Dr Michael White
in a tribute to
Mr Johnny Dodds with the Blue Clarinet Stompers
PERSONNEL
Dr Michael White (cl); Norman Thatcher (tpt); Emil Mark (pno); Colin Bray (bs); Big Bill Bissonnette (drms).
TRACKS
Gatemouth + Too Tight + Blue Clarinet Stomp + Lonesome Blues + Wild Man Blues + Melancholy + Bull Fiddle Blues + Perdido Street Blues + Messin’ Around + Oriental Man + Loveless Love.
Recorded 14 October 1999 at the Audiophile Studios, New Orleans, Louisiana. Engineered by Richard Bird. Mastering by Bill Bissonnette and Richard P. Robinson.
Reviewed by KJR on computer using Windows 2000 Professional, on the MusicMatch player. . DDD Time 50 minutes. JCCD-3052.
Jazz Crusade, 585 Pond Street, Bridgeport, Connecticut 06606, USA
This is a beautiful album. It’s complete. Complete in one sense that it has achieved to a high standard what it set out to do, namely, to show admiration and afford respect to New Orleanian clarinettist, Johnny Dodds, born 1892 and died when he was just 48 years of age.
It was twenty years ago since Big Bill Bissonnette first heard the Michael White clarinet, which happened in 1980, when he visited Preservation Hall, New Orleans, and wondered who might this Dodds styled clarinettist be.
Listeners to these eleven tracks will be rewarded by the patient decade wait for Jazz Crusade to have been able to produce this album.
Leader of the fifth-tet is clarinettist Dr Michael White, who is from New Orleans, and the chosen trumpeter to front the group with him, is Norman Thatcher, who is from England. A good knowledge of their talents, and sound judgement as can now be witnessed, brought those two frontline jazz artists miraculously together.
Excerpt: “Dodds showed technical proficiency, imagination, excellent construction and improvisational skills.” Bob Wilber in 1982 written by Bernard Klatzke in 78 Quarterly. “It was Dodds’ intensity and emotion that made him so direct and eloquent and moving, especially in the Blues.”
Eleven years ago Kings Jazz Review, reviewing the Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five series wrote of Johnny Dodds on Georgia Grind “a minor performance by Louis for it features mainly some beautiful Blues clarinet.” Suchlike sentiments ran through the 24 Hot Five reviews.
Up until 1930 Johnny Dodds appeared on over 200 recordings and his total output is immeasurable, considering the lengthy gig sessions he used to endure in those days without repeats. He led numerous bands with various titles and recorded Blue Clarinet Stomp with his Trio that included pianist Charlie Alexander and bassist Bill Johnson, but I’m not sure whether or not he had a group, which went by the name of the Blue Clarinet Stompers.
Wood block shots, tastefully executed root New Orleans drumming with nice drum rim shots, complemented by delicately flowing piano fingers movement - Melancholy, and a beautifully toned string bass – Bull Fiddle Blues accompaniment, are in themselves, an attenuational exquisite compilation, seldom now heard in this fashion, which makes for the perfect foil in appreciative no diminutive form, which is an important factor producing the beauty that inspires ever more listening to the sounds of this Dr Michael White et al very fine tribute to Johnny Dodds.
Clearly the two-principle jazz artists were inspired by each other, each having, and holding onto their own chemistry. A dream reminiscence trumpet sound, fluent and consistent spreading all tunes makes for the album being ‘beautiful’ and as one will be able to hear, in particular on Loveless Love a.k.a. Careless Love Blues when the CD crosses your palms.
Haunting opening on Blue Clarinet Stomp screaming nerve-tingling follow-on, the tune ends with all aspects, and wonderful nuances, and range of the clarinet being explored and implemented. Unending variations from Perdido through the complete eleven numbers to Too Tight noting the opening of Lonesome Blues of full clarinet sentimentality, reveals that, here we have an unique clarinet leader of latent jazz bands.
Whether Messin’ Around is a reflection on the Freddy Keppard Cardinals or Blythe’s Washboard Ragamuffins, I can’t say, but what I can say, for the connoisseur of the numbers to recognize them as played, as they are, by the Dr Michael White jazz artists in their style, then this group is surely worthy of their Blue Clarinet Stompers title, and it seems right that it sticks.
Ian King - Kings Jazz Review
28th of July 2000.