Dear Old Southland: 1923-1949
Sidney Bechet
Charlie Shavers, Muggsy Spanier, Sidney De Paris, Rex Stewart, Meade Lux Lewis, Earl Hines, Wild Bill Davison, Willie "The Lion" Smith
Producer: Scott Yanow
Jazz Legends, 2005
1 CD
Catalogue #: 1025
EAN: 0723721077150
UPC: 723721077150
You save: 20%
Personnel include: Sidney Bechet (clarinet, soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone, piano, double bass, drums); Teddy Bunn (guitar); Henry "Red" Allen, Sidney De Paris, Tommy Ladnier, Charlie Shavers (trumpet); Muggsy Spanier, Rex Stewart, Wild Bill Davison (cornet); J.C. Higginbotham, Vic Dickenson (trombone); Clarence Williams, Meade Lux Lewis, Art Hodes, Willie "The Lion" Smith, Earl Hines (piano).
Liner Note Author: Scott Yanow.
Recording information: 1923 - 1949.
Tracklist
Sidney Bechet
Clarinet/soprano sax innovator Sidney Bechet stands alongside fellow New Orleans native Louis Armstrong as one of the most formative influences in jazz. Bechet's distinctive, vibrato-laden sound made him one of the first unique jazz sax stylists, and made him a valuable addition to the music of Duke Ellington, Noble Sissle, Armstrong, and others. In the 1920s, Bechet lived in Paris, but as a result of a gun fight, he spent a year in jail, and was subsequently deported. In 1952 he made a triumphant return to France, his music selling in record numbers. Until his death in Paris in 1959, Bechet enjoyed a reign as the jazz king of Europe, where he spent much of his time and was justly hailed as one of the genre's giants.
Willie "The Lion" Smith
Performing from the 1910s through the 1960s, Willie "The Lion" Smith was one of the great Harlem stride pianists, a contemporary of James P. Johnson and Fats Waller, and a man who understood the importance of style. An irrepressible raconteur, he delivered his pianistic and personal charms in worldwide performance until well into his late 60s.
