KING OLIVER AND HIS CREOLE JAZZ BAND – 1923 | The Chronogical Classics – 650 (1992) FLAC (tracks), lossless

There are more than a handful of undiluted jazz records that predate King Oliver's sessions of 1923, but few had managed to put it together in a recording studio quite so powerfully or, as it turned out, so very influentially. These primordial artifacts, now digitally remastered and chronologically assembled, form a substantial chunk of the bedrock of early recorded jazz. They're also remarkably liberating if, for just a few minutes, you make yourself into a fly on the wall of the Gennett studios. Note that young Louis Armstrong had to pretty well stand outside of the room so that he wouldn't overpower the rest of the players. Johnny Dodds interacted wonderfully with the brass, weaving wreaths of wooded filigree around the exhortations of Honore Dutrey's deep-voiced trombone. Lil Hardin, when you can hear her, is quite the majestic pianist, especially on "Chimes Blues." Baby Dodds couldn't use a full set of drums, as Gennett's Neolithic microphones couldn't handle anything beyond wood block or muffled snare and a small cymbal. Most previous issues of the 1923 Oliver Gennetts didn't include the OKeh sessions from June of that same year. These help to fill out the rest of the picture. The general recording ambience is less muddled, the clarinet seems to have been given greater opportunities for expressing itself in the lower register, and Lil's piano is more audible. Hardin and Armstrong's collaborative "Where Did You Stay Last Night?" sounds like a clear premonition of what Armstrong's Hot Five would be accomplishing by 1925. For years, jazz critics and historians have whined about the presence of Stump Evans, who blew C-melody saxophone on the session of October 5, 1923. As if being nicknamed "Stump" wasn't demeaning enough, Evans has been posthumously reviled for not sounding like Coleman Hawkins, although in 1923 young Hawk was hardly more facile than Stump, who sounds just fine on "Krooked Blues," slap tongue and all. Everything here bears repeated listening. Savor the wonderment of experiencing most of the best recordings King Oliver managed to make before pyorrhea forced him off the scene. Hearing those two cornets flying around the room together is an essential part of any classic jazz appreciation. A special treat lies within the melodic structure of "Camp Meeting Blues," which is clearly recognizable as the basis for Duke Ellington's "Creole Love Call." The inclusion of this and three other Columbia sides makes Classics 650 the ultimate early King Oliver survey, second to none. arwulf arwulf  
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KING OLIVER's JAZZ BAND – 1923-1926 | The Chronogical Classics – 639 (1992) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

We'd like to introduce the last 11 sides that Louis Armstrong made with Joe Oliver's Jazz Band. After listening through three or four of these, you'll have a pretty good idea why this group generated so much excitement in its heyday. Already the ensemble has begun to morph. Papa Charlie Jackson's bass saxophone adds an extra level of funk to "Buddy's Habit," a thrilling stomp gone slightly weird when Louis takes an entire chorus using a slippery "swanee whistle." Jackson played a worthy tuba but his bass sax was all prostate and peritoneum. This was a hot band and these are among the best records they ever managed to conjure. Two cornets harmonize in striking tandem during the breaks. Honore Dutrey's trombone is the perfect counterweight for Johnny Dodds' clarinet. We're experiencing authentic collective improvisation, eight people sharing one microphone. Each of these numbers will charm you if you give the music a chance. Go ahead. Spend more than a half-hour with this amazing band. Suddenly the chapter ends and we've entered a completely different phase of Oliver's life. The group has dissolved after a dispute over pay. Louis lingered longer than the rest but by December of 1924 he's off plowing his own turf. A full year has passed since the band's final session as a unit. King Oliver is heard in duet performance with Jelly Roll Morton, working up a gutsy "King Porter Stomp" and a "Tom Cat" which soon reveals itself as Morton's "Winin' Boy." Now we're wading into the year 1926. Oliver has put his name in front of a band, which is essentially Luis Russell & His Burning Eight. Suddenly there are a lot more reed players than have ever been heard on any of King Oliver's records. There's Albert Nicholas, Barney Bigard and an alto player from Detroit named Billy Paige. He wrote the arrangements for "Too Bad" and "Snag It." Vocals are by the venerably funky Richard M. Jones, the soulful Teddy Peters, the salty Georgia Taylor and the chronically blue Irene Scruggs. Albert Nicholas plays a mean soprano sax on "Home Town Blues." "Deep Henderson" kicks and shakes. "Jackass Blues" is a masterpiece of distorted reality. Gone is the precision of the Creole Jazz Band. The Dixie Syncopators blow hard and swing loose. "Sugar Foot Stomp" is a screamer. Conventional criticism is full of complaints about this band. Why compare it with the smaller, more disciplined ensembles of 1923? These big bumbling bands of 1926 are about feeling good. The records don't exist to authenticate some expert's theories of refined excellence. If Barney Bigard wants to slap his tongue against the reed and Stump Evans tries his luck with a soprano saxophone, well, good for them. It's all about having a good time. And this is good time music. arwulf arwulf  
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KING OLIVER AND HIS DIXIE SYNCOPATORS – 1926-1928 | The Chronogical Classics – 618 (1991) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

It's the middle of September, just past the middle of the 1920s, and Bert Cobb is playing an entire chorus of "Someday, Sweetheart" on his tuba without adding any embellishments whatsoever. Barney Bigard moans through a saxophone, and Johnny Dodds pours the rest of it right out the bottom of his clarinet. Meet the Dixie Syncopators. King Oliver has surrounded himself with about ten musicians who tease, squeeze and wheeze their way through harmless pop songs and authentic jazz tunes without apologizing or going out of their way to prove themselves any better than they need to be to make it through to the end of the year 1926. Kid Ory sounds like Kid Ory and that sounds awfully good. Every tub on its own bottom, like the fellows said. The time line is peppered with exciting changes. By April of 1927, Lawson Buford has captured the tuba. Omer Simeon is in the reed section with Barney Bigard, who is still wielding a dangerous tenor sax. Joe Oliver sounds great most of the time, and his band should be appreciated on its own ground. Comparing it with Duke Ellington's orchestra is a pointless procedure. Ellington was different from this, although both Ellington and Bubber Miley listened carefully to King Oliver. These Dixie Syncopators occupy their own plateau in eternity, and we are free to visit them at will. There are no washouts. Even the drudge-nudge of "Black Snake Blues" is marvelous theater. "Farewell Blues" is gorgeous. Any inquisitive person could learn a lot just by following the stories of all the people who sat in with King Oliver during these years. The reed players! The trombonists! And yes, without a doubt, get a load of those tuba technicians. This is a fascinating period to listen back on, as banjos and tubas were often considered mutually essential equipment. Compare the puffing of Cyrus St. Clair with the huffing of Bass Moore. The session of August 13, 1928 gives us the option of enjoying instrumentals or really nice vaudeville vocals. At least they seem nice enough until you hear the line: "hang the dog and shoot the cat." Gosh, maybe the instrumental version is better after all. arwulf arwulf  
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KING OLIVER AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1928-1930 | The Chronogical Classics – 607 (1991) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

After a couple of fine sides from 1928, the saga of King Oliver turns another corner, heading into 1929 armed with little more than a Victor recording contract. There are plenty of strong performances here. Charlie Holmes puts his personality on the front line, and Fats Pichon sings "I've Got That Thing" with plenty of mustard as usual. But things are definitely changing. On "I'm Watching the Clock," a relaxed recording made in September of 1928, King Oliver expressed himself beautifully, but his chops were on the wane. By the beginning of 1929, Louis Metcalf is the featured cornet soloist in front of King Oliver's Orchestra, using the mute a lot like Joe had brandished it years earlier. "Call of the Freaks," "The Trumpet's Prayer" and "Freakish Light Blues" are beautiful vignettes. Punch Miller appeared briefly on a date that featured the flashy piano of Cass Simpson. For the remainder of 1929 Oliver's nephew Dave Nelson took on the task of trumpeting and occasionally composing for the band. He even sang for a minute but someone must have begged him to knock it off. Teddy Hill played tenor sax for Oliver's orchestra in 1928 and 1929. He worked in a lot of big bands that couldn't give him enough solo space, which is probably why he eventually formed his own progressive swing band where Dizzy Gillespie would take his first solos on record in 1937. Teddy would go on to create an open environment that was conducive to extended improvisation during the early 1940s. On this CD you get to hear him paying his dues. The best of Oliver's solid components still make for good listening. Clinton Walker, for example, would operate the tuba with energetic precision all the way through to May of 1930. James P. Johnson and Hilton Jefferson showed up. That's serious business! So is Roy Smeck's steel guitar solo on "Everybody Does It in Hawaii," although jazz purists wrinkle their noses and roll their eyes at such stuff. Smeck also plays harmonica on "Frankie and Johnny." The combination of tuba and mouth harp is a remarkable sonic blend, for those who aren't too proud to have a wild adventure in the company of crusty old records like these. arwulf arwulf  
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KING OLIVER AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1930-1931 | The Chronogical Classics – 594 (1991) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

 What you've got here are King Oliver's final recordings as a leader. Big bands were still figuring themselves out in 1930, moving from one decade's definitive flavor into another stylistic space as yet unspecified. Hovering over everything was the gruesome specter of fiscal disaster. This did strange things to the music business. Pop culture became partly mummified by a creeping sentimentality that would emerge again during the age of Cold War conformity. During the 1930s and the 1950s jazz endured and continued to evolve, as it always will under any circumstances. With his best decade behind him, King Oliver presided over an orchestra that occasionally sounds a bit sleepy. During their best moments, these guys are almost as solid as Bennie Moten's band, or maybe the Moten orchestra of 1927. "Mule Face Blues" and "Stingaree" are features for Henry "Red" Allen. "Boogie Woogie" is a high-potency stomp containing not one speck of the definitive eight-to-the-bar formula usually associated with the term. On "Stop Crying," Buster Bailey blows into his clarinet with unusual ferocity and Ward Pinkett launches into a frantic scat vocal. Speaking of singers, if you're going to listen back on music from around 1930, it is necessary to make concessions to notions of popular taste. Otherwise, you'll be operating with no historical context whatsoever. If you think George Bias was a silly vocalist, check out some of the singing on records from the same time period by Fats Waller & His Buddies or Duke Ellington. Not everybody is going to sound as hip as Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon or Baby Cox. When three members of the band formed a vocal trio and sang on some of the recordings made in 1931, the results were entertaining in ways that maybe we ought to allow ourselves to rediscover. It's a shame that King Oliver's recordings taper off at this point. Like most other bands on the scene at that time, this one could have picked up steam again as new players, composers and arrangers would have helped it adapt to changing times. By the end of the 1930s, Eddie Condon or the guys at the Library of Congress could have rekindled popular interest in Joe Oliver. Even if by then he'd given up blowing his horn he could have succeeded as nominal leader of a New Orleans-styled jazz band, or something more modern-sounding. But this is pure speculation. Papa Joe died in abject poverty in Savannah, Georgia on the 10th of April, 1938. With five volumes of his work available from Classics, there's a lot of King Oliver to explore, and it's all worth your while. arwulf arwulf
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EDDIE LANG – 1927-1932 | The Chronogical Classics – 1357 (2004) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This delightful set collects the earliest sides released by jazz guitarist Eddie Lang under his own name (or as Blind Willie Dunn, but more on that in a moment), which means it doesn't include any of his famous duets with fellow guitarist Lonnie Johnson, since all of those were officially released under Johnson's name. Lang does play with Johnson here on two tracks, though, under the name Blind Willie Dunn as part of the Gin Bottle Four (which also included pianist J.C. Johnson and horn man King Oliver), and his two striking duets with guitarist Carl Kress ("Pickin' My Way" and "Feeling My Way") are also here. One can't help but wonder where Lang might have gone on his instrument as the era of the electric guitar dawned, but his early death leaves nothing but "what if" conjecture on that subject. Lang was a much sought-after session player during his short life, and the sides released under his own name aren't necessarily his most influential, but it's nice to have them all in one set like this. Steve Leggett
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JAMES P. JOHNSON – 1928-1938 | The Classics Chronological Series – 671 (1992) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Welcome to a dizzying tour of one man's adventures in the recording studios of New York over the span of ten very eventful years. This segment of the James P. Johnson chronology begins with the "Daylight Savin' Blues," a magnificent instrumental recorded in October of 1928. The Gulf Coast Seven were essentially an Ellington quintet with Perry Bradford and James P. Johnson. The most stunning component here is the soprano saxophone of Johnny Hodges, who had come up under the direct influence of Sidney Bechet. Perry Bradford does his share of singing, sounding particularly mellifluous in duet with Gus Horsley on "Put Your Mind Right on It." The key phrase in that song is the immortal refrain: "let's misbehave." There is something about these 1929 ensembles that tickles the brain. Two sides recorded for Victor on November 18 bear a strange resemblance to recordings made under the heading of Fats Waller & His Buddies nearly two months earlier, on September 24. For vocalists, Waller used three reed players and the banjoist from his band to form a sort of barbershop quartet, billed as the Four Wanderers. Johnson's orchestra featured King Oliver, had Waller sitting in with James P. at the piano, and crackled with frantic vocals by an unidentified group calling themselves the Keep Shufflin' Trio. Both singing groups are fairly outrageous and corny to almost bizarre extremes. The word "Modernistic" had exciting connotations in 1929, as culture and technology raced headlong into the unknown. Both the solo piano rendition and the almost ridiculous vocal version convey some measure of that excitement. This collection contains no less than six outstanding piano solos, including the first recording ever made by anyone of Cole Porter's "What Is This Thing Called Love?." Recycling a discarded melody from the Clarence Williams publishing catalog, "How Could I Be Blue?" is a priceless vaudevillian piano duet with comical cuckold dialogue between JPJ and Clarence Williams himself. While this precious recording has recently found its way on to various James P. Johnson reissues, seldom has the flip side been heard. "I've Found a New Baby" focuses upon Clarence's indigestion. James appears to have a half-pint of liquor in his hip pocket but after administering the "cure" he informs Clarence that he's been given a shot of foot medicine! This disc includes three vocals by Fats Waller's lyricist Andy Razaf, and then concludes with five smoky sides from 1938 under the banner of Pee Wee Russell's Rhythmakers. Convening on behalf of the Hot Record Society, this magnificent ensemble had elements of Eddie Condon, Duke Ellington and Count Basie, which is to say Chicago, New York and Kansas City. You'd also need to include New Orleans in the schematic, as Wellman Braud and Zutty Singleton represented everything that was strongest and best about the Crescent City. "Horn of Plenty Blues" is a majestic slow drag with vocal by the drummer. "There'll Be Some Changes Made" received such an in-depth treatment that it was recorded in two parts, allowing extra solo space for the more expressive members. Pee Wee's group swings like the dickens, finishing off this amazing retrospective with crowing vigor and collective enthusiasm. arwulf arwulf
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CLARENCE WILLIAMS – 1927-1928 | The Classics Chronological Series – 752 (1994) FLAC (tracks), lossless

The fifth CD in Classics' "complete" Clarence Williams program (all are highly recommended to collectors of 1920s jazz) has 22 selections from 11 separate recording sessions, all of the pianist/bandleader's dates for a ten-month period. There are a pair of piano solos, two numbers in which Williams's vocals (including an eccentric "Farm Hand Papa") are backed by the great pianist James P. Johnson, and band performances featuring cornetists Ed Allen and King Oliver, clarinetists Buster Bailey and Arville Harris, trombonist Ed Cuffee, Coleman Hawkins and Benny Waters on tenors, Cyrus St. Clair on tuba, and the washboard of Floyd Casey. Highlights include "Jingles," "Church Street Sobbin' Blues," "Sweet Emmalina," and "Mountain City Blues." Scott Yanow
Tracklist
1    Clarence Williams' Orchestra–    Shake 'Em Up 2:51
Written-By – Clarence Williams
2    Clarence Williams' Orchestra–    Jingles 2:46
Written-By – James P. Johnson
3    Clarence Williams' Washboard Four–    Yama Yama Blues 2:48
Written-By – Williams, Williams
4    Clarence Williams' Washboard Four–    (Norfolk) Church Street Sobbin' Blues 3:00
Written-By – Nunez, Lada, Williams, Cawley
5    Clarence Williams' Jazz Kings–    Dreaming The Hours Away 2:53
Written-By – Will Dulmage
6    Clarence Williams' Jazz Kings–    Close Fit Blues 3:02
Written-By – Clarence Williams
7    Clarence Williams' Jazz Kings–    Sweet Emmalina 2:56
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Razaf, Palmer, Williams
8    Clarence Williams' Jazz Kings–    Any Time 3:16
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Williams, Jordan
9    Clarence Williams' Washboard Five–    Sweet Emmalina 2:50
Written-By – Razaf, Palmer, Williams
10    Clarence Williams' Washboard Five–    Log Cabin Blues 3:12
Written-By – Tom Delaney
11    Clarence Williams' Washboard Five–    Shake It Down 2:52
Written-By – Williams, Urquhart
12    Clarence Williams' Washboard Five–    Red River Blues 3:00
Written-By – Williams
13    Clarence Williams' Jazz Kings–    Red River Blues 2:54
Written-By – Clarence Williams
14    Clarence Williams' Jazz Kings–    I Need You 2:51
Written-By – Williams, Jackson
15    Clarence Williams' Orchestra–    Lazy Mama 3:03
Written-By – Gifford, Gray
16    Clarence Williams' Orchestra–    Mountain City Blues 3:04
Written-By – Cjarlie Troutt
17    Clarence Williams–    Organ Grinder Blues 3:20
Written-By – Clarence Williams
18    Clarence Williams–    Wildflower Rag 3:03
Written-By – Clarence Williams
19    Clarence Williams–    My Woman Done Me Wrong (As Far As I Am Concerned) 3:16
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Clarence Williams
20    Clarence Williams–    Farm Hand Papa 3:03
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Clarence Williams
21    Clarence Williams' Jazz Kings–    The Keyboard Express 2:49
Written-By – Mike Jacksonbenny
22    Clarence Williams' Jazz Kings–    Walk That Broad 3:03
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Delaney, Frisimo
Credits :    
Banjo – Leroy Harris (tracks: 5 to 8)
Brass Bass – Cyrus St. Clair (tracks: 1, 2, 5 to 10, 13 to 16, 21, 22)
Clarinet – Arville Harris (tracks: 11, 12)
Clarinet, Alto Saxophone – Buster Bailey (tracks: 1 to 10)
Clarinet, Alto Saxophone [Or] – Arville Harris (tracks: 13, 14), Benny Waters (tracks: 13, 14)
Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone [Or] – Alberto Socarras (tracks: 15, 16, 21, 22), Benny Waters (tracks: 15, 16, 21, 22)
Cornet – Ed Allen (tracks: 1 to 16, 21, 22), King Oliver (tracks: 11 to 16, 21, 22)
Piano – Clarence Williams (tracks: 1 to 18, 21, 22), James P. Johnosn (tracks: 19, 20)
Tenor Saxophone – Coleman Hawkins (tracks: 1, 2, 5, 6)
Trombone – Ed Cuffee (tracks: 1, 2, 5 to 8, 13 to 16, 21, 22)
Washboard – Floyd Casey (tracks: 3, 4, 9 to 12, 15, 16)

CLARENCE WILLIAMS – 1928-1929 | The Classics Chronological Series – 771 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The sixth volume in the very valuable Classics Clarence Williams reissue program contains 22 numbers in its attractive CD, mostly from a four-month period. There is a lot of variety on these sessions with many of the best tracks featuring both King Oliver and Ed Allen on cornets along with tenorman Benny Waters. There are also numbers by Clarence Williams's Washboard Five, his Novelty Four (a quartet with Oliver and guitarist Eddie Lang) and a larger orchestra. Throughout all of the selections there are spirited ensembles, heated but coherent solos and plenty of joy and swing. The highpoints include "Organ Grinder Blues," "Have You Ever Felt That Way," "Wildflower Rag," "Bozo," "Bimbo" and "Beau-Koo Jack" (which is closely based on the Louis Armstrong recording). Scott Yanow
Tracklist
1    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Long, Deep And Wide 2:51
Written-By – Fats Waller
2    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Speakeasy 2:50
Written-By – Williams, Oliver
3    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Squeeze Me 2:50
Written-By – Williams, Waller
4    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    New Down Home Blues 3:02
Written-By – Delaney
5    Clarence Williams' Orchestra–    Organ Grinder Blues 3:02
Written-By – Clarence Williams
6    Clarence Williams' Orchestra–    I’m Busy And You Can’t Come In 2:46
Written-By – Williams
7    Clarence Williams' Washboard Five–    Walk That Broad 3:02
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Delaney, Frisino
8    Clarence Williams' Washboard Five–    Have You Ever Felt That Way? 3:03
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Castleton, Williams-Spencer
9    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Wildflower Rag 2:30
Written-By – Clarence Williams
10    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Midnight Stomp 2:59
Written-By – Williams, Waller
11    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    I’m Through 2:50
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Simmons, Bechet
12    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Bozo 2:38
Written-By – Edward Hite
13    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Bimbo 2:31
Written-By – Palmer, Williams
14    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Longshoreman’s Blues 2:44
Written-By – Unknown Artist
15    Clarence Williams And His Novelty Four–    In The Bottle Blues
Written-By – Williams, Lang
16    Clarence Williams And His Novelty Four–    What Do You Want Me To Do? 2:46
Vocals – Clarence Williams
Written-By – Williams, Oliver
17    Clarence Williams' Orchestra–    Watchin’ The Clock 3:04
Written-By – Williams, Oliver
18    Clarence Williams' Orchestra–    Freeze Out 2:54
Written-By – Fats Waller
19    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Beau-Koo-Jack 2:36
Written-By – Hill, Armstrong, Melrose
20    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Sister Kate 2:54
Written-By – Armand Piron
21    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Pane In The Glass 2:42
Written-By – Clarence Williams
22    Clarence Williams And His Orchestra–    Saturday Night Jag 3:01
Vocals – Laura Bryant
Written-By – Unknown Artist
Credits :    
Banjo – Leroy Harris (tracks: 1 to 6, 9 to 11, 19 to 21)
Banjo [?] – Charlie Dixon (tracks: 17, 18)
Brass Bass – Cyrus St. Clair (tracks: 1 to 6, 9 to 14, 19 to 21)
Brass Bass [?] – June Cole (tracks: 17, 18)
Celesta – Clarence Williams (tracks: 15, 16)
Clarinet – Buster Bailey (tracks: 12 to 14), Ernest Elliott (tracks: 22)
Clarinet, Alto Saxophone – Alberto Socarras (tracks: 5, 6), Unknown Artist (tracks: 17, 18)
Clarinet, Alto Saxophone [?] – Ben Whitted (tracks: 17, 18), Russell Procope (tracks: 5, 6)
Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone – Benny Waters (tracks: 1 to 4, 9 to 14, 19 to 21)
Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone, Alto Saxophone – Arville Harris (tracks: 1 to 14, 17 to 21)
Cornet – Ed Allen (tracks: 1 to 14, 19 to 22), King Oliver (tracks: 1 to 4, 9 to 16, 19 to 21)
Cornet [?] – Ed Anderson (tracks: 5, 6, 17, 18)
Drums – Floyd Casey (tracks: 6)
Drums [?] – Kaiser Marshall (tracks: 17, 18)
Guitar, Violin – Eddie Lang (tracks: 15, 16)
Liner Notes – Anatol Schenker
Percussion [?] – Justin Ring (tracks: 15, 16)
Piano – Clarence Williams, Claude Hopkins (tracks: 7, 8)
Trombone – Ed Cuffee (tracks: 1 to 6, 9 to 14, 17 to 21)
Washboard – Floyd Casey (tracks: 7, 8)

LOUIS ARMSTRONG AND KING OLIVER'S CREOLE JAZZ BAND - Louis Armstrong & King Oliver (1992) APE (image+.cue), lossless

Louis Armstrong's tenure as second cornetist to the great King Oliver is one of jazz history's legendary apprenticeships, on par with the one Miles Davis served with Charlie Parker or Stephane Grappelli's with Django Reinhardt. Sadly, only a handful of recordings survive from this formative period in Armstrong's career. This LP features 18 of King Oliver's 1923 recordings with Armstrong, as well as a bonus appendix consisting of seven tracks recorded in 1924 by the Red Onion Jazz Babies under Armstrong's sole leadership (and featuring, on one number, a very young Alberta Hunter). The performances are as red-hot as you'd expect, and include two King Oliver and Jelly Roll Morton duets. by Rick Anderson
Tracklist:
1 Just Gone 2:41
Bill Johnson / King Oliver
2 Canal Street Blues 2:28
Louis Armstrong / King Oliver
3 Mandy Lee Blues 2:09
Marty Bloom / Walter Melrose
4 I'm Going Away to Wear You off My Mind 2:49
W. Smith
5 Chimes Blues 2:52
King Oliver
6 Weather Bird Rag 2:41
Louis Armstrong
7 Dippermouth Blues 2:25
King Oliver
8 Froggie Moore 2:59
Jelly Roll Morton
9 Snake Rag 2:57
King Oliver / Armand Piron
10 Alligator Hop 2:22
King Oliver / Armand Piron
11 Zulu's Ball 2:28
King Oliver / Alvin Robertson / Robinson
12 Working Man Blues 2:09
Lil Hardin / King Oliver
13 Krooked Blues 2:43
Bill Johnson / Dink Johnson / Benjamin Franklin Spikes / John Spikes
14 Mabel's Dream 2:47
Ike Smith
15 Mabel's Dream 2:43
Ike Smith
16 Southern Stomp 2:42
Richard M. Jones
17 Southern Stomp 2:42
Richard M. Jones
18 Riverside Blues 2:56
Tommy Dorsey / Richard M. Jones
19 Texas Moaner Blues 3:03
Fay Barnes / Clarence Williams
20 Of All the Wrongs You've Done to Me 2:49
Edgar Dowell / Lawrence Payton / Chris Smith
21 Terrible Blues 2:49
Clarence Williams
22 Santa Claus Blues 2:45
Gus Kahn / Charley Straight
23 Nobody Knows the Way I Feel This Morning 2:50
Pearl Delaney / Tom Delaney
24 Early in the Morning 2:54
William Higgins / W. Benton Overstreet
25 Cake Walking Babies from Home 3:08
Chris Smith / Henry Troy / Clarence Williams
Credits:

Banjo – Bill Johnson (tracks: 1 to 9), Buddy Christian (tracks: 19 to 22), Johnny St. Cyr (tracks: 10 to 13)

Bass Saxophone – Charlie Johnson (tracks: 14 to 18)
Clarinet – Johnny Dodds (tracks: 1 to 18)
Clarinet, Soprano Saxophone – Buster Bailey (tracks: 19 to 22)
Cornet – King Oliver, Louis Armstrong
Drums – Baby Dodds (tracks: 1 to 18)
Piano – Lil Hardin Armstrong
Producer [Reissue] – Orrin Keepnews
Saxophone – Stump Evans (tracks: 10 to 13)
Soprano Saxophone – Sidney Bechet (tracks: 23 to 25)
Trombone – Aaron Thompson (tracks: 19 to 22), Charlie Irvis (tracks: 23 to 25), Honore Dutrey (tracks: 1 to 18)
Vocals – Clarence Todd (tracks: 25), Josephine Beatty (tracks: 19 to 25)