Clint Baker is an inspiring multi-instrumentalist (everything from brass to reeds to strings to drums to vocals) and here at Dixieland Monterey 2011, he contented himself with leading a small hot group from his drum set — he is a master of percussive sounds and propulsions. With him were hot cornetist Marc Caparone, pianist / singer Dawn Lambeth (united in connubial bliss), trombonist and euphonist Howard Miyata (that’s Uncle Howie to Gordon, Brandon, and Justin Au), reedman Mike Baird, bassist Paul Mehling, and guitarist / banjoist Katie Cavera.
Oh, they did rock!
Their first selection was a request — from Dottie Baird, Mike’s wife, who always asks for WHEN MY DREAMBOAT COMES HOME, on which Mike has to play saxophone. A wonderful idea:
One law of performance is “Get the crowd involved: engage the audience!” So here’s a bit of audience participation — feel free to join in at home in the HOLLER BLUES with shrieks or howls:
Dawn Lambeth (who is moderately pregnant — we wish her the world’s easiest delivery!) is also a spectacularly gifted singer. Here she introduces IT HAPPENED IN MONTEREY, written by Mabel Wayne, as a song with a great deal of sentimental depth for Marc and herself — the sad lyrics notwithstanding. Even with a terrible cold, Dawn sounds so fine:
A good old good one — what could be better than PANAMA by William H. Tyers, king of the Exotic Landscape (he also wrote MAORI):
And a tribute to Papa Joe Oliver, King Oliver, Louis Armstrong’s spiritual father, SNAG IT (An idle thought: where did the inspiration for that slang phrase come from? I take it to mean “Oh, get it!” From fishing? From baseball?):
Finally, something personally pleasing. SWEETHEARTS ON PARADE is one of my favorite songs — even though it’s not exactly harmonically taxing — perhaps because I heard Louis’s recording of it early in my life. And I felt very much embraced at and by Dixieland Monterey (a weekend of many hugs, all given and received happily), no more so than when Marc asked me if I had any requests and then played this one. You know you’ve arrived! Two by two, they go marching through:
This band is the absolute equivalent of a big plate of down-home red beans and rice: spicy, colorful, hot, satisfying for a long time afterwards. And look how happy they look!
A footnote: JAZZ LIVES readers who energetically watch “SFRaeAnn”‘s channel will see her videos of these performances. She is Rae Ann Berry, a wonderful archivist and deep friend to me and to many musicians . . . and we were often sitting at the same concert in Monterey and videotaping. Why, then, you might ask, why post my versions as well as hers? I have this fantasy that someone more technically gifted than myself will find a way to screen both her video and mine on a particular song – – – synchronized, to provide something like Dixieland Cinerama, or Hot Technicolor. Just imagine!
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Great dixieland!! I have spent a good deal of time today listening to all the posts of the Dixxieland Monterey, and enjoyed every bit of it…Clint Baker is super talented, I asked him one time what instrument he “didn’t” play..Thank you so much for posting these,,,It pacifies this old gal like you wouldn’t believe.
Please tell Dawn I’m jealous of her skills to sing with a cold and that I deeply admire her courage to even try.