The Dr. Jazz Podcast - 1923-1924: The Moment Before the Explosion (May 2021)

The years 1923-1924 were what I like to call "the moment before the explosion." It wasn't the beginning of recorded jazz music (that started back in 1917 with the Original Dixieland Jazz Band). The "explosion" wasn't Louis Armstrong joining King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, nor Armstrong's first recorded solo (although that "was" very important). The years 1923-1924 were the lead up to Louis Armstrong's Hot Five recordings. While some may yawn and roll their eyes - I believe it is fair to say that jazz, rock and popular music as we know it would be completely changed due to the revolutionary recordings of Louis Armstrong The Hot Five, then later the Hot Seven, followed by the remainder of Armstrong's recorded works. But the Hot Five were like a version of jazz music's Avengers or Justice League. It was a supergroup in all senses of the word! This podcast episode was designed in two ways: first, it is presented chronologically (or at least close). Next, it was conceived by an idea from a book I am reading by jazz author Ted Gioia. In his book 'How to Listen to Jazz', he discusses how he went 2 weeks listening to what he could find in recorded jazz previous to Louis Armstrong's Hot Five recordings in order to really let the full revolutionary sound impact him to the fullest extent of his ears. This podcast is a microcosm of that experience. We aim to give the listener the experience of sampling what was available in recorded music leading up to the moment of sonic artistry with the explosion of the recordings of the Hot Five - and Louis Armstrong was the bomb!