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Favourite recording of ... Moten Swing?
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 2:03 pm
by Haydn
Well we can't leave this one out
. I'm always hearing different versions, and I never know what they are. Most are modern, and they always seem to work - it's that sort of number. I think my favourite is by Andy Kirk, arranged by Mary Lou Williams, but the sound quality is poor. There's a good modern version of this by 'Big Band Sounds', which is available on iTunes.
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:34 pm
by djstarr
I like the version on Count Basie/Atomic Swing - nice slow barn burner, really builds up to a big finish.
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 6:13 pm
by julius
I like the Kansas City soundtrack version. The opening notes are slightly out of tune and disjointed, like the band is really relaxed and having fun.
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 6:42 pm
by Campus Five
I really dig the Willie Smith version with Les Paul on the Proper Guitar Box.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop- ... 88-6339846
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:39 pm
by kitkat
Charlie Barnet, hands down. I think the album it's on is called "Cherokee." Exciting play with the recognizeable theme all the way through (rather than getting around to it near the end).
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 9:46 pm
by GemZombie
1. Buster smith w/ Eddie Durham
2. Andy Kirk (more mellow) and I agree... I *love* Mary Lou Williams tunes/arrangments. She *made* the Andy Kirk Band.
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 10:16 pm
by JesseMiner
"Moten Swing" is one of my all-time favorite melodies for dancing! Though I prefer the later arrangement of the song.
My favorites that I regularly play when I DJ are from:
Ray Anthony - Swing Back To The 40's
Oscar Peterson - Night Train
Lindy Hop Heaven - Goin' To Lindy Land
Slam Stewart - Slam Bam (Definitive Black And Blue Sessions)
Jonah Jones - I Dig Jonah
I'm always surprised that one of the many Basie versions doesn't make my list, but I've yet to find a version I enjoy dance-wise as much as the above.
Jesse
Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 12:58 am
by Jonas
Bennie Moten's version from 1932, yeah!
/Jonas
Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 2:52 am
by Lawrence
Vintage: Harry James from "Snooty Fruity"
Hi-Fi: Can't pick among the dozens of Basie versions.
Edit: Forgot about the Kansas City version, which I ironically didn't like at first (way back in the Neo days), but absolutely love now. It is one of my steadfast fallback songs: if all goes wrong and the vibe is completely screwed up, play KC Moten Swing to get things back on track.
Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 1:14 pm
by anton
Jonas wrote:Bennie Moten's version from 1932, yeah!
Amen to that! And what
incredible sound quality (on the Ken Burns Jazz set) for being recorded in 1932!
Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 1:40 pm
by Swifty
julius wrote:I like the Kansas City soundtrack version. The opening notes are slightly out of tune and disjointed, like the band is really relaxed and having fun.
Same here.
Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2007 4:14 am
by Haydn
julius wrote:I like the Kansas City soundtrack version. The opening notes are slightly out of tune and disjointed, like the band is really relaxed and having fun.
Two people have mentioned this now. Is this a band called Kansas City, or the soundtrack of a film by that name? (Sorry, but I've never heard of it.)
Can you give a link to the CD on allmusic?
Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2007 7:26 am
by Jonas
Haydn wrote:julius wrote:I like the Kansas City soundtrack version. The opening notes are slightly out of tune and disjointed, like the band is really relaxed and having fun.
Two people have mentioned this now. Is this a band called Kansas City, or the soundtrack of a film by that name? (Sorry, but I've never heard of it.)
Can you give a link to the CD on allmusic?
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=am ... 6ktr6qkl5x
(vol. 2, with great King Porter Stomp:
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=am ... cibkg9kakm)
/Jonas
Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2007 2:11 pm
by julius
Both albums are worth getting, although not all the music is great for dancing. The vibe on the albums are what really grab you -- just loose, spontaneous, somewhat unrehearsed, just like it would have been in Kansas City in the 30s.
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 9:17 am
by Haydn
Thanks Jonas
