Swing

The other night at a Count Basic dance, a rather merry young lady in black skunk furs, proceeded to climb onto the band stand, push tenor man Bud Tate out of his chair, sit down and clap her hands while cooing benevolently upon the audience. Aside from the fact that the look on Bud's face was funny as hell, a very serious question was brought up. Just what is the average leader going to do about the jitterbug? Benny Goodman recently wrote a long article proving that the jitterbugs caused his band to play as loudly as it does because they screamed so loudly the band couldn't be heard. Mebbe so--and again mebbe not. But at any rate, the screaming, exhibitionistic type of swing fan who climbs all over the stand, swipes drumsticks, playfully pokes dents in a five hundred dollar horn, and otherwise makes himself knows is a really large headache, Nobody has any kick about the so-called "jitterbug" or shag dancing. A swing musician would have an awfully hard time justifying the sort of thing he plays and at the same time muttering dire things about the last moving shaggers. They have just reviewer prefers to do his track work outdoors, but that is pure laziness, son, pure laziness. I have but one criticism of the dancing "bugs" whom I have seen: they all ought to go up to the Savoy in New York and take a few lessons in real slow, relaxed shagging. Just as most white swing bands play mostly fast, stiff music while calling it swing, so do the jitterbugs dance out of time, pressing the beat so much that they can't same time and watch the crowd shag to easy tempos. They just rock along, everybody taking his time, but it still swings. When Krupa was playing his theater tour last summer, he had two kids with him who really did a marvelous job: they danced to fast tunes, but with all the case and grace of a couple of cats. That's what makes Bill Robinson's dancing what it is: marvelous technique--so much that he can just relax and jump right along with the tune. It the jitterbugs will learn this trick in dancing just as the white bands have to learn it is playing, and will stay off the stand, and not kill too many gorphs, life will be much happier for all concerned.

Records: Benny Goodman keeps up his tradition of copying only the best in swing with "I'll Always Be in Love With You," a reissue of the old Fletcher Henderson arrangement. But since Benny didn't put his name on it as author, Fletcher Henderson used to be his arranger, and it con be ruled an excellent copy of an excellent arrangement... Bluebird turns out a very fine release this week with the famous "Honky Tonk Train Blues" by Lux Lewis, another boogie record by Pinetop Smith, and "Rosetta" with an all-star band. Fine jazz plus excellent recording make this tips...Catch the Duke's recording of "Aint The Gravy Fine" (Vocalion) if you want nice bounce rhythm and a salacious vocal ... After a little checking of master plate numbers, confirmed my guess that jimmy Dorsey's "Arkansas Traveler" was recorded about a year age. Good dise, but the style isn't as good as the one the band now uses.... Listen to Johnny Kirby's record of "Pastel Blues" (Decca) and you won't go near the Art Shaw of the same