I have been hugely impressed in recent months - as I'm sure most fans have - by the meticulous care Tuba Skinny take whenever they select a forgotten or near-forgotten recording from the 1920s and decide to add it to their repertoire. Though they have to adapt the piece to suit their own resources, talents and instrumentation, they keep closely to the spirit of the original, often including the order of events, the structure of the piece and even sometimes the exact notes originally played in two-bar breaks.
Take, for example, their rifacimento of Got No Blues - Lil Hardin's composition recorded by the Hot Five. Have a look at this performance, kindly filmed by James Sterling:
I love the sensible way Shaye tackles Louis' two-bar cornet break at 32 seconds. And note the key-changing subtleties: on the Hot Five original, a banjo interlude craftily slides us from the key of Eb to the key of F. In Tuba Skinny's performance, hear Jason do exactly the same (54 seconds to 1 minute 05 seconds). Later, just as Louis plays a succession of notes to transpose the piece back into Eb before handing the next solo on to clarinet-player Johnny Dodds, so Shaye plays a similar pattern of notes (1 minute 48 seconds to 1 minute 54 seconds) to return the tune to Eb and so hands it on to Craig in that key.
These things don't just happen. They require hours of preparation, coordination and practice. Then, when the tune is ready for public performance, every player knows exactly what is happening and what he is required to do, and when.
Next, consider I Got The Cryin' Blues. It was composed by Sara Martin and Tom Johnson, and recorded in September 1924 by Sara Martin and her Jug Band. Here's their version of it played by Tuba Skinny:
As you can hear, it has an 8-bar Verse (played just once) and a 16-bar Chorus. But here's the interesting thing: the Chorus is sometimes played with the addition of a two-bar tag! You can hear Erika sing the tag at 2 mins. 21 secs. You can hear Shaye play it at 1 min. 41 secs; and again right at the end, before the Coda. And guess what? Tuba Skinny have followed the structure of the original Sara Martin recording and have punctiliously placed the Tags exactly where Sara and her Band played them. Of course the whole Band knows exactly when they are coming. Nobody makes a mistake. That's a further illustration of the meticulous care the band takes in its preparation of tunes for our entertainment.
And consider how they recreate King Oliver's 1929 recording of Too Late, which was composed by Dave Nelson and Oliver himself. Click on this performance:
This is a 32-bar tune with a simple chord progression. With Rhadamanthine scrupulosity, Tuba Skinny begin with the extraordinary 'speeding up fanfare' Introduction of Oliver's recording. Then they follow the equally extraordinary example set by Oliver of dropping the key from Eb to C for one Chorus only - the second. Even Oliver's two-bar breaks are scrupulously respected. Shaye herself faithfully copies (at 3 mins. 53 secs.) the break that occurs in Bars 15 and 16 of the 32. To do this, she has to play the highest note I have heard her play anywhere in a YouTube video. She is not one of those soulless players who like to show off by playing lots of high notes all the time, but in this moment she proves she can hit such a note when she wants to be faithful to the original recording.
Cushion Foot Stomp has proved very popular with audiences. Here is a Tuba Skinny performance of this piece:
Although Tuba Skinny sensibly do not include the scat vocal to be heard on the original Clarence Williams recording from 1927, the Coda and Shaye's 'decorations' (exactly as cornet-player Ed Allen provided on the original recording) illustrate well the band's attention to detail when they set about producing a rifacimento of a classic recording from the past.
For the benefit of anyone who may have difficulty following the ichnography of jazz classics from the 1920s, here's the lay-out of this one. You will note that it has three themes, like many of the jazz classics of that era.
Tuba Skinny follow Clarence Williams, by playing the piece in the key of Eb.
(1) EIGHT-BAR INTRODUCTION : 28 seconds - 38 seconds.
(2) THEME A (standard 12-bar) : 39 secs. - 54 secs. Craig leading with the main melody.
(3) THEME B (24 bars) : Todd leading, with Shaye 'decorating' : 55 secs. - 1 min. 27 secs.
(4) THEME B (24 bars) : Craig leading, with Shaye 'decorating’ : 1 min. 28 secs - 1 min. 59 secs.
(5) THEME A (the 12-bar again) : 2 mins. 00 secs. - 2 mins. 16 secs.
(6) BRIDGE (4 bars, leading into THEME C): 2 mins. 17 secs. - 2 min. 21 secs.
(7) THEME C [Classically known as the TRIO. This is the Main Theme on which the piece settles, and is used as the basis for improvised solos. It consists of 16 bars, always with a ‘break’ on Bars 7 and 8] : Taken by Barnabus, and indeed with the ‘break’ : 2 mins. 22 secs. – 2 mins. 43 secs. (You can hear his ‘break’ at 2 mins. 30 secs. - 2 mins. 32 secs.)
(8) THEME C : Taken by Craig and including the ‘break’ - 2 mins. 44 secs. – 3 mins. 04 secs.
(9) THEME C : Taken by Shaye and including the ‘break’ - 3 mins. 05 secs. – 3 mins. 26 secs.
(10) THEME C : Taken by Jason and including the ‘break’ - 3 mins. 27 secs. – 3 mins. 47 secs.
(11) THEME C : Taken by Todd and including the ‘break’ - 3 mins. 48 secs. – 4 mins. 08 secs.
(12) THEME C : Taken by Robin and including the ‘break’ - 4 mins. 09 secs. – 4 mins. 29 secs.
(13) THEME C : Taken by the full ensemble but with collective ‘break’ on signal from Shaye - 4 mins. 30 secs. – 4 mins. 50 secs.
(14) CODA (4 bars) : Initiated by Robin – 4 mins. 51 secs – 4 mins. 59 secs.
Finally, have a listen to Tuba Skinny's re-creation of Kiss Me Sweet:
This song was composed by Steve J. Lewis and Armand J. Piron in 1923. Like Piron, Tuba Skinny play it in the key of C; and they play the 16-bar Verse only once. Also like Piron they take Bars 7 and 8 of the 20-bar Chorus as a 'break'. You can hear Todd play it at 1 min 14 secs and 3 mins 45 secs, Barnabus at 1 min 52 secs, Craig at 2 mins 29 secs, Max at 3 mins 08 secs and Robin at 4 mins 22 secs. There is an amusing Coda in the Piron recording which - surprisingly - Tuba Skinny omit, though they have a lovely rallentando ending instead.
The interesting rhythmic backing to Craig's solo is the kind of thing Tuba Skinny devise and execute so well, as is the way Craig and Shaye play harmonies behind Barnabus's solo chorus.
Though Tuba Skinny choose not to have a vocal, there are words to this tune. For the words of the Chorus, go to Piron's original recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7HuZNF77IQ - or if you would like to hear the words of the Verse as well as the Chorus, go to the King Oliver recording (he plays it in the key of G):https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJTecT7DHOQ
20-bar Choruses are unusual, though there was a fashion for them at the time. Think of After You've Gone, What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes At Me For?, Oh You Beautiful Doll, The Darktown Strutters Ball, Drop That Sack, Hard-Hearted Hannah, You've Got the Right Key but the Wrong Keyhole and Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries, for example.
One final bit of tedious analysis: when it's Shaye's turn to play the 20-bar Chorus as a solo (2 mins 55 secs), she plays the first six bars and then gives the next two (the break) to Max; she then plays Bars 9 to 12 and leaves the remaining eight to Max. This is a typical Tuba Skinny stratagem - and a lesson to us all in how to make the music interesting.
Almost all Tuba Skinny performances are masterclasses for the rest of the world's traditional jazz bands. There. You will be relieved to hear I've finished and will now go and have a cup of coffee.
