If you have seen that wonderful film, “The Last of the Blue Devils”, then you will certainly recall the moment that Count Basie, wearing his customary yachtsman’s cap, entered The Foundation to be greeted by the piano player with a cheery, if slightly mocking, “Where you park yo’ yacht then, Basie?”.
The pianist was Jay McShann, long-time resident of Kansas City, Missouri, and doyen of that city’s musical fraternity. The Local 627 Foundation was one of the two American Federation of Musicians buildings in KC. Shockingly, until at least the early 80s, they were segregated, with The Foundation the hangout of the black membership.
I was in KC in 1979 to record Claude Williams and his band for release on Big Bear Records and, in my week in town, spent as much downtime as possible at The Foundation. Although I never visited the white Federation building, I am sure they didn’t have nearly as much fun as did McShann, Claude and the gang at Local 627.
Whereas the white Local was fully licensed for alcohol, The Foundation was never legally allowed to sell liquor. No problem! The solution was simple, but effective. Lockers were allocated to members who bought their liquor at the store, stowed it in their lockers and bought overpriced mixers at the bar.
KC is a city where jazz and the blues meet. Those great big bands of Count Basie and Jay McShann leaned heavily on the blues and between them featured the greatest blues shouters, Jimmy Rushing, Joe Williams, Walter Brown and Jimmy Witherspoon.
Thanks to the largesse of the corrupt, if much loved, political boss Tom Pendergast in the Prohibition era, the after-hours jam sessions in speakeasies often lasted all night while the police looked in another direction.
James Columbus McShann was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, in 1916, and taught himself to play piano in his youth by taking sneaky peeks at his sister’s piano lessons. His first influence was Earl Hines’ late-night broadcasts from the Grand Terrace Café in Chicago. McShann said, “When Fatha (Hines’ nickname) went off the air, I went to bed.” By the time he was 15, he was playing the bars and honky-tonks around Tulsa and in nearby Arkansas.
McShann made his move to Kansas City in 1936 and joined Buster Smith’s band before going on to form his own, taking with him Smith’s alto player, the youthful Charlie Parker, and recruiting some very impressive sidemen, including Al Hibbler, Ben Webster, Paul Quinichette, Gene Ramey, Gus Johnson – and Walter Brown.
Signing for Decca Records, he wrote “Confessin’ the Blues” – and here’s something I never did understand. Jay McShann was himself a terrific blues shouter and remained so throughout his career. So why would he give away to another singer such a gem of a blues? But he did – and Walter Brown was the beneficiary, with the biggest hit of his career.
McShann’s song eventually enjoyed a huge number of re-recordings, most notably by Wynonie Harris, Chuck Berry, Lowell Fulson, Little Walter, Dakota Staton with George Shearing, Joe Williams with Count Basie’s Band, B.B. King, Eddie Cleanhead Vinson – and The Rolling Stones.
It was in KC that McShann acquired his nickname “Hootie” which he earned honestly from his taste for more than the occasional drink, known locally as Hootch.
With the Basie Band’s success taking them out of KC to New York, McShann ruled the roost until World War II interceded, the draft decimating the band until, in 1944, McShann himself was called up, serving for two years.
Returning to civilian life, he formed a smaller, rhythm and blues combo with Jimmy Witherspoon handling the vocals. He resumed his recording activities and in 1949 enjoyed a hit with “Ain’t Nobody’s Business”, featuring Spoon.
Not the luckiest of musicians career-wise, Hootie’s success with his new outfit was sidelined in the mid-1950s when rock and roll took over and cornered the market. By then, recording for Vee-Jay, he had had another hit on the R&B chart with “Hands Off”, featuring singer Priscilla Bowman who had taken over from Spoon in the early 50s. “Hands Off” stayed at Number One for three weeks, the last hit single for both Hootie and Kansas City, Kansas-born Priscilla Bowman, known locally as that city’s “original rock’n’roll mama”.
Returning to civilian life, he formed a smaller, rhythm and blues combo with Jimmy Witherspoon handling the vocals. He resumed his recording activities and in 1949 enjoyed a hit with “Ain’t Nobody’s Business”, featuring Spoon.
Not the luckiest of musicians career-wise, Hootie’s success with his new outfit was sidelined in the mid-1950s when rock and roll took over and cornered the market. By then, recording for Vee-Jay, he had had another hit on the R&B chart with “Hands Off”, featuring singer Priscilla Bowman who had taken over from Spoon in the early 50s. “Hands Off” stayed at Number One for three weeks, the last hit single for both Hootie and Kansas City, Kansas-born Priscilla Bowman, known locally as that city’s “original rock’n’roll mama”.
McShann continued to work regularly, singing and playing piano both solo and with small groups which sometimes included his long-time buddy, Claude “Fiddler” Williams, and in 1970 embarked on the first of his many tours of Europe. He recorded six albums for the French Black and Blue label between 1970 and 1987 as well as recording for Sonet in Sweden, Black Lion and JSP in the U.K., plus various U.S. labels and four albums for Holger Peterson’s Stony Plain in Canada. Between 1970 and 2006 the indefatigable Hootie recorded no fewer than 42 albums.
This remarkable bluesman worked right up until the end, recording his final album in 2006, the year of his death in Kansas City, Missouri, at the age of 90. He was inducted into The Blues Hall of Fame (1988), The Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame (1998) and The Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame (1989). He received Grammy nominations for his albums, “Paris All Star Blues” (1991) and “Goin’ to Kansas City” (2003).
Hootie was also responsible for a most welcome addition to the roster of Big Bear artists – and to my circle of valued and respected friends. Hootie was a regular feature at many leading European jazz and blues festivals and that’s where I got to know him.
In 1978 he was playing The North Sea Jazz Festival where I was with Cousin Joe from New Orleans. I got there a day early in order to catch McShann. He was billed to appear with an all-star quartet: himself, Buddy Tate on tenor, Gene Ramey on double bass and Gus Johnson on drums.
But there was a fifth musician on stage, a fiddle player, and he was terrific! Backstage I got introduced – and that’s how I first met Claude Williams who was to record and tour for Big Bear throughout the coming years.