Dave Alvin - Perdido Street Blues

A few years ago a photographer friend of mine named Regis Lefebure turned me on to this wonderfully different song. And this week, it's our SoTW. The song is called Perdido Street Blues, a song first performed by Louis Armstrong back in 1926. In fact, the song is credited to Satchmo's then wife, Lil' Hardin Armstrong. But the version we are looking at today is by Dave Alvin.

Hipsters (and perhaps even you) may know Dave Alvin from his stint with his brother Phil Alvin in the rockabilly/Americana group, The Blasters who roamed this earth starting back in the early 80's. Or maybe you know him from his association with members of the punk band, X, in a loose affiliation band they called The Knitters. Or maybe you know him from that afternoon paper route you had in Downey, California back in the early 70's when he and his brother would throw water balloons at you as you rode by on your Schwinn Stingray. (Probably not. Now that I think about it, that would be real unlikely.) Or maybe you just know him. Whatever. Let's get to the song.

Dave Alvin's version of Perdido Street Blues really caught my attention for a number of reasons. First, it has a killer little stutter stop riff played on a National steel bodied guitar. Second, it has a peculiar sort of Russian flavored martial back beat. Third, it switches between major and minor chords more often than a frat boy downs a cheap beer. Last, the musicianship is knock your socks off. Well, heck, let's hear about from the artist himself:

I was 14 when I first heard his version and, besides being blown away by Dodds' clarinet virtuosity, what captivated me was the minor/major key modulations that make up the song structure. With its low down almost spooky groove and melody, "Perdido Street Blues" is definitely some old time, back-in-the-alley viper music.

To read more about Dave Alvin's take on recording this song, please click here to be taken to the Yep Roc site. In the meantime, sit back and listen to this wonderfully arranged and recorded song. And if that is not enough, Mr. Flippy is giving you a chance to see a Blasters video from back in the unforgiving 80's.

Song of the Week: Louis Prima - Jump, Jive An' Wail

Our Song of the Week probably isn't new to anyone who knows their music. The song is Jump, Jive, An' Wail. It was written and recorded by veteran New Orleans band leader, Louis Prima. It is just flat out one of the all time great songs ever recorded. A perfect song. So perfect, it was always hard for me to imagine anyone actually writing it. My reasoning has been that it must "just have been" because it was too great to be written by an actual person. But it was. And that person is the aforementioned Louis Prima.

Mr. Prima grew up in the storied New Orleans neighborhood called Storyville. There he learned his art at the feet of his fellow Storyville local, Louis Armstrong. (click here to listen to Dave Alvin perform Armstrong's Perdido Street Blues). Sometime around '34, Louis Prima began fronting his own jazz bands and making a name for himself in the competitive world of New Orleans jazz. Prima's larger than life personality, solid trumpet playing and gregarious vocals would form a new, hyped up form of jazz that would become known alternately as Jump Blues and Swing, a direct ancestor, many would argue, to Rock-N-Roll.

By the time Louis Prima wrote and recorded his original composition, Jump, Jive, An' Wail in the Spring of '56, Rock-N-Roll had already taken a foothold in Memphis (see previous two videos). Jump, Jive, An' Wail was a huge crossover hit for Prima where his number struck a responsive chord with Rock-n-Roll crazed white teenagers, the pop music fans of Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra and be-bop Jazz fans alike.

Papa's in the ice box looking for a can of ale/Momma's in the backyard learning how to jive and wail. You gotta jump and jivin', and then you wail away. 

Prima calls out "Willy the Wailer" and a rollin' piano, subdued for most of the song, deftly propels the song along with a rapid rag. One more verse and a beautiful call and response with the dueling horn section takes the song to a crazed finale. Just a damn perfect song.

P.S. See our Los Straitjackets post to hear a surf version of Louis Prima's original composition -- made famous by Benny Goodman and Gene Krupa-- Sing, Sing, Sing.

P.S.S. Brian Setzer scored a hit with his version of Jump, Jive, An' Wail back in the Swing craze of the early 90's. Don't believe me? Look below.