Great Encounters #27: When W.C. Handy traveled to New York for his first phonographic recording session and meeting with James Reese Europe

August 12th, 2009

 

 

Great Encounters

Book excerpts that chronicle famous encounters among twentieth-century cultural icons

 *

 

______________

The story of W.C. Handy’s first recording session, and meeting James Reese Europe

 

Excerpted from

W.C. Handy: The Life and Times of the Man Who Made the Blues

by

David Robertson

_________________________

     Harry Pace, even at his distance at Atlanta, always had been more innovative in marketing their firm’s songs in newer ways than Handy, and, as his career later reveals, he was interested in the possibilities of owning his own phonographic business. While on a trip for his insurance company to New York City, Pace made arrangements with Columbia records for Handy and his orchestra to make their first phonographic recordings, contracted for September, 1917. The orchestra would record Pace & Handy properties, and, with legal permissions, some other popular blues and rags the company did not own. (“The Memphis Blues” would not be among them.) But Handy’s impecuniosity almost broke the Columbia deal before a first record had been pressed.

When he told his best Memphis musicians about the up-coming session, their reactions were, bluntly summarized, W. C., we don’t think you’re good for it. Some objected because they would have to give up sure-playing local engagements for the financially uncertain trip to New York City; others were more forthright that they did not think Handy could fully pay their up-front expenses for train travel and hotel rooms. In the end, he was able to persuade only four Memphis musicians who knew him to take the risk, out of a total of twelve whom Pace had promised to record as “Handy’s Orchestra of Memphis.” Two of Handy’s perhaps most talented former sidemen, Ed Wyer on violin and William King Phillips on clarinet and saxophone, had moved to Chicago, and when Handy called upon these two for their services, they diplomatically pled Chicago union regulations as prohibiting them from playing in New York City. Handy filled out his needed number by hiring three other Chicago musicians on cello, bass, and drums who had once played for him in Memphis, and four other Chicago pick-up musicians who had not worked with Handy for needed violins and saxophones. The twelfth, a clarinetist, was apparently hired at the last moment in New York City. Financed in part by a loan which Handy previously had taken out secured by his household furnishings – and which may have occasioned another, non-comical Maggie-and-Jiggs domestic scene at 659 Janette Place – the mixed group calling themselves “Handy’s Orchestra of Memphis” barely caught an already-moving passenger train out of the Memphis station and headed toward their New York City recording session.

One who was not on this train was guitarist Charlie Patton, later known as the “King of the Delta Blues.” Patton enjoyed Handy’s music, and a mutual friend earlier had praised Patton to Handy with some qualifications – “He can play what he knows to play.” Handy generously had invited Patton to attend an engagement with his orchestra at Beulah, Mississippi, a cross-roads town outside of Rosedale. Patton presumably got in free. But Handy’s band were strictly score-reading musicians, and Patton soon had realized that he “couldn’t play no-how ’cause he couldn’t read that music.” He gave up any ambition to play with Handy’s bands.

Despite being a skillful score reader, Handy always remembered his intimidated entrance into the “little airtight studios” at Columbia to make his first, mass-produced recording. He and the other musicians were instructed for reasons of acoustics to sit down to play their instruments on wooden stools of various heights throughout the studio. (There was no vocalist for these sessions.) Recording horns dangling from the ceiling above the performers’ heads were connected via mysterious-looking acoustical tubing to the studio’s central recording machinery. Throughout four days, September 21 through the 22nd, and again on September 24 and the 25th, this group who had not previously rehearsed with one another recorded fifteen songs while being led by Handy on cornet or trumpet. Ten eventually were released by Columbia early the next year, two to a disc.

As expected, the performances by what were essentially a group of musical strangers were a little stiff; Handy later commented that these recordings of 1917 were “not up to scratch.” These were not songs played as he and his best Memphis orchestras had performed them about the Pattona, or atop the Alaskan Roof Garden, or Gordon Hall. But the group does a credible performance of a Pace & Handy owned property, “Snakey Blues,” complete with tapped wood blocks, that along with trombonist Sylvester Bernard and xylophonist Jasper Taylor, almost swings; one of the clarinetists tries hard, but not quite succeeds, in taking a blues break. On one of the two Handy-composed songs subsequently released by Columbia, the “Ole Miss Rag,” the playing is much more sedate; it is as if Handy, always what musicians called a “score eagle,” had insisted that there would be no deviation from his score. Things loosen up a little on the second Handy-written number that was released, “Hooking Cow Blues.” The trombone and wind instruments play a bluesy stride – one can imagine Temple Drake doing at least a slow “shimmy” to its rhythm – and the wooden blocks played at the rear are audible through the acoustical tubes all the way throughout the performance. Handy in this song even throws in a few rattling cow bells – a lá the white “Original Dixieland Jass Band” as used in their recordings. Jogo that, you New Orleans musicians, he seems to be saying.

Interestingly, these 1917 recordings did not include any issuances of the “St. Louis Blues” indicating perhaps that Columbia did not then consider it sufficiently popular for a national, white audience. But the Columbia issues sold reasonably well, and, as Pace had hoped, resulted in more national publicity for the Memphis firm. Yet for Handy both personally and historically, this New York City trip was most significant for his first meeting with James Reese Europe, the adapter of “The Memphis Blues.” He, not Handy, was in 1917 the nation’s most pre-eminent black arranger of bluesy rags and marches. Handy that year was being praised at times nationally, but it was James Europe, who after his initial cross-over success with the Castles dance team (and his immensely popular, fox-trot arrangement of Handy’s lost song) who by the autumn of 1917 had accomplished far more than W. C. Handy in bringing African-American music and musicians to a national, white audience.

Europe had organized the first significant union and booking agency for black musicians, the Clef Club, and the biennial performances by its members as the Clef Club Orchestra of the City of New York – featuring one hundred musicians and twelve pianos – had drawn praiseful reviews from the white press. He also was now Lieutenant James Europe when he met Handy, having previously accepted a commission in the all-black 15th New York Infantry National Guard to organize its regimental band and to encourage recruitment among African Americans. Europe later would be the first black officer to lead African-American troops into combat at France. He would contribute significantly to Handy’s international fame as the “Father of the Blues” when during his convalescence from combat injuries he performed “The Memphis Blues” and other Handy songs with the 369th U. S. Infantry “Hell Fighters” band to wildly enthusiastic French civilians. They loved the Memphis composer’s songs, as Europe played them, which they termed le jazz hot.

Handy and Europe were a study in contrast when they met that autumn of 1917. Handy, as illustrated in the promotional line drawings for the Columbia releases, appeared as an avuncular, round-shouldered and professorially-looking middle-aged man, dressed in the uniform of the earlier century’s local brass bands. Europe, eight years younger and looking even more so, was “a big, tall man,” his friend and fellow musician Eubie Blake later recalled, and he habitually stood up very straight “like a West Point soldier.” A pair of rimless glasses gave Europe, despite his solid build, a studious look, almost as if he were the graduate student to Handy’s professor. Both had studied music formally. What these two Alabama-born composers and arrangers may have warily said to one another when they first met was not recalled by others, nor later in his memoir by Handy. But their encounter in 1917 was a turning point in the history of the blues, and of which of these two ambitious African-American men later would be remembered historically as its most pre-eminent practitioner. Tempo á blues was becoming faster.

*

Snakey Blues, by W.C. Handy’s Memphis Blues Band

The Memphis Blues, by James Reese Europe’s 369th U.S. Infantry “Hell Fighters” Band

_________________________

W.C. Handy: The Life and Times of the Man Who Made the Blues, by David Robertson, published by Alfred A. Knopf

__________

     Excerpted from Alfred A. Knopf. Copyright (c) 2009 by David Robertson. All rights reserved.

*

This edition of Great Encounters was researched and published by Peter Maita on August 7, 2009. Portland, Oregon.

Share this:

Comment on this article:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

A Letter From the Publisher

An appeal for contributions to support the ongoing publishing efforts of Jerry Jazz Musician

In This Issue

The Modern Jazz Quintet by Everett Spruill
A Collection of Jazz Poetry — Summer, 2023 Edition

A wide range of topics are found in this collection. Tributes are paid to Tony Bennett and Ahmad Jamal and to the abstract worlds of musicians like Ornette Coleman and Pharoah Sanders; the complex lives of Chet Baker and Nina Simone are considered; devotions to Ellington and Basie are revealed; and personal solace is found in the music of Tommy Flanagan and Quartet West. These are poems of peace, reflection, time, venue and humor – all with jazz at their core. (Featuring the art of Everett Spruill)

The Sunday Poem

photo by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
“Fledging” by John L. Stanizzi

Interview

photo courtesy of Henry Threadgill
Interview with Brent Hayes Edwards, co-author (with Henry Threadgill) of Easily Slip Into Another World: A Life in Music...The author discusses his work co-written with Threadgill, the composer and multi-instrumentalist widely recognized as one of the most original and innovative voices in contemporary music, and the winner of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Music.

Poetry

painting by Henry Denander
A collection of jazz haiku...This collection, featuring 22 poets, is an example of how much love, humor, sentimentality, reverence, joy and sorrow poets can fit into their haiku devoted to jazz.

In Memoriam

Fotograaf Onbekend / Anefo, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
A thought or two about Tony Bennett

Podcast

"BG Boogie’s musical tour of indictment season"...The podcaster “BG Boogie” has weaponized the most recent drama facing The Former Guy, creating a 30 minute playlist “with all the latest up-to-date-est musical indictments of political ineptitude.”

Interview

Chick Webb/photographer unknown
Interview with Stephanie Stein Crease, author of Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat That Changed America...The author talks about her book and Chick Webb, once at the center of America’s popular music, and among the most influential musicians in jazz history.

Community

FOTO:FORTEPAN / Kölcsey Ferenc Dunakeszi Városi Könyvtár / Petanovics fényképek, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
.“Community Bookshelf, #1"...a twice-yearly space where writers who have been published on Jerry Jazz Musician can share news about their recently authored books. This edition includes information about books published within the last six months or so…

Short Fiction

photo vi Wallpaper Flare
Short Fiction Contest-winning story #63 — “Company” by Anastasia Jill...Twenty-year-old Priscilla Habel lives with her wannabe flapper mother who remains stuck in the jazz age 40 years later. Life is monotonous and sad until Cil meets Willie Flasterstain, a beatnik lesbian who offers an escape from her mother's ever-imposing shadow.

Poetry

Trading Fours, with Douglas Cole, No. 16: “Little Waltz” and “Summertime”...Trading Fours with Douglas Cole is an occasional series of the writer’s poetic interpretations of jazz recordings and film. In this edition, he connects the recordings of Jessica Williams' "Little Waltz" and Gene Harris' "Summertime."

Playlist

photo by Bob Hecht
This 28-song Spotify playlist, curated by Jerry Jazz Musician contributing writer Bob Hecht, features great tunes performed by the likes of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Sarah Vaughan, Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, Bill Evans, Lester Young, Stan Getz, and…well, you get the idea.

Poetry

photo of Wolfman Jack via Wikimedia Commons
“Wolfman and The Righteous Brothers” – a poem by John Briscoe

Jazz History Quiz #167

GuardianH, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Before becoming one of television’s biggest stars, he was a competent ragtime and jazz piano player greatly influenced by Scott Joplin (pictured), and employed a band of New Orleans musicians similar to the Original Dixieland Jazz Band to play during his vaudeville revue. Who was he?

Short Fiction

photo via PIXNIO/CC0
“The Sound Barrier” – a short story by Bex Hansen

Short Fiction

back cover of Diana Krall's album "The Girl in the Other Room" [Verve]
“Improvised: A life in 7ths, 9ths and Suspended 4ths” – a short story by Vikki C.

Interview

photo by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
Long regarded as jazz music’s most eminent baritone saxophonist, Gerry Mulligan was a central figure in “cool” jazz whose contributions to it also included his important work as a composer and arranger. Noted jazz scholar Alyn Shipton, author of The Gerry Mulligan 1950s Quartets, and Jerry Jazz Musician contributing writer Bob Hecht discuss Mulligan’s unique contributions to modern jazz.

Photography

photo by Giovanni Piesco
Giovanni Piesco’s photographs of Tristan Honsinger

Poetry

Maurice Mickle considers jazz venues, in two poems

In Memoriam

David Becker, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
“Tony Bennett, In Memoriam” – a poem by Erren Kelly

Poetry

IISG, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Ella Fitzgerald, in poems by Claire Andreani and Michael L. Newell

Book Excerpt

“Chick” Webb was one of the first virtuoso drummers in jazz and an innovative bandleader dubbed the “Savoy King,” who reigned at Harlem’s world-famous Savoy Ballroom. Stephanie Stein Crease is the first to fully tell Webb’s story in her biography, Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat that Changed America…The book’s entire introduction is excerpted here.

Feature

Hans Christian Hagedorn, professor for German and Comparative Literature at the University of Castilla-La Mancha in Ciudad Real (Spain) reveals the remarkable presence of Miguel de Cervantes’ classic Don Quixote in the history of jazz.

Short Fiction

Dmitry Rozhkov, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
“A Skull on the Moscow Leningrad Sleeper” – a short story by Robert Kibble...A story revolving around a jazz record which means so much to a couple that they risk being discovered while attempting to escape the Soviet Union

Book Excerpt

Book excerpt from Easily Slip Into Another World: A Life in Music, by Henry Threadgill and Brent Hayes Edwards

Short Fiction

photo via Appletreeauction.com
“Streamline Moderne” – a short story by Amadea Tanner

Publisher’s Notes

“C’est Si Bon” – at trip's end, a D-Day experience, and an abundance of gratitude

Poetry

photo by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
A Charlie Parker Poetry Collection...Nine poets, nine poems on the leading figure in the development of bebop…

Contributing Writers

Click the image to view the writers, poets and artists whose work has been published on Jerry Jazz Musician, and find links to their work

Interview

Photo of Stanley Crouch by Michael Jackson
Interview with Glenn Mott, editor of Victory is Assured: The Uncollected Writings of Stanley Crouch (photo of Stanley Crouch by Michael Jackson)

Interview

photo of Sonny Rollins by Brian McMillen
Interview with Aidan Levy, author of Saxophone Colossus: The Life and Music of Sonny Rollins...The author discusses his book about the iconic tenor saxophonist who is one of the greatest jazz improvisers of all time – a lasting link to the golden age of jazz

Art

Designed for Dancing: How Midcentury Records Taught America to Dance: “Outtakes” — Vol. 2...In this edition, the authors Janet Borgerson and Jonathan Schroeder share examples of Cha Cha Cha record album covers that didn't make the final cut in their book

Pressed for All Time

“Pressed For All Time,” Vol. 17 — producer Joel Dorn on Rahsaan Roland Kirk’s 1967 album, The Inflated Tear

Photography

© Veryl Oakland
John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana are featured in this edition of photographs and stories from Veryl Oakland’s book, Jazz in Available Light

Coming Soon

An interview with Judith Tick, author of Becoming Ella Fitzgerald: The Jazz Singer Who Transformed American Song; A new collection of jazz poetry; a new Jazz History Quiz; short fiction; poetry; photography; interviews; playlists; and lots more in the works...

Interview Archive

Eubie Blake
Click to view the complete 22 year archive of Jerry Jazz Musician interviews, including those recently published with Richard Carlin and Ken Bloom on Eubie Blake (pictured); Richard Brent Turner on jazz and Islam; Alyn Shipton on the art of jazz; Shawn Levy on the original queens of standup comedy; Travis Atria on the expatriate trumpeter Arthur Briggs; Kitt Shapiro on her life with her mother, Eartha Kitt; Will Friedwald on Nat King Cole; Wayne Enstice on the drummer Dottie Dodgion; the drummer Joe La Barbera on Bill Evans; Philip Clark on Dave Brubeck; Nicholas Buccola on James Baldwin and William F. Buckley; Ricky Riccardi on Louis Armstrong; Dan Morgenstern and Christian Sands on Erroll Garner; Maria Golia on Ornette Coleman.

Site Archive