Art Tatum - Tatum Pole Boogie *Live April 1949 Los Angeles*

[freakyhead20]

I dont place adds on my video I also see adds when I see other videos. Youtube is advertising , not me :)

[lostpianist]

Remove the ad if you can :(

It ruined my morning playlist and made me so anxious

[zthetha]

Clicked on this track to hear some great b/w and my immediate reaction was 'what's Charlie Parker doing playing piano?' The opening shot looks so much like Bird, dunnit?

[foobird58]

check out Dorothy Donegan's Tea for Two

[bluesinorbit]

2:06 - 2:11

I can just see Art Tatum sipping on a tall glass of PBR there.

[paulostroff99]

TY freakyhead20 for posting this gem.

[freakyhead20]

@paulostroff99 it was my pleasure :)

[MARKMANIATT]

Staggering piano playing by any measure.However,I wonder how many of those who have marvelled at this posting have ever heard of the great Mel Powell.While Mel's facility is obviously not quite on the Tatum level,he isnt that far removed having started out as a straight player who switched to jazz on hearing Teddy Wilson.Mel is unknown today by many but is beyond exceptional and deserves discovering.Type his name into You Tube and stand to be amazed.By a vast margin, my all time favourite.

[Easleytee]

Upon entering one of 52nd street's legendary clubs after hours...a musician sitting at a table was heard to exclaim:

Gentlemen...God's in the house.

[paulostroff99]

@Easleytee -That was said by Fats Waller,and the god was none other than Art Tatum-the god of piano

[Dolphidood]

No comment...

[louswire]

I can here the root  influence of Kieth Emerson here... but Kieth Emerson compared to Art Tatum . . . is like comparing a candle, to a ship's searchlight.

[methu124]

It's easy to see why when when Tatum shared the bill in concert with other pianists they sounded like elephantine sledgehammers by comparison. His subtlety and lightness of touch has not been approached, much less equaled. Just listen to the stride chorus he starts at 2:12, with its feather-light bass notes and understated self-propelled swing. I always try to get this effect when playing stride.

[goinghomesomeday1]

There is only one Art, one type of Art, and that Art turns playing the piano into an art.

long liveth the music.

[SIRONEDRAGON]

Fabulous ! : )

[JO911B]

I think he is drawing on Speckled Red a little in this piece...

[ChadSmith1452]

@dseaberry *grin*

I've been toying with the idea of trying to make time for serious study of the piano, but then I hear Art Tatum and say, "No no; fuck it.".

[F0nkyNinja]

Art Tatum. A.K.A "God"

[vimana19]

Right that's it, take me away and get on with it. I just wish God had four hands even though Tatum's got twenty.

[ACEweVideos]

This probably one of the best boogies ever recorded??!

[Bumblebee38]

MEADE LUX BOOGIe was better in this kind of fast and furious exercise on the IVORIES hey DUDE !!!!

[imnemigre]

Purest genius!

[Pixeltrainer]

Sigh. I'm glad I saw Tommy Flannagan before he died. I sure wish I was old enough to have seen Art Tatum! He was the GREATEST without a doubt.

[Bumblebee38]

@Pixeltrainer

TONNY/ TOMMY FLAG NO GAN .....the GREATEST ......of WHAT ???

[menotyoudude]

OK,so here I am sitting at the piano,and I just listened to this.Now I am closing the piano.Lesson one: don't listen to Art Tatum play before you try to play piano.

[freakyhead20]

@menotyoudude you can never achive doing this in one day..even I cant right now with my good ears

Eeco

[menotyoudude]

By the Way,Thank you for putting this music on here.You are also an excellent piano player.

[freakyhead20]

@menotyoudude no problem dude :) and thanks!

Eeco

[TheTucsonJeff]

@menotyoudude I hear ya!! When I was a kid, my dad played Art Tatum records (on the old 78's). I just assumed that "Art Tatum" was a group of two or three people, all playing the same piano at the same time!! Now, allow me to suggest lesson two: If you aspire to be as good as Art Tatum, burn your piano and go work in a doughnut shop.

[nassar57]

@menotyoudude My

My Uncle Robert was, well, "friends" with Art without even really knowing it. Here's why- he once saw Tatum at one of the many jazz joints that used to exist south of Howard Street between unincoporated Evanston, Illinois and Chicago's north edge back in the early post-war era. He told Art- "You're so great I decided to quit piano; I'll never be as great as you." Art assured him: "There's plenty of guys who can't play as fast or as well but I still learn alot from them."

[nassar57]

@menotyoudude OH...by the way- years later my uncle saw Tatum perform again. He walked up and simply said "Hello, Art." The blind genius of the keys piped up immediately- "Bob!" he said, "You still playin'?" After seeing thousands of fans and hearing their voices, he recognized my uncle's voice after only having briefly met him once!

[menotyoudude]

@nassar57 Thanks for these two replies,what a cool story about your uncle Robert and Art!

[buergidunitz]

@menotyoudude Same thing happened to Oscar Peterson. He was afraid to play for weeks after he heard Tatum's Tiger Rag.

[neocatalyst]

@menotyoudude the first time Oscar Peterson heard Art Tatum play, Oscar was so intimidated he didn't touch the piano for several weeks...so you're not alone

[Sabored]

@menotyoudude I take inspiration from him the best I can. I know I will never play half as good as him, but it doesn't hurt to think it so I can get a nice practice session in.

[KatzenImNebel]

Love it!

[dearmalika]

Wow! Me siento tan pequeña delante tanta genialidad!

[OscarPetersonFan]

INSANE!!!! Happy Birthday, Art!!! 100 pirulos!!!

[mikeandmike]

Horowitz once approached tatum proudly exclaiming he had finally learned to play one of Art's soloes. Tatum quickly replied "Sure, you know ho. But you don't know why."

some things just aren't fair for the rest of the world.

[supahsekzy]

Rachmaninoff called him the best piano in the world

[DajaWaja]

@mikeandmike really?

[williamanesbitt]

Sometimes there just needs to be a sixth star on this thing...

[comaradella]

not possible, un human , he´s gotta have , three or four more hands hidden somewhere...

MONSTER !!!!

[lgmccarville]

What a light he was. You can hear "IT" in this one.

[jailbreak74andmore]

piano genius!

[bluesborn]

Art's sense of dynamics was also quite amazing.

[number1302]

1:36 - 1:40

[freakyhead20]

yes thats a amazing part is it ? :D

~Eeco

[michaeljamsmith]

Dude had the uncanny ability to make the left and right hands chase each other up and down the keyboard. I heard one where he started with the right hand, then brought in the left hand and gradually sped the left hand up until it was in sync with the right. I don't think anyone else could do that.

[3rdEYEbeHolder]

The only way I can figure how its mentally possible to do that is that he simply uses more of his brain than the rest of us. Speeding one hand up to match another is hard to do just playing on a countertop, much less a piano.

1 hand will be playing, and not stop playing, while the other hand comes in with a melody totally independent of the first hand.

I had always assumed true ambidextrous-ness was impossible. Especially for a sustained period of time.

[8g7g6g5g]

man i finally got one lick of arts kinda down. And when i play that lick, people just think im the shit. i always thats tatum!!

[psychedelichobo]

its fun to do that, to mess with peoples minds. i played a mississippi john hurt lick on the guitar, people freaked, and its the simplest thing to do too.

now art tatum.. haha, i can't say he's a simple musician. he's just great, i want to get into him now after seeing alot of these videos

[pookiehohn]

Anything from him is amazing.

[BRazor78]

lol I think I know which one it is, at the end of tiger rag, that sounds like a waterfall of glass falling to the ground?

[camotero1]

What a freak of nature! I have heard a story that w Art Tatum walked in a club that Thelonius Monk was playing in. When Monk saw Tatum, he said: "I would keep playing, but God just walked in the room." And he turned the piano over to Art.

[KJshackx3]

no that was definitely fats waller.

[KJshackx3]

fats waller said "I'm just the piano player, but God is in the house", and turned it over to Art*

[michaeljamsmith]

Yeah fats. I wouldn't compare Art with Thelonius. Art's technique is way above Thelonius. On the other hand, Thelonius is more inventive. Two different players.

[BRazor78]

Whoa, time out, you can't compare their inventiveness with each other; they're both very inventive in their different ways. And Tatum's technique looks and sounds a lot smoother, but you can discredit Thelonious Monk's technique, which produces that unique sound that seperates him from all other jazz pianists.

[michaeljamsmith]

Monk had no technique. Of course, that implies "proper" technique. But I guitarist in the mode of Jimi Hendrix. Proper technique can be a hinderence. So, it is not a discredit, it is a credit. And what I mean by inventiveness is stylistic. As brilliant at Art was, he was essentially a stride player, and established style. Monk was the father of bebop piano, something new. I would say the same about Jimi vs Joe Pass. Doesn't mean Joe wasn't as great. Different contributions.

[supahsekzy]

no people don't listen to this guy. Proper technique is not a hinderance, it is liberation. Once you learn how to play properly, you can choose to use your "improper" technique if it helps you achieve a goal, i.e. Hendrix's left thumb. And what are you saying Monk had no technique? You crazy.

[Despond]

Fantastic song and nice pictures.

[JamesPriceJohnson]

i luv this song

[freakyhead20]

yeah its a great song :)

[Burnsomatic]

Very, very interesting to hear Art Tatum's take on boogie woogie! Thanks for posting this Eeco!

[freakyhead20]

no problem..im glad you like it ^^ now swing it :)

[ilovegreeen]

Tatum is totally dazzling and brilliant. Thanks for posting and for posting all your playing as well. Such a joy!!!

[freakyhead20]

Hi , thank you ^^ Im always into sharing music with other people who dont know the song..I always get inspired and get new ideas when I listen to a lot of music...joy to the world ^^

[boogiemusicfan]

hi eeco, very specially played this boogie by art tatum and i like it, however when all boogies would be played this way, than it would be boring! i do like the rhythm of real boogie, in tripplets or straigt 8th, and particullarly your way of playing boogie, its so melodic!

[freakyhead20]

yes no doubt he was a master, but the jazz songs I mostly prefer from him but this is also a masterpiece but its played as his style..thats why its so great that boogie woogie can be played in all kind of ways :)

[wisedup]

cooooool..............happy music.

[freakyhead20]

hey thanks :) if your down it will cheer you up for sure.

[rdr555]

masterful

[freakyhead20]

yes it is :)

[STANLIZ4]

sounded like you at one point Eeco!

[freakyhead20]

oh where ? :P thanks anyway ,have a great weekend!

[hrorepublicano]

very good

[freakyhead20]

oh yeah ^^

[Deaglet]

I have been listening to this piece for years, almost every day! Big Tatum!!!

[freakyhead20]

yes he's a great master :)

[krusemusic]

Nice recording. Art Tatum's amazing!

[freakyhead20]

yes he is..thanks ;)

[littleliuboy]

First to view, comment and rate woop! gotta love this boogie!

[freakyhead20]

he was but still is a great peformer indeed..I can listen to this song over and over. I like the part where he go's into the ragtime..:)

[00s00m]

Thanks for posting! I had this album years ago and it's great to hear again. The first time I heard it (when I was around 18), I couldn't believe all the things I was hearing: four hands playing at once, different instruments (a bass in particular) accompanying him, etc. Of course, none of this was true, he just made you believe you were hearing something that didn't really exist. Quite a trick. You mention ragtime, though. Tatum didn't play ragtime as far as I know. He was post-swing/pre-bop.