-1950s (American vernacular and African American)
- Hokey Pokey, 1947 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- The Madison, late-1950s (American vernacular)
- Mambo, 1954 to mid-1960s (Cuba)
- Merengue, late-1950s to mid-1960s (Dominican Republic)
- Polka, 1947 to mid-1960s (Czech)
- Square Dancing, 1947 through 2000 (European English)
- The Stroll, late-1950s (American vernacular)
- Tarantella, 1947 through 2000 (Italian)

Chapter 5: The Twist, Doing Your Own Thing, and A Go-Go: 1960 – 1969
- Boogaloo, 1966 to 1969. (Afro-Cuban and Puerto Rican)
- Bossa Nova, mid-1960s (South American)
- The Bostella, 1965 to 1966 (Paris, France)
- “Doing Your Own Thing,” 1965 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- The Fish- solo dance, 1961 to 1962, (American vernacular)
- The Freddy, mid-1960s (England)
- The Frug, 1962 to 1968 (American vernacular)
- Go-Go Dancing, 1964 to 1968 (American vernacular)
- Hippie Freestyle, 1965 to 1974 (American vernacular)
- The Jerk, mid-1960s, (American vernacular)
- The Limbo, 1950 through 2000 (Caribbean)
- Mashed Potato, 1961 to 1963 (African American)
- The Monkey, 1963 to 1964 (American vernacular)
- The Pachanga, 1961 to mid-1960s (Cuba and Latin Caribbean)
- Solo Dance Fads, 1961 to 1966
- The Swim, 1964 to 1965 (American vernacular)
- The Twist, 1960 through 2000 (African American)
- The Watusi, 1961 to 1962 (American vernacular)

Chapter 6: The Hustle, Saturday Night Fever, and Disco: 1970 – 1979
- American Hustle, 1975 to 1979 (Latin American)
- The Breakdown, 1974 to 1976 (African American)
- The Bump, 1975 to 1979 (American vernacular)
- The Bus Stop, 1975 to 1979 (American vernacular)
- Disco Line Dances, 1975 to 1979 (American vernacular)
- Disco Freestyle, 1975 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- Latin Hustle, 1975 to 1979 (Latin American)
- The Lock, 1974 to 1976 (African American)
- The Hustle, 1975 to 1979 (Latin American)
- The L. A. Hustle, 1975 to 1979 (Latin American)
- New York Hustle, 1975 to 1979 (Latin American)
- Reggae, 1975 through 2000 (Jamaica)
- Scooby Doo, 1974 to 1976 (African American)
- Shout!, 1978 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- Time Warp, 1977 to late-1980s (England)
- Toga, 1978 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- Y-M-C-A, 1978 through 2000 (American vernacular)

Chapter 7: Breakdancing, Country Dancing, and the Swing Dance Revival: 1980 - 2000
- Breakdancing, 1970 to mid-1980s (African American)
- Country Line Dancing, 1990 to 2000 (American vernacular)
- Country Dancing, 1980 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- East Coast Swing, 1990 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- The Electric Slide, 1989 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- Hip-hop, late-1980s through 2000 (African American)
- “House Music,” mid-1980s through 2000 (American vernacular)
- Krumping, late-1990s through 2000 (African American)
- Lindy Hop Revival, mid-1980s through 2000
- The Lambada, 1988 to 1991 (Brazil)
- Macarena, 1993 to 2000 (Spain and South America)
- Moonwalk, 1983 to 1990 (African American)
- Rave, mid-1980s through 2000 (Urban American),
- Salsa, 1980 through 2000 (Latin American and Caribbean)
- Square Dancing, 1947 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- Swing Revival, 1992 through 2000 (Urban American),
- Shag, 1947 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- Slam Dancing, 1980 to mid- 1990s, (England and Urban American),
- Two Step, 1980 through 2000 (American vernacular)
- Vogueing, 1990 to 1995 (Urban American),
- West Coast Swing, mid-1950s through 2000 (American vernacular)

Interview with Ralph Giordano, author of the book Social Dancing in America

This is the first part of an interview with Ralph G. Giordano who recently published his book Social Dancing in America: A History and Reference Volume 2 Lindy Hop to Hip Hop, 1901-2000.


Part 1: How come you wrote a book about social dancing?
[Part 2: Which dances do you write about in the book?]

[Part 3: Excerpts from Social Dancing in America]

[Part 4: Do you include Balboa in the book?]

[Part 5: Tell me about the next book you're writing: Satan in the dance hall]

[Part 6: Contents of volume one 1607-1900]

I teach part-time at the City University of New York and have been writing for historical journals and the thought of combining an historical/cultural work with my own love of social dancing was intriguing.

I definitely wanted to write a scholarly contribution to the very much overlooked American cultural development of Social dancing, however, I wanted to present it in a writing style that would appeal to the average individual. I have discovered in my time within dance clubs, especially the swing dances, that many individuals enjoy dressing in period costume and are quite interested in the history of their favored dance style.


My wife and I have danced in over 23 states in America and six other countries, and visited hundreds of dance clubs, probably a thousand or more if you include outdoor dance events. A very good tool that I learned from architecture is the empirical study of the movement of people when they do not know that they are being observed. In that same sense I was obviously heavily involved in actually dancing or learning a dance style. In the kinetic motion of dancing it is extremely important to just try and move with the music. In that same end it was extremely important being within the social dance environment and also visiting the Cecil Sharp House in London as well as taking a series of classes in English Country-dancing. My wife and I attended and it became an invaluable aid when I was researching the written description of the 18th century dances that I fully understood them because of our time actually performing the steps.

So as it turns out, to date this is the first book of its kind that has put together both a general interest reader and a scholarly work that discusses social dancing in a complete social, cultural, economic, political, and historical context. Many social dance books of the period simply provided descriptions and step-by-step instructions on “how to dance” as opposed to why people dance. My book also provides a consistent theme that contemporary dances and the associated music and fashion were more often attacked by forces of social morality and often labeled the newest dance trend as “scandalous.”

This book is not a book to teach people “How to Dance” there are literally thousands of publications and hundreds of dance studios available to do just that. This book is an attempt to provide a clear understanding of what was involved in the basic patterns and rhythms of the dance, the origins, the popularity, but most importantly to place each in a historical and social context. This book is about the dances themselves and their importance in a social context. Therefore, each chapter contains a brief introduction of the social, political, and cultural climate. The book is about how individual Americans; mainly couples interacted in a social dance setting.

Dance lindy hop, balboa and swing at Dekadans tonight

Just a reminder, tonight I will dj swing music for your dancing and listening pleasure at the swing music club Dekadans. Dance lindy hop, balboa or whatever other dance you like.

I've found some new music gems that I would like to play. Come and check them out.

Dekadans is located at Västgöta nation, Västra Ågatan 18 in Uppsala. From 20 o'clock till 23 o'clock. Entrance fee: 20 kr.

What kind of jazz? Jazz history at Verve

Sometimes people ask me: "Do you like jazz?". "Of course I do", I answer. But then I wonder, "What kind of jazz you mean?" Because there are so many styles of jazz they could be talking about: New Orleans, swing, bebop, latin, cool, fusion, hard bop, avant garde, vocal jazz and many other jazz styles.

The jazz label Verve has descriptions of the history of different jazz styles.

I like swing music best, of course.

Do you know any other good web sites about jazz styles? Let me know.

Social Dancing in America: A History and Reference Volume 2 Lindy Hop to Hip Hop

A new interesting book about dancing and lindy hop by Ralph G. Giordano has been published: Social Dancing in America: A History and Reference Volume 2 Lindy Hop to Hip Hop, 1901-2000 .
From the book description:

"relates the history of the most popular social dances, where they began, which dances survived the test of time and why, and what attracted American men and women to social dancing in these periods. Unlike other books on social dancing that taught people "How to Dance," this books not only describes the dances, but also WHY Americans danced."

Have you read this book? Please tell me what you think of it.

Christmas ends today but Yule B Swingin'

In Sweden Christmas is officially over today, 20 days after Christmas eve, and it's time to throw out your Christmas tree.

You are probably sick of Christmas songs and have an overdose of jingle bells. However, now could be an excellent time to get swinging Christmas music for next holiday season, the music stores could have it on sale.

One of my favorite Christmas jazz albums that you should look for is Yule B Swingin'. Great Christmas swing songs, especially "Everybody's Waitin' For The Man With The Bag" with Kay Starr.

Jazz jam session at Pub 19, Uppsala

Last night was a jazz jam night at Pub 19, where everybody could bring their instrument and jam together.

This was a nice evening and the best was when jazz singer Sani Gamedze from South Africa took the stage. Just wonderful.

She will sing at Katalin Thursday Feb 8th with Democracy of jazz.

The photo was taken by me and may not be used elsewhere without my permisson. You also see Erik Ojala on bass. I don't know the drummers name, if you know, please tell me.

Spring season premiere at Dekadans Jan 16th

Next tuesday, Jan 16th, the swing club Dekadans start the spring season. I will be djing that night and I'm looking forward to spinning some newly found swing songs.

Dekadans is located at Västgöta nation in Uppsala (V. Ågatan 18) and has a fantastic atmosphere. Entrance: 20 kr. 20-23 o'clock.

If you have any suggestion about what you would like me to play, let me know and I'll see what I can do.

Uppsala Winter Swing - Jazz Festival

In a few weeks, on Jan 27th, the annual jazz festival in Uppsala, Uppsala Winter Swing, will take place.

The festival will be from 13 till 01 o'clock and feature 8 big bands and also musicians in smaller groups.

There are so many good musicians coming to Uppsala Winter Swing, so if you like jazz, this is definitely the place to be.

If you want to find out more about the bands, orchestras and musicians just click their name in the list below.

• Brazz brothers
• Remi Toulon
• Laurence Allison
• Sliding Hammers
• Joakim Milder
• Peter Asplund
• Ulf Johansson Werre
• Lars Erstrand
• Bosse Broberg
• Martin Sjöstedt
• Klas Lindquist
• Thomas Arnesen
• Kjell Öhman
• Good Morning Blues
• Trio X
• Swing Delight
• Peter Lind and the Cabaret Band
• Induss & Lagerberg Great Sweet Orchestra
• Rockford
• Solskensorkestern
• Big Swing Face
• Svenska Showorkestern Phontrattarne
• Skrapan Big Band, John Högman, Teamwork big band, Uppsala Storband
  
  

Youth Jazz Contest in Uppsala

In november last year Uppsala Jazz Club held a contest for young jazz musicians: Youth Jazz Contest.

The musicians were overall very talented. They played modern jazz styles and while I can appreciate that on an intellectual level it doesn't grab me as much as swing does. How do you encourage young muscians to start playing swing?

The winners of the competition was a group called Nkiru with members (left to right): Andreas Larsson (drums), Niklas Fernqvist (bass), Jakob Gustavsson (saxophone) and Alexander Zethson (piano).



Stina Hellberg played a unusual instrument in a jazz environment: a harp, but it really worked. In her trio were also Linus Fredin (bass), Wille Alin (drums) and Alexander Iberer (cello).

Silver Sextett

This band plays a lot of songs by Horace Silver.

From left to right: Christoffer Aldin (saxophone), Johanna Grim (trombone), Henrik Grim (trumpet) samt Per Björkling (bass) Also in the band but not in this picture were Joel Sandberg (drums) and Henrik Boseaus (piano).

Johanna won the jurys bonus price.



All pictures are taken by me and may not be used elsewhere without my permission.

Swing DJ Battle in Copenhagen

On Jan 20th there will be a Swing DJ Battle in Copenhagen. It would be great to be there.

Hey Mr Jesse at Yehoodi.com

Swing dj Jesse Miner has a podcast with swingin' jazz and blues called 'Hey Mr Jesse' over at http://www.heymisterjesse.com/ (but you'll end up at www.yehoodi.com/mrjesse/).

Yehoodi.com is one of the largest discussion forums for swing dance but they also have a section devoted to swing music.

'Hey Mr Jesse' is a really good show and you will hear some really good jazz. One of the segments in the show is called '8 count swing' where Jesse Miner lists eight of his favorite classic swing songs. One of the songs he features is "Jubilee Swing" by Chick Webb Orchestra on the album Strictly Jive.



"Jubilee Swing" is good but that album has so many other great songs as well like "Who Ya Hunchin'" and of course one of the most infectious swing songs ever: "Lindyhopper's Delight". Yes sir, that is right, it really is a delight to hear that song, if you don't want to run to the dance floor when you hear it then something is wrong (very wrong). The cd is worth buying just for that song alone. Yes, it's that good.

On the album you can hear Ella Fitzgerald who took over the band when Chick Webb passed away. There are blazing fast songs to practise your balboa to: "Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie" and "Harlem Congo". You have "'Tain't What You Do" for your shim sham and if you like songs with a novelty feel you should check out "Macpherson Is Rehearsin' (To Swing)".

Sweet (?) Georgia Brown - Cabin In The Sky

Yesterday I saw the film Cabin in the sky where Lena Horne plays the character Georgia Brown. Usually you hear about the Sweet Georgia Brown but here she was trying to steal away Joe from his wife. Lena Horne certainly was an 'it' girl.



One really great version of Sweet Georgia Brown is done by Ella Fitzgerald on the album A Perfect Match together with Count Basie and his band.



Ethel Waters who plays the wife in the movie also has recorded some versions of Sweet Georgia Brown.

Duke Ellington and his band is featured in this film in a scene where you also can see several types of dance: (original) jazz dance, some lindy hop and even some shag.

Louis Armstrong also has a very small role in the film.

Jump by Casey MacGill & The Spirits of Rhythm

Jump by Casey MacGill & The Spirits of Rhythm is a modern classic that I think you should know of. The cd has a lot of songs with high energy as well as some bluesier songs.

'Jump' seems to be hard to get nowadays and is out of stock at most online stores, if you have happen to stumble upon it, don't hesitate, buy the cd.

The song 'Whadaya Want' was earlier done by a group called The Robins and you can compare the versions by checking out the cd ''Leiber & Stoller Present the Spark Records Story'. (You can find it at the Uppsala City Library)

If you read the previous posts, you might wonder why I choose this particular swing cd. Well, I choose the cd because it has red and yellow on the front of the jewel case just like the Anita O'day cd. Hey, anything is allowed ;-).

How to find the next jazz cd to blog about

Last post was all about how to choose the next song. That applies as well to posting on a blog. What should come next? What fits well? How can I keep the flow?

What is the perfect next post? Stay tuned...

How do swingdjs find the next song to play?

A dj always thinks: What would be a perfect song to play after this one? I always get some association between the songs.

Often the songs are played in the same style of swing, for example if it is played by a big band I'll continue with another song played by a big band. Other styles may be Kansas city style or a soft style like Oscar Peterson trio.

Other times it is an instrument that gets my attention, "Yeah, the trumpet is this song is sooo cool, lets have more trumpets". So I maybe transition from Louis Armstrong to Harry James.

It can also be a musician, lets say I just played a song with Gene Krupa, I know he also played with Benny Goodman, so then I play a song with one of Benny Goodmans small groups.

Swing music tips or reviews

Right now, when I'm just beginning this blog, I'm just going to give you tips about great swing and jazz cds and not full-scale reviews since that takes a lot more work. I think you are smart enough to decide for yourself if the music swings or not. Just click the links and see for yourself.

Later on I might revisit some blog posts and write a more indepth review of a cd, book or song or whatever.

Enjoy!

swingdjs.com

swingdjs.com is one of the best resources if you have a question about swing music. Swingdjs.com is a forum where many swingjockeys from all the world meet.

They talk mostly about the music itself but also how they dj and what equipment they use. If you are a swing discjockey or want to become one, this is the place for you.

Anita O´day: Let me off uptown

Cd review

Swing music tip of the day: Anita O´day: Let me off uptown

This is a great swing cd with the best of singer Anita O'day. All of the songs are with Gene Krupa and his orchestra.

Here are classics as 'Opus one', 'Boogie blues' and 'Massachusetts' and of course one of my favorites 'Let me off uptown' where Anita sings a duet with trumpeter Roy Eldridge.