'Dear Almanzoer' was composed in 1927 by Oscar ‘Papa’ Celestin and was recorded in New Orleans by his band in April that year.
You can watch a video I made of Tuba Skinny playing this tune:
In their performance, Tuba Skinny have kept very closely to the structure of the original recording, even though their instrumentation is slightly different from Celestin's. Playing, like his band, entirely in the key of E flat, they open with the 16-bar VERSE (03 seconds – 26 seconds). This VERSE, which unfortunately is played only once in the entire recording, is in my opinion the most attractive part of the whole piece: it is both catchy and merry. It ends on the chord of B flat 7th, which leads neatly into the tonic at the start of the 32-bar CHORUS (played from 27 secs. to 1 min. 12 secs.).
After this, there are FIVE successive improvisations on a 12-BAR BLUES structure. The opening two are played by the clarinet (Jonathan, 1 min. 13 secs – 1 min. 47 secs.). EXACTLY AS ON THE CELESTIN 1927 VERSION, Jonathan’s first Chorus is backed by off-beat stop chords and the second by single and double stop chords. Getting this tricky rhythmic pattern right is a fine example of the care and trouble Tuba Skinny take in preparing their music for public performance.
The third 12-bar blues is taken by Shaye on cornet (1 min. 48 secs. - 2 mins. 04 secs.); and the final two by Barnabus on trombone (2 mins. 05 secs. - 2 mins.40 secs.). Note here a very small difference from the original Celestin recording: Tuba Skinny have reversed the order of events with the cornet and trombone solos.
To end the piece, Tuba Skinny (like Celestin) do not go back to the Verse (which is a pity in my opinion, as it deserves a second hearing); instead they simply play through the 32-bar CHORUS one more time, ending with a double snap from Robin's cymbal.
When I filmed this video (in 2015), the only vantage point I could get in the large crowd was right behind Jonathan. However, I hope this angle helps you appreciate Shaye’s fingering and also the energy and hard work she has always put into her playing. Unlike most cornet and trumpet players, she rarely allows herself a break. When she is not leading the ensemble or soloing, she still contributes – gently decorating the solos of Jonathan and Barnabus.
The whole performance is so respectful of, and faithful to, the original Celestin recording. It shows beyond doubt the loving care with which Tuba Skinny re-create such forgotten gems from long ago. 'Dear Almanzoer' may also be heard on Tuba Skinny's 'Blue Chime Stomp' CD, recorded in 2015, in a performance remarkably similar to this one, though Robin, like percussionist Abby Foster in the 1927 Celestin recording, at the very end gives only a single snap on the cymbal, rather than a double.
