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"Divaville Lounge" with Sarah O (archive)

step into the lounge!

Sunday, February 6, 2022 | 14:00 to 16:00 | jazz/pop vocalists

http://www.divavillelounge.org

Artist	Song	Album	Label	Comments
Fletcher Henderson solo piano	Unknown Blues	Black Swan 2026-B	Black Swan	Today's show is a Black History Month tribute to Fletcher Henderson! Reference for this show: The Uncrowned King of Swing by Jeffrey Magee. This was one of this earliest recordings and one of only 4 solo recordings he ever made

Ethel Waters w/ Cordy Williams Jazz Masters	Down Home Blues	Down Home Blues Original Recordings 1920-1921		as musical director of Black Swan, Henderson not only selected the music but performed on many of not most of the recordings. He recorded many times from 1921-23 as accompanist to female blues singers
Alberta Hunter & Henderson's Dance Orchestra	Aggravating Papa (Don't You Try to Two-Time Me)	Aggravatin' Papa (Recordings of 1922-1923)		rec 1923. Next to Ethel Waters, Hunter was one of the biggest stars on Black Swan. The intent of the label was to promote Black culture, mainly classical and Black opera stars. But they found that blues recordings sold much better
The Seven Brown Babies	Dicty Blues	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1923. This was recorded post-Black Swan & was an important early Henderson composition. It features Coleman Hawkins' first solo, he was only 19 years old!
Henderson's Club Alabam Orchestra	Somebody Stole My Gal	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1924. Club Alabam was a prestigious Manhattan nightclub. Henderson's band in this era was elegant and sophisticated; he was known to inspect all band members' haircut, shoe, and tuxedoes before every gig. He was praised for challenging white stereotypes of Black music as "primitive," though later (mostly white) critics looked down on Henderson for not fitting the expected mold of early jazz.
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	My Papa Doesn't Two-Time No Time	Anthology of Scat Singing Volume 1 - 1924-1929		rec 1924. The Note scat performance by Don Redman. This was 2 years before Louis Armstrong recorded Heebie Jeebies. Armstrong is widely credited with creating scat singing by accident when he dropped his sheet music while recording 'Heebie Jeebies.' I saw an interview with Armstrong where he tells the story while he does not say he created scat singing, he carefully tells the story without denying the legend. I believe that he did drop the sheet music and scat spontaneously, but that was not the first instance of scat singing, and this recording is evidence

Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Charley, My Boy	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1924: the addition of Don Redman as arranger transformed the Henderson orchestra. Their partnership had a huge impact on the jazz dance orchestra, particularly having a separate reed section. This innovation leads directly to the big band orchestra ~15 years later
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	I'll See You In My Dreams	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1924: compare this more "mainstream" (i.e. to appeal to white audiences) dance song to the much more jazz performance in "Charley, my Boy" and even moreso the songs to follow that he did with Louis Armstrong
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Everybody Loves My Baby	"Satchmo" Ambassador of Jazz	Verve	rec 1924. Armstrong was only in the Henderson orchestra for less than a year, but his influence looms large. The band went in a much more jazz direction, & more focus on star soloists, but still with Henderson & Redman's distinctive approach to the arrangements
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Copenhagen	"Satchmo" Ambassador of Jazz	Verve	rec 1924 this recording is considered maybe the most important from this period in Henderson's career
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Sugar Foot Stomp	"Satchmo" Ambassador of Jazz	Verve	rec 1924 there's a story about Armstrong's first rehearsal with the Henderson band: Henderson required all his musicians to read sheet music, and they got to a passage that shifted from fortissimo to pianissimo, marked "pp" in the sheet music. All the musicians softened down except Armstrong, who kept going at full volume. Henderson stopped and told him sharply that in his band, they read the marks as well as the notes. He asked if Armstrong could read the marks, which he said yes. Henderson asked "what about that 'pp'" and Armstrong shot back "That means 'pound plenty'!"

Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	T.N.T.	Fletcher Henderson and Louis Armstrong 1924-1925	Timeless Holland	rec 1925 this is from Armstrong's final recording session with Henderson
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Henderson Stomp	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1926 this track illustrations the shift in Henderson's style after Armstrong's influence
Dixie Stompers	The Stampede	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1927 this s after Don Redman left the band & Henderson took over arranging. Note solos by Rex Stewart and Coleman Hawkins
Dixie Stompers	Fidgety Feet	Fletcher Henderson 1927-1928	Timeless Holland	rec 1927 this is an old song, written by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. The arrangement is a blend of New Orleans and NY jazz styles
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Whiteman Stomp	Fats Waller Complete Recorded Works Vol. 1	JSP	rec 1927 there is a famous story that one night Fats Waller offered to write songs on spot and sell them to Fletcher Henderson in exchange for hamburgers, which he would eat on the spot, one hamburger per song. The songs include The Stampede, Whiteman Stomp and St. Louis Shuffle

Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	St. Louis Shuffle	Fletcher Henderson 1927-1928	Timeless Holland	rec 1927 this is heading into perhaps the high point of the Henderson orchestra, but his diffidence and poor business decisions made it difficult to take advantage of the opportunities that were in front of him
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Hop Off	Fletcher Henderson 1927-1928	Timeless Holland	rec 1927 for example, at this period in history the music industry was being taken over by music agents. Top bands needed an agent to continue to thrive, for example Duke Ellington had Irving Mills. But Henderson lacked the energy and/or drive to seek out an agent
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	King Porter Stomp	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1928 this, Henderson's first recording of King Porter Stomp, is an important transition between jazz and swing. Compare this to the 1932 recording we'll hear later in the show. This is a "head arrangement," meaning the band worked it out together during repeat performances based on thinly sketched notes, and the arrangement was written later based on what they had performed
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Chinatown, My Chinatown	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1930 this barn-burner is hard to imagine Henderson doing without Armstrong's influence a few years before
Connie's Inn Orchestra	Radio Rhythm	Tidal Wave	Decca	rec 1931 another tour de force from Henderson. Connie's Inn was a prestigious Manhattan club, maybe second to the Cotton Club

Connie's Inn Orchestra	Business in F	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1931 rec 1931 another example of Henderson's fluid arrangement style
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Honeysuckle Rose	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1932 this was also written by Fats Waller, although not for Henderson, he wasn't in the band at this point
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	New King Porter Stomp	Big Band Jazz Vol 1		rec 1932 compared to the 1928 "head arrangement," this is much more planed & constructed. and compare again to Benny Goodman's recording just 4 years later, which is much more polished & tightly controlled. "King Porter Stomp" is a Jelly Roll Morton composition that was rarely recorded before Henderson made it a swing standard
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Big John's Special	Fletcher Henderson: Anthology		rec 1934 this was written by Henderson's brother Horace
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Down South Camp Meeting	Big Band Jazz Vol 1		rec 1934 within a year Henderson would have dissolved his band and would be working for Benny Goodman, selling him arrangements including most of the songs in this set
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Wrappin' It Up (The Lindy Glide)	Tidal Wave	Decca	rec 1934

Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Stealin' Apples	Chu Berry The Columbia and Victor Sessions Vol. 1	Mosaic	rec 1936 in this period Fletcher Henderson is working for Goodman and also, after a break of about a year, recording songs with his own band.this song with the same arrangement was a hit for Goodman
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Christopher Columbus	Chu Berry The Columbia and Victor Sessions Vol. 1	Mosaic	rec 1936 this was Henderson's final hit single
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)	Chu Berry The Columbia and Victor Sessions Vol. 1	Mosaic	rec 1936 note how different this sounds from the Benny Goodman version, in this case Goodman did not use Henderson's arrangement
Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra	Grand Terrace Swing	Chu Berry The Columbia and Victor Sessions Vol. 1	Mosaic	rec 1936 this was a reworking of Henderson's earlier piece "D Natural Blues"
Benny Goodman Orchestra feat. Fletcher Henderson	Blue Skies	Camel Caravan 13 Sept 1938	otr-cat.com	rec 1938 for radio. remarkable opportunity to hear Henderson describe the parts of his arrangement for a popular song. The way Henderson separates out each section of the band, that was how Goodman had them rehearse initially. He would only let the entire band rehearse together when he was satisfied with each section. Note Goodman calling Henderson "Smack," that was his nickname since his college years, due to his habit of making a smacking sound with his mouth
Fetcher Henderson Sextet	Soft Winds	Live from Cafe Society Downtown, New York, 1950		rec 1950 this was Henderson's last performance, he died of a stroke a few months later