Re: A Bit of History



BassHarp,

Someone remarked in another thread how this list is dominated by 
diatonic players.  Well, as a diatonic player, I want to say how much I 
appreciate hearing and seeing stuff about the chromatic and orchestra 
type stuff.  I play the diatonic because this was the kind of music that 
I listened to growing up in the 50's and 60's.  That's what was popular.

I have always loved hearing the stuff that groups like the Harmonica 
Rascals were doing before the war, but about the only place that one 
heard this stuff was if you watched old movies on the late late show.  
Where can I learn more about these groups.  How did these players hook 
up and how did they get into playing their various instruments.  I mean, 
it's one thing for a guy with a chrom or a diatonic to be a solo 
performer (even if it's in your bedroom), but it would seem to me that 
the chord and bass harmonicas really needed to be part of an ensemble.  
Were there conservatories and such for learning to play in groups like 
this?  I'm really fascinated and would love to learn more about this 
kind of stuff. 

Thanks for posting the pictures.

Howard Chandler

BassHarp wrote:

>
> On Sunday past, the Dave McKelvy Trio once again was privileged to 
> play for the Society of Singers organization 13th Annual Picnic in 
> Sherman Oaks, CA. Always an interesting event, but this time one of 
> the attendees was actress Jane Withers. She may also be remembered as 
> Josephine the Plumber in TV ads for Comet Cleanser for 21 years. 
> Harmonica content? Here it comes!
>
> Twelve-year-old Jane, in the role of "Gypsy", is the star of 1938 
> film, "Rascals", which also starred the Borrah Minevitch Harmonica 
> Rascals. This film gave the Rascals more time on screen than any other 
> film they appeared in - they played almost throughout the entire film, 
> and were themselves actors throughout. Jane even had a stint on bass 
> harmonica that looked quite authentic, though of course someone else 
> was playing off camera for her. Minevitch Rascals personnel are: 
> Borrah Minevitch, Abe Diamond, Leo Diamond, Harry Feinberg, Louis 
> "Fuzzy" Feldman, Al Furbish, Harry Hier, Ernie Morris, Alex Novelle, 
> and of course Johnny Puleo. Of those, only Harry Feinberg of New 
> Jersey is still alive. When I spoke to Miss Withers, I told her Harry 
> was the only one remaining, and she was sorry to hear that.
>
> This evening, Lorraine and I sat down and watched the film once more, 
> as she also was able to meet and talk with Miss Withers. A great film, 
> with lots of harmonica throughout.
>
> Photos from the film at: http://www.bassharp.com/montage.htm
>
> Danny





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