BluesTone 88-Note Ragtime Roll New Releases - Spring 2000

Following are the latest RAGTIME additions to the BluesTone roll catalog. There is an equally big list of the latest BLUES additions if you like. Don't miss the complete lists of all 88-note ragtime & blues rolls available from previous catalogs, elsewhere on this web site.

137356 Weeping Willow Rag (Joplin) played by the composer Scott Joplin $14
(originally issued on Connorized 10277 / April 1916)
and Something Doing (Joplin & Hayden) played by the composer Scott Joplin
(originally issued on Connorized 10278 / April 1916)

137357 Ragtime Oriole (James Scott) played by William Arlington $14
(originally issued on Connorized 10311 / June 1916)
and Ole Miss Rag (W. C. Handy) played by Scott Joplin
(originally issued on Connorized 10304 / June 1916)

137358 Grace And Beauty Rag (James Scott) played by William Arlington $14
(originally issued on Connorized 20460 / ca. 1916)
and Quality Rag (James Scott) played by William Arlington
(originally issued on Connorized 20461 / ca. 1916)

Scott Joplin : Here are some very special, early rags which are long overdue for reissue. Weeping Willow and Something Doing need no introduction - they are among Joplin's finest rags. These along with Maple Leaf Rag and Magnetic Rag (see BluesTone recut #137056) and Ole Miss Rag constitute the 5 know Joplin hand-played rolls on the Connorized label. It is arguable just how authentic these rolls are to Joplin's playing (Trebor Tichenor believes that Ole Miss Rag most nearly sounds like a live performance with idiosyncrasies that could well be Joplin's). Regardless of your thoughts on that, all 5 are now available from BluesTone reproduced directly from the original 1916 Connorized rolls.

James Scott : The balance of these 3 "double" recuts is a set of classic James Scott rags played by William Arlington from additional Connorized rolls of the same vintage as Joplin's. Arlington has a unique style that embellishes Scott's rags nicely without overdoing it. These are lively and fun arrangements - Grace And Beauty Rag is particularly enjoyable. Quality Rag is simply a great rag!

137359 Carolina Shout played by the composer James P. Johnson $11
(originally issued on QRS 100999 / ca. February 1921)

137360 Lazy Bones played by the composer Charley Straight $11
(originally issued on QRS 100500 / November 1916)

Carolina Shout is certainly one of the best piano rolls ever made. It is a jazz classic that runs rings around anything that preceded it. Duke Ellington himself learned to play Carolina Shout from this piano roll, as he tells in his autobiography Music Is My Mistress. Chorus after chorus, this roll displays Johnson's gift for improvising clever variations on his terrific piece. I simply can't praise this roll highly enough. It is hotter than all get out, and should be in every hot piano roll collection! OK, I'm done!

It's a bit unfair to make anything follow Carolina Shout, but I have here another fine novelty rag from Charley Straight. Lazy Bones was never published or copyrighted, but was issued in 1916. It features a surprising number of choruses with new inventions along the way, and a very snappy syncopated style.

137361 Camp Meeting No. 1 (traditional) transcribed & played by Blind Boone $11
(originally issued on QRS 400034 / ca. November 1912)

137362 Dixie (Dan Emmett) transcribed & played by Blind Boone $11
(originally issued on QRS Automatic 400038 / ca. November 1912)

137363 Nearer My God To Thee (traditional) transcribed & played by Blind Boone $11
(originally issued on QRS 400048 / ca. November 1912)

John W. "Blind" Boone is one of the most interesting early Black musicians to record piano rolls. His Camp Meeting No. 1, Dixie and Nearer My God To Thee are not exactly "raggy", but are played in a style described in Rags and Ragtime as "loose timing and idiosyncratic rhythm techniques (giving) the impression of "ragged time" ". These rolls are among the very few documents we have of how Boone played. The playing in these rolls is very interesting and genuine; in my opinion the editing done by QRS does not involve trickery along the lines of adding notes or counter-melodies that Boone could not have played by hand. Every note sounds legitimate and I believe these rolls are as true to Boone's musicianship as they could be. This is a point I feel is not made properly in Jack Batterson's otherwise excellent book on Boone; he seems to suggest that because embellishments were possible, then all rolls contain them. All 7 of Boone's hand-played QRS rolls are now available on BluesTone.

137364 Scandalous Thompson (©1899 / Charles L. Johnson) / arranged roll $11
(originally issued on Aeolian 65-note roll 8169)

137365 A Black Smoke (©1902 / Charles L. Johnson) / arranged roll $11
(originally issued on Chase & Baker 65-note roll 1036-J)

Charles L. Johnson : These two early rags are both outstanding and among the finest written in their era. Johnson was from Kansas City and these rags both have an interesting regional folk flavor as described in Rags and Ragtime. In fact, both tunes are described in detail there and I recommend that you read all about them - I can't describe them any better! Scandalous Thompson was reprinted in Richard Zimmerman's 101 Rare Rags folio and A Black Smoke was reprinted in Dover's Classic Rags folio, if you want to read along. Both tunes are also quite long, in fact so long that I couldn't fit them onto one spool. Blow the dust off these great rags - I bet you haven't heard them in a while, and I bet you didn't remember how good they are!

137366 Good Morning, Carrie! (©1901 / Chris Smith & Edgar Bowman) / arranged roll $14
(originally issued on Angelus 58-note roll X4581) ­ copy of original sheet music included

and I've Got De Blues (©1901 / Chris Smith & Edgar Bowman) / arranged roll
(originally issued on Aeolian Grand 58-note roll 40898)
(NOTE: copies of both original sheet music scores are included with this recut!

Here are two neat, raggy popular songs from 1901. You may have noticed Chris Smith's name as composer of many great songs of the piano roll era. Among Edgar Bowman's claims to fame is lyricist to an obscure song by ragtime legend Louis Chauvin, Babe It's Too Long Off (reprinted in The Rag Time Ephemeralist #1; see my web links page for details). Also be sure to read about Smith & Bowman in Jasen & Jones' excellent book Spreadin' Rhythm Around. Anyway, these neat tunes are reissued here for the first time ever, coming from two very scarce 58-note originals. Both are light comic songs and a lot of fun to play. I have been fortunate to locate copies of the sheet music for both, which are included here!!

137367 Darktown Is Out Tonight (©1898 / Will Marion Cook) / arranged roll $14
(orig. issued on Symphony 58-note roll X4231) ­ copy of original sheet music included

and My Creole Belle (J. Rosamond Johnson) / arranged roll
(originally issued on QRS 58-note roll 4602)

Here are two more very early popular songs by important black composers. Will Marion Cook wrote the first black show on Broadway - Cloridy - for which Darktown Is Out Tonight is the "roaring cakewalk finale", as described in Spreadin' Rhythm Around (see pages 79-95). The lyrics are very racy (both literally and figuratively) as you will see: I've been fortunate again to locate a copy of the original sheet music for inclusion with this recut of a scarce Symphony 58-note roll.

Also reissued here is a popular song by J. Rosamond Johnson, who is best known today for transcribing two books of Negro Spirituals, which are still in print. Read more about J. R. Johnson in Spreadin' Rhythm Around (see pages 95-117). I have been unable to find the sheet music for My Creole Belle, and I have to guess it was published around 1900. It has a very nice melody and makes a good companion to Darktown. If I find the original sheet, I will make note of it here and gladly send a copy to anyone who ordered the roll.

137368 Rose Wood Rag (©1909 / Peter M. Heaton) / arranged roll $14
(originally issued on QRS 65-note roll 03165)

and Kalamity Kid (©1909 / Ferd. Guttenberger) / arranged roll
(originally issued on QRS 65-note roll 03238)

Here are two of Trebor Tichenor's all-time favorite folk rags, which he calls Pruett's Pets. Doc Pruett was an early rag roll collector in St. Louis, who is mentioned in They All Played Ragtime. Pruett had a collection of rag rolls that Trebor used to visit when he was a kid, and these were among Doc's favorites.

Rose Wood Rag was published in Chicago in 1909. Trebor recorded it on his Tempus Ragorum CD; please listen to Trebor's rendition and read his notes if you get a chance. The last part is more of a march, along the lines of C. L. Woolsey's Mashed Potatoes (1911 / see BluesTone #137030).

Kalamity Kid and composer Ferd Guttenberger are discussed in Jasen & Jones' excellent new book That American Rag. KK features an especially neat extended syncopation in the final 4 bars of the B section; the trio features 3-over-4 rhythms with a nice break in the middle. It was reprinted in Richard Zimmerman's 101 Rare Rags folio, where we discover that J. Russel Robinson arranged the piece!

137369 Teddy In The Jungle (©1910 / Edward J. Freeberg) / arranged roll $14
(originally issued on QRS 65-note roll 03242)

and Barrelhouse Rag (©1916 / Fate Marable & Clarence Williams) / arranged roll
(originally issued on unknown 5-tune 65-note coin piano roll xxxx-5)
(NOTE: a copy of the original sheet music for Barrelhouse Rag is included with this recut!

When I told Trebor I planned to reissue these together, he described them both as "funky folk rags". Teddy In The Jungle is one of my favorites, both for melody and syncopation. Rags and Ragtime tells us that the title is in reference to President Theodore Roosevelt's hunting days. It was reissued just once before, by Golden Age, which has been over 20 years now.

Barrelhouse Rag was written in 1916 by Clarence Williams & Fate Marable. You may recall that Marable led the band that young Louis Armstrong joined to play on Mississippi River boats before making his move from New Orleans to Chicago! Barrelhouse is reminiscent of the opening strain of Tiger Rag. This arrangement is tune #5 from an unlabeled 5-tune 65-note coin piano roll, and features especially nice embellishments in the C section. A copy of the original sheet music is included with this recut.

137370 Pearl Of The Harem (©1901 / Harry P. Guy) / arranged roll $14
(originally issued on Connorized 65-note roll 4108)

and The Flyer Rag (©1908 / Freida Aufderheide) / arranged roll
(originally issued on Connorized 65-note roll 4424)

Harry P. Guy is the subject of an in-depth biography in the new, 2nd volume of The Rag Time Ephemeralist magazine (see my web "links" page for more information). Pearl Of The Harem is a beautiful piece from 1901 with an unusual bass part: never is there a regular octave - chord ragtime pattern; it uses either a staggered-octave, walking bass or driving 1/8-note chords. The sheet music subtitle is "Oriental Rag Two Step", so Guy was clearly looking for a different feel and I think he achieved a great result with it. This and Echoes from the Snowball Club (1898 o see BluesTone #137256) are among my favorite rags.

The Flyer Rag is also unusual, with a pleasant melancholy feel to it. This rag is to be played at a moderate tempo, with a gentle syncopation all the way through. In the D section she switches to a very tasteful minor mode. It's very satisfying, with almost a ballad feel to it. Freida Aufderheide was of no known relationship to fellow Hoosier but better-known rag composer Mae Aufderheide. This title refers to an early automobile known as the flyer, as opposed to anything related to an aeroplane. Don't miss it!

Both of these rags were reprinted in Richard Zimmerman's 101 Rare Rags folio

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