1945 - September 14

Art Hodes' Back-Room Boys – September 14 1945

Dan Morgenstern – The Complete Art Hodes Blue Note Sessions Mosaic 

I wish I could tell you more about the mysterious Oliver "Rev" Mesheux. All I've been able to discover is that he made this and one other session (with comedian and in this case, blues singer Pigmeat Markham) for Blue Note; and later changed his name to Mustapha Daleel, and recorded with Gil Fuller's big hind in 1949. I heard him in person once, at one of the regular weekend sessions presented at the Stuyvesant Casino or Central Plaza by the late Bob Maltz, who knew and hired more obscure jazz musicians in and around New York than anyone. On that occasion, around 1949-50, Rev impressed me as one of the loudest trumpeters I'd ever heard, though not necessarily one of the best, but he must have favorably impressed Messrs. Lion and Wolff, probably at one of the many jam sessions they attended. Once they got him in the studio, however, they seem to have had second thoughts. Nothing from this session was issued on 78s. Only two cuts were later approved for release on a LP. Two alternatives of one of these pieces came out years later, under Lion and Wolff's successors' reign; two others rested in the can until their pre- sent resurrection. If this implies that Rev didn't do too well,  
let me hasten to say that he sounds better here than I remembered him—a limited but gutsy player with some of his own ideas. And he is partnered in the front line by still another clarinet king—the great Omer Simeon, born in New Orleans in 1902 but residing in Chicago by 1914, and very much part of the Windy City's 1920s scene. Also on board is Al Lucas (1916-1983), a first-rate if unsung bassist, and Freddie Moore is back on drums.  

(l GONNA GIVE YOU) NONE OF MY JELLY ROI.I., a very old and very durable tune, opens with an arranged passage for horns with trumpet and clarinet breaks. Simeon's solo after the ensemble exposition is the highlight of the track. It moves from chalumeau to upper register and shows that his years in big bands (Earl Hines, Jimmie Lunceford), playing more alto (and sometimes baritone) than clarinet had not impaired his facility on his first horn. or his ability to work within a traditional contest spices up his half-chorus with that good old rolling effect, while Mesheux's buzzing tone shows an affinity for Roy Eldridge. This is a previously unissued master.  

BI.UES FOR JEI.I.Y comes to us in three takes. and gets better as it moves along. Simeon, who wrote this tribute to his old leader, is again the centerpiece. He opens this medium blues with choruses in the middle register, setting a mood sustained by Hodes, who chords interestingly. Rev plays too many notes, but Simeon returns with contrasting simplicity, albeit slightly out of tune. Rev, blasting away, joins him for the out-chorus. Take two has a more sober trumpet solo. and Omer and Art again play well with Lucas firm behind them. Simeon displays his pure upper register sound. not at all piercing, and sails over the now thankfully more restrained trumpeter, who stays in the middle range. The ending is also much improved. The final take finds Simeon keeping from repeating himself, Mesheux glissing a lot, Art saying something different and good, and Omer's best out-chorus.  

Photo by Francis Wolff

BEALE STREET' BI,UES, previously unissued, is a nice discovery. Two-part harmony dresses up the verse. Mesheux gets out his plunger mute and shows he can growl. Art brings on the tune's blue strain, with horn punctuations; as the horns take the lead. Omer's part is well conceived. His solo again contrasts registers effectively; the New Orleans did this much more frequently than the Swing men, perhaps because their middle and lower range sounds were so full and warm. Simeon's a bit like Barney Bigard here, if not as smooth. Rev gives us more of his growl; he's heard Lips Page. Art's turn is very blue, and then trumpet, open now. and clarinet ride out on the blues for two choruses, the second really moving along. Rev does his best playing so far. 

JACK DAILY BLUES, by Hodes, is a nice composition—a two strained slow blues. Nobody watches the clock; it runs for nearly five minutes. Rev (muted) leads, Simeon supplying an echo effect and playing good fills. Art solos movingly and inventively; the ensemble resumes and Art takes a second helping. Rev offers a muted solo sticking close to the theme, and Simeon is briefly heard from before he and Rev recap the main theme. A pleasant track.  

The date ends with a second attempt at JELLY ROLL. The tempo's a bit slower, the routine the same, Art's solo more spare. The trumpet break has been eliminated from the opening, but Simeon still takes his. Not a history making session, but the only real sample of Rev's horn, and especially good for Simeon. 

 

Dan Morgenstern - B-6509 Liner Notes 

Blues for Jelly, finally, is not truly representative of Omer Simeon's stature, while trumpeter Oliver "Rev" Mesheux fails to prove that his obscurity is undeserved. But there is that fine Hodes blues piano to redeem it. 

Art Hodes – B6502 Liner Notes 

"Blues For Jelly" closes the set. We were in for a treat when Omer Simeon arrived to play clarinet on the date. This cat has to be one of the all-time greats on the instrument. No wonder Jelly Roll Morton used him so frequently. On trumpet we used Oliver Mesheux; talk about a guy who 'preaches' on the horn. Al Lucas sat in on bass with Fred Moore at the drums. It's an easy blues mood with nobody tryin' to prove nothin'. 

 

Session Information 

Oliver "Rev." Mesheux, trumpet; Omer Simeon, clarinet; Art Hodes, piano; Al Lucas, bass; Fred Moore, drums. 

WOR Studios, NYC, September 14, 1945 

BN258-2, None Of My Jelly Roll (alternate take) 

BN259-0, Blues For Jelly (alternate take 1), Blue Note B-6509 

BN259-1, Blues For Jelly (alternate take 2), Blue Note B-6502 

BN259-2, Blues For Jelly, Blue Note BLP 7021 

BN260-2, Basin Street Blues 

BN261-0, Jack Daily Blues, Blue Note BLP 7021 

BN258-4, None Of My Jelly Roll