Variety (March 1959)

Wednesday, March 4, 1959 P^RIETY MUSIC 49 Inside Stuff—Music At the rhythm & blues luncheon hosted by Broadcast Music Inc. last week for award-winning writers and publishers, BMI prexy Carl Haverlin reiterated his stand that “music is music is music” and that the r&b writers were “wearing down the partitions in music.” Haver¬ lin had taken a similar position at the first BMI-fostered r&b luncheon in 1957. To prove his point that songs were overlapping pop and r&b categories more and more, he noted that of the 39 tunes that copped BMI’s pop prizes, 29 were also in the r&b category. In '57, only six r&b winners were also pop prize-getters. This year’s luncheon was held at New York’s Hotel Pierre last Wednesday (25). Veteran composer and vaudevillian Nat Vincent, now with Ralph S. Peer’s music companies as southern division manager headquartering in Nashville, is writing his autobiog under the title of “I’m Glad I Lived So Long.” He’s about three-quarters finished and would like some editorial help. Vincent is the composer of such numbers as “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles ” “When The Bloom Is On The Sage” and “It’s Time To Say Aloha,” among others. After breaking into the mu¬ sic biz in 1910, he played at the Broadway Palace with an act tagged, “Hitland.” __ . . It seems everybody wants to have a fling at the music business. TJow cosmetic manufacturer Carmen Murphy of Detroit’s House of Beauty has formed the HOB label and the B&B music company. John F. Frye will general-manage the operation. In addition to hypoing the House of Beauty products via jingles, the label will release sides for the pop market. In the HOB stable are the Peppermints, Tommy Powers, Roy Corwin, the Four Premiers and singer-pianist Joe Thompson. Roulette Records broadened its global ties last week via an agree¬ ment with Polydisc of Athens for the distribution of the Roulette, Rama and Gee lines in Greece and Egypt. Also, arrangements have been set with Disques Versailles, Paris, for the handling of Roulette and Rama in France. The Tico line will also be handled by Disques Versailles. Deals were set by Donald Singer, Roulette’s foreign opera¬ tions chief. _ An exhibition of paintings, drawings and woodcuts commissioned by Columbia and Epic Records is at the Albert Landry Galleries, N.Y., through March 21. Represented in the exhibition, which is called “The Art of the LP,” are Ben Shahn, Tom Allen, Jason Kirby, Arnold Bit- tleman. Gene Varda and Doris Lee, among others. Aluminum Corp. of America and Columbia Records are teaming for a promotion on the Dominic Frontiere LP “Pagan Festival.” Album has an aluminum foil jacket and five-color painting which was worked out by the diskery and Alcoa. Album cover and music from the set will be showcased on Alcoa’s ABC-TV show, “A Step Beyond,” April 21. MARTIN DENNY GROUP (4) Roundtable, N.Y. Martin Denny’s bailiwick is Honolulu but he’s developed a potent stateside name via such clickO Liberty LPs as “Exotica” and “Primitiva.” In his first New York date he’s taken the exciting musical ingredientSjthat have been scoring on the turntable and put them together successfully on the podium of the ''Roundtable, an -eastside room that’s been flower¬ ing on jazz and dixieland. It’s an offbeat sound that Denny offers the Roundtable regulars but they’ll probably get adjusted to it. What’s probably more important is that it gives the room a chance to lure a new clientele who’ve been weaned on Denny’s disks and go for the exotic musical concoc¬ tions with w'hich he’s become identified. The instrumentation is the key to the Denny sound. Quartet deft¬ ly maneuvers around such weirdo playthings as the Japanese Koto, prayer bells, African thumpiano, tuned chromatic bamboo, primi¬ tive log from New Guinea, Bur¬ mese gongs and cymbals, glass chimes, among others. What comes out is a musical picture that’s con¬ sistently interesting. . Denny doesn’t limit hemself to gimmicked musicale. He occasion¬ ally segues to a straight perform¬ ance and a neat, likable swinging beat emerges. Working with Denny, who han¬ dles piano and celeste, are Julius Wechter, vibes, marimba; August Colon, bird calls, percussion, bon¬ gos, congas; and Harvey Ragsdale, string bass and marimbula. Grps. Urban League Totes Up 11 Negro Tooters Integrated in 'Class Orchs Josh White & Family And Kingston Trio Take Town Hall for Fine 9G The veteran Josh White, plus his offspring and the young Kingston Trio combined for a highly profit¬ able folksinging stand at* Town Hall, N.Y., Friday (27) night, un¬ der Hal Lederman’s promotion. Gross for the two performances, at 8:30 p.m., which was SRO, and at midnight,. which fell short of capacity, was $9,000. White, who makes the most of limited vocal equipment by way of amusing and/or fresh material and intense projection, regaled the au¬ dience with such favorites as “The , , Lass With the Delicate Air,” “Sam \ ^5®.® n „ s Hall” and “Frankie and Johnnie,” among others. Working with him are his children, Josh Jr., a teen¬ ager with considerable stage savvy, and his daughter, Beverly, a song¬ stress with lyric pipes which she uses attractively. The Kingston Trio, who have hit the bigtime via their “Tom Dooley” disclick on Capitol, also registered strongly. They mix up standard folk tunes with special material and they deliver with infectious enthusiasm, both vocally and on their guitars. The trio, however, tends to overwork the mugging routines which sometiihes get in the way of the music. Harm. ^ As a sequel to its squawk last November that qualified Negro mu¬ sicians were victims of discrimina¬ tion, the N. Y. Urban League now reports that it has chalked up 11 jcbs for musicians in various orchs. The N. Y. Philharmonic, which the League said had never previously hired a Negro musician for a classi¬ cal music performance, engaged Elayne Jones, a tympanist, as a substitute 16 days after the charges were made. Other organizations which have hired Negro musicians, either as substitutes or for single engage¬ ments, include the Symphony of the Air, Radio City Music Hall, the Firestone Hour orch (ABC-TV), and the Bell Telephone Hour orch (NBC-TV). Negro musicians have also been hired in the pit orchs of the following shows: Comden & l A Party,” “On The Town,” “Whoop-Up” ^ and “Music Man.” The Urban League has been con¬ fabbing with all the leading mu¬ sic organizations in the city in an effort to wipe out any trace of bias in hiring practices. Mrs. Sophia Yarnall Jacobs, the Leaguefs presi¬ dent, stated that “responsible peo¬ ple in the industry are recognizing that the exclusion of qualified Ne¬ gro musicians, solely because of race, is un-American and offensive to music patrons.” U. of Ga. Nixes Brubeck (Bassist a Negro) Bat OK At Atlanta ’Race’ Snot Athens, Ga., March 3. Racism is becoming more than a spectre in the deep south. Last week the Univ. of Georgia Jazz Society summarily cancelled the appearance of Dave Brubeck ouartet, scheduled for tomorrow (Wed.), because the bass player is a Negro. Stuart Woods, 21, president of Jazz Society, which numbers 125 members, said engagement of Bru¬ beck and crew w T as washed out on advice of university officials. Uni¬ versity policy, established within last two years, prohibits racially mixed groups from performing on the campus and school will not per¬ mit university-approved students groups to sponsor such events. Woods, a sociology senior, ex¬ plained he first learned that Bru¬ beck foursome included a Negro when publicity material and pic¬ tures arrived on Monday, Feb. 24. Woods telephoned Brubeck inform¬ ing him of cancellation and enter¬ tainer termed the action “uncon¬ stitutional and ridiculous.” Negro member of Brubeck’s crew is Eugene Wright. Brubeck’s agent told Woods he did not know that Brubeck had a Negro in his group. Woods said that the crew was an all-white combo when he saw it two years ago. About two years ago Louis Arm¬ strong appeared on university campus with a racially mixed group. Woods said he learned Brubeck’s personal manager,. Mort Lewis, had just turned dowh an offer for group to appear on a nationwide television show which would have required substitution of a white bass player for Wright. Segregated Audience Atlanta, March 3. Dave Brubeck Quartet played a one-night stand Sunday (1) at Magnolia Ballroom, colored spot. Jazz combo is made up of Brubeck on piano; Paul lesrr; : c- :o sax; Joe Morello, percussionist; and Eugene Wright, Negro bass. Luis Smith Quintet provided warmup music for Brubeck and crew, who did two shows, 6 and 10 p.m. A special section of seats was reserved for white c'.evotces of jazz. Lombardo to Hit Road Guy Lombardo, who winds up at New York’s Roosevelt Grill tomor¬ row (Thurs.), takes off on a tour the following Monday (9) that’ll combine location, concert and dance dates. Begins in Columbus, staying through the 11th. From there Lom¬ bardo will swing around the mid¬ west, upstate N. Y., Canada, with more dates yet to be filled in.