Swing or Nothing!

Count Basie is easily one of my all-time favorite big band swing artists. One of the first swing CD Box Sets I ever purchased was The Complete Decca Recordings, and oh man, it was so worth it every penny. I picked up the box set right around the time I was delving into practicing my fast swingouts and the 3-CD set provided ample music to work up a sweat. The tracks included are some of Basie’s earlier recordings, what is often called “Old Testament” Basie, which you can identify not only by the old-style recording sound quality, but also by the staccato and jankier feel of the music. Later “New Testament” recordings tend to have what I like to call a smoother and more buttery sound.

The Wikipedia claims that Basie’s signature tracks are the One O’Clock Jump and April in Paris, but my guess is that is from a listening standpoint. Any real lindy hopper knows that Basie’s real anthem of swing is….piano roll please: Jumpin’ at the Woodside!

Some of my other fast lindy favorites in no particular order from the Decca Recordings are:

1. Swingin’ the Blues
2. Shorty George
3. Doggin’ Around
4. Every Tub
5. Honeysuckle Rose
6. Exactly Like You
7. Swingin’ at the Daisy Chain
8. John’s Idea
9. Topsy

And if you prefer a more mid-tempo sound, here are my recommended tracks:

1. Georgianna
2. Boogie Woogie (I may be wrong)
3. Pennies from Heaven
4. One O’Clock Jump
5. Sent for You Yesterday

…really though, the entire set is awesome, so I would heartily recommend purchasing the whole box set instead of individual tracks. The Amazon.com links above are for purchasing the physical 3-CD Set vs. the equivalent MP3 Album. If you’re interested in music history, then you’ll want the former…since it’s got great liner notes to read.

From the Wikipedia:

William “Count” Basie (March 24, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Widely regarded as one of the most important jazz bandleaders of his time, Basie led his popular Count Basie Orchestra for almost 50 years. Many notable musicians came to prominence under his direction, including tenor saxophonists Lester Young and Herschel Evans, trumpeters Buck Clayton and Harry “Sweets” Edison and singers Jimmy Rushing and Joe Williams. Basie’s theme songs were “One O’Clock Jump” and “April In Paris“.

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Woo-wee! I am still reeling a bit from all the fun I had at one of my biggest Swing or Nothing! gigs to date: Bay Splash Blues!

Bay Splash Blues was a fund raising event and party to benefit Bay High School in the Presidio. The party had a blues and boogie-woogie theme, and included dinner, live music, dancing, a silent auction and a live auction hosted by news anchor Jan Yanahiro. Wow, you wouldn’t believe how much money they raised!

Alison Matoon, the co-chair of the event, contacted me about the gig back in January. She and her husband had taken a single private dance lesson with me about a year ago, completely on a whim, and so she had me in mind to help provide live music and dance entertainment for the event.

Hearing the Blues & Boogie Woogie theme, I knew that one of my favorite bands — the Jelly Roll Souls — would be perfect for the gig. Alison and her co-chair soon agreed after coming to hear the band play one week at Cat’s Corner. I also recommended that we have 3 couples worth of “atmosphere” dancers to social dance and help set the mood.

It was great to step into Herbst International Exhibition Hall on the evening of the performance and and see the stage, lighting and elegant dinner tables being set up. My right-hand-man and all-round awesome sound guy, Gary Hobish, was already there making sure that the band’s tech requirements were met. With that going on, I was free to worry about the status of my dancers. Once they had trickled in, we went over the schedule for the evening and our role in the show.

We all enjoyed a quick dinner service back stage and then changed into our costumes. I think we all looked sharp and sexy in our semi-formal black & solid color costumes…but you can see for yourself.

The idea was for the guys to wear black suits with solid colored shirts and for the ladies to wear black skirts with colored tops to match the guys. Our couples were:

Dave & Shirley (the RED couple)

Mara & Riccardo (the BLUE couple)

Me (Nathan) & Yon (the Orange Couple)

The Jelly Roll Souls have always had a knock-out and dance-irresistible sound, and this night was no exception. There was a small wooden dance floor set up in front of the band stand, with two round tables and chairs in the corners of the floor. Awash in red & blue lighting, the idea was to recreate a smoky blues club atmosphere.

I had so much fun dancing! I pretty much forgot that I was “working” a gig…and that is a great feeling. I mean, I think there is a certain enjoyment that one gets at the end of the performance, to have completed a major goal or task you’ve worked toward…but then there is also another whole different feeling to actually be enjoying the gig in the moment, to be able to sort of step back within your own mind, and see yourself smiling so big and glowing so heartfelt, because you’re truly and unequivocally enjoying what you’re doing. That’s what it was like on Saturday.

I think the energy of the band and dancers reverberated throughout the auditorium. Were every gig like this one, I would surely be a happy man.

Cheers and HUGE THANKS to all who made this gig possible!

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Congratulations to all 10 of the Free Private Lesson Contest winners! Each of these contestants correctly identified the name of the song that I first started swing dancing to, Crazy Little Thing Called Love by Queen.

1. John Delois
2. Carol Peebles
3. Tomoko Takeda
4. Lisa Buchanan
5. Kali C.
6. Frank Thorne
7. Reba Brinkley
8. Mike Fauteux
9. Kimetha Vanderveen
10. Shirley Yap

For those of you who didn’t make it to the Top 10, you can still take advantage of a $10 discount on private lessons that I’m offering for the month of April.

Here are the original contest rules.

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Dear Friends,

Sunday, April 5th is my birthday and to celebrate I’d actually like to give away the presents this year: free private dance lessons!

Yeah. That’s right. Free.

The first 10 individuals or couples who can answer the personal trivia question at the end of this message may each claim a free 1-hour private dance lesson.

Lesson Details:

• 1-hour private lesson w/ Nathan Dias
• taught at Nathan’s home dance studio in the Inner Sunset, SF
• lesson times available on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday evenings + weekdays during the day
• limit 1 lesson per individual or couple

Use this opportunity to:

• learn the basics in a private setting
• refine & improve your technique w/ individual feedback
• learn new moves, footwork, styling and more
• practice class material with an experienced partner
• learn to dance for your wedding or special event

I’m also offering a $10 discount on private lessons for the month of April, in case you miss being one of the lucky 10.

And now for the personal trivia question:

What is the name of the song that Nathan first started swing dancing to?

(Hint: you can find the answer somewhere on my website)

Email me, call me or come and talk to me at a dance with the answer to claim your lesson.

Cheers and happy dancing…oh, and Happy Birthday to all the other Aries/April Birthday people out there

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