Playlist for October 31, 2009 from 12:00AM - 3:00AM

Current New Orleans Time: Fri, 5:33am

Playlist Date & Time: 10/31/2009 12:00AM - 3:00AM

Program: Blues in the Night with Jamie Dell'Apa

Reverse Time 

What a coincidence - under tonight's huge bright, full moon we celebrate Halloween, Voodoo Festival and Moonlight Savings Time.  And it all comes together during my show.

 New Orleans has always been the Petri Dish of Americana music and tonight we'll trace how New Orleanian, Rene Hall, influenced American music.  We'll also turn back the clock not just one hour but one generation as we focus on the music of this unusual city including; Irma Thomas, Larry Williams, Paul Gayten, Fats and Dave, Earl Palmer and more as WWOZ provides the historical musical context for our Voodoo Fest guests. You folks who traveled down here to see KISS, wait till you stumble into New Orleans' music. 

Rene Hall was New Orleanian guitarist and musician arranger who's work you've heard a thousand times but you probably couldn't put a his name on a single piece of music.  But there he was adding New Orleans seasoning on recordings sessions by Sonny and Cher, Dick Dale, Little Richard, Quincy Jones, Plas Johnson, Ritchie Valens, Marvin Gaye, The Impressions, Main Ingredient, and Sam Cooke.  And his touch made these recordings everyone's favorites.   

 

Box Score

 

123 Selections over 240 minutes with moderately long announcer breaks

    1 Selection every 01:45 so if you don't like the show it'll change by the time you wash your flu-carrying hands 

 41 Interstitials.  None during the Rene Hall special

82 Songs for a 1:2 ratio of interstitials to songs 

32 Selections about time taking up the entire one-hour repeat of 1am to 2am

37 Songs with Rene Hall's musical imprint spanning

  5 Genera of musical styles 

  3 Collaborations that ended when Hall's youthful collaborator died (Sam Cooke, Richie Valens and Marvin Gaye).

  2 Songs from Rene Hall that placed long pieces of classical music into popular music. 

14 Calls from Ed most of which included him singing me partial lyrics from requested songs

  3 OPC Cigarettes at day that Ed smokes (O.ther P.eople's C.igarettes)  I think Ed scrounges the already-been-smoked butts

  3 Calls from Ottawa Pete

  4 Heart attacks Pete has suffered this year 

  3 calls from WWOZ staff or volunteers checking whether I took the parking space or rode my bike (Halloween night)

  8 Costumed people who somehow snuck into the building to use the bathroom 

  2 Complaint calls including two rarities a (1) sober guy and (2) random curser 

  0 Halloween songs - just a bit too cliche tonight 

 

Playlist Tracks

Earl Bostic (Rene Hall)
"Flamingo"
His Alto Sax and His Orchestra
Web link is a discography of Rene Hall's work. This Earl Bostic piece wasn't played but has: Bass - William Betts* Drums - Jimmy Cobb Guitar - Rene Hall Piano - Clifton Small Saxophone [Alto] - Earl Bostic Saxophone [Tenor] - Lowell Hastings Trumpet, Vibraphone - Clarence Redd*
Marvin Gaye (Rene Hall)
"Let's Get It On"
Let's Get It On
A great blog is kept by The Hound including this great treatment of Rene Hall's life and influence on music. Hall was the musical director for Marvin Gaye during so many of Gaye's hits.
Impressions
First Impressions
Curtom
1975
Rene Hall arranger
Quincy Jones
"Fever"
Quincy Jones Talkin
Verve
1965
Rene Hall on guitar - Los Angeles sessions included "Something About You." The great arranger Quincy picks Hall - two impressive minds in one studio. Quincy also recorded Rahsaan Roland Kirk on this collection. That's plenty of cranial power on one disc.
Main Ingredient
"Shame on the World"
Shame on the World
RCA Victor
1975
Rene Hall arranger, Cuba Gooding Sr. Executive Producer. Rene worked a few times with the Sr. version of Cuba Gooding. This from 1975
Dee Dee Warwick (Arranged by Rene Hall)
"Foolish Fool"
7'
Mercury
1967
Sister of Dionne Warwick
Erskin Hawkins and His Orchestra
"Hey, Pretty Baby"
Roots of Mambo 1930-50
Remeaux and Associes
2006
Rene Hall is listed on trombone
Erskin Hawkins and His Orchestra
"Opportunity"
Roots of Mambo 1930-50
Rene Hall is listed on trombone. Around WWII, Rene played on many small group jazz combos including Fatha Hines.
Ernie Freeman with Rene Hall Orchestra
"Now and Then There's A Fool Such As I"
Rene playing guitar on this country and western classic
Sam Cooke (Rene Hall)
"Twistin the Night Away"
RCA
1962
Show starts with this Sam Cooke number. Orchestra conducted by Rene Hall who also conducted on "Another Saturday Night" and "Having a Party" and others... Guitar on "You Send Me," "Only Sixteen," and "Everybody Loves to Cha Cha Cha."
Rene Hall
"Frankie and Johnny"
Specialty
1958
Rene Hall
"Bitter Wind"
Capitol
Soundling like Santo and Johnny
Sonny and Cher with Rene Hall on Bass
"All I Really Want to Do"
Dick Dale and His Del Tones (Rene Hall)
"King of the Surf Guitar"
King of the Surf Guitar
Sundazed
2007
Rene Hall on guitar for this and Riders in the Sky. Playing guitar with Dick Dale? You gotta have a steller reputation to share the stage but what I love about Rene is his ability to mix with such divergent musicians and genera yet still bring in his uniquely expansive views of music. He opened up musician's sound.
Plas Johnson (with Rene Hall)
"Wonderful Popcorn"
Rockin' With The Plaz
Can't find the session musicians or arranger but it sound like Rene Hall's imagination
Earl Palmer
"One Mint Julip"
Drumsville
Liberty
1961
Dominos (Rene Hall)
"Do Something For Me"
Larry Williams (Rene Hall)
"Slow Down"
Larry Williams (Rene Hall)
"Bad Boy"
Larry Williams (Rene Hall)
"She Said Yeah"
Little Richard (Rene Hall)
"Bama Lama Bama Loo"
Rene Hall
"Cleo"
Little Richard (Rene Hall)
"Hey Hey Hey Hey (Goin' Back to Birmingham)"
Rene Hall
"Thunderbird"
Hall gutted the music from this popular title of the late 1950s then put in a New Orleans progression that culminates into Franz Lizt's Hungarian Rhapsody. It's an amazing arrangement that I never get tired up. See the B. Bumble and the Stingers song Nut Rocker (below) for another example of this talent.
Babette Bain and Rene Hall Orchestra
"That's It"
Rene Hall With Willie Joe Duncan
"Twitchy"
This Willie Joe is playing a one string guitar that gives this a spartan sound but Rene Hall grooves right into the sound. Surprisingly, Hall is equally adept at full orchestration like the following Sam Cooke song.
Sam Cooke (Rene Hall)
"A Change is Gonna Come"
Hall signals the three movements in this song with the big sounds of orchestral strings and kettle drums. It lush, rich audio and the opposite of the Willie Joe Duncan diddley bow piece above. Halls' musical ability to hear and produce expansive and diverse sound was a remarkable and defining talent.
B. Bumble and the Stingers (Rene Hall)
"Nut Rocker"
Title refers to the Nutcracker Suite which is well layered into this song. Hall's affinity for incorporating classical music into popular music is another example of that whimsy and expansiveness I keep harping about.
Plas Johnson (Rene Hall)
"Wonderful Popcorn"
Rockin with Plas
Same Cooke (Rene Hall)
"Only Sixteen"
Sam Cooke (Rene Hall)
"Everybody Loves to Cha Cha Cha"
Ritchie Valens (Rene Hall)
"La Bamba"
Chan Romano (Rene Hall)
"Hippy Hippy Shakes"
The Del-Fi and Donna Story
Chan Romano (Rene Hall)
"I Want Some More"
The Del-Fi and Donna Story
Rene Hall
"The Untouchables"
The Del-Fi and Donna Story
Rene reworks this popular TV theme song into something uniquely his own while still keeping the huge, multi-dimensional sound of the original.
Don and Dewey (Rene Hall)
"Justine"
Rene on guitar
Don and Dewey (Rene Hall)
"Koko Joe"
Earl Palmer's Party Rockers (Rene Hall)
"Johnny's House Party"
Googie Rene (Rene Hall)
"Side Tracked"
All or almost all of Googie Rene's recordings have Rene Hall playing ... guitar?
Richie Valens (Rene Hall)
"Fast Freight"
Rene on guitar
Earl Palmer
"One Mint Julip"
Woddy Thorn and Rene Hall
"Sadie Lou"
A rockabilly song
Rene Hall
"Flippin'"
Specialty 45
b/w Twitchy
Little Richard (Rene Hall)
"Ohh! My Soul"
Ritchie Valens (Rene Hall)
"Ooh! My Head"
Come On, Let's Go
This is where Led Zeppelin took their song, "Boogie With Stu." Valen's widow successfully sued Specialty/Little Richard for half the royalties on Ohh! My Soul.
J.B. Lenoir
"Don't Touch My Head"
The Chess Story
Blossum Dearie
"Moonlight Savings Time"
Moonlight Savings Time
Blossum
Bob Ehret
"Stop the Clock"
Li'l Millet and His Creoles
"Rock Around the Clock"
Roy Brown
"Rockin' At Midnight"
The Sha-Weez
"Early Sunday Morning"
Cosimo Matassa Story
Proper
Count Basie
"One-O'Clock Jump"
Bobby Charles
"See You Later Alligator"
One of Ed's many requests. He sang the lyrics relevant to the time and "O'Clock" set and I fell for it.
Johnny J
"Three O'Clock World"
Urban Soul Ballads
BB King
"Three O'Clock Blues"
Coco Robicheaux
"3:33 Blues"
Daryl Rhodes and the Falcons
"Four O'Clock Baby"
Little Mr. Midnight with Paul Gayten's Band
"Four O'Clock Blues"
Huelyn Dyvall
"Life Begins at Four O'Clock"
The Striders
"Five O'Clock Blues"
Al Barkle
"Jumping From 6 to 6 (O'Clock)"
Amos Headrick
"Good Rockin' Tonight"
Joe Houston and the Rockets
"All Night Long"
Little Richard
"Rip It Up"
Between Ed singing Little Richard song lyrics and some other woman begging for Little Richard, I got this one on immediately after the "time and O'Clock" set.
Alton and Jimmy
"I Got It Made (In The Shade)"
Richard Berry
"Mad About You"
Yama Yama Pretty Mama
"Richard Berry"
Big Boy Myles
"Mickey Mouse Boarding House"
Peter .... the guy who plays glass harmonica on Jackson Square
"Stairway to Heaven"
Dr. John
"Touro Infirmary"
Clarence Garlow
"Crawfishin"
Eddie Bo
"Walk That Walk"
Eddie Bo
"I'm Wise"
Richard Berry
"Look Out Miss James"
Fats Domino
"Domino Stomp"
Dave Bartholomew
"Good Jax Boogie"
Showmen
"It Will Stand"
Tommy Ridgely
"Jam Up Twist"
Varetta Dillard
"So Many Ways"
Fats Domino
"Sick and Tired"
Another sung request from Ed
Fats Domino
"Bad Luck and Trouble"
Bo Dollis
"Indian Red"
Ritchie Valens
"Boney Marone"
Very Best Of
Sugar Boy Crawford
"She's Got a Wobble"
Bobby Charles
"Take It Easy Greasy"
Irma Thomas
"I Count the Teardrops"
The Story of My Life
Irma Thomas
"I Count the Tears"
After the Rain
Ernie K-Doe
"I Cried My Last Tear"
Brenton Woods
"Two Times a Loser"