Re: [Harp-L] Pre WW II harp



ahh..HUGE ....thanx to Scott Dirks, his expertise never ceases to amaze me....it was Rhythm Willie (Willie Hood)

I found this write up thru a Pat Missin link: (I love the park about the Union not accepting him as it wasn't a REAL instrument!,-)
Rhythm Willie, whose real name was William Hood, had been performing in the top black and tans in Chicago since 1938, particularly at the Club DeLisa. He began recording in 1939 behind bluesman Peetie Wheatstraw, and was responsible for one previous recording session as a leader: Rhythm Willie and His Gang, consisting of Willie on harmonica and piano, with unidentified bassist and drummer, cut four sides for OKeh on October 10, 1940, all of which were released.


The two sides Rhythm Willie did for Premium in September 1950 were not accompanied by Memphis Slim and His House Rockers, as discographers have surmised in the past. Nor is Red Saunders' band involved; we are pretty sure now that they worked the studios on the previous Eddie Chamblee and Sarah McLawler sessions, but by the time of the Rhythm Willie affair Red had signed for three years with Columbia, and this may have been a deterrent to using him on more sessions. A listen to dubs provided by Mike Kredinac makes clear that the "Orchestra" behind Willie was a strictly bebop aggregation, complete with bomb-dropping drummer, spiky, chord-feeding pianist, Ornithological alto saxophone soloist on "Wailin' Wille," bop riffs on "I've Got Rhythm," and a chase chorus on the same tune between a Cecil Payne-style baritonist and a tenor saxophonist who sounds a bit more old fashioned (roughly like Budd Johnson). "Wailin' Willie" (UB50-1062) was a version of the Swing classic "C-Jam Blues" which he had been performing for several years (interestingly, Premium didn't bother to put a composer credit on it). "I've Got Rhythm" (UB50-1063) was the George Gershwin standard, which--according to Scott Dirks in his definitive Rhythm Willie story in Blues & Rhythm 127 (March 1998)--"in Willie's hands became a vehicle for some swinging, spirited improvising at the top end of the harp."

Rhythm Willie appeared regularly in the Chicago clubs during this period. Most of his appearances cannot be tracked on the Local 208 contract list, because for many years the Musicians Union did not accept harmonica players (the rationale: they weren't playing a "real" instrument!). However, we know that Willie booked into the Brass Rail (in the Loop) for 3 weeks in November 1952 (contract accepted and filed on November 6), and that he landed a gig at the Hollywood Show Lounge in March 1953 (indefinite contract posted on March 5). In August 1953 he went into the Toast of the Town as part of a revue that featured Danny Overbea and the King Kolax combo (indefinite contract posted on August 6). Unfortunately, Rhythm Willie's reputation as harp virtuoso was fully matched by his reputed propensity to consume vast quantities of alcohol, and he died prematurely in 1954, around the age of 45. (Note: the Miracle master numbers that we have are in conflict with the numbers for two Terry Timmons sides. The Rhythm Willie records really do carry the matrix numbers that we have listed, meaning that the Terry Timmons numbers, which were almost certainly recorded at the same session with the same band, are probably in error.)



best, Rob Paparozzi

www.myspace.com/hudsonriverrats








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