This is very interesting, Hans! Thanks.

Does Lord say if both takes were officially released? That version in the YouTube video is not the 
take used on the LP. Was it perhaps issued on a single or on a compilation of some sort? Or is it 
out there in bootleg-land?

-- Tom Fine

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Hans en Corrie" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, May 08, 2010 1:38 PM
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] St. James Infirmary - Louis Armstrnog


> Dear Tom,
>
> Lord gives two versions / takes of St. James Infirmary. It was recorded in
> Los Angeles on the 30th of September and 1-2 October 1959.
>
> Hans
>
> Jazz .. and more - a weekly blog:
> http://keepswinging.blogspot.com
>
> -----Oorspronkelijk bericht-----
> Van: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Namens Tom Fine
> Verzonden: zaterdag 8 mei 2010 14:22
> Aan: [log in to unmask]
> Onderwerp: Re: [ARSCLIST] St. James Infirmary - Louis Armstrnog
>
> Hi Hans:
>
> I am pretty sure that version of "St. James" is from the sessions that
> produced the Audio Fidelity
> album "Satchmo Plays King Oliver," recorded at Radio Recorders in Hollywood
> in September and October
> 1959. Here's the reissue LP version:
> http://tinyurl.com/2dqo98u
>
> Interesting, though! I'm comparing right now the YouTube clip to the album
> and guess what -- that
> YouTube clip is a different take from the album! The trombone and clarinet
> vamps are different and
> there's a little bit different delivery to Louis's vocals plus different
> trumpet solos. But, the
> sound is very close to the record so I'd say it's gotta be from the same
> session since Sid Fry's
> setup was unique, his "curtain of sound" M-S stereophonic setup (not
> hard-panned "stereo" as was
> typical of jazz recordings on those days). I wonder where this other take is
> floating around! The
> version that's on the Classic Records reissue linked above is the same as
> what's on my 1964 Audio
> Fidelity version of the album titled "The Best of Louis Armstrong" (Audio
> Fidelity AFSD 6132).  I
> don't think AF would have issued two versions of that same LP, and the
> Classic reissue claims to be
> of the first edition version (Audio Fidelity AFLP 1930). So the take in that
> YouTube clip must be
> floating around from somewhere else.
>
> For what it's worth, I prefer the take that's on the LP. Louis's solo at the
> end is fantastic, and
> the clarinet picks up on what he's doing at one point and they both go over
> the top together. In my
> opinion, this was Louis Armstrong's last great jazz session. His next step
> was "Hello Dolly" and pop
> fame in his last years. He never again played trumpet in front of a
> recording mic as well as he did
> for the Audio Fidelity sessions. And the recording technique on that album
> is perfect for the
> ensemble playing that Louis's band was into. Everyone has to play his part
> but not one is
> artificially spotlighted. So they have to play as a unit, control their
> dynamics, know when to lay
> in and lay out, like real musicians playing in a believable sonic space.
> That was innovative in
> those days and, unfortunately, is still rare and innovative today!
>
> -- Tom Fine
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Hans en Corrie" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Saturday, May 08, 2010 3:19 AM
> Subject: [ARSCLIST] St. James Infirmary - Louis Armstrnog
>
>
>> This month, 80 years ago, Ellington recorded St. James Infirmary for a Hit
>> of the Week recording. I commemorated this fact in the latest
>> http://hitoftheweek.blogspot.com. I posted a great version of this song by
>> Louis Armstrong - can someone inform me when this was recorded?
>>
>> Hans
>>
>