COMMUNITY HANDBOOK 2012
wall street wail
^^ Barney bigard
Though Duke Ellington (born Edward Kennedy Ellington but called Duke because he was so elegant) is best loved by New Yorkers for his great (written by Billy “Sweet Pea” Strayhorn) “Take the A” in 1939, a decade earlier he and the Jungle Band had a great hit entitled “Wall Street Wail” that appeared shortly after the Crash of ’29. Written by Duke along with Barney Bigard (the cat on clarinet who also wrote one of my favorite jazz rags “Sweet Marijuana Brown”), “Wall Street Wail” (aka “Wall Street Shuffle”) is a fast-paced, swinging sound with a lot of reeds and a back-beat of Duke on keys. Though rarely performed with lyrics, it’s a cynical story of greed and suffering –like the very cause and effect of the Great Depression: “Do the Wall Street
shuffle/ Hear the money rustle/ Watch the greenbacks tumble/ Feel the Sterling crumble….” The clarinet (Bigard) and the sweet trumpet blown by Arthur Whetsel carry the piece, with some great bass work by the incredible Wellman Braud, a Creole originally from New Orleans. “Do the Wall Street Shuffle,” the music bubbles, “Let your money hustle/ Bet you’d sell your mother/ You can buy another.” Bigard tired of traveling with Duke and retired to LA but in April of 1961, he, Duke, and Louis Armstrong did an historic recording session, including such great numbers as “Mood Indigo” and “It Don’t Mean a Thing if it Ain’t Got That Swing,” which sounds much like this New York treasure “Wall Street Wail.”
SENIOR SERVICES Dept. for the Aging Various Departments Call 311
Asian Care Services Program Beth Israel Medical Services First Ave. & 16th St. New York, NY 10003 212-844-1281 fax: 212-844-1563
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Betances Health Center 280 Henry St. New York, NY 10002 212-227-8401
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Chinese American Planning Council 165 Eldridge St. New York, NY 10002 212-226-5351
City Hall Senior Center Adult Day Service 100 Gold St. New York, NY 10038 212-788-1537 fax: 212-788-5549
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