Some musicologists have argued that
ragtime, not
Dixieland, was the first form of
jazz, but that assertion is incorrect because
ragtime was never
improvisation-oriented -- and
improvisation, like
blues feeling, is a main ingredient of
jazz. However,
ragtime was a major influence on early
jazz piano;
Jelly Roll Morton,
James P. Johnson,
Fats Waller, and similar pianists who were popular in the '20s were certainly well aware of
Scott Joplin's legacy. So was
Paul Lingle, who was primarily a
stride pianist but had a strong
ragtime influence and could play
ragtime when called upon to do so. A collection of live performances from late 1951,
Live at the Jug Club is a
jazz CD first and foremost, but demonstrates that
Lingle never lost his love of
ragtime; the
ragtime influence is quite strong whether he is embracing
Morton's
"Black Bottom Stomp" or
Harry Warren's
"September in the Rain." These recordings were made in an Oakland, CA, club in 1951, and while the sound quality isn't great, it is decent (by early-'50s
standards) and captures
Lingle's vitality. Regrettably,
Lingle wasn't documented nearly as much as he should have been, which is why his
Jug Club performances (originally released on the
Euphonic Sounds label) are so important to fans. Those old
Euphonic LPs are hard to find, and this
Delmark release marks the first time that any of his
Jug recordings have been heard on CD. How appropriate that these performances would make their CD debut on
Bob Koester's label;
Koester might have a reputation for being a real curmudgeon at times, but his love of
jazz and
blues obviously runs deep -- and leave it to
Delmark to rescue worthwhile recordings from total obscurity. Despite its imperfect sound quality,
Live at the Jug Club is easily recommended to lovers of
stride piano. ~ Alex Henderson
![The Color Purple [Music From & Inspired By]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0617513842968_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "The Color Purple [Music From & Inspired By]")
