swing slate 7: Frankie's music moments

Chick Webb - Frankie's favourite resident orchestra leader at the Savoy Ballroom

I recently read Frankie's autobiography and it's a cracking read for anyone who wants to get a better idea of the history of Lindy hop as well as the life of its greatest exponent (and thanks to Scott Magowan for lending me it!) but it also listed a few tracks that were especially prominent in Frankie's memories so I have taken seven of them and have provided a little explanation for why they featured.

• Christopher Columbus • Although Frankie started his dancing career at the Alhambra Ballroom in Harlem it was at the Savoy Ballroom where things really took off and he recalls that, every Saturday when the dance contests were in full swing, 'Christopher Columbus' was the tune regularly chosen by the orchestra leader. The orchestra was usually one of the house bands who don't appear to be on youtube but in this instance I suppose we'll just have to make do with a version by the King of Swing himself, Benny Goodman.

• Clap Hands! Here Comes Charlie • As a great example of kind of rarefied air that Frankie was breathing on a regular basis, he witnessed numerous "Battle of Bands" in the Savoy between some of the luminaries of the Swing Era. Count Basie and Benny Goodman (along with Gene Krupa) occasionally played in the Savoy but in Frankie's mind at least, no one out-swung Chick Webb, and 'Clap Hands! Here Comes Charlie' was one of Chick's most swingin'est tunes.

• Down South Camp Meeting • Frankie shaped Lindy hop in a way like no one else: the crouched posture, breaks, and ensemble routines amongst other things were all his creation but it is air steps for which he is best known and it was during a dance contest at the Savoy where he and Frieda Washington first debuted the revolutionary pattern and 'Down South Camp Meeting' was the tune, played specially by Chick Webb, that accompanied them. Again, I can't find any record of Chick's version so heeeeeere's Benny!

• Posin' • As I have just said, Frankie also introduced 'breaks' into Lindy hop by freezing on a natural pause in the rhythm until the music picked up again and he recalls that Jimmy Lunceford's record 'Posin'' was the one that first gave him the inspiration.

• Stompy Jones • Frankie's first ever stage show happened to coincide with a one-week residency of Duke Ellington. He remembers being reduced to a shivering wreck at the thought of performing with a jazz legend already in his prime and when he arrived at rehearsals and witnessed every other act handing music over to 'the Duke' when he had none to give it didn't help allay any fears of being found out for being an amateur! When asked for music suggestions, Frankie offered a few more familiar Chick Webb tunes as he was unaware of Duke's reputation for rarely playing the work of other musicians but in the end they settled on Stompy Jones and as you can well imagine, Frankie made it work.

•  Every Tub • Frankie confessed that, sometimes, he just liked to show off and two of his favourite records for doing that were 'Jumpin' at the Woodside' or 'Every Tub' by Count Basie. Woodside gets a lot of airtime so in this instance I have plumped for the other one!

• Shiny Stockings • And finally, I couldn't possibly make a mini music playlist about Frankie if it didn't include his favourite record of all time: 'Shiny Stockings' by Count Basie.