I went down to st james infirmary, investigations in the shadowy world of early jazzblues in the company of blind willie mctell, louis armstrong, don redman, irving mills, carl moore, and a host of others, and where did this dang song come from anyway. James infirmary in more or less its current form is thought to have been recorded back in 1928 by louis armstrong and his savoy ballroom five. In one of my favorites st james infirmary blues, the story is surprising, at once beautiful and, well, a little bit ugly. While still a young man in new orleans, he had dressed in his best clothes to play in the funeral of a member of his club, the tammany social aid and pleasure club. James infirmary from louis armstrongs father of jazz trombone for free, and see the artwork, lyrics and similar artists. Louis armstrong, who was the first to record the song on december 12, 1928. James infirmary blues solo 1, lesson by robert renman. James infirmary records hit the market in 1929 and 1930, many of which can be listened to at the red hot jazz archive or traced through the aforementioned websites. It was down in old joes barroom, on the corner by the square, the usual crowd was assembled and big joe mckinney was. Louis armstrong was a prolific writer but he mentioned st james infirmary only once, and that was in relation to the stetson hat. Entrepreneurship recruitment business books business travel. Skip to main content this banner text can have markup. Digitized from a shellac record, at 78 revolutions per minute.
James infirmary by louis armstrong on amazon music. Louis armstrong made the song famous in his influential 1928 recording and another notable recording was by van morrison on the 2003 grammynominated album, whats wrong with this picture. Loose cattle offers a countrytinged interpretation. James infirmary, relying on some information passed along by paul goddard of bristol, england. Sounds like it will be well worth keeping an eye open for. James infirmary blues did nothing to slow the songs progress. It exists in many different versions, but was made popular in a recording by louis armstrong in 1928. James infirmary saw my baby there she was stretched out on a long white table so cold, so sweet, so fair let her go, let her go.
One of their latest recordings is a countrytinged cover of the american classic st. St james infirmary by louis armstrong on amazon music. James infirmary blues has a long history, and there. James infirmary charted several times over the years, but early versions were banned by network radio.
Louis armstrong 1928, eddy mitchell 1965, joe dassin 1967, patrick verbeke 1990, spoonful mathis haug. D minor sounding pitch view more d minor music for. I posted that the song was used in a certain movie, she removed it as being not notable. Armstrongs success with the song not only spurred the recordings mentioned above often on budget labels who could sell a record for as little as 15 cents rather than the extravagent dollar that armstrongs okeh release might cost but also a high profile lawsuit over who.
Louis armstrong and earl hines 1928 the smithsonian. Trumpet jazz trumpet jazz trumpet free sheet music st. Watch the music video and discover trivia about this classic pop song now. Trombone jazz trombone jazz trombone improvisation pieces st. James infirmary the elusive history of a timeless song cbc. This famous blues melody has its origins in the 18th century english folk ballad the unfortunate rake. Our take on one of the most famous disney tunes from his 1967 film the jungle book, the song is written by robert and richard sherman. James infirmary and now from blind willie mctell dying crapshooters blues as a quiz questioncould there be any connection with henry viii. Louis armstrong made it famous in his influential 1928 recording. Louis armstrong august 4, 1901 july 6, 1971, nicknamed satchmo or pops, was an american jazz trumpeter and singer from new orleans, louisiana. The real vocal book volume i low voice edition melody line, lyrics and chords fake book. Though loose cattle is mostly a country styled band, as new orleans residents kim full time and me every chance i get weve been immersed in new orleans. James infirmary and tragically found his girl the socalled baby dead.
It is in a minor key, and has a 44 time signature, but has also. The rake was a sailor who used his money on prostitutes and died of venereal disease. The wonderful world of louis armstrong ricky riccardis blog about louis armstrong, with rich detail about st. Louis armstrong made the song famous in his 1928 recording on which don redman was credited as composer. The lyrics tell the tale of a man explaining to the singernarrator, at a bar, how he went down to st. Louis armstrong, by then a rising star in jazz, made a recording in 1928 that brought the tune to greater prominence. Riccardis upcoming 2010 book about armstrong s later years. Among the treats to be found here is a radio broadcast in which you can listen to louis talk about don redman, jack teagarden, and st. Louis armstrongs version begins with a chorus of brass, then a piano vamp that leads into the sung narrative. The melody is 8 bars long, unlike songs in the classic. In 1929, the year okeh released louis armstrong s st. Louis armstrong august 4, 1901 july 6, 1971 nicknamed satchmo or pops, was an american jazz trumpeter and singer from new orleans, louisiana. Update this biography complete biography of louis armstrong.
James infirmary blues is an american folksong of anonymous origin, though sometimes credited to the songwriter joe primrose a pseudonym for irving mills. James infirmary blues is an american blues song of uncertain origin. Complete your louis armstrong and earl hines collection. Dance was a major pastime, and dancehalls dotted the landscape. Check out st james infirmary by louis armstrong on amazon music. Coming to prominence in the 1920s as an inventive trumpet and cornet player, armstrong was a foundational influence in jazz, shifting the focus of the music from collective improvisation to solo. Louis armstrong made the song famous in his 1928 recording on which don redman. Stream adfree with amazon music unlimited on mobile, desktop, and tablet. There is the fess williams recording of gamblers blues the previous year, of course. Jun 19, 2015 there were lots of recordings of st james infirmary around in the 1930s, but auden would have best known the one that louis armstrong and his savoy ballroom five had recorded in december 1928.
James infirmary lesson the melody video dailymotion. The narrator goes down to his neighborhood bar and speaks to a man who has recently witnessed his babys death, and thus has begun to think a little bit about his own death. James infirmary blues, is actually an 18th century english folk song the unfortunate rake. James infirmary the victor company alone sold 35 million records in the u. Artists such as louis armstrong, cab calloway, chris thomas king, and many others have recorded it. Mark berresford rare records historic american sheet music a digital collection of 19th and early 20th century sheet music, from the duke university rare book, manuscript and special collections library. Louis armstrong 19011971, nicknamed satchmo or pops, was an american trumpeter, composer, singer and occasional actor who was one of the most influential figures in jazz and in all of american popular music. Alexanders ragtime band lead sheet avalon lead sheet basin street blues lead sheet bill bailey, wont you please come home. It is an invitation for further discussion about the song, the times, the players, and the business of music as they relate to st. James infirmary, a tune that was popularized by louis armstrongs jazz rendition in 1928. James infirmary blues is an american jazz song of uncertain origin. The premier site for the history and analysis of the standards jazz musicians play the most. Our version of the classic traditional blues made famous in louis armstrong s influential 1928 recording. James infirmary live by louis armstrong on amazon music.
However, this is just one variant of an old song whose history traverses continents and cultures. Well, the armstrong record must have sold quite well because a score of st. By june of 1928 louis armstrong had refined himself and his ensemble to the point where nearly every record they made was a study in collective genius, as the mature edition of the hot five resounded with zutty singletons popping cymbals and earl hines modernistic piano. Visualizza altre idee su louis armstrong, musica e janis joplin. Apr 22, 2010 in a post back in march, i mused about the location of the original st. Jazz and blues fans alike will be familiar with the title st. James infirmary many times, and i thought given how generous his earlier help to me was that i would pass along news of the new dr jazz web site. The melody is 8 bars long, unlike songs in the classic blues genre, where there are 12 bars. James infirmary the elusive history of a timeless song. Miss gee he imagined to the tune of st james infirmary. Snooks eaglin new orleans street singer folkways, 1959. Louis armstrong and his orchestra 19281929 1991, cd. D minor sounding pitch view more d minor music for keyboard time signature. His career spanned five decades, from the 1920s to the 1960s, and different eras in jazz.
James infirmary by louis armstrong on amazon music unlimited. There were lots of recordings of st james infirmary around in the 1930s, but auden would have best known the one that louis armstrong and his savoy ballroom five had recorded in december 1928. James infirmary blues hd jools annual hootenanny 201516. James infirmary because they both remained in the armstrong repertoire. Louis armstrong and his orchestra 19281929 allmusic. Louis armstrong st james infirmary lyrics lyricsfreak. James infirmary is undoubtedly a very old song, very few traces can be found that predate louis armstrongs 1928 recording. Keyboard jazz keyboard jazz keyboard free sheet music st.
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