Basin Street Blues – 1951
Jack Teagarden
A concise but classic version
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Jack Teagarden was universally acclaimed as the top jazz trombonist before the bebop era, and he remained a delightful presence on the jazz scene up until the time of his death in 1964.
Teagarden spent the 1947-51 period as a member of the Louis Armstrong All-Stars and was always a perfect foil for Satchmo.
In this brief but memorable clip from the 1951 film The Strip, Teagarden sings and plays trombone on his feature, “Basin Street Blues,” while Louis Armstrong almost steals the show with his final scat break.
The band also includes clarinetist Barney Bigard, pianist Earl Hines (actor William Demarest pretends to play the second piano), bassist Lloyd Pratt, and drummer Smokey Stover.
– Scott Yanow
