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I just received an emailed set list (two sets) for a job up in the extreme NW corner of my state (Saturday) - on the shore of a famous naturally-formed-due-to-an-earthquake-within-recent-history (1812) lake at the confluence of Tennessee, Missouri, and Kentucky.

' certainly nothing esoteric nor obscure listed...but - this one simple tune (so simple that the chord changes literally reveal themselves) - I've just never had it called up by any bandleader.

I've heard it played a few times by other bands (back when I was playing at jazz festivals). We all know the saying (from the lyric)...Finally, I'll actually play it.

bloke "...you live long enough..."


...I picked out this performance particularly for you UK dixie-fans:



Besides the set list, I was also told (important) where we're meeting, which is here:



Hopefully, four more days will be enough for the paint to cure, and for the other tuning bit to arrive in the mail...

Ice Cream was a staple from the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.

I don't know any history of the song. Does the name come from the "Ice Cream Turnaround" I, vi, IV, V or is the song older than that?

Personally (and please don't misinterpret this as being a "traditional jazz snooty-poot"...I play DIXIELAND music, and NO jazz ever first played was "traditional"), I lean towards "liking" the tunes (of the vast repertoire) with more interesting chord changes - as well as multiple strains. In some ways, they're easier to (well...) "remember how they go"...and typically don't get hired by people who bring books and music stands, so...

Don't get me wrong...I don't mind playing "Back Home, Again, In Indiana" or even "When The Saints Go Marching In", and particularly not when remuneration is involved.

With the more trite tunes, I do appreciate a band/bandleader that/who (at least, once) plays the oft-ignored VERSE.

Speaking of which...
Here is the VERSE to "Ice Cream":

...and noticed: no music stands

At the amateur jams I go to… no one knows what to do when the vocalist wants to sing a verse!

Also if it ain’t in the real books/iREal Pro playlists we don’t do it. Too many newcomers/beginners to call charts without lead sheets available.

gocsick wrote: ↑Wed Oct 02, 2024 1:14 pm At the amateur jams I go to… no one knows what to do when the vocalist wants to sing a verse!

Also if it ain’t in the real books/iREal Pro playlists we don’t do it. Too many newcomers/beginners to call charts without lead sheets available.

This time, I'm working with folks from another city (not from Memphis).
More-and-more often, dixieland, NOLA brass band, and polka gig bandleaders send set lists AND youtube links (along with comments, which - sure - would include stuff like "Learn the verse" or "Ignore the verse". Some of the pickiest (probably surprisingly) are the NOLA brass bandleaders. They expect ALL of the different specific funky bass lines (and not just the changes and the feel) to be in place on each emailed tune (re: youtube links).

“Glory Hole”

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Oct 02, 2024 1:20 pm Some of the pickiest (probably surprisingly) are the NOLA brass bandleaders. They expect ALL of the different specific funky bass lines (and not just the changes and the feel) to be in place on each emailed tune (re: youtube links).

That's how it is in the NOLA style street band I play in. When we play a Rebirth song.. I am playing Tuba Phil Frazier's baseline. If it is an original there is usually a written bass line. One hand it is great.. they are fun licks to play, the crowd loves it, and I can do it on autopilot. On the other hand it doesn't exactly stretch you as a musician. I understand why we do it that way.. The band did >50 gigs last year. We raise money for charity... so the band gets paid (and paid well), but all us musicians (even the arranger/music director and admin director) are 100% volunteer. With 3 regular tuba players and a few extras who can fill in, we can be sure that there is consistency regardless off who is covering any given gig. Sometimes it is just me (or another solo tuba), sometimes there are 2 or 3 for a gig depending on needs

That's why I like going to jams as well, I get to play the changes and take a solo.

well...To me, "jams" are just about any dixie job which involves players who've never played together before (such as the one this next weekend).

RULE: (at least around this part of the country) Do NOT shake hands with the other musicians. The idea is for the client to believe that they hired a BAND, and NOT "a bunch of random musicians".

The difference is you get paid to go to your "Jams" ...

I throw a tenner in the basket the organizers pass around and pay for beer at mine. The bar needs a reason to keep hosting these things.

Mission accomplished.

I have now played the song, "Ice Cream" at least once (C chorus only, not the A-minor verse) and Mrs. bloke has seen Reelfoot Lake...

Whatever the festival was that they were holding up there on the lake shore, it was incredible, and - for the previous twenty miles south of there - it seemed like half of the houses were holding yard sales to take advantage of the traffic to the festival. I didn't anticipate the yard sales, nor them defining the traffic as going only half the speed limit (ie. gawking), and I had planned on getting there about 40 minutes early. I drove up about a minute early, the bandleader handed me a jacket, Mrs bloke. went and parked the car, and we started when we were supposed to. I was actually standing there ready to play before one of the other people in the band was ready to play who had been there for a while.

Combining errands, we also dropped off an expensive baritone saxophone repair on the way back with a very nice/cooperative school principal, as well as handing them the invoice.

The King sousaphone - after its test run - can use lighter (Yamaha) valve springs and a stronger main tuning slide water key spring.

The amount of time that we played was disproportionate to the amount of driving. Since the park rangers asked us if we would be willing to come back and play the festival next year, I'm going to suggest quietly to the band leader that he asked if we can play sets that are twice as long and ask for twice the money. certainly a tremendous amount of money changing hands at that event. Also, he needs to find a cording instrument way before the last minute. There was not one on this job and that made my job a lot more difficult, even though all the tunes we played are out of and imaginary Dixieland beginner band book were there such a thing. Basically as it was so hollow - in addition to playing just about constant four beat bass lines - I had to alter my bass lines so as to cover more of the harmony pitches which were otherwise missing.

The trombone player he is 99% a note reader, and has never played a dixie job before. He's been a friend of mine for quite a few years, it's the first time we've ever worked with each other outside of an orchestra venue, and we actually haven't played side-by-side for at least 9 years. I was proud of the job he did today.

It was just astonishing how many people were up in that place (which is not on the way to anywhere, so whoever goes there only goes there to be there) has very little industry other than the tourist draw that Lake. I couldn't believe how many vendors there were and how many people there were there to look at all the stuff for sale. It is billed as an "Arts and Crafts Festival". (I have no idea how much stuff was actually made by the people offering it for sale.) I don't go to stuff like that. I'm not a person that goes out into public other than to play jobs, or to buy things that I can't buy online. I don't even go to movies or restaurants. Something that really hit me was thinking back to the 70's when I was in high school and maybe - out of the 3,600 students on our campus - there may have been one person who was noticeably obese and another one who was slightly obese (but who was considered to be obese because they were merely slightly obese). Today - out of the countless thousands of people who are up there, it was difficult to spot anyone who was not very large to extraordinarily large. I have to believe that this is probably how it is across the nation these days, yes?

While the population is definately fatter overall, some places are still fatter, trashier and more commonly tattooed than others.

For instance, I’m in Bethany Beach, DE now. Ten miles north of Ocean Shiddy, MD.

Night vs day!

Speaking of funny place names, about 2 miles West:

https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipP ... Zmc181QUln

might as well continue with tangential topics...

This little isolated "circle" of Kentucky is located just west of Reelfoot Lake which - again - is located in the extreme northwest corner of Tennessee and was formed by an extremely severe earthquake in the early 1800's.

In this picture, everything else you see (which is not marked as in Tennessee) is in Missouri.