Because of its mainstream popularity, some songwriting circles have referred to a chord progression that utilizes a dominant-Three chord as the “Georgia” changes, despite its common occurrence in other early jazz standards heard throughout New Orleans, like “All of Me” and “Basin Street Blues.”
Read MoreIt was Chicago gospel composer Kenneth Morris who first published an arrangement in 1940 based on variations sung by railroad porters that he had transcribed during his travels. Along with choir director Sallie Martin, the Martin & Morris Music Company became one of the oldest publishers of American music, and whose catalogue has since been donated to the Chicago Public Library.
Read MoreThe influence of New York City’s bustling jazz scene in the 1940s, using Broadway tunes to create bebop, led to the appearance of “Paper Moon” in the Tennessee Williams Pulitzer Prize-winning play A Streetcar Named Desire, a story that takes place in New Orleans.
Read MoreGiven the tune’s simple chord changes and singable melody, “Lady Be Good” is often overlooked by post-modern and doctoral musicians in debt to their previous lives. But in such a timeless city as New Orleans, music does not get erased - modern jazz is a living preservation of early traditions and spirits that prolong legacy rather than recycle invention.
Read More
