Palesteena - Original Dixieland Jazz-Band , 1920

[MuzikLuver29]

My grandfather loved dixieland..I have all of his old records and I put them on and just enjoy the sound of the times back then

[hartleyndorsett]

does the pic heading this up remind anyone else of the inside fold of "Strictly Personal" by Cap'n Beefheart?

[bobbobato]

@MrNotyag Nick LaRocca has not been given the credit he deserves as a pioneer of Jazz simply do to the fact that he was a horrible, shameless racist well into the 1950s. This man tried to take all the credit for creating Jazz - how is that not objectionable? There are many white musicians of about his time who are still thought of favourably today.

[crunterstamps]

check out Frank Crumits version;Superb!!

[blivemernot]

Great

[65Pekka]

I love it!

[shaneu1]

The dominant theme is klezmer. The song was also treated as an oriental fox trot. The band's name notwithstanding, there's very little of what came to be known as "Dixieland" in it.

[ThePeaceableKingdom]

Just a bit of trivia: Woody Allen used this music for childhood flashbacks (the magic show) in Stardust Memories...

[shaneu1]

@ThePeaceableKingdom Glad you mentioned that. I knew I had heard it in one of Allen's films, but couldn't remember which.

[dtecla]

I was able to purchase their CD, Burning Sands, which I adore!

[mitch26]

Great music. Nice treatment. Thanks for posting.

[heather4him]

@HichiroJappy If not, then it is the precursor to jazz.

[KawhackitaRag]

J. Russel Robinson also made the QRS's first word roll of "St. Louis Blues", although they might have issued an arranged version in their 30,000 series before this. (and, of course, J. Lawrence Cook made many subsequent versions). Robinson's version is my favorite of all of these.

[KawhackitaRag]

W. C. Handy called Robinson "the white boy with the colored fingers". Before QRS hired African-American musicians such as James P. Johnson and J. Lawrence Cook to make word rolls, they had J. Russel Robinson and Pete Wendling to handle all of the hot tunes and blues.

[ThePeaceableKingdom]

@KawhackitaRag "W. C. Handy called Robinson 'the white boy with the colored fingers' "

I've read the same story about Johnny Maddox!

[jardavendi]

bezvadny

[josefkrejsa1]

Jak jsi jistě poznala, jsem třetí zleva.

[sturdle]

and a bit of and dance stuff too..

[plasticfloor]

I would really love to hear this played with lyrics sung. can anyone provide a link?

[lamalo80]

Search in google for "Judaica Sound Archives". Then do a search on Album Tracks and search for the title "Lena from Palestina". It is performed by Lilian Lux.

[plasticfloor]

Thanks a Bunch!

[plasticfloor]

too bad it's completley different lyrics. infact what she sings is already refrencing Israel and loses the magical refrences to the exotic palestina.

[lamalo80]

It sounds indeed like a newer version. But I see that you found yourself already the original version :)

HcLJ_mjGAyQ

[dennykdoe]

@plasticfloor no link to anhything on YouTube, but the New Leviathan Oriental Fox Trot Orchestra does a superb version of this. You'll have to seek out the CD. They have preserved an incredible amount of such music--"When Rebecca came back from Mecca" (the sequel to "Leena") "When It's Poppy Time in Yokohama", 'Mid the Pyramids with Omar Khayyam" and hundreds of others. They're an ignored national treasure.

[ThePeaceableKingdom]

@plasticfloor There is a version with vocals by Frank Crummit (Columbia 3324) that was posted on a wonderful blog called Vitaphone Varieties, and there is also a vocal version sung by Eddie Cantor (Emerson-12092) that also musically quotes several bars of "Masil Toff" (as Edison Records spelled it). Both are worth googling.

[8ozzon]

At 1:32 a theme appears that in my piano school book is called a Jewish Dance and which I think doesen't belong to the main song, Palesteena. Bob Crosby recorded this song but without the Jewish Dance.

[Grouchy2day]

In 1920, the band's personnel had changed a bit. J. Russel Robinson plays piano here and they added alto sax player Benny Kreuger. He's the one doing the the solos on this record.

[detectosoretes]

In 1918 the personnel of the Original Dixielan Jass (sic) band were:Tony Sbarbaro (aka Tony Spargo), trombonist Edwin "Daddy" Edwards, cornetist Dominick James "Nick" LaRocca , clarinetist Larry Shields and pianist Henry Ragas. This is an interesting tune, which I heard associated to Jewish music,

but for what I see in the lyrics it was as "alexanderletter" well describes, a "generl image of oriental music"

[Squarerig]

It is remarkable that all these music makers managed to produce wonderful,harmonious music without any of the aids and glitz and glamour of today.Their music lives on but the trash of today will vanish like mist in the morning sun-you'll see!Delightful tune.

[sulaimanswaleh]

this is something u would hear in one of charlie chaplin's movies..

[Atomsmasher777]

This is classic. The 20's and 30's were a great time for music.

This is also featured in Woody Allen's "Stardust Memories" (1980)

[Scientician]

Robinson had a jewish grandparent and was one of the first famous musicians to fuse Jewish Klezmer with Afro-American ragtime

[KawhackitaRag]

@Scientician That's interesting. I've read quite a lot about J. Russel Robinson, but I've never heard this before. Where did you read this?

[megaswenson]

This tune and kernkraft 400 are things I can't seem to get enough of....every arrangement and remix I love. And Palesteena has such a good premise. Lena wasn't very good, but she got out there and did it, and she was a hit.

Wish there were a few arrangements on Youtube with the words.

[livingaragtimelife]

The words are available on the English wikipedia. If you google for Palesteena and wikipedia, you will find them all there.

[Saggezzasaphira]

good question!!!

i found it to be like klezmer, and balcan's music.

[berbentos]

Yiddish. Not sure if we can call such a compilation "Klezmer".

But a Yiddish Jazz.

[up2space]

i havent read about a Yiddish culture in NO at at the time. It appears that this arrangement is based on the tune.

[alexanderetter]

ok... the concret topic is palesteena... but the style was played by several bands. it was around that time a fashion to copy a bit the style of oriental music. listen also to "the sphinx" or "oriental rag"; also recorded by the original dixieland jazz band. or "oriental jazz" "sheyk of araby" by other jazz bands.

[alexanderetter]

it is nor exactly klezmer, nor yiddisch but an general image of oriental music mixed with european music elements. they playes such things because at that time, there was the oriental-wave in jazz (there are a lot of other jazz-titles around that time who treat that topic. as example: oriental rag, oriental jazz, the sphinx etc...) after the oriental-wave there was the jungle-wave a bit later in the twenties and thirties.

[terrafor]

This is weird music

[PancakeNightmare]

There is a very nice and hauntingly sweet sound here.

Amazing group.

[alexanderetter]

a lot of people underrate the original dixieland jass band. they played great music!!

[Squarerig]

This is a joy to listen to.That strange,lost-forever-sound of the twenties.Thank you for the clip.

[megaswenson]

My speakers are nothing great, and it sounds fine. What a wonderful song. Makes me happy whenever I hear it. Pandora doesn't have it yet. Thanks for putting it on youtube.

I love the words, too....they are all great....every version...

[WildCardsJazz]

My Rainier Jazz Band recorded this in 1986, with our vocalist Ron Rustad - Lena from Palestina! LOL. "She got fat as she got Lena playing on he concertina!" Whoa. I think it sounds best with my TUBA and at a slower tempo. LOL. Our Banjo Player Professor Gene Silberberg brought this to our band from an ancient recording he found. It has been played by a select number of bands ever since including also my Wild Cards Jazz...Amazing how that works. Thanks for posting lyrics! RAN

[jazzgirl1920s]

"Royal Garden Blues" was another one of the tunes the band recorded at a slower tempo. They also played a tune called "Rambling Blues" but never recorded it. I have 2 cards advertising an appearance by the band at the Cafe La Marne in Atlantic City. One card mentions "Rambling Blues" featured by the Dixieland Band. The other mentions the Original Dixieland Jazz Band will play at the Cafe La Marne beginning on June 15 and will play there throughout the summer.

[WildCardsJazz]

Would you write me as I have a request RE vocal version of Palesteena; and another Con Conrad tune MOONLIGHT (1920+). Your site is a great resource. Thanks ever so your new subscriber, Randy

[jazzgirl1920s]

Hi- you asked me to write you. The only version I have of Palesteena is the ODJB's. I don't have any other versions and I have't heard this song with a vocal before. Glad you enjoy the recordings at my site. I try to post rare recordings people have not heard.

[sweetnsourpoke]

Stardust Memories, anyone?

[charliesmilton]

Kinda sounds Arabian-Jewish....

[ryanyee1234567890]

wonderful!

[cvwtzhaar]

I have a lot of ODJB, and this is one of my favorite tunes they did, it sounds clesmerISH to me.

[gabriellefm47]

gracias por este material mi hijo esta estudiando trompeta y es una maravilla encontarar los orígenes gracias!!!!!!!!!!!

[ghazikankan]

Thank you for sharing this wonderful version of Palesteena!

[gmmix]

No apology warranted. The sound is GREAT, and there's hardly any hiss that I can hear. You've done remarkably well in dealing with an original recording nine decades old! Your detailed side-bar explanation took much time to prepare--but know what you've provided is GENUINELY appreciated. Thanks for the posting.

[betteroffsingle]

Holy Cow is this really the ODJB ?

I have NEVER heard this before or even knew what they played prior to their fame. Gee ...

YouTube really is an education. Thank You for this. How in the world do ppl find the time to find these things?

[LesSwattum]

the odjb is great margie is on the other side I'd like to hear it

[livingaragtimelife]

I've adored this funny song for twenty years! Lena, she's the Queen o' Palesteena Goodness, how they love her concertina. Each movement of her wrist Just makes them shake and twist They simply can't resist How they love it Want more of it. When she squeeks That squeeze-box stuff All those sheiks Just can't get enough. She got fat as he got Lena Pushing on her concertina Down old Palesteena way.

[kspm01]

If distortion is too bad, diminish the sound... not of your speakers but the output level of your operating system, it often helps.

[kspm01]

I'm listening to it right now through large speakers and it sounds perfectly well, without hiss. It's no that bad at all!

[dzheger]

A charming medley of a few familiar klezmer melodies in dixieland style. Yes, B, these lyrics are hilariously absurd. Great posters and photos.

[genia106]

I thought that sounded a lot like Klezmer. I could swear these guys played a wedding I attended :))

[barbcard]

Where in the world did you get this very amusing

number? Despite the unmistakable Jewish lilt of the melody, it seems to have no political implications at all, esp. as I read those nonsense lyrics.