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Listen to sound samples from the CD below 1. Muscrat
Ramble |
LONG, DEEP & WIDE The Original Salty Dogs Jazz Band with Carol Leigh Following World War II, a great traditional jazz revival was sweeping the country. It's fever spread to many college campuses including that of Purdue University in Lafayette, Indiana, where the roots of the Salty Dogs were planted in 1947. The original band was an outgrowth of a group of jazz fans who listened to and talked about traditional jazz during informal gatherings. It was not long before some members of the group, led by Dick "Much" Mushlitz and Birch Smith, formed a jazz band which did not play publicly but performed only for the group's amusement. The popularity of the Salty Dogs grew as the band began to make weekend trips to Chicago listening to and sitting in with the many jazz greats who were playing there at that time. In 1953 the Dogs began playing every weekend in the Chicago area working at the Red Arrow, the Hunt Club and the Sabre Room They were on their way to establishing the name, "Salty Dogs," as a traditional jazz institution. In the period between 1959 to 1973, the band members developed the uncanny ability to anticipate each other's musical thoughts which added to the smooth deliverance of their arrangements. Current members' seniority years with the band is a testament to their personal stability. Years with the band: John Cooper, piano-1953; Lew Green, cornet-1956; Kim Cusack, clarinet-1959; Mike Walbridge, tuba-1959; Wayne Jones, drums-1960; Tom Bartlett, trombone-1969; Jack Kuncl, banjo-1969; Carol Leigh, vocals-1973. |
