Alfredo Gutiérrez, a three-time “El Rey del Vallenato Legend Festival,” popularized cumbia in the 1960’s with studio performances of a ballroom-style called porro, notable for the cowbell rhythms played on rim or shell of the drum. His recording of Rafael Sánchez’s “La Banda Borracha” incorporates the porro style and employs radio-drama studio effects to paint a story of musical inebriation.
Read MoreAmong the session musicians was Spanish Harlem trombonist Barry Rogers, whose Latin influence complimented the Eastern African sentiment of Harrell’s melodies.
Read MoreIn 1940, the first Black vocal group to host a national radio show, The Mills Brothers, recorded a version of Berlin’s “Marie” featuring Louis Armstrong on trumpet and lead vocal, perhaps as an act of retribution for Doc Wheeler’s contributions.
Read MoreWritten in 1931 by Gerald Marks and Seymore Simons, author Ted Gioia suggests that Armstrong’s up-beat presentation of “All Of Me” contradicts the sentiment of the lyrics, that the song is essentially a blues of resignation and heartbreak, and he points to the 1941 Billie Holiday and Lester Young recording as the definitive interpretation.
Read MoreWhen Kermit Ruffins left the Rebirth Brass Band to preserve the Danny Barker traditions of New Orleans jazz, the trumpeter must have had the foresight to see his original tunes take on a timeless legacy. Originally recorded in 1999, “Treme Second Line” encapsulates the festive spirit throughout one of the oldest Black neighborhoods in the United States.
Read MoreWritten by Harry Warren and Johnny Mercer, “Jeepers Creepers” was nominated for an Academy Award for its featured performance in the 1938 film Going Places, in which Louis Armstrong portrayed an “Uncle Tom” character who sings the adoring song to a racehorse.
Read More“Chinatown, My Chinatown” fails to acknowledge the suffering and oppression of people of color for the sake of cultural appropriation.
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