Screaming Saxophones Have A Ball

Side One:
01. Have A Ball - Joe Houston Orchestra
02. Houston's Hot House - Joe Houston Orchestra
03. Leo's Boogie - Leo Parker And His Mad Lads
04. Cool Leo - Leo Parker And His Mad Lads
05. SOS - Charlie Singleton And His Band
06. Please Don't Leave Me Here - Charlie Singleton And His Band
07. Artistry In Mood - Joe Thomas And His Orchestra

Side Two:
01. Tearing Hair - Joe Thomas And His Orchestra
02. Turntable - Morris Lane And His Combo
03. What Did Sam Say - Paul Bascomb And His Orchestra
04. Ain't Nothin' Shakin' - Paul Bascomb And His Orchestra
05. Forty-Nine-Fifty - Bumps Myers Sextet
06. Memphis Hop - Bumps Myers Sextet
07. September Song - Morris Lane And His Combo

Screaming Saxophones Have A Ball (Zippy)

Screaming Saxophones Have A Ball (Mega)

As I'm currently operating without a turntable, the next few posts will consist mainly of revivals of material posted in the earliest days of the blog with upgraded artwork and updated information. In addition I have a few other "projects" in mid development, so Be Bop Wino will keep going despite the (temporary) equipment crisis.

"Screaming Saxophones Have A Ball" was originally posted in August 2008 back when I still hadn't mastered the art of scanning a complete LP cover. This time round you get improved artwork plus additional information on these mainly obscure sides. If ever an LP embodied the ethos of Be Bop Wino it was this one with its mix of jazzers and early R&B tenor sax men all blowing fit to bust.

The notes on the back cover are very readable and I've added some more info below, although details remain somewhat hazy for a few of these sides. Here we go -

Have A Ball / Houston's Hot House by The Joe Houston Orchestra (Modern 850), released in December 1951. Recorded in Baton Rouge in the autumn of 1951. Personnel: Walter Miller (trumpet) ; August "Dimes" Dupont (alto sax); Joe Houston (tenor sax); Marian McKinley (piano); Robert Gray (bass); Robert Byrd (drums); Lois Butler (vocal on "Have A Ball").

Cool Leo / Leo's Boogie by Leo Parker And His Mad Lads (United 141), released in January 1953. Recorded in Chicago on November 15th, 1952. Personnel: Leo Parker (baritone sax); Andy Johnson (piano); Remo Biondi (guitar, violin); Ira Pettiford (bass); Jack Parker (drums).

Please Don't Leave Me Here To Cry / S.O.S. by Charlie Singleton and His Band (Lee 208). Release date unknown. Recorded in New York 1950-51. Personnel: Charlie Singleton (tenor sax); unknown (baritone sax); Gildo Mahones (piano); unknown (guitar); Martin Rivera (bass); John Godfrey (drums); Jake Vaughan (vocal on "Please Don't Leave Me Here To Cry").

Tearing Hair by Joe Thomas, His Sax and His Orchestra (King 4318). Other side was "My Baby Done Left Me." Released in October 1949. Recorded in New York on May 21st, 1949. Personnel: Joe Thomas (tenor sax) with Emmett Berry and John Grimes (trumpets); Dickie Harris (trombone); Ben Kynard (baritone sax); George Rhodes (piano); George Duvivier (bass); Joe Marshall (drums).

Artistry In Moods by Joe Thomas, His Sax and His Orchestra (King 4339). Other side was "Wham-A-Lam." Released in February 1950. Recorded in New York on November 28th, 1949. Personnel: Joe Thomas (tenor sax) with Emmett Berry and John Grimes (trumpets); Dickie Harris (trombone); Ben Kynard (baritone sax); George Rhodes (piano); George Duvivier (bass); Joe Marshall (drums).

September Song / Turntable by Morris Lane and his Combo (Continental 6074), released in August 1948. Reviewed in Billboard, August 28th, 1948. Recording date unknown - thought to be in early 1947. Personnel: Morris Lane (tenor sax) with unknown small combo.

Ain't Nothin' Shakin' / What Did Sam Say? (London 17002) by Paul Bascomb and His Orchestra. Release date unknown, probably in 1949. Recorded in New York, 1949. Personnel: Eddie Lewis (trumpet); Frank Porter, Tommy Waters (alto saxes); Paul Bascomb (tenor sax,vocal); Harold Wallace (baritone sax); Duke Jordan (piano); James McCray (bass); George DeHart (drums).

Memphis Hop / Forty-Nine-Fifty (Selective 106) by the Bumps Myers Sextet. Release date unknown, possibly August 1949. Recorded in Los Angeles in May / June 1949. Personnel: Bumps Myers (tenor sax) with unknown small combo.

Ride that riff, baby!