Teddy Powell, "Sans Culottes" 1942

Hey folks, sorry I haven't posted in a while.  I'll try to be more diligent.
Today's entry is "Sans Culottes" written by Bob Mersey for Teddy Powell's orchestra.  It is one of many pop songs to incorporate the famous faux-Arabic riff  The Streets of Cairo or "The Snake Charmer Song" into its chart.  Gramaphone gave the recording a positive-to-mixed review in its February 1942 edition, saying:

Sans Culottes (meaning " Without Trousers ") has its points. Composition is a bright concoction, and although the preponderance of higher frequencies ill the recording have not made the band sound any better, it plays with plenty of verve. The brass and sax teams play good style ; the rhythm department kicks invigoratingly ; and there are lively moments by the trumpet and sax soloists and the drummer.

Of course, I'm a sucker for a hard-swinging, minor key riff with big ensembles.  That's pretty much what this blog is about, after all.

WITHOUT TROUSERS

Alvino Rey, "Sleepytown Train" 1942

Got a real fun treat for today.  Alvino Rey was a guitarist and bandleader with an innovative bent.  Thirty years before Peter Frampton was blowing our minds talking through his guitar, Rey devised a way to modulate the sound of his pedal steel with vocals.  A few of his recordings from this period demonstrate the new technique, but none more wildly than this live recording from 1942.  Enjoy!

ALL ABOARD

Joe Marsala, "Topsy" 1942

Adele Girard may have been the first real "swing harpist."  There had been a couple of other instances of harp showing up on jazz records, but Girard appears to be the first harpist to be a regular featured soloist in a swing band.  Here's a good example of her sound recorded live in 1942 with Joe Marsala's band.

SWING THAT HARP