Laverie Vallee, known better as Charmion, was a Sacramento born trapeze artist who possessed strength and a physique most men would be envious of. However, she was most well known for her risqué striptease performances. The act was incredibly impressive and provocative for the era. One of her greatest fans was Thomas Edison. As a result of that adoration, on November 11, 1901 Charmion committed a simplified version of her act to film for Edison. Charmion eventually retired to Santa Ana, California. She passed away on February 6, 1949 at the age of 73.
[Video found here. It’s silent. Talkies didn’t become commercially viable until the 1920s, so don’t crank up the volume and blow your speakers later.]
The Al Cohn Quartet at the Sanremo Jazz Festival 1987. Al Cohn (1925-1988) was one of the greatest improvisational jazz saxophonists of all time. Now check this out:
That’s Shaye Cohn, Al Cohn’s granddaughter, playing stride.
Now check THIS out:
Shaye Cohn – Cornet, Piano, Fiddle, Accordion, Banjo & Spoons
Craig Flory – Clarinet & Saxophone
Barnabus Jones – Trombone, Banjo, Fiddle, Guitar, Vocals
Todd Burdick – Tuba
Gregory Sherman – Vocals, Guitar & HarmonicaMax Bien-Kahn – Guitar & Banjo
Jason Lawrence – Banjo & Guitar
Robin Rapuzzi – Washboard & Drum set
Erika Lewis – Vocals & Bass drum
Dang. I’ve been impressed with Shaye Cohn’s stuff for years without knowing her pedigree, and now I know where she got it from. Note how she cues the band while playing.
Have a great weekend, folks, and we’ll do something else tomorrow.
Amazing. The contents of clay cylinders found during the excavation of ancient Babylon is evidence that soapmaking was known as early as 2800BC, and these guys in Nablus are still doing it the ancient way, by hand. Why?
Nice animation that must have taken a while to make [via].
Fishing with John (with Japanese subtitles). From the Utoobage comments: “The problem with other fishing shows is that they are too polished, too normal. And they don’t have enough Tom Waits.”
I don’t know what Fishbone was yammering about here, but I like the vibe.
As long as a tune was good, I never paid much attention to lyrics, but sometimes, years later, I found that the songs I liked a lot weren’t about what I thought they were about at all.
Have a great weekend, folks. See you back here tomorrow for stuff.
On 28 October 1976, 35 year-old Frank Zappa appeared on The Mike Douglas Show to discuss his music and promote his album “Zoot Allures.” Note that Douglas’ show aired in the afternoons and was tailored to stay-at-home moms. Zappa picked an easy one for the studio band: “Black Napkins,” one of my favorite Zappa instrumentals.
“My god. You could base a whole religion around this groove.” -Comment on the UToobage.
Apparently the clip above comes from “My First Name Is Maceo,” a concert/documentary DVD released in 2005.
Kyoto Tachibana High School Brass Band, November 23, 2017 Rose Parade National Commemorative Parade at Fushimi Osuji Shopping Street.
They memorized the music. They memorized the choreography. They stayed in tune while jumping around and not breaking teeth, and they also stayed in perfect formation. What happens to them in private if they miss a step or crack a note? I’m still impressed [via].
Yeah, she’s got it down on the uke, but it was garbage even when Elvis sung it. Adult singers are much worse since they should know better, like this FAIL, this FAIL and THIS MAJOR LEAGUE FAIL.
The Chantays were from Santa Ana, California. The oldest was 17, the youngest 14, when they recorded their 1962 hit “Pipeline” (according to the liner notes on my LP.) I was a kid in the midwest when I first heard it, and I liked it, but I didn’t equate it with surfing. I imagined a rock n’ roll sludge pump.
According to Wiki, the Chantays originally called the song “Liberty’s Whip” but I have my doubts.
A year later, The Ventures co-opted the classic. Not sure if royalties were paid but their version didn’t make Billboard’s Top 100.
Joanie Sommers‘ 1962 hit “Johnny Get Angry” was a complaint about a wimpy boyfriend who wouldn’t stand up for himself, let alone her (and includes a kazoo chorus for some bizarre reason).
Maryann Lents hails from Tallinn, Estonia and nails American rockabilly. She mixes up band members depending on venue. Not sure if it’s “Maryann” or “Mariann” since it appears both ways on the FB pages (and yeah, she’s jamming chords).
