I'm actually attending this with Josh. Who knows, maybe I'll make an observation or two.

I was laying in bed listening to Bix & Tram when I noticed her voice. Something unique about it stirred me to get up and find out who she was.

Bee Palmer.

"I want all of her records," I thought. But there are none to be found.

Bee Palmer, I discovered, was more than a Vocalist and Vaudevillian. Bee was also a stripper. Was she a marked woman? Is this why the record labels never marketed her studio tracks? Or did they really not hear what I hear in her voice? In an era where labels were over-eager to put out new records, Bee Palmer didn't make the cut.

I don't know, but I love the song. I want more Bee Palmer. I want to raise her from the dead, I want to dig through the stories of her contemporaries, the photos and songs, a singular career lost to the chaos of the Jazz Era.

"Vocalist, Dancer, and Vaudevillian Bee Palmer led the first band to be called "The New Orleans Rhythm Kings". This was her accompanying group, and in 1919 included Emmett Hardy, cornet; Santo Peccora, trombone; Leon Roppolo, clarinet, and Palmer's husband Al Seigal, piano.

Palmer was a very magnetic performer, and concidered a sex symbol. Her shimmy dance was highly acclaimed. She was invited to the recording studio repeatedly in the 1920s (after she and the NORK had split ways), but the record companies never saw fit to issue any of the results. A few test pressings have survived, copies of which are circulated amoung collectors."



Singin' The Blues mp3

The Complete OKeh & Brunswick Recordings Of Bix Beiderbecke, Frank Trumbauer and Jack Teagarden 1924-1936, Mosaic Records

Bix & Tram Boxed Set, JSP Records.

How much do I really know about music? Not a lot, I guess.
Still, its one of my favorite things to think about and sometimes talk about.
This month I have been listening to Radio Birdman almost constantly. Also, thanks to the Musical Exchange here in Baltimore closing down, I have been delving back into the happenings of the early 90s, and rediscovering a few gems.

The early 90s are obviously back. The April cover of Spin features Kurt Cobain, and the promise of a nostalgic rehash of the music that excited us ten years ago.
I am not a frequent reader of Spin. I've noticed that they sell issues by including controversial top ten lists all the time, but I don't really care to debate about the top essential new wave metal hardcore straight edge emo pop records of the millennium.
So, for April, I was hoping to regain some insight into the 1990s scene.
What was I expecting... I don't know?
Agreeable or not, the list of "essential grunge records," was the only appropriate feature. The articles about Kurt rambled on pointlessly, with a lot of superfluous sappiness (and this is coming from me!)
Anyway, it's not worthwhile unless you want to read some uninformative and insight-less articles about how much we all miss "St. Kurt." Puh-leez.
As a side note, it failed to mention the completely relevant arrest of Mia Zapata's killer. [archived]
In more exciting early 90's news, The AmRep videos, "Dope, Guns, & Fucking Up Your Video Deck" has been released on DVD. From the AmRep site:

"DOPE, GUNS AND FUCKING UP YOUR VIDEO DECK Volumes 1-3 are all coming out on DVD! Yup somehow we squeezed all 3 volumes and an additional 15 videos into one DVD package. Atavistic (the folks that originally released these ground-breaking video collections) are responsible for unleashing 'em yet again. This is about as complete a visual history of a label can be. Covering AmRep's video output from 1990-1997. Everything from Unsane's MTV hit 'Scrape', to early Boss Hog, Cows, Melvins, Today Is The Day...aw shit everybody. Stuff you'd have to fork up mucho dinero on E-Bay to get, plus 14 bonus videos originally slated for the never released (or completed) Volume 4. All 3 volumes presented in their original edits, to include the work of Rich Kronfeld (a.k.a. Dr. Sphincter). You might have seen Rich as the Host of Comedy Central's 'Let's Bowl', or in such movies as 'Trekies' and "Six Days in Roswell" as he's kept busy since his debuting AmRep performances."

Really awesome.

I will conclude with a mention of some of the related records I have been enjoying as of late.

Teriyaki Asthma Vols. 1-5 CD, C/Z Records, 1991
Nirvana "Bleach" CD, Sub Pop, 1991
The Breeders "Last Splash", 4AD, 1993
Hum "Electra 2000", 12 Inch Records, 1993
Surgery "Trim, 9th Ward Highroller", AmRep, 1993

1) Tragedy - Vengeance

I listen to this song about 500 times a day. I listen to this CD when I am going to bed, because it is good.

2) The Beat Farmers - Selfish Heart & Never Going Back
It is a well known fact that I listen to my favorite songs off of "Tales of the New West" almost every day. Its really disappointing that I dont like most of their other songs or records...
Selfish Heart is one of the most perfect rock n roll songs ever. If they could have kicked out the jams like this all the time.. well, it'd rule. And Never Going back, I just realized last week, has THE BEST lead guitar.

3) The Breeders - Invisible Man
A record store was going out of business, so I stocked up on all kinds of stuff that I was into when I was in middle school. Do You Love me Now is also very rad.

4) Turbonegro - Denim Demon
I got so burned out on Turbonegro by all the Johhny-Come-Latelies... I'm not a snob about new people liking stuff, but everyone in town is really annoying about it. So they go out and have their soirees, I stay home and listen to Ass Cobra on repeat on my headphones.

5) Joe Jackson - Throw It Away
Man, there are some songs I really like, and when I mention it to people, they think of every other bad song by the artist. Trust me, this song rocks, no lie. My band would play it.

6) Flock Of Seagulls - I Ran
Something about this song really gives me this eerie feeling. I think I associate it with some night where I was doing a lot of drugs and creepy things, and it was somewhere in the background. if I was in a band I'd cover this song, but change the guitar sound and get rid of the spacey effects

7) Peter Schilling - Major Tom (coming home)
I have this on a 45 and its fun to sing, because of the line "earth below us" having six notes in it.

8) The Muffs - I need you
This song has this really messy awesome 60s rock thing going on, plus Kim screams a lot... but once again, its an anomoly for the band. Its good, I swear

9) X - Johnny Hit and Run Pauline
More good guitars! I wish I could play guitar, that'd rule.

10) Tori Amos - Over It
One thing I could play was piano. This is a great song because it doesnt have any of her annoying vocals and terrible lyrics. This song is just amazingly written... I couldn't imagine writing anything like this - the left and right hands sound terrible apart - it has no repeated melody. I was so good at playing this song.

11) The Slickee Boys - You've Got What It Takes
This is a band that my mom liked a lot. They're totally 80s.. totally stuck in the 80s. I've been listening to two of their records that I burned on CD, and thinking how cool and profitable it would be to start a band that sounded cheesy like this, and cash in on the 80s craze. it'd rule. I can't really describe them they have some weird surf parts and then a lot of 80s sounding effect pedals and these power ballad guitar parts

12) Bauhaus - Slice of Life

13) The Seldom Scene & Jonathan Edwards - Blue Ridge
I really like singing this song. This is one of the only bluegrass songs I really like, I think. Especially to sing. But I really only like the first few minutes of it, and then it goes into an instrumental with a dobro and stuff.

I hate harmonicas, saxiphones, dobros, awful lyrics, certain vocal styles... I have this list of things that can usually pinpoint what I dont like about a song. Theres so many bands I only like a few songs by, and so many songs I will listen to and block out all instruments but the one whose part I like.