St. Louis Blues - Is it really Bunk playing the trumpet
As a bonus in the Bunk Johnson book ”Song of the wanderer”, a CD was enclosed with unheard recordings. One of the recordings , St. Louis Blues, recorded a the Caravan Ballroom, New York City, October 1947 caught particular attention. The reason was that people started to question if Bunk Johnson really was the trumpet player.
The music from the Caravan Ballroom is enclosed above together with two recordings of the tune on the American Music label, where the presence of Bunk is undisputed. The reader is urged to compare the performance of the trumpet player and judge weather it indeed is Bunk playing at the Caravan Ballroom or someone else.
The Swedish Bunk Johnson Society performed a study on the subject and the results was published by Claes Ringqvist in Bunk Johnson Information, spring 2002. The article, slightly edited, is shown below. Cited references mentioned in the article are also published.
Bunk Johnson or Jerry Blumberg on the trumpet/cornet chair on ”St Louis Blues”,
recorded a the Caravan Ballroom, New York City, October 1947.
A prospective Questionnaire Study
Claes Ringqvist B.D. & the Bunk Johnson Trial Group
The Bunk Johnson Information Research Division
Objectives - The objective was to try to find out whether there is any sign of consensus among members of the Swedish Bunk Johnson Society concerning who is playing cornet/trumpet on the recording (St Louis Blues) of October 1947 a the Caravan Ballroom, New York City.
Design – A Questionnaire was sent out to distinguished members of the Swedish Bunk Johnson Society, cornetists/trumpeters or ex-cornetists/trumpeters and devoted scholars).
The Questionnaire was made up of only two questions:
1. Who do You think is playing?
2. A short motivation of why just him.
Results – 13 (72%) were convinced it is Bunk Johnson playing, while 5 (28%) were totally convince it is not Bunk, but Jerry Blumberg (or somebody else but Bunk).
Conclusions - It is difficult to draw any straight conclusions. But the results must be interpreted so, that we cannot say for sure who is really playing the cornet/trumpet on the tune St. Louis Blues, recorded at the Caravan Ballroom in New York City in October 1947.
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BACKGROUND
When the marvelous, magnificent and very much awaited book on Bunk (l) was launched early 2001 most of us were very flabbergasted over this ”labour of love”. A very specific CD accompanied the book, with 16 rare tracks – a lot of splendid music.
Track No 16, ”St Louis Blues” was recorded in October 1947. at the Caravan Ballroom in New York City. According to the ”sleeve notes” the band consisted of: Bunk Johnson (tpt), Unknown (cl), Bob Mielke (tb) Dick Wellstood (pno) Charles Treager (sbs), Irv Kratka (dms).
As Bunk Johnson´s disciple Jerry Blumberg, was in town (NYC) at that time, there has been some discussions of wheather it really is Bunk who is playing at that record or presumably Jerry Blumberg. In a ”letter to the editor” (27) Mike Pointon puts up the question again. He refers to a meeting with Cuff Billett (like Mike Pointon, a distinguished member of the Swedish Bunk Johnson Society), who claims that it is not Bunk, but Jerry Blumberg playing on that recording, based on careful aural examination. Mike Pointon is of the same opinion and according to the letter and Louis Lince.
After that statement a lot of reactions followed. Mike Hazeldine regarded it as an established fact that it is Bunk and Barry Martyn (29) wrote with the same opinion to the editor of Just Jazz where he ends ”… and please print this in your magazine before this wild theory gets any further…”
And so within the Research Division of the Swedish Bunk Johnson Society we decided to try to find out what was the opinion of this matter among our members.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
We choose from the Directory of the National Board (Swedish members) 30 members, 20 of whom were active or retired cornet/trumpet players and the rest 10 of them were devoted scholars with an extremely high knowledge of this subject. This time no members of the International Board (foreign members) were chosen, something we will think about if we decide to enlargen the study some day.
A questionnaire was sent out to all thirty chosen members with just two distinct questions:
l. Who do you think is playing trumpet/cornet of this recording
2. Why just him – a short motivation
RESULTS
18 answers dropped in during the study period (dead line April 5, 2002).
8 (44%) came from trumpeters/cornetists, all with an extremely good knowledge of the music of the Revival Era.
4 of them (50%) were of the opinion that it is not Bunk Johnson on that record, while 4 (50%) claimed it is Bunk Johnson.
The rest of the answers came from the devoted scholars.
Only l (10%) was convinced it is not Bunk Johnson playing and 9 of them (90%) thought is is Bunk Johnson.
DISCUSSION
While analyzing the results you will find a very clear differense between the Jerry Blumberg-ers (not-clique) and Bunk Johnson-ers (is-clique) when it comes to motivation of their respective choice.
The Jerry Blumberg qlique (not-clique) has done far more advanced aural analysis of which especially one (22) is outstanding . One can also find more ”universal” generalisations ad modum:
1) ”… he who thinks it is Bunk is an egg-head”
2) ”… I´ll bet a barrel of shit it is NOT Bunk – too amateurish…”
3) ”… I have compared with most of the AM 78:s, and it just cannot be Bunk…”
On the other side, e.g. those (is-clique) who have given Bunk Johnson their choice, one will also find some ambitious aural analysis, but in that group those far most common motivations are:
1) ”Barry Martyn says it is Bunk…”
2) ”Mike Hazeldine says it is Bunk…”
3) ”Jerry Blumberg claims ist is not him…”
4) ”Paul Larsen says it is Bunk…”
We in the Study Group find this kind of argumentation a bit weak, considering the very important aim of the study.
CONCLUSIONS
We in the Bunk Johnson Study Group cannot come up with any conclusions whether it really is Bunk Johnson or not, based on the results of this study. The cohort is far too small. But even if we enlarge it we doubt we would come to another result. So we think that the question will remain:
Is it Bunk Johnson or is it Jerry Blumberg (or somebody else) playing on St Louis Blues, recorded in Caravan Ballroom i New York City, October 1947 ? Maybe we´ll never find the real truth, and that is something that is very fascinating with the subject of jazz, or, as one of the responders concluded:
”Bunk was the best – why not leave at that?”
References
22. Strandberg P.; ”Why it is not Bunk”, March 2002 (letter to the author)
26. Harvey B.; Bunk Johnson – a reappraisal. Just Jazz, Issue No 43, Nov. 2001
27. Pointon M.; ”Dear Editor…” p. 12. Just Jazz, Issue No 44, Dec. 2001
29. Martyn B.; ”Dear Editor…” p. 37, Just Jazz ,Issue No 46, Febr. 2002
Comments from the readers
Reference 27. Mike Pointon´s letter to the editor, JUST JAZZ, December 2001
Dear Editor
Without wishing to make the magazine´s columns too incestuous, I would like to respond to Brian Harvey´s piece on Bunk Johnson in your November issue.
It appears that Mr Harvey is among the faction who, now that Bill Russell is no longer around, is trying to denigrate his selfless work on behalf of New Orleans jazz.
Music must, naturally, be a subjective experience and it was Russell´s considered opinion, as a trained musician and avant-garde composer of some repute, that Bunk was the best: why not leave it at that?
Something that does make one question Harvey´s judgement, however, is a fact that has come to light since “Song of the Wanderer´s” publication: one of the very “Bunk” tracks he praises on the accompanying CD is, it seems, not Johnson at all, but one of his pupils. My friend Cuff Billett, who modestly possesses probably the greatest overall knowledge of the subject, brought this to my attention recently. On re-hearing the version of “St Louis Blues” recorded at the Caravan Ballroom, New York, I hold the same view as Cuff, it sounds like Jerry Blumberg. The phrasing is more like a parody of Bunk´s style and Blumberg, as I mentioned in my Radio 3 series “Bunk & Bill” about Bill Russell´s discovery of Bunk, was a young white musician tutored by Bunk in New York. I played the number to Jim Holmes, a long-time disciple of Bunk, and he agrees,
as does Doug Landau, also an authority on New Orleans music (Doug Landau does not agree to this statement. See his letter below in april 2011 - editor comment).
Louis Lince is another who accepts Cuff´s discovery.
Brian Harvey rightly states that Johnson was a “most lyrical, almost poetical jazz improviser”, but one does wonder what he was listening to when he made that assessment. Bunk was hardly “in his prime” anyway, by 1947 – one would have had to hear him a good 20 years earlier to experience that. Knowing what I´ve learned of Bunk from Bill Russell, I´m sure he´d be smiling somewhere!!
Best wishes
Mike Pointon
Reference 29. Barry Martyn´s letter to Louis Lince, New Orleans Music, Dec 22, 2001
Regarding Mike Pointon´s article in “Just Jazz” regarding the “St Louis Blues” on the CD of my jointly authored “Song of the Wanderer – Bunk Johnson” Book. There is no question that it is Bunk & not Jerry Blumberg. Jerry is a friend of mine and we sat in my house identifying the acetates marked “Bunk at Caravan” that I got from Paul Larsen, the “real” Bunk expert. Paul says it was Bunk… Jerry Blumberg says it was Bunk and he was in the audience that night. In fact Jerry remarked on the variations on Bunk´s solo on this particular song. He said “Bunk played in a much more staccato way when he had been drinking but he still made his variations.” That from Jerry while listening to this track.
In addition both Bob Mielke & Charlie Traeger confirmed to me it was Bunk and they were on the bandstand playing. Listening to it again (and I have listened practically everything Bunk recorded) reconfirm from my own ears that it is Bunk (I have also heard practically all of Jerry´s recorded output including many sides from the Caravan Sessions and the NOLA/NYC private recordings.)
Please print this in your magazine before this wild theory gets any further.
To whom it concerns
Barry Martyn
Reference 22. Paul Bocciolone Strandberg
August 2010 Rolf Wahl
After hearing the two first choruses of this version of St. Louis blues, I quickly realized there was an imposter involved, trying to fool the future world of Bunk Johnson freaks. He plays too many notes that Bunk would never care to do. Bunk would probably have let these fellow musicians back him up in between his phrazing just a little bit more.
One of the devoted Bunk freaks.
Kindly Rolf Wahl
Dear Claes.
I have read your article and I believe I took part of the investigation. I have also studied the comments you collected and I would like to give my own opinion on the subject.
The memory of musicians can be excellent but also the opposite. The names of places and musicians can be mixed up. I decided to only base my judgement on this particular issue on what I could hear and feel.
As a devoted trumpet player in the New Orleans Jazz tradition, I have studied Bunk Johnson´s trumpet style carefully for about 50 years. I am constantly amazed over the fact that Bunk always sends out a great emotion to the listener and his phrazing and tone is unique, regardless if he is sober or drunk. When I hear him, I can feel that he is communicating with me. I feel the same kind of communication for other trumpet players like for instance Louis Armstrong, Red Allen and Sidney deParis. It is like hearing the men talking to me.
Making an analogy with impersonators, of course it may sometimes be difficult to recognize a certain voice if the intention is to imitate the person. In the case of the actual case I don´t hear any intention of imitation, just a moderately talented trumpet player playing St. Louis blues, clearly inspired by Bunk Johnson and borrowing some of his phrases. He has no great sound in the trumpet, expresses no strong emotion, has very vague energy in his playing and sometimes uses somewhat corny phrasing. The tune is quite long and the trumpet player keeps repeating some erratic, meaningless phrases and even uses a little growl at the end of the tune, something Bunk would never do. I don´t recognize the person as Bunk at all. He is not talking to me.
Who the trumpet player is I don´t know, but it is not Bunk Johnson.
Were there no other recordings made that night. That would help to more firmly identify the players ?
Kind regards
Christer Fellers
July 2010 Christer Fellers
Reference 26. Brian Harvey
Dear Hakan,
By chance I recently happened on website where the identity of Bunk as the trumpeter on the 1947 New York recording of St Louis Blues is questioned, and no firm conclusions are drawn. I am also incorrectly listed as a doubter, I never was. It is surprising how many seemed absolutely certain that it was not Bunk. The recorded evidence shows otherwise beyond doubt. If possible, could you update the website by adding the text in blue below.
All the best,
Doug Landau
ST LOUIS BLUES - 1947 "As a footnote, and not strictly related, I was struck when listening to the brass band sides to research this article, by Bunk's last chorus on St Louis Blues (MX 904). There was a certain familiarity. My hunch proved correct. It was for the most part, identical to the final chorus of the 1947 New York recording: the last track on the "The Song of the Wanderer" CD. It will be recalled there was some dispute as to the trumpeter's identity when this first came out. Although sifting all the evidence, both audible and anecdotal, pointed to Bunk, there were perhaps still some doubters: the brass band track lays any such doubts to rest. On both tracks Bunk kicks off the first bar with a three note figure, then repeats a five note riff over the next seven bars, it is only on the last four bars there is some variation.
" Doug Landau: 'New Orleans - A dynasty of Trumpet Kings No.4 - Louis Kid Shot's' Madison"
New Orleans Music No. Vol 11, No.5, September 2004.
PS. I would like to add a couple more points. As well as the phrasing, Bunk's attack and timing on the 1945 Brass band recording (MX 904) and the 1947 New York recording of St Louis Blues are identical. There was a second take of St Louis Blues on the brass band session (MX 905), but it was quite different, so it's no good listening to that.
MX 904 can be found on AMCD-6, and MX905 on the "Fallen Heroes" book CD~3. Neither of the two brass band tracks were issued until some years after (Dan VC 4019, early 1960s) the 1947 New York recording.
Doug Landau
St. Louis Blues
Bunk Johnson Book CD #7.
Bunk or Jerry Blumberg tp.
The discussion continues. Doug Landau sends this message in April 2011.
St. Louis Blues
AM CD 6 (MX 904)
Bunk´s brassband.
Bunk and Kid Shots tp.
St. Louis Blues
Louis Armstrong 1929
OKeh 41350 (mx.493495-B)
St. Louis Blues
American Music MX 211.
Bunk tp.
St. Louis Blues
American Music MX 109.Bunk tp.
St. Louis Blues
Bunk Johnson Book CD #7.
Bunk or Jerry Blumberg tp.
St. Louis Blues
AM CD 6 (MX 904)
Bunk´s brassband.
Bunk and Kid Shots tp.
St. Louis Blues
American Music AMCD-129
Bunk tp and Doc Evans co.
Editors notes in May 2011.
It is interesting and stimulating that the discussion on the subject continues.
” Is it Bunk or someone else playing playing on St. Louis blues ?”.
We invite more comments with proofs in either direction.
The discussion now is the riff Doug Landau is referring to. It is played by the Caravan Ballroom trumpet man and by one or two trumpet players in Bunks´s Brass Band.
The first question is: Who is really playing the lead in Bunks Brass band. Is it Kid Shots, or Bunk or both in harmony?
Secondly, I think it is about time that the recording of St. Louis blues by Louis Armstrong is brought up into the discussion. The phrase we are discussing was appearing for the first time on record by Louis in 1929 and there is most likely that most trumpet players in the New Orleans jazz field had listened to the recording and been influenced by it in one way or another.
I welcome a discussion if the presence of this riff really is s a proof of who is actually playing trumpet in the Carvan Ballroom.
St. Louis Blues
Louis Armstrong 1929
OKeh 41350 (mx.493495-B)
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