The History of Jazz by Ted Gioia Page A

rhythmic patterns developed years before in the ragtime idiom. And even at its dirtiest, the New Orleans clarinet rarely approached the rawness of the more unbridled cornet improvisations. In this environment, it was mostly left to the brass players—Bolden, Keppard, Oliver, Armstrong—to expand the rhythmic vocabulary and explore the variations of tone possible within the context of the New Orleans style.
    Bechet played the most prominent role in developing the clarinet as a mature solo voice in jazz. Other performers, no doubt, also contributed—hear, for instance, Leon Roppolo’s underappreciated recordings with the New Orleans Rhythm Kings that gave notice of the instrument’s potential as early as 1922—yet Bechet’s role was especially influential in pointing the way toward a more melodic, linear conception of the horn, and drawing on a more expansive palette of sounds. Much like King Oliver, Bechet developed a voicelike quality to his playing, and exhibited a rare sensitivity to the potential of timbre and phrasing. These skills allowed him to stand out as a premier soloist, yet—unlike Armstrong—Bechet felt equally at home submerging his melody lines in the larger ensemble.
    This difference in temperament between the two great New Orleans players is evident in their December 1924 pairing on “Early Every Morn,” where they ostensibly support vocalist Alberta Hunter. Bechet’s soprano work, with its mixture of high held notes and diving phrases into the lower register, blends well with the group and provides ample space for Armstrong’s countermelodies. Armstrong, in contrast, assumes a more assertive posture and belts out a flamboyant coda to the performance, one that tends to eclipse Hunter and the rest of the band. Such exhibitions of technique were not Bechet’s forte. Yet he too could indulge in grandstanding when the situation so warranted. On another collaboration from the period, “Texas Moaner Blues,” Armstrong again takes center stage with a brief burst of double time in his feature break, but Bechet is not to be outdone in this encounter. He lets loose a swarming cannonade of angular phrases, less fluid than the cornetist’s, but clearly signaling a determination to match any contender note for note, even the great Louis Armstrong. And this time Bechet steals the show with a bluesy coda.
    Bechet flirted with big band music, and even served a brief stint with the Ellington orchestra; but, for the most part, he retained his predilection for the New Orleans ensemble style. In the early 1930s, when Armstrong adapted his music to the public’s newfound preference for big bands, Bechet kept true to the earlier approach, most notably in his recordings with trumpeter Tommy Ladnier. Their work on “I Found a New Baby” and “Maple Leaf Rag” from 1932 demonstrated, to those willing to listen, that the old style had not lost its charm. Audiences, however, were largely unimpressed— the New Orleans revival was still almost a decade away. After an unsuccessful stint at the Savoy Ballroom, Bechet and Ladnier temporarily left the music business, setting up a tailor shop in Harlem, where the trumpeter shined shoes while Bechet focused mostly on pressing and repairs—when he wasn’t busy in the back room cooking Creole food or hosting a jam session.
    Bechet was eventually enticed back into performing by an offer from bandleader Noble Sissle. For four years, until 1938, Bechet worked as a sideman for Sissle, before leaving to front his own group and pursue freelance opportunities. During the late 1930s and early 1940s, public interest in the early pioneers of jazz was on the rise, with Bechet being one of the beneficiaries of these changing attitudes. Bechet began recording in traditional jazz settings, for Blue Note and other labels, as well as gigging regularly at Nick’s and other New York venues. Unlike some other first-generation players, Bechet’s skills had not declined by the time his