Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orch. - Rumba Negro, 1929

[tychaton08]

Merci!

[Olivierroaring20]

Great work on this track! All is perfect: tuba (!!! what a deep sound!!!), drums, solos, tempo...

[TopsyDurham]

Actually, it was Eddie Durham, center front, who brought Basie into this Band. Basie could not read or write music, so it was the charts of Eddie Durham that changed the direction of this and many other Bands. When Moten died, Basie was voted leader and they changed the name of the Band. When Durham left, the Band flopped until Durham came back & wrote TOPSY for them. See DurhamJazz. com Hope this helps.

[tdub1941]

Fabulous! Love it! LIKE

RagJazzMonkey Tom in Kansas City

[pharcelle1]

They were 'GREAAAAT''! 

[Squarerig]

Rumba Negro/Blanco-who cares?A delightful piece of its time.Could not be better;thank you24052.

[4freespeech]

Great tuba work! Reminds me of "Tuba Fats" Lacen in N.O. There's just something about a TUBA that makes rhythm & blues, isn't there?

[minniemousie]

The lesson, often lost among musicians, was not to follow other bands' sryle; but rather to develop one's own style.

Benny knew how to DEVELOP his own unique rhythm and sound.

When he died, Count Basie picked up the ball and ran with it and all jazz was touched by what Bennie began!

The "Walking Bass" is still a key ibngredient in music today!

Don't you just love listening to this particular recording? It is a sterling example of geniius!

Thanks, 240252, for posting.

[zootyzoot]

@minniemousie I think that Count Basie was already running with the ball while Benny Moten was still nominally leading the band.

[JOHNNY4RIVELS]

I by too late born, I like very much that art of music.

[whizbang47]

The appeal of the Moten band never wanes. One of the world's very best bands of their time, and for this kind of bounce, the best ever.

[julianozain]

Thanks for the blues lover legion..

[FrankHayde]

Very nice visual accompaniment to this Ellingstonesque piece of KC soul.

[jd03150]

I discovered Bennie Moten's "South" over 50 years ago during my misspent teenage years as an announced for WCOA, Pensacola; "One of the nation's oldest stations" was our station break. I've been a giant Moten fan ever since.

[jd03150]

Got in a hurry; that word should be "announcer" rather than "announced."

[Zefrenm]

Luv It!

[felltone66]

was that lonnie johnson on guitar?anybody know?

[heinbanjo12]

@felltone66 That was Eddy Durham. trombonist and guitarist and arrangeur. A great man in the early big band jazz. Hein

[pmf598]

Yeah thanks, i was just surfing for rock n roll but i'm favouriting this one . . . !

[that1940sguy]

This really rocks, thanks for posting! I gotta get a good microphone again, so I can mike up the Orthophonic and youtube some great moten tune or another (not South) I picked up lately on a scroll Victor... a great band.

[fuzzbear6240]

240252, Superb, One of the absolute best of Moten! A really great number. Thank you for posting it.

YF, J.

[Squarerig]

This is splendid music.Whilst not pure jazz,who cares?It is still wonderful to listen to.A great arrangement.

[20b40]

My accounts differ slightly from an authorative source. pp 106-107 Kansas City Jazz From Ragtime to Bebop - A History by Frank Driggs and Charles Haddix; Oxford Publishing 2005.

Orville

[20b40]

Mrs. Inez Pennington, the mother-in-law of Harlan Leonard, provided funding and uniforms for the these Kansas City Rockers.

Moten for some unknown reason began to flirt with changing his musical style when he went East. Upon return to Kansas City Moten rearranged his music repertoire to reflect the Eastern 4/4 musical style. A battle of the bands took place and Moten was soundly defeated by the Thamon Hays Kansas City Rockets.

Orville Lewis, Jr.

[20b40]

Ed Lewis and Thamon Hayes, with approval of Musician's Local President William Shaw, then organized a 6 piece band under the name Thamon Hayes Kansas City Rockets. The 6 members included the former members of the Moten Band. The Kansas City Rockets recruited Vic Dickerson from Ohio, Herman Walder and David Lovett from Okalahoma, Jessie Stone from Nebraska, and Richard Smith.

Orville

[20b40]

Lewis and Hayes quit. Moten replaced Vernon with Walter Page (no relationship), Ben Webster replaced Pete Woods, LaForrest Dent replaced Harland Leonard, Joe Keys replaced Booker Washington, and D. Stewart replaced Ed Lewis (Moten's 1st cousin).

Orville

[858jc]

According to my research and sources: Herman Walder and Nate Pearson's Goin to Kansas City. Ben Webster replaced Woodie Walder and Eddie Barefield replaced Harlan Leonard.

[20b40]

I was mistaken with Ben Webster. Ben did replace Woody Walder. La Forest was a member of the Moten Band before the split and after the split. He initially played the banjo. He also played the saxophones. He used the sax to record with Moten from 1926 to 1927. But my primary premise was mistaken. La Forest was not a new hire. Barefield was a new hire. Was it Dan Minor who replaced Thamon Hayes?

- Orville

[858jc]

It is my understanding that Dan Minor was the new trombone player who replaced Thamon Hayes. Yes,Dan "slamfoot" Minor made his rounds with quite a few territory bands.I heard he was a good sight reader and section man. The same holds true with Woodie Walder and altoist Theodore Ross(Blue Devils).

[20b40]

Thanks. - Orville

[20b40]

The Bennie Moten Band split in the summer of 1932. Bennie had been privately recruiting members of the Andy Kirk Blue Devils and the George Lee Orchestra. The split included the firing of Vernon, Woody, Harlan, and Booker. Two other musicians were upset over the firings: Ed Lewis and Thamon Hayes.

Orville Lewis, Jr.

[olsongw]

History shows that Count Basie was the piano player on this record; his first after joining Moten. Six years later the band was in Basie's hands following Moten's death.

[hwhild]

Leider wird so gute Musik heute nur noch sehr selten gemacht.

[sunsetglow93]

Kann man so sagen =)

[hoteldennis]

I love the tuba playing of Vernon Page. Nobody plays with such vibrato. He really makes the Moten band swing in a way the no other tuba player or bass fiddle could match. I have often heard that the bass fiddle is technically a superior bass instrument over the tuba. Even if that is so, I believe that Motens orchestra would never had the same bounce and drive that Page's tuba provides if a bass were used instead. Of course this is just my opinion.

[JoeOliverIsStillKing]

Exactly right! The rhythm section makes the band, especially Vernon Page. Do we know what happened to Vernon? How long did he live?

[858jc]

Vernon Page was born about 1898 and passed away in 1957. He was still gigging locally up until his death. Along with Woodie Walder, Vernon should never be forgotten for his musicianship.

[JoeOliverIsStillKing]

Thanks a lot for the information!

[fuzzbear6240]

240252, One the very best of twenties Jazz! I've always loved this number-something about that bass line ha ha! Love that tuba. Thanks. Regards, J.

[WildCardsJazz]

Marvelous! I used the recording to bring the tune to Rainier Jazz Band in 1983 via a tape from my Dad and Jazz historian the late Harold Keller. We never performed it more that once but the Pheonix Jazzers picked it up an ran with it sans Tuba. Was good to hear it performed live. Thanks for publishing it along with Moten/era pics. Love to do it again with WCJ. Randy

[ImpromptuCam]

Marvelous! I used the recording to bring the tune to Rainier Jazz Band in 1983 via a tape from my Dad and Jazz historian the late Harold Keller. We never performed it more that once but the Pheonix Jazzers picked it up an ran with it sans Tuba. Was good to hear it performed live. Thanks for publishing it along with Moten/era pics. Love to do it again with WCJ. Randy

[dzheger]

Marvelous perky sound. Havana dances with New Orleans (or Kansas City). Great photos.

[vulcanswork]

Favoloso.