[ARSCLIST] Ska, Jump Blues, R&B WAS: Re: [ARSCLIST] A Holiday vision

[Matthew Barton <mbarton@xxxxxxx>]

It wasn't just the New Orleans sound that inspired early Ska. Rosco Gordon of Memphis was a major individual influence on the Jamaican musicians who created Ska. Many of his Sun sides have a walking-tempo that emphasizes the upbeat, and sound a LOT like early Ska. Before he died, Rosco did some shows with members of the Skatalites.

When I worked in an oldies store in Manhattan in the 90s, we had several Jamaican regulars of that generation who came in looking for his records and many others. Many of the sides they wanted were fairly (or very) obscure, but they all had that proto-ska beat. Even when they were looking for a well-known artists, such as Louis Jordan or Wynonie Harris, it would be for a lesser known song, but one that had certain musical features. There was a two volume vinyl compilation we carried called "Rhythm and Blues" that had many of their favorite sides, but the list was long.  I remember an Arbee Stidham side with a horn chart that just screamed Ska. These records had been popular in Jamaica back in the day, some had even been bootlegged there. One gent, who had done some deejaying there, said that many of the DJs who worked the public dances would paper over the labels of records they had acquired from the States so that other jocks couldn't learn the names and get the same records!



Matthew Barton
MBRS
The Library of Congress
101 Independence Ave., SE
Washington, DC 20540-4696
202-707-5508
email: mbarton@xxxxxxx
>>> Roger and Allison Kulp <thorenstd124@xxxxxxxxx> 12/29/07 12:13 AM >>>
It is a well documented fact,ska was derived from New Orleans R&B.Some remarkable musicians,and beautiful voices came out of this period in Jamaica. Alton Ellis,Earnest Ranglin,and  Roland Alfonso,to name but three.

I agree whole-heartedly with your assessment.While anybody can learn to play a fiddle good enough fill a chair in a symphony orchestra,if they work hard enough,it takes a special gift to play like a Heifetz,or even a Grappelly,that cannot be taught.

Likewise there are people who spend years studying composition,that could never produce a genuine masterpiece like "Forever Changes",that people will still be listening to,and dissecting,hundreds of  years from now.

I am pleased there are more people here who appreciate this "modern noise". (He says with Untamed Youth  spinning on the turntable in the background.),why isn't there more discussion of it here ?


                        Roger

phillip holmes <insuranceman@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote: Yeah, according to some here, this would mean Elvis Costello can't 
play.  Perhaps he isn't Segovia, but neither was Buddy Holly.  Playing 
poorly?  The same thing can be said of all popular music.  Only a 
handful of musicians are extraordinarily talented.  Most classically 
trained musicians aren't virtuosos.  They play in an orchestra, or teach 
music, etc... 

A lot of punk sounds like early rock, but played much louder and 
faster.  Take "Maybelline" or "Hot Rod Lincoln", play it double time, 
scream the lyrics, and give people "the bird".  Ska, which I also enjoy, 
is similar (play at a walking tempo, add a couple horns, make the upbeat 
really pronounced, and you have instant ska).

Yes, I think it was a response to economic struggles and musical excess, 
like Disco, Prog, etc..., not to Thatcher.  The Sex Pistols' "God Save 
the Queen" was aimed at the establishment, but that was 1977.  There was 
the Clash's "I'm So Bored of the USA", which had nothing to do with the 
British government (released in '77).  That entire album is 
entertaining.  Weren't there shirts that said "Pink Floyd Sucks"?  Wish 
I had one.  I'd rather hear The Clash, bad playing and all.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I'm_So_Bored_with_the_USA

I'm waiting for a remake of "I'm So Bored with the USA" by a Conjunto 
band.  "I'm So Bored of You, Ese".

Phillip

Matthew Barton wrote:
> Whatever else it was or is, Punk Rock was not a response to the Thatcher government in England, which didn't take power until mid-1979. Some, even at the time, would say that Punk was already dead by then. The social situation in mid 70s England was certainly important,  but Punk was also a response to the musical trends there, which many were tired of. The American scene, which predated the British one and influenced it musically, wasn't much concerned with who held power in England.
>
> The notion that Punk Rock was simply about playing bad music poorly was promoted heavily at the time in the media, and some bands happily took the bait--one might even say that Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren and some others baited the hook themselves--but that doesn't make it so. The name of "Punk" was applied indiscriminately to countless bands and local scenes that didn't fit into the mainstream for one reason or another. Musically, bands with such disparate styles as the Sex Pistols, Pere Ubu, The Real Kids and Television have little in common, but if you were looking for something different than was readily available on the radio or in your local record store back then, as I was, it was exciting stuff, "punk" label or no. Some of it still is.
>
> Matthew Barton
> MBRS
> The Library of Congress
> 101 Independence Ave., SE
> Washington, DC 20540-4696
> 202-707-5508
> email: mbarton@xxxxxxx
>   
>>>> "Steven C. Barr(x)"  12/27/07 12:34 AM >>>
>>>>         
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Roger and Allison Kulp" 
>   
>>   Once and for all will somebody please explain to me the outright
>>     
> vindictiveness so many on this list have with music recorded after 1950,or so ?
>   
> Quite simple...insofar as I have heard it (and I'll change the definition
> to post-*1990*, not post-1950...?!) it sounds like...well...faeces...!
>
> Keep in mind that the (supposed, anyway) point of "Punk Rock" was
> originally a message thrown at Margaret Thatcher...who had slashed
> welfare and unemployment benefits, at the request of her corporate
> masters...! The punk-rock reply was, "If we have to support ourselves
> with no help, we'll try playing music, even though we're really
> bad at it...!"
>
> Okeh...that said, 1950-1955 represents a nadir of popular music
> in North America...an era which gave us such unforgettable tunes
> as "Doggie In the Window"..."Oh, Mein Papa"..."That's Amore"...
> "Tennessee Waltz"...et al...?!
>
> And...can ANYBODY out there in Radio-Land name a memorable
> popular song and/or recording of the 1992-2007 period...AND...
> hum the tune back to me in identifiable form...?!
> (reciting rap "lyrics" does NOT count...?!)
>
> Steven C. Brr
>
>   


       
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