James Reese Europe's 369th U.S. Infantry "Hell Fighters" Band

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Music reviews of James Reese Europe's 369th U.S. Infantry "Hell Fighters" Band

Music Review: The transitional music mostly hints at jazz
Rating: 5 Stars

Description of James Reese Europe's 369th U.S. Infantry "Hell Fighters" Band

During World War I, he organized and led the all-black 369th U.S. Infantry "Hell Fighters" Band. They fought in the trenches, introduced that new music "Jazz" to the Continent, and were acclaimed in France and America as the greatest-ever regimental band.

In May, 1919, the "Hell Fighters" were on the last leg of their triumphal U.S. victory concert tour when Europe was murdered at age 39. All 24 recordings he made for Pathe in the last two months of his life are collected on this CD as well as a 44 page booklet with rare photographs and liner notes.

Though he was a titanic figure--Europe was the first African American officer to lead men into battle and Eubie Blake called him "the savior of Negro musicians"--his fame soon turned to obscurity. In 1995, Reid Bodger's thorough biography of Europe, A Life in Ragtime, appeared, rekindling widespread interest, and the following year saw the appearance of this music on two different CDs. A large band of brass, reeds, and percussion, with vocals by Noble Sissle, Europe's orchestra plays the popular music of the day with a distinctive spirit and a marked rhythmic fluency uncommon in orchestral ragtime. W.C. Handy is prominent in the repertoire ("St. Louis Blues," "Hesitating Blues," "Memphis Blues"). The songwriting team of Europe, Blake, and Sissle ranges in their subject matter from "Jazz Baby" to the wartime experiences of "No-Man's Land." Europe's associate Tom Bethel contributed "That Moaning Trombone" with its vocal effects, while "Clarinet Marmalade" comes from the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. Despite the references to jazz, though, this is a band poised on the jazz era, not a jazz band, with improvisation mostly limited to brief "breaks." Songs from White and African American composers alike contribute to the complex representation of black life in America, one alive with both stereotypes and new possibilities.

Another edition of these recordings, James Reese Europe appeared a few months earlier on the IAJRC label with the tracks arranged in chronological order of recording rather than the pattern here, which simulates the order of one of Jim Europe's concerts. Both versions provide a worthwhile portrait of a major figure in American music; however, they also represent slightly different philosophies of sound restoration. The IAJRC preserves much of the static to avoid loss of detail; the Memphis Archive is much cleaner and generally far more listenable. The Memphis Archive edition also contains substantial supporting material, a detailed 44-page account of Europe's life and music by Tim Gracyk. --Stuart Broomer

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