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“The blues” has a lot of different meanings to a lot of different folks. Are they the acoustic blues of Bukka White, the electric blues of Muddy Waters, or the sophisticated sounds of Count Basie, Duke Ellington or Ray Charles? It could be more like a state of mind, like the mood and atmosphere created by Red Garland’s beautifully mellow LP “Red In Bluesville”.

Here’s a collection of tunes we do at concerts and dances, in bands both large and small, all of which evoke a blues attitude. Jazz people often call us a blues band, and Blues people will call us a jazz band. It’s a mixed up, nebulous world we inhabit, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’d like to thank all the fantastic musicians who regularly play with us, as well as the management and staff at Swing 46, a dinner/dance venue in NYC’s Broadway theater district, who have kept us working on our weekly Monday night big band engagement for years. Here’s my two-cent tour of the tunes.

1. The Late, Late Show (vocal). We are ripping off “The Atomic Mr Basie” by the Count Basie Orchestra (the “ultimate blues band”), with both vocal and instrumental versions of this wonderful song. Joe Williams and Nat King Cole both sang this with Basie. We’ve got John Bauers to sing it and Bryan Davis on the trumpet solo. Arranged by Rob Edwards, who is responsible for doing a stellar job on a ton of our repertoire.

2. I Love The Life I Live. An Englishman goes to Chicago, brings back this Muddy Waters song and gives it the Swingadelic treatment. Neal Pawley sings, Bill Easley & Kyle Koehler swing. Bill has played with Ruth Brown, George Benson, Isaac Hayes, Jimmy McGriff, ...ah forget it, I could go on all day here. Have any stories, Bill? An instant arrangement by Neal.

3. Harlem Nocturne. We are a full seventeen-piece big band here, with Audrey Welber on alto & Boo Reiners wailing on lap steel on this classic Earle Hagen arrangement.

4. Mary Ann. John Bauers sings one of my favorite Ray Charles tunes, but let’s face it, anything by Brother Ray is a favorite. Trombone by Alex Jeun & guitar by Señor Blues, Joe Taino. Arranged by DP.

5. What’s Your Story, Morning Glory. Here’s a blues by Mary Lou Williams that Ella Fitzgerald did on her LP “Ella Swings Lightly”. And now Vanessa Perea does it. Wonderfully. Tenor sax solo by Michael (The Iceberg) Weisberger and trumpet solo and proofreading by John Martin. Arranged by Rob.

6. Parchment Farm. I sometimes have the pleasure of working with Mitch Woods, and here he joins us to sing and play piano on Mose Allison’s most covered tune. Mose is a major influence, and fans should check out the documentary “Ever Since I Stole The Blues”. We’re joined by Andy Riedel on guitar and the most beautiful cat in Philadelphia, Jimmy Coleman on drums.

7. Lonely Avenue. Ray Charles hit with this Doc Pomus tune. What’d I Say before? John Bauers on vocals, bari sax solo by John DiSanto, and Kyle Koehler on organ. Arranged by DP.

8. El Blues Esa Mujer. Worlds collide on this blues inspired by Danish Latin Jazz vibes player Cal Tjader and the master of pop, Quincy Jones. Guitar by Joe Taino and trombone by Alex Jeun. Arranged by DP.

9. I Don’t Know. R&B stands for Ruth Brown, the original vocalist on this Brook Benton tune. The VP sibilantly serenades us, with Andy Riedel on guitar and Carlos Francis taking a plunge(r). Arranged by Rob.

10. Riff’n on McGriff’n. Here’s a guitar feature that Andy Riedel & I cobbled together. Kyle Koehler leads us off to the races on the Hammond B3.

11. Fool’s Paradise. I first heard this ballad done by the great Charles Brown, and I think it resonates with the lives we live. Drinkin’ and gamblin’, staying out all night. John Bauers sings this with solos by Ken Robinson on alto and Rob Edwards on trombone. Arranged by John & Rob.

12. The Mooche. Ellington put this out in 1928. He had an album late in his career called “The Intimacy of the Blues”, a sentiment that stuck to me. Solos by Robinson on clarinet, Boo on guitar and Carlos on trumpet. Arranged by DP.

13. You’re Humbuggin’ Me. J.D. Miller and Rocket Morgan, two “gentlemen” from southern Louisiana, wrote this song for Lefty Frizzell. Rocket Morgan left the music biz to become a preacher. It paid better. Andy Riedel sings and plays on this with Neal Pawley on trombone.

14. The Late, Late Show (instrumental) so nice we did it twice. John Bauers on the piano and Mike “The Iceberg” Weisberger on tenor. – Dave Post

Recorded at Kaleidoscope Sound, Union City, NJ, in December 2019. Produced by Dave Post. Engineered by Kyle Cassel. Mastered by Gene Paul and Paul Kerr, G&J Audio. Art direction, package design and photography by: Al Gold. Executive Producer: Joachim “Jochen” Becker.

Publishing: Jonroy Music Co./EMI Longitude Music Co. (1, 14); BMG Bumblebee OBO Hoochie Coochie Music (2); Shapiro Bernstein Inc. (3); Hill & Range Songs (4); Soundrights Music OBO Cecilia Music, Range Road Music Inc., Warner Bros Music A Div of Warner Bros Inc. (5); BMG Bumblebee OBO Audre Mae Music (6); Third Side US Publishing, Unichappell Music, Spirit One Music OBO Pomus Songs Inc (7); Frankensnare Music BMI (8, 10); Shelby Singleton Music, Trio Music Co. (9); SONY ATV/Acuff Rose Music (11); SONY/ATV Harmony, EMI Mils Music Inc. (12); Jamul Music (13).

Swingadelic info and bookings: Dave Post mediamixent@aol.com