[The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz, Volume 1. Penn State MMC: MCD90-425] King Olivers Creole Jazz Band, Dippermouth Blues (Joe Oliver), Richmond, Indiana, 1923. Joe King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, cornet (c); Honore Dutrey, trombone (tb); Johnny Dodds, clarinet (cl); Lil Hardin, piano (p); Bill Johnson, banjo and vocal break (bj, voc break); Baby Dodds, drums (d)
Count along with Dippermouth Blues. Are you counting 4 beats or 2 beats per measure? Piano rags were usually counted in 2 beats a measure. Does Dippermouth sound different from the Joplin rags we’ve heard? Do the accompaniment patterns of the rhythm section stay constant for the entire piece? This piece introduces stop-time, a repeated rhythmic accompaniment pattern that accents the downbeat of successive bars. Stop-time can be performed in a variety of ways in a jazz group. In this case, the rhythm section and accompanying musicians accent beats 1, 2, 3 and rest on 4. This is usually done behind an improvising soloist. Can you hear where this occurs in the song? What are the second markings (00:00) for when the stop-time begins? Why would the band play stop-time? Does it enhance the soloist in any way?