In th R d

ar uot in a n ur -orton r 'h r d r full -

sha d h arran m t ·th r in he di u d ·tb hi pla r h r althou h h retain d fi al · the solo ork · tha h · kne until h t i . Th · r J foun on rough! . dOZi n · anner _or · icto trong' _ ot Fiv r ides nd -

it th put ·n th -orld on no · e a of aU th pi e ik mo t o The~ ar non o - prohl -m

RT

rk

a · zz _ u u· -rbl .- r

I 5

uch 0

e

THE FIRST GREAT CO P El\

of earlier acous ·cal recordings. The tremendous exuberance and vital­ity of th·s performance are captured perfec y ~th a live, roomy acous­tical pr --nee. Black Bottom Stomp, one of _ orton s finest composi· tion , as probably ritten exp essly for thi recording date. Although in nvo parts it actually sport · at least four different themes and one variant that on cannot quite elevate to the status of utheme." It has all the . orton ingredients: bu1l ·J beaks to~time phrases, rhythmi­cally lively themes frequent contras of stai , ed hole~note phrases with houncily syncopated igh -note patte a a b ·lliancly stomping

rio. But be ond this, it offe. a special diVt n . perhaps unique in diatonic music "classical" or oth rwi . . the part, ith its three

parat themes, is in B Bat a d yet no B Bat ~cho d (with the single exception of a passing-tone . nd inv rsion) er appears; it is avoided and d ayed until th ninety- . th bar of the piec (Ex. 2). This gives

Exampl 2 .BIJzck Bottom Stomp-Chord Progr · ion37

I ( 3) C+3) I I I dim I ~ I ? II I ~

the whole first part a curiousl suspended an unresolved feeling and imparts a unique fo . ard momen m since t , ear craves for the reso­lution to B Hat. en it finally does come orton charges right on, via a short quadrill ~ · riv d interlude, to the no ·n Hat.

The formal timbral and te ral scheme, o e of · orton's richest, is gi en in Example 3. 38

JELL ROLL ORTO 157

xample 3 Black Bottom tomp-Scheme

·1'31 di\'i · n Jnrro. amp

ln trum n ti n Full s. t. · -ull pL r. lntedud ull eos. ( rr. ) ( Banjo) (m 1 -· n

umbeto h

Bl

ull T t.- rb. ull

r k)

ar. ull

u · ·I · · 6 2 1 2 ~ -------- 0 0

()

86 I B' ull rum ull

4 4 t6

B

1an ull t.

( no rh- .) ( in B-) ( t tim ) ( -

1 2 ------0

rb.

. 0

uU I ( - t) 1--- I' . ( om-tom) ( br )

L,-____ .... _-J

6 2 12 6 1

n1p If

4

... 0

A 1 i a written-out ensemble in harmon repeated exactly. A2 alter-nat trumpet olo ith ensembl , all of em ·ten ou and in four-bar phrase . A3 fea res a clann t stic ing cl to the __ ritten them with only banjo accompaniment. B1 is a nty-bar tructure for .full en mble, impro _ i d hil 82 tn ·tiates a tring of solos: clarinet

mr

JELLY ROLL . .0

c

ba

orto

t . precJ essence o

(

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59 )

ollo e th and

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16o TH£ FIRST GREAT COMPOSER

graphic terms as r:-----.. or ~ , we see that it contains a sharp rise in tone, a nearly immediate impact that is a prerequisite of precise rhythm and swing. The decay's relation to swing is more complex. A plucked note can not be sustained at the level of its attack; there is bound to be a more or less rapid decay in volume of sound. Given this acoustical fact, the jazz bass player has a much different problem than a "hom" player. In order to ful6ll one of the conditions of jazz inflec­tion and jazz swing-namely the full sustaining of pitches (or at least the illusion thereof)-he must perforce create the illusion of sustaining the note. The natural, gradual decay pattern of a plucked note helps him to do this, for it fades into silence, that is, it does not stop abruptly (graphically: I I ). It therefore creates the illusion, particularly in long durations, of sustaining through what may in fact be silence. And so it ful61ls both the vertical and horizontal prerequisites of swing (a~ discussed in an earlier chapter), vertical through precise impact, hori­zontal by sustaining into the next notes and thus providing a forward momentum.

The tuba cannot really dupHcate the swing conditions of a bass pizzicato. At best, in the hands of an exceptional player it can create the illusion of a pizzicato. But then we have an illusion of what is al­ready an illusion. In any event tuba players of such extraordinary sen­sitivity were rare in early jazz. Bass Edwards, Walter Page, and John Kirby carne close to producing the kind of rhythmic life a pizzicato gives quite automatically.

I do not wish to discuss at length when and to what extent the string bass was used in New Orleans in pre-recording days. Suffice it to say that photographs of most of the early non-marching ensembles, including even the rare photograph of Buddy Bolden's band, picture a string bass. We also know that both in outdoor functions and in early recordings the tuba was used because of its greater carrying power. And, of course, a number of groups, including Armstrong's Hot Five and Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, frequently used no bass at all, wind or string.

In any event, the string bass in Black Botwm Stomp strikes the lis­tener as a revelation. And John Lindsay, a contemporary of Morton and a very experienced player, was one of the best and most advanced players Morton could have employed. Lindsay had a full, centered tone, and a springy strongly swinging beat that combined beautifully

.6t

ith Jo.hnny St. C r,s banjo. If e add to thi U co-ordinate<l ell .. balanc d team th di re t drummin of .. ndr ila1re .and :floa · ng abo e, the lac m lodi d nt in s of . o ton . e ha a h thm section beautifull int · at d in r c not onl o rh thm but .also to timbre and regi tral placem nt. Th ction pro ided an ai · btl

in :·n rh thmic sub tructur that contra t d harp) ·th th oft n tu gid, cumbersome tuba led rh thm se tion of e period.

Black Bottom -tomp v.ould hav be n a per ect recordi · g but for the en mble confu ion in choru B". Here evidently some signals got cro ·d .or mo t o the horu i o r b the time the pla . r member hat .·orton had reh a d-not no ob ·ou ly-and

hat a anted o them. D pite his fla Black Bottom S·tom.p · as a remarkable beginning.

The other · o sid recorded on t e sam da maintai tbi tand­ard or near I o. Smoke · ou e Blue (incid ntall - not a bl e ) · s a beau ifU 1 · planned performanc in lo . tempo. I though It i · prob­abl th xtraordinaril arm and m ing pia ·ng · bo e all a cap­tiva es us fo · ears lat r ther ar· man other fea re orth rn ntioning. I improvi n m'ble pol hon . in th o ·- in ·nd closin choru .i autifull r aliz d. Th pia er · ta ou o ot er _a and com .liment ac ot er r ctl . In fact th en-semhl are a ood an exam le a one ca fi d of ho · th e Orlean coli rive im r · tion ork d. E ch of i three re isttal Ja a a · ed . ific function. Th trumpet in · midd e r gi t r lin d ut th m. I and had tb o tion of em belli hi · i in rh thm e ntial] qui al nt to th main tempo of e piec . Rough! an octa a · th clarin t pro id d light! fa te -paced. d ant mbr id ri · hil belo\ the trombone ncrion d in a lo r-movin tim con inuum ar ·ci atin (at th pla r di e­

tion) in either th ba line or tenor counter- in . Graph1ca · · e can depict thi ture a

clarinet

trumpet

trombone

.But the id .mo t unusual mom nt om en _orton co , bi s his a orite exture--loo ening d vic : doubl -time nd th . break.

162

itho t mpo or

into th tr anc .

o on

tion i

ar

THE

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larin tb

It

36. For instanc clarin tist Om r im

T 0 0

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hi h ha med in fa ontinu

nd i i iano' a he rh thm

tag-

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3 7. The superscrip refet to degrees of e o oDd t ose of the basic triad 1, 3 and s (which are assumed). The subscripts refer to the inversion of the chord, 6rst~ second, or third. The superscripts m parentheses ref to addi­tional altera ·ons of the chord required by the y · ture

38. artin William in his monogtaph JeUy Roll orton in the Kings of J~ sen ( ew Yor : A. S. Bam s and Company r¢3) allo s his enthusiasm for orton and for Black. Bottom tomp in particular to exaggerate its formal cohesion beyond the call of duty. His paragraph page 67 presents a well­meaning but garbl d rsion of hat happens in Blaclt Bottom Stomp. Williams ascribes a call-and-response patt m to the ei t-bar introduction. This is far­fetched and pTobably th result of bearing the introduction as consisting of a sustained chord answered by a chattering ightb-note &gure. This impression, howe er is erroneous and probably based on tb unintended prominence of the sustain d not in trumpet and trombone. Th acoustically weaker clarinet actual} has in the 6rst bar an eighth-note 6gm of which the "chattering" 6gure in bar o is simp) a continuation. Furthermore if Williams insists on callin th chord-to-movin -6 pattern a call-and- esponse pattern, then by th sam )()2i h ould a to call th 6 t t em -four bars of sustained chords folio · ed b four bars of mo ing 6gures-a cal l-and-response the e as well.

Williams hears anoth r call-and-r ponse patt m in connection . · th 6rst theme h n h sa : 'The first theme (actuall almost a ri s of chords) is gi en in harmon then in solo , call' by the trumpet and in ariational 're­sponse b the clarinet and trombone then hack to harmony. The trumpet does not 'call nor does the clarin t "respond '· th y erely pla orton' s composed thematic ariants o er the same und dying chord pro . ession. The trombone does not pia at all in this particular sequence except in the harmony passages.

The confusion continues when illiams calls the Trio the 'second B theme' after ha in stated that the ntire piece consists of 'thr tb m (p. 66). The banjo choru can hardly said to contain a "break · th final stomp chorus feature a tom·tom or Indian drum not a bass drum; th bass .is no very 'audible'· and there is only one trombone bre k ·n that chorus.

There remains th u ion of bo many themes" Black. &ttom Stomp bas. cannot blam artin Williams for bein confused. Ac ally in mul ·-thematic ragtim pieces each theme had its o chord progression. In this

n l h on