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.
“Footnote (September 2015) Why the list stopped growing. The time it takes to process a new entry increases approximately with the square of the list length, after checking for duplications, spoofs etc. Starting it was based on the naïve assumption that the rate of appearances would decline as opposing evidence accumulated, but the reverse happened. That’s the difference between science andreligion. […] There have since been hundreds more claims of an increasingly ludicrous nature.“
At 0:38, “Teacher” Martha Readyoff actually asked Bernie Sanders, “Educating everyone on the need to curb population growth seems a reasonable campaign to enact. Would you be courageous enough to discuss this issue and make it a key feature of a plan to address Climate Catastrophe?“
Look how CNN rephrased her question:
Bernie responded “YES.” Anyone else smell eugenics? I do.
KimKommando chimed in and posted this link: haveibeenpwned.com. Type in your email address(es) and it will tell you if you’ve logged into a site/service that has been the victim of a security breach that may have compromised your personal information (including birthdates, SSNs & passwords).
A Humble Request. Thanks to all contributors and those of you who continue to donate. She had more surgery last week.
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.
Iraq war veteran (Airborne Infantry) bought a plot of farmland in rural Virginia and discovered that something came with it. Grab a mug and listen to his story.
Roy Buchanan (1939-1988) was one of the greatest unknown blues guitarists in modern history. Have a listen to “Roy’s Bluz” live in Austin Texas, 1976. [Related posts here.]
Have a great weekend, folks. Got a nice assortment of Hot Links for you to sift through tomorrow.
Goodbye Mr. Snuggles. (Impressive credits roll, too.)
Stan Ridgway and Wall of Voodoo were unusual for the time. They weren’t prolific, but I liked what they did.
Filmed & Recorded on May 4, 2019 at the Dallas International Guitar Festival
Red House is pure awesome, but I can’t find a direct link to the band.
Kelsi Kee – Vocals
Reece Malone – Guitar
Ally Venable – Guitar
Anthony Cullins – Guitar
Danny Ross – Keys
Mike Gage – Drums
Aram Doroff – Bass
Holy crap. I just found this. So heavy and nasty.
Have a great weekend, folks. See you back here tomorrow for more awesome.
Leon Redbone was an iconic performer who reinvigorated the music of the late 19th to early 20th century, including blues, ragtime, dixieland jazz and country. That he pulled it off in the mid 1970s is an interesting commentary of the state of music of the time (mainstream rock was sucking donkeys). You couldn’t get more retro than Leon Redbone at that time, and he stepped right into the mix.
Rolling Stone described his repertoire as “so authentic you can hear the surface noise of an old 78 rpm.” During a 1974 interview (prior to release of any album) they asked where he first played in public. Redbone responded, “In a pool hall, but I wasn’t playing guitar, you see. I was playing pool.” Apparently he was pretty good at it.
I learned of the song “Ain’t Misbehavin‘” via some sheet music my late grampa had, and I liked the tune. I’d never heard of Fats Waller before I heard Leon Redbone’s version.
In the early ’80s I saw Mr. Redbone perform at The Golden Bear (a small but famous venue with no bad seats). His props were a rattan chair, a side table with a lamp, and his guitar. He was in the middle of a song when he saw the flash of a Kodak Instamatic camera. With lightning speed, he stopped, grabbed a Polaroid Swinger and took a photo of the photographer, then sat quietly humming until the image appeared. He held it up to view.
“Ahhh. Not a bad likeness.”
Then he resumed the song exactly where he left off.
I wasn’t aware of this until today, but there is a documentary on Leon Redbone. Here’s the trailer:
“He was always mysterious, he was always coming and going. It was almost like he was there one second and he’d be gone the next… and you never knew where he’d gone or why or how he’d even left, but suddenly he wasn’t there anymore.” – Jane Harbury, Publicist.
Here’s a link to the full documentary if you’re interested. It’s only 16 minutes, but it’s worth it.
Leon Redbone, you were a breath of fresh air into the stagnant late 70s music scene. May You Rest In Peace.
Tacky Raccoons 