From KUTX:
On Oct. 22, 1931, jazz trombonist Jack Teagarden entered a New York City recording studio with Eddie Lang and Joe Venuti to record “Beale Street Blues,” a W. C. Handy composition that would become one of Teagarden’s most celebrated recordings.
Born in Vernon, Texas, in 1905, Teagarden soon became acquainted with the music of local tent revivals and was influenced by Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith records. He took up the trombone at age 7 and was soon providing the live soundtrack to silent films at Vernon’s movie theater, accompanied by his mother on piano. Jack and his family moved around — Nebraska, Oklahoma, San Antonio — and by age 16, Teagarden was performing professionally in Houston with Peck Kelly’s Bad Boys.
In 1927, he arrived in New York City, his singular style already formed with a combination of Dixieland, swing, and proto-bebop phrasing. Inspired by the techniques and artistry of trumpeter Louis Armstrong, Teagarden revealed new possibilities for the trombone and was also an early participant in racially integrated recording sessions.
Guitarist Eddie Lang and violinist Joe Venuti led the legendary October 1931 session that produced “Beale Street Blues” with a band featuring Jack Teagarden, clarinetist Benny Goodman and Teagarden’s brother Carl on trumpet. And while Jack Teagarden is most known for his early innovations on the trombone, it was the Red River Valley native’s vocal performance that shines on “Beale Street Blues.”
The record also features a hefty passage of collective improvisation that highlights the progressive approaches of Teagarden and company on their respective instruments, part of the often-unheralded Texas accent on early jazz.
