[78-L] Birdland Label

[David Lennick]

[Re-sending..for some reason it turned up minus the first line in one of my 
mailboxes and intact in the other. Plus I can correct one word.]

I've had the Black Deuce 78s..probably should have held out for a better deal
but I got what I thought was a good trade at the time and kept digital
transfers. The sound is far better than on the Roulette "Echoes of an Era" set
where they appeared in the 70s (not sure which "Echoes" set it is at the
moment). I've never seen the other LP versions. As I recall, my 78s came in an
unmarked 3-pocket album.

dl

Geoffrey Wheeler wrote:
> 
> 
> 
> More on the Birdland label and its connection through Morris Levy to 
> Roost and Roulette.
> On Monday night, September 29, 1947, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie 
> performed at Carnegie Hall. One of the tunes was “Ko Ko,” which Parker 
> had recorded earlier for Savoy Records. The 6:08 live performance opens 
> with Gillespie and Parker playing unison ensemble before Parker 
> launches into his by-now-famous solo which is played at a tempo even 
> faster than the original Savoy recording. During his solo, he 
> incorporates phrases from the original recording. Drummer Joe Harris 
> follows with a rumbling, pointless solo that leads into the ensemble 
> close. Although four other tunes from the concert were issued on the 
> bootleg The Black Deuce 78 label, this lengthy performance was not. 
> Teddy Reig, who made the original concert recordings, released this 
> version of “Ko Ko” in 1982 on the Jazz America Marketing label JAM 5006 
> Unearthed Masters—Volume 1: Charlie Parker, Coleman Hawkins, Georgie 
> Auld.
> 
> Three records with performances in six parts were issued from the 
> Carnegie Hall concert on The Black Deuce 10-inch 78 label, with all 
> labels reading “A Nite at Carnegie Hall” but with no tune titles. The 
> label has a black field with silver type in all caps identifying Dizzy 
> Gillespie and Charlie Parker and five silver bars at the top and 
> bottom. No other information appears on the label. Parts 1 and 2 are 
> “Night in Tunisia”; Parts 3 and 4 are “Groovin’ High”; Part 5 is “Dizzy 
> Atmosphere,” and Part 6 is “Confirmation.” A few New York record stores 
> sold the 78s under the counter. Copies of the three Black Deuce 78s and 
> the original Black Deuce test pressings, which came from the Teddy Reig 
> Collection, are currently in the Norman Saks Collection. These sides 
> were later issued on 10-inch Birdland LP425 [cover; BLP 425 on the 
> label]: A Night at Carnegie Hall with Charlie Parker and Dizzy 
> Gillespie. The back cover calls this “A Memorial to Charlie Parker.”  
> Side A: “A Night in Tunisia,” parts 1 and 2; and “Dizzy Atmosphere.” 
> Side B: “Groovin’ High,” parts 1 and 2; and “Confirmation.” The four 
> performances from the Birdland LP were later reissued on 12-inch Roost 
> RLP 2234: Diz ‘n’ Bird in Concert. The cover of the Birdland album 
> features a full-frame interior shot of a seated theatre audience with a 
> tiny stage in the upper-right corner. The label has a black field with 
> white type. A bird sits atop the “d” of the “Birdland” logo centered at 
> the top of the label. Shirley Hoskins Collins wrote the notes. Birdland 
> Records was located at 625 10th Avenue, New York City, the same address 
> as Roost Records. The label is said to have been named after the Royal 
> Roost jazz club located at 1580 Broadway and 47th Street. Launched in 
> 1950, early Roost 78 releases say “Roost” only. Later this became 
> “Royal Roost” on LP labels. Roost 78s offer better sound than the same 
> reissues on Roost 10-inch LPs. Much of the early LP cover art is done 
> by Burt Goldblatt. Birdland opened December 15, 1949 at 1678 Broadway 
> at 52nd Street.
> 
>   A copy of this 10-inch LP sold at silent auction in September 2008 for 
> $349.00. All six Black Deuce sides were reissued on (E) Ember LP CJS 
> 817 The World of Charlie Parker, “A Roulette Recording.” Morris Levy, 
> principal of Birdland jazz club, owned Roulette, which he launched in 
> 1957. In 1958, Levy bought the Roost catalog and folded it into 
> Roulette. The link between Savoy, The Black Deuce, Birdland, Roost, and 
> Roulette is A&R man, Teddy Reig, who was responsible for these 
> recordings being issued on all five labels.
> _______________________________________________