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Western Swing

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #156: She’ll Keep The Devil Dancing On Your Heart

25.02.2013 by Chris

Note: This will be the last Song of the Week on this blog. From the following week, DJ Chrisbe's Song of the Week will be published on Swing DJ Resources. Learn more about this transition in a separate blog post on Friday (March 1, 2013).

An add on Twitter by Little Kim brought my attention to a belgian western swing & hot swing jazz band and their music on Bandcamp.

Little Kim & the Alley Apple 3

Little Kim & the Alley Apple 3 play swing music in the broadest sense of the word. They love all kind of old time roots music, be it the sensuous swing jazz of the roaring twenties or the piercing lyrics of the fabulous Hank Williams.

Little Kim in the Studio
Little Kim in the Studio

They first met in 2007 when Kim placed an online ad, stating she was looking for a new touring band that played the music styles she loves: jazz, honky tonk, swing, …

By the time Tom responded to her ad, he had already gathered two wonderful musicians to play along: Patrick Cattoir on lapsteel and Selim Meiresonne on slappin' double bass.

They went on rehearsing for a year which resulted in a first self titled EP “Little Kim & the Alley Apple 3” (2008).

It got so many good reviews that a lot of concerts in Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Germany followed. Convinced they had something good in hand, they started working on their first full album “Riding the Rails”, which hit the streets in 2010.

Not satisfied with the idea that music should be labeled or confined to narrow boxes, they started writing new songs, that were meant to sound totally different to the songs on “Riding the Rails”.

The writing process was finished in August 2011 and with the help of Kristof Maes of the Closed Session Studio they started the long journey of recording the album.

She’ll keep the devil dancing on your heart

“She’ll keep the devil dancing on your heart” (2012) turned out to be a much more elaborate record than their firstborn. With the bunch of friends they invited to appear as guests on this album they opened to path to a future that is as exciting as it is diverse.

Lyrics

She’ll keep the devil dancing on your heart

O you might, o you might, o you might as well
Throw your bible down the well
‘Cause she’s a work of art, her spell will tear you apart
And keep the devil dancing on your heart

She’ll take your gold, sell your pearls and wants nothing in between
They call her Two Faced Tawnee of New Orleans
‘Cause she’s a work of art, her spell will tear you apart
And keep the devil dancing on your heart

I don’t know what you’re looking for
But if you need a hand out of this ditch
Better think twice … she’ll pass you like a hat in church
And won’t even give a twitch

O you might, o you might, o you might as well
Throw your bible down the well
‘Cause she’s a work of art, her spell will tear you apart
And keep the devil dancing on your heart


Little Kim & the Alley Apple 3 - She'll keep the devil dancing on your heartTitle: She’ll keep the devil dancing on your heart
Artist: Little Kim & the Alley Apple 3
Released: 2012
Album: She’ll keep the devil dancing on your heart
Tempo: 104 bpm
Dance: Lindy Hop


You can find all the songs of the series also on my Spotify playlist or on 8tracks.
Official hashtag of the series: #djcsotw

What do you think about Little Kim's music? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!

Now Check Out

  • Song of the Week #155: Cou Cou
  • Song of the Week #154: You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me
  • Song of the Week #153: Ain't Misbehavin'

Filed Under: Music, Song of the Week Tagged With: Bandcamp, DJ Chrisbe, Lindy Hop, Little Kim & The Alley Apple 3, Western Swing

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #141: Summit Ridge Drive

12.11.2012 by Chris

Today, we're doing a side trip to country music, or more precisely western swing.

Billy Jack Wills

Perhaps the most underrated Western swing bandleader ever was Billy Jack Wills (Feb 26, 1926 – March 2, 1991), the youngest brother of Bob, whose Western Swing Band broke new ground for the genre in the early 1950s.

Billy Jack was exposed at an early age to the music of his famous brother, as well as his father, champion fiddler John Wills. After beginning his professional career in brother Johnnie Lee Wills‘ Tulsa band in the early 1940s, Billy Jack went to California to work as a bassist and drummer for the Texas Playboys. In that group, he played a significant role both as a vocalist and songwriter.

After six years, Billy Jack got his chance as a leader when Bob moved his base of operations. He assembled a band dubbed Billy Jack Wills & His Western Swing Band and began broadcasting over Sacramento's KCRA radio in 1950, soon moving to the considerably larger KFBK.

Billy Jack Wills & His Western Swing Band

The enormous age difference of 20 years between Billy Jack and Bob meant that the younger's musical interests were considerably more advanced. While Bob had drawn inspiration from the primitive blues and jazz of the 1910s and '20s, Billy Jack's muse lay in the developing genres of jump blues, R&B, and be-bop.

These fixations gave his group a progressiveness that was found nowhere else, characterized by its hard-swinging jazz rhythms and bluesy, shouted vocals, which drew heavily from the styles of Wynonie Harris and Roy Brown.

Between 1950 and 1954, the group enjoyed a strong Northwest following, touring and building up an eclectic repertoire of radio transcriptions. They covered many of the popular black hits of the time.

The group's success, however, was short-lived. In 1954, Bob Wills disbanded the Texas Playboys and returned to Sacramento to perform with Billy Jack. The idea was to increase business at Wills Point, but the results were disastrous.

Billy Jack struggled on without success until 1960, when he retired from music.

Read the full biography by Jim Smith on allmusic

Summit Ridge Drive

In Artie Shaw's version, the harpsichord is the unusual instrument giving the tune a special note, here it's the steel guitar. Shaw's version is still a bit more pumping but I like to play Billy Jack Wills as an interesting alternative in my DJ sets.


[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B003X2CTU6″ locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”https://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61GAPbZb3ML._SL160_.jpg” width=”160″]Title: [easyazon-link asin=”B003X2CV0E” locale=”us”]Summit Ridge Drive[/easyazon-link]
Artist: Billy Jack Wills & His Western Swing Band
Recorded: 1952 (?)
Album: [easyazon-link asin=”B003X2CTU6″ locale=”us”]Western Swing Band Classics[/easyazon-link]
Tempo: 141 bpm
Dance: Lindy Hop



Click the link to download the song at
iTunes EU ・ iTunes US ・ [easyazon-link asin=”B003X1PG9S” locale=”de”]Amazon DE[/easyazon-link] ・ [easyazon-link asin=”B003X2CV0E” locale=”us”]Amazon US[/easyazon-link] ・ [easyazon-link asin=”B003X1MOTI” locale=”uk”]Amazon UK[/easyazon-link] ・ emusic


Do you like Western Swing? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!

[catalyst_hook_box name=”adboxsotwbottom”]

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

Related Songs:

Song of the Week #85: “Summit Ridge Drive” by Artie Shaw
Song of the Week #140: “Port Of Rico” by Illinois Jacquet
Song of the Week #139: “Blues Skies” by Cyril Blake
Song of the Week #138: “Minor Jive” by Roy Eldridge
Song of the Week #137: “Skinny Minne” by Glenn Crytzer & His Syncopators

Filed Under: Music, Song of the Week Tagged With: Artie Shaw, Billy Jack Wills, DJ Chrisbe, Lindy Hop, Western Swing

DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #90: Stompin’ At The Riverside

21.11.2011 by Chris

A genre I haven't touched so far is Western Swing, the forerunner of American Country music. One of its big stars was Spade Cooley – self proclaimed as the “King of Western Swing“.

Spade Cooley

Donnell Clyde “Spade” Cooley (17.12.1910 – 23.11.1969) was an American Western Swing violinist and big band leader.

He also was a successful actor in western films and TV host. Unfortunately, he was convicted of murdering his wife Ella Mae Evans in 1961. In 1969 he suffered a fatal heart attack.

You can find a biography on Wikipedia.

Stompin' At The Riverside

Stompin' At The Riverside is great tune for Balboa dancers. I'm not a big fan of country music, but this tune swings more than many other Western Swing tracks.

The accordion and the fiddles are giving special spice to this song.


DJ Chrisbe's Song of the Week #90: "Stompin' At The Riverside" by Spade CooleyTitle: Stompin' At The Riverside
Artist: Spade Cooley & The Western Swing Dance Gang
Recorded: 1951
Tempo: 204 bpm
Dance: Balboa, Lindy Hop



Click the link to download the song from
Amazon


How would you describe this song? Let us know in the comment section below!

Every Monday, I post a new “Song of the Week“.

Related Posts:

Song of the Week #89: “Rexatious” by Rex Stewart
Song of the Week #88: “Honeysuckle Rose” by Fats Waller
Song of the Week #87: “Troubled” by Frankie Trumbauer

Filed Under: Music, Song of the Week Tagged With: Balboa, DJ Chrisbe, Lindy Hop, Spade Cooley, Western Swing

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Welcome, I'm Christian Bossert. Since 1999, I‘ve been passionate about Swing dances as well as their culture and history. I‘m a Swing dance instructor and international Swing DJ Chrisbe, based in Zurich Switzerland. Read More…

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