Swing

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #118: I Wan’na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)

04.06.2012 by Chris

Walt Disney's animated feature “The Jungle Book” was released in 1967. Who doesn't know this movie!

I can't remember anymore how old I was when I saw it the first time, but it's still my favorite animated feature.

The most popular scene in this movie is probably the monkey song, I great swing tune.

In 1966, Louis Prima was approached by Walt Disney to do an animated feature film for him. He became the voice of “King Louis,” the orangutan in “The Jungle Book”. The film was nominated for an Oscar and Louis received a gold album for the sound-track recording of the same.

I Wan'na Be Like You

While I was looking for the clip above on YouTube, I found rare footage of Louis Prima and the story behind the song:

Unfortunately, watching the embedded clip is disabled, so please follow this link to watch the footage.

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B0013AWTZA” locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”https://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tIvHW0vEL._SL160_.jpg” width=”160″]Title: [easyazon-link asin=”B0013ADY5Y” locale=”us”]I Wan'na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)[/easyazon-link]
Artist: Louis Prima feat. Phil Harris
Recorded: 1967
Album: [easyazon-link asin=”B0013AWTZA” locale=”us”]The Jungle Book[/easyazon-link]
Tempo: 196 bpm
Dance: Lindy Hop

Click the link to download the song at
iTunes CH/EU ･ iTunes US ･ [easyazon-link asin=”B0023AZMFI” locale=”de”]Amazon.de[/easyazon-link]･ [easyazon-link asin=”B0013ADY5Y” locale=”us”]A'zon.com[/easyazon-link] ･ [easyazon-link asin=”B001WIJDW0″ locale=”uk”]A'zon.co.uk[/easyazon-link] ･ ~~emusic~~

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B000OLGCI4″ locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”https://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51qv0ish5JL._SL160_.jpg” width=”113″] The DVD “[easyazon-link asin=”B000OLGCI4″ locale=”us”]The Jungle Book (Two-Disc 40th Anniversary Platinum Edition)[/easyazon-link] is available on [easyazon-link asin=”B000OLGCI4″ locale=”us”]Amazon.com[/easyazon-link].

Do you like this version? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!

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Every Monday, I post a new “Song of the Week“.
You can find the songs also on my Spotify playlist or on 8tracks.

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #113: Ridin’ And Jivin’

30.04.2012 by Chris

Earl Kenneth Hines (Dec. 28, 1905 – Apr. 23, 1983) was one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time.

In the 1920s, when nearly every fluent jazz pianist played a steady stride with his or her left hand (keeping a steady rhythm by “striding” back and forth between bass notes and chords), Hines had the world's trickiest left hand.

He would play against time, sometimes just implying the rhythm and frequently playing out of tempo and suspending time but never losing the beat.

His speedy right hand (which sometimes played octaves in a “trumpet style” so his notes would ring over his orchestra) was on the same level, and Hines was considered the first “modern” jazz pianist.

Of greatest relevance to the Swing era, for 19 years (1928-47) Hines led one of the finest big bands based outside of New York.

Source: [easyazon-link asin=”0879306009″ locale=”us”]Swing : Third Ear – The Essential Listening Companion[/easyazon-link] by Scott Yanow

Ridin' And Jivin'

The song begins with a staccato feeling before it gets smoother. The solo instruments (the trumpet played with a plunger) also change between smooth-stretchy and staccato sounds. Some nice dissonances are filled in: around 1:30 minutes in the solo and from 2:00 minutes by the backing.

A great song with a variety of possibilities to play with as a dancer!

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B0055A3YO4″ locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”https://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41vfLm-O3BL._SL160_.jpg” width=”160″]Title: [easyazon-link asin=”B0055A4042″ locale=”us”]Ridin' And Jivin'[/easyazon-link]
Artist: Earl Hines
Recorded: December 12, 1939
Album: [easyazon-link asin=”B0055A3YO4″ locale=”us”]Ridin' And Jivin'[/easyazon-link]
Tempo: 153 bpm
Dance: Lindy Hop

Click the link to download the song at
iTunes CH/EU ･ iTunes US ･ [easyazon-link asin=”B0055ANPT8″ locale=”de”]Amazon.de[/easyazon-link]･ [easyazon-link asin=”B0055A4042″ locale=”us”]A'zon.com[/easyazon-link] ･ [easyazon-link asin=”B0055AJJ1Q” locale=”uk”]A'zon.co.uk[/easyazon-link] ･ eMusic

What do you think about Wingy Manone's interpretation? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!

Every Monday, I post a new “Song of the Week“.
You can find the songs also on my Spotify playlist or on 8tracks.

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DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #105: A-Tisket A-Tasket

05.03.2012 by Chris

This tune is not only a great swing song, it also has a special story.

Did you know, that A-Tisket, A-Tasket is based on a popular Anerican nursery rhyme, that appeared the first time around 1879*?

Original Rhyme

A-tisket a-tasket
A green and yellow basket
I wrote a letter to my love
And on the way I dropped it,
I dropped it, I dropped it,
And on the way I dropped it.
A little boy he picked it up and put it in his pocket.

Ella Fitzgerald co-wrote the swing version “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” with Chick Webb‘s arranger Van Alexander (then Al Friedman). When the record was published in 1938, it immediately became a hit and made it to the top of the charts.

This recording turned Ella Fitzgerald and Chick Webb & his Orchestra in nationwide stars!

A-Tisket, A-Tasket

Clip from the movie Ride ‘Em Cowboy (1942); Ella is performing the song on a bus ride

Lyrics by Ella Fitzgerald and Van Alexander (1938)

A-tisket, A-tasket
A brown and yellow basket
I send a letter to my mommy
On the way I dropped it

I dropped it, I dropped it
Yes on the way I dropped it
A little girlie picked it up
And put it in her pocket

She was truckin' on down the avenue
Not a single thing to do
She went peck peck pecking all around
When she spied it on the ground

She took it, She took it
My little yellow basket
And if she doesn't bring it back I think that I will die

A-tisket, A-tasket
I lost my yellow basket
And if that girlie don't return it
I don't know what I'll do

Oh dear I wonder where my basket can be
(So do we, so do we, so do we, so do we, so do we)
Oh gee I wish that little girl I could see
(So do we, so do we, so do we, so do we, so do we)

Oh why was I so careless with that basket of mine?
That itty bitty basket was a joy of mine!

A-tisket, A-tasket
I lost my yellow basket
Won't someone help me find my basket
And make me happy again? again

(Was it green?) No, no, no, no
(Was it red?) No, no, no, no
(Was it blue?) No, no, no, no

Just a little yellow basket
A little yellow basket

For Lindy Hop dancers

I especially like this part “(Was it green?) No, no, no, no” and so on, where Ella has this naive, laughing voice while singing “no, no, no, no”. It's almost like she would be a little girl singing that.

A happy song for Lindy Hop dancers!

*Source: [easyazon-link asin=”0789009145″ locale=”us”]The Big Band Reader: Songs Favored by Swing Era Orchestras and Other Popular Ensembles[/easyazon-link]

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B004867QL8″ locale=”de” height=”160″ src=”https://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51xzW04v94L._SL160_.jpg” width=”160″]Title: [easyazon-link asin=”B004866MR2″ locale=”de”]A-Tisket, A-Tasket[/easyazon-link]
Artist: Ella Fitzgerald w/ Chick Webb & His Orchestra
Recorded: 1938
Album: [easyazon-link asin=”B000086ED3″ locale=”us”]A-Tisket A-Tasket[/easyazon-link]
Tempo: 164 bpm
Dance: Lindy Hop

Click the link to download the song at
iTunes CH/EU – iTunes US – [easyazon-link asin=”B004866MR2″ locale=”de”]A'zon.de[/easyazon-link] – [easyazon-link asin=”B004779B9I” locale=”us”]A'zon.com[/easyazon-link] – [easyazon-link asin=”B0047838ZU” locale=”uk”]A'zon.co.uk[/easyazon-link] – eMusic

Do you like this song? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!

Every Monday, I post a new “Song of the Week“.
You can find the songs also on my Spotify playlist or on 8tracks.

Top Swing Albums of 2011: Solomon Douglas Swingtet “Ain’t No School Like The Old School”

12.01.2012 by Chris

This is my second post of the super short series “My 2 Top Swing Albums released in 2011“. If you missed the first one, then you can read here part 1.

Third Album

After “Swingmatism” (2006) and “Live at the Legion” (2009), The Solomon Douglas Swingtet released their third Album “Ain't No School Like The Old School” in April 2011.

This studio album was recorded at the end of a three-week tour of the eastern states and provinces (in the US), having played 16 gigs in 20 days.

Led By A Swing Dancer and DJ

The ten-piece band is led by jazz pianist Solomon Douglas. In 2006 he toured the United States and Japan as a member of the Glenn Miller Orchestra.

Nowadays he is a freelance musician and dance instructor. Solomon teaches mainly Lindy Hop and Blues and is also a Swing and Blues DJ.

The repertoire of the Swingtet is rooted in that of the Count Basie band and that of the Duke Ellington band, complemented with other big band standards and classic jazz tunes.

Old Gems Become New Gems

Egyptian Fantasy by The Solomon Douglas Swingtet @ Seattle Lindy Exchange 2011

It was a good decision to record that album after a tour, when the musicians are well attuned. You can feel that with every note! The band is swinging like mad and you can't believe that there are “only” 10 of them playing all these gems. They love for sure what they are doing!

All 17 tunes are instrumental, originally recorded between 1928 – 1942. The new arrangements are closely based on the original ones without the requirement to sound exactly like them.

Here we have a fantastic album of old-style jazz songs with different tempos and styles.

And the clean sound is awesome, very direct! The different instruments are well balanced and nicely mixed.

I like the courage to choose less known songs like “Bizet Has His Day” or “Queer Notions”, both favorites of mine (and featured as Song of the Week #82 and #83)! I also love the versions of “Rose Room” and “Blues In The Air”.

Track List

King Porter Stomp – 210 bpm – 3:01
Clap Hands! Here Comes Charley! – 320 bpm – 2:09
Long Tail Mama – 201 bpm – 2:39
Bizet Has His Day – 155 bpm – 3:44
New Orleans Bump – 119 bpm – 3:35
Blues In The Air – 68 bpm – 5:46
Egyptian Fantasy – 106 bpm – 4:29
Queer Notions – 157 bpm – 2:57
The Mooche – 116 bpm – 4:08
Tuxedo Junction – 155 bpm – 3:14
Rose Room – 153 bpm – 3:10
Avalon – 248 bpm – 3:54
Cotton Tail (fast) – 260 bpm – 3:02
Cotton Tail (faster) – 281 bpm – 2:48
That's How Rhythm Was Born – 188 bpm – 3:47
Casa Loma Stomp – 269 bpm – 3:01
White Heat – 314 bpm – 2:17

A Must For Dancers, Music Lovers and DJs

Solomon and his musicians dared the balancing act of re-creation and adding their own style, and it was worth it!

The songs have a good length and different tempos for Lindy Hop, Balboa and Blues dancers. An album by a dancer for dancers – a pure winner!

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #96: Flaming Reeds and Screaming Brass

02.01.2012 by Chris

This is a song I have in my library since a long time but interestingly I didn't play it until last Saturday at The Snowball in Stockholm.

It's an uptempo song with unexpected breaks and sound patterns. First, you wait until the song really starts when you realize, that you are already in the midst of it.

Interestingly, “Flaming Reeds and Screaming Brass” was a test recording by the Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra from 1933 for Columbia and not released before the late 1960s on LP!

James Melvin “Jimmie” Lunceford (6.6.1902 – 12.07.1947) was a multiinstrumentalist but mostly famous as bandleader. He led one of the most popular big bands of the swing era. The orchestra evolved from the Chickasaw Syncopators, a student band he organized in 1927.

In 1934, the band got booked by The Cotton Club in Harlem/New York and Lunceford's reputation began to steadily grow. The band was most known for their tight musicianship, visual show and humor in music and lyrics.

Our song of the week is a perfect example of the Lunceford sound.

Title: Flaming Reeds and Screaming Brass
Artist: Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra
Recorded: May 15, 1933, New York
Album: Complete Jazz Series 1930 – 1934
Tempo: 246 bpm
Dance: Balboa

Click the link to prelisten and/or download the song at
iTunes CH/EU — iTunes US — Amazon.de — Amazon.com

What do you think about this song, do you like it? Let us know in the comment section below!

Every Monday, I post a new “Song of the Week“.
You can find the songs also on my Spotify playlist or on 8tracks.

Song of the Week #95: “Four Or Five Times” by Jimmie Noone
Song of the Week #94: “Petite Fleur” by Sidney Bechet
Song of the Week #93: “Moonglow (Take 2)” by Benny Goodman Quartet
Song of the Week #92: “Little Sir Echo” by Rex Stewart & Dickie Wells
Song of the Week #91: “‘Tain’t What You Do” by Jimmie Lunceford

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Swing

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #118: I Wan’na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)

I Wan'na Be Like You

Related Songs:

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #113: Ridin’ And Jivin’

Ridin' And Jivin'

Related Songs:

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #105: A-Tisket A-Tasket

Original Rhyme

A-Tisket, A-Tasket

Lyrics by Ella Fitzgerald and Van Alexander (1938)

For Lindy Hop dancers

Related Songs:

Top Swing Albums of 2011: Solomon Douglas Swingtet “Ain’t No School Like The Old School”

Third Album

Led By A Swing Dancer and DJ

Old Gems Become New Gems

Track List

A Must For Dancers, Music Lovers and DJs

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #96: Flaming Reeds and Screaming Brass

Related Posts: