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!