COMPACT DISC REVIEW

By

Jack Rummel

 

 

Hot Fingers: the best of Jazzou Jones

Jazzou Jones, piano

High Water Records (no number)

 

Nola / The Cascades / The Ragtime Dance / A Real Slow Drag / Dill Pickles / Kitten on the Keys / Dizzy Fingers / High Water / Ragtime Mary Greene – A Ghostly Two-Step / Paddlewheel Rag / The Entertainer / Solace / The Nonpareil / Cottontail Rag / Top Liner Rag / Frog Legs Rag / Efficiency Rag / Maple Leaf Rag / Charleston Rag / 12th Street Rag.

 

     It isn’t often that a ragtime artist has recorded a sufficient body of work to justify a “best of” album, but apparently Jazzou Jones feels that he has.  Or perhaps he thinks that these 20 pieces constitute the ones that he plays better than any others, for this CD also contains eight rags that he has never recorded before.  It’s a waste of time to try to second-guess the title, however, because the disc can best be described as 70-plus minutes of well-played ragtime by anyone’s definition.

     Jones has recently retired from a successful career as pianist/entertainer on the Delta Queen, a Mississippi River paddlewheeler, and this recording will make a fine souvenir as he enters the concert/festival circuit.  The first seven tracks plus 12th Street Rag are the new cuts.  In the middle, and intended as the centerpiece, are three of his original compositions, High Water, Ragtime Mary Greene and Paddlewheel Rag, all previously released, but this time he is also offering the sheet music in a separate folio.  Concluding the playlist are nine favorites from the early masters, also available on his 1998 and 2005 CDs.

     Six of the first seven new cuts are nicely done, but they are well-worn chestnuts and essentially plow no new ground.  The exception would be A Real Slow Drag, an under-recorded gem from Joplin ’s opera which deserves more attention.  Jones’ rendition is a highlight of the album.  It was a disappointment to hear that the eighth new track, 12th Street Rag, had been transposed to the key of C from its original E-flat key, but you gotta do what you gotta do to keep your listeners clamoring for more.

     My ears tell me that three different pianos have been used, or perhaps different recording paraphernalia, but not to the detriment of the final product.  In a previous review (Hilarity, 2006) I stated, “…Jones shows impeccable taste in his timing, his use of dynamics and his overall delivery.”  I also praised Ragtime Mary Greene, voting it “…one of the finer contemporary compositions available today,” comments which still apply.

     Jazzou Jones is an excellent interpreter of classic ragtime and shows promise as a composer.  If you do not own one of his recordings, this would be a first rate addition to your library.  If you already possess both of his CDs, then you will need to decide if it is worth the price just to add seven overworked (and one under-recorded) standards (although the folio of his three originals might pique your interest).

     CD and folio are $19.00 each postpaid from <www.jazzoujones.com> or by mail from High Water Music, 1050 Norway Road , Glenburn , ME 04401 .