Introduction

Dennis Gould 0:00

Meanwhile Mobile Welcome to Meanwhile Mobile, the podcast that climbs into the attic of history and opens a trunk filled with hidden, lost, or forgotten pieces of the puzzle that make Mobile Alabama unique. Here's your host, Kathy Richardson.

Kathy Richardson 0:19

Thank you, Dennis Gould. And along with author Joe Cuhaj, we open that trunk and find people and stories that will surprise and sometimes amaze. Joe?

Joe Cuhaj 0:31

Let's open that trunk.

Kathy Richardson 0:35

Tap your feet and dance in the streets. It's Mobile's popular music history, The Beat of the Bay.

Joe Cuhaj 0:41

Mobile's

Overview

Joe Cuhaj 0:42

musical roots run deep in the South Alabama clay. From soulful jazz to the rhythmic pounding of Mardi Grad drum lines to rock and roll. In fact, there is so much incredible music history in the city that we had to produce two episodes to fit as much of it in as we can. And even that isn't enough time. In part one of our journey, we'll focus on a few of the forgotten singers, songwriters, band leaders, instrumentalists, and composers who hail from the Port City from the 1800s to the mid-1950s. Many of their names have been lost to history.

Creola Ruffin on the "Down the Bay" Community

Creola Ruffin 1:20

Mobile has nothing to celebrate its music legends. We do not have a Center for Performing Arts. We do not have one statue of a great musician, which James Reese Europe should be standing somewhere around here, and also Cooter Williams. Nobody knows about these people, but people all over the world do.

Kathy Richardson 1:45

That's Creola Ruffin, founder of the Gulf Coast Ethnic and Heritage Jazz Festival, and one of the organizers for a new project, The Celebration of Mobile Music Legends. As Creola points out, much of Mobile's musical heritage can be traced to an area of the city known as Down the Bay. Located in a roughly seven-mile area bordered by Government Street, Michigan Avenue, Baltimore Street, and the Bay, Down the Bay has been a close-knit, self-sustaining interracial community that was once the epicenter of Mobile's rich musical heritage.

Creola Ruffin 2:22

Any person with a background from Down the Bay is of interest to me. Because I was born down the Bay, lived there until I left to go to college. And while I was going to my first year of college, my parents had to move due to the I-10 interstate. And that was devastating because that destroyed our neighborhood as I left it. However, the neighborhood remained in the heart. And no matter where people were scattered, we all managed to stay in contact, love each other, and we are still in contact and we still love each other.

Kathy Richardson 3:06

It is from this community that the seeds of Mobile's musical history, The Beat of the Bay, was born.

Excelsior Band is Born

Joe Cuhaj 3:13

November 23rd, 1883, the Washington Territory became only the third territory to give women the right to vote, long before any state did. The territory's court overturned the law two months later, only to have a second law passed, which was also overturned. It wouldn't be until 1910 when Washington became a state that it became one of the first to officially grant women this basic American right. Meanwhile, in Mobile, there was a new sound filling the air. A sound that became synonymous with the city's carnival celebration. The Excelsior Band was born.

Joe Cuhaj 3:54

Mobile's Creole community, descendants from early French, Spanish, African, and Native American settlers, has played an important role in the city's history and development since it was first founded in 1702. One of their most important contributions was the establishment of the city's first volunteer fire department in 1819. The firefighters, all free men of color, were known for their incredibly fast response times, using rejected race horses to pull their gear and literally race to a fire.

Joe Cuhaj 4:27

In 1869, the fire company's first official station, Creole Fire Station No. 1, was opened on North Dearborn Street. As the story goes, musically inclined members of the fire department would gather in the upstairs rooms of the firehouse, grab their instruments, and play. But on November 23rd, 1883, John Alexander Pope invited 18 of his fellow musicians to come to his house to celebrate the birth of his son, and the Excelsior band was born.

Joe Cuhaj 4:59

The band began their reign as the Kings of Mardi Gras one year later in 1884, and they have never stopped parading, becoming the official sound of the season with their blend of Dixieland, blues, and jazz, setting the crowds into a moon pie and bead-catching frenzy. Since their formation, the Excelsiors have become city ambassadors, playing over 300 non-Mardi Gras related events annually.

Cootie Williams

Kathy Richardson 5:48

The Excelsior Band's membership roster is long, but there is one name that stands out: Charles "Cootie" Williams. As he explained years later, his father asked him to describe the band's playing. The youngster replied, "Cootie, Cootie, Cootie." The nickname stuck. Cootie joined his school's band, where he learned to play tuba, trombone, and drums before teaching himself how to play the trumpet. He became so good that he was hired by several local Gulf Coast bands, including Holman's Jazz Band and the one and only Excelsior Band.

Kathy Richardson 6:16

In 1926, at the age of 14, Cootie moved to Pensacola and began performing with Ross's Deluxe Syncopaters. But the band wouldn't stay on the Gulf Coast for long. They moved to New York City, playing to appreciative audiences at various venues, including one where he caught the ear of legendary band leader Duke Ellington. The Duke's trumpet player, Bubber Miley, had become unreliable and was battling alcoholism. Without hesitation, Ellington hired Cootie, who quickly learned how to mimic Miley's distinctive growling muted trumpet style, making it his own.

Kathy Richardson 7:02

Williams played with Ellington's band from 1929 to 1940, playing major venues, including the Cotton Club in Harlem, and recording several albums with Ellington's band.

Kathy Richardson 7:16

After leaving the Duke's band, Cootie went on to play with Benny Goodman, started his own band that held notable residencies at the famous Savoy Ballroom, put together several jazz ensembles with greats Charlie Parker and Eddie Lockjaw Davis, and was a co-writer of the song "Round Midnight" with Thelonious Monk, which would be Cootie's first solo record.

Kathy Richardson 8:05

Cootie returned to play in Duke's band in the early 1960s, finally getting the chance to add his own style to the Duke's classic "Take the A-Train".

Kathy Richardson 8:21

Ellington was always a fan of Cootie Williams, so much so that he penned a song for him, "Concerto for Cootie," which was later renamed "Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me," when words were added.

Kathy Richardson 8:32

Cootie Williams passed away in 1985 in New York City.

Pope Sisters

Joe Cuhaj 9:05

But wait, there's more! We’re not finished with John Pope and Mobile’s Creole musical legacy. The sound sailed out of Mobile Bay, and spread across the country—and around the world—through Pope’s granddaughters, Una, Odile, Eoline, and Inez, known in the show business world as The Pope Sisters. The quartet would become recognized as the first Black girl singing group. The girls had a natural talent, glamor, and a unique sound that was described by IMDb as a “hot, mellow, gospel, jazzy Harlem style.” Their father, John Clement Pope, put the girl’s voices to good use, as Creola Ruffin explains.

Creola Ruffin 10:22

Down the bay there was a Pope's luncheonette, and that was on the corner of Selma and Dearborn Street is where, and in this luncheonette, John Pope was the father of the Pope sisters. And that's pretty much where they started singing in their father's luncheonette. It was a little small restaurant. But everybody down the bay went there.

Joe Cuhaj 10:39

The girls also performed in their father's band, Pope's Dreamland Serenaders. Their popularity quickly spread across the Gulf Coast, performing live from the Battlehouse Hotel over the city's first radio station, WODX. They did live shows at the Pensacola Sanger Theater that were broadcast over WCOA radio. And they played countless parties and events thrown by Mobile's High Society. It wasn't long before the Pope Sisters began garnering national attention. Newspapers around the country sang their praises, calling them the pride of Mobile, Alabama.

Joe Cuhaj 11:15

It was obvious the Pope Sisters were ready for the big time. In 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression, the Pope Sisters arrived in New York. Most entertainers head to the city, only dreaming of making it big. The Pope Sisters walked headlong into it. Before leaving Mobile, the buzz about the quartet was unprecedented. A headline in the Pittsburgh Courier read, "Pope Sisters are radio's newest sensation. And the female edition of the Mills Brothers."

Pope Sisters in the News

Dennis Gould 11:45

It is indeed unusual and surprising to find a lovely family possessed of a bevy of talented and ambitious young women. Enhancingly beautiful, exceedingly attractive, with such effervescent personality ideals. O'Deal Pope, the elder sister, plays a fine game of tennis. Eoline Pope pursued a business course and is a stenographer for her father in his undertaking establishment. Her hobby is horseback riding. Inez Pope is a clever little dancer and she and her sister Una make a snappy team. Una Pope is the baby of the family and is just sweet sixteen. She's crazy about Cab Galloway. A dainty little miss with dimples and everything.

Joe Cuhaj 12:28

Their careers began to skyrocket. New York's elite nightclubs invited them to perform. They appeared on NBC radio programs. They even performed with Duke Ellington's orchestra. And then came the movies. The girls were signed to minor roles in two feature movies directed by pioneer black filmmaker Oscar Misheaux, which was soon followed by appearances in several shorts, including the 1935 "Here's the Gang" and "The Life of the Party."

Joe Cuhaj 12:57

You'll find a link to the full short, "The Life of the Party," in this episode's show notes.

Joe Cuhaj 13:07

The Pope Sisters became a trio when Una retired in 1940 to marry her longtime friend from Mobile, Martin Tuttle. Soon after, the other three members disbanded. Una was the last member of the Pope Sisters to pass away at 102 in 2009.

Kathy Richardson 13:44

It’s February 22nd, 1880. A bill signed into law by President Rutherford B. Hayes one year earlier goes into effect, giving federal employees in the District of Columbia a holiday celebrating George Washington’s Birthday. Five years later, Congress extends the holiday to all federal workers in the then thirty-eight states. Meanwhile,

James Reese Europe

Kathy Richardson 13:45

Kathy Richardson 13:45

in Mobile's down the bay community, a child is born to Henry and Lorraine Europe, James Reese Europe. Their son would become known as the first king of jazz, led the first black orchestra to sign a major recording contract and leave a legacy much deeper than his music. For the children of Henry Europe, there was no escaping a future in music. Once again, Creola Ruffin.

Creola Ruffin 14:27

Henry Europe, worked at Internal Revenue Service. But he was also a minister. He started what they called the Virginia Street Church. And that church ended up being Warren Street Church.

Creola Ruffin 14:27

He was also a composer. His dad composed the gospel song Peace Be Still. And that song continues to be sang in churches all over America. So James Reese got it, got it honestly. He was from a musical family.

Kathy Richardson 14:47

James's father Henry was born into slavery, but upon winning his freedom, he took control of his life with determination.

Creola Ruffin 14:55

I think being born a slave, his father was a very man of ingenuity, and I would just say he was just smart. Because he came from a slave to work at IRS during that particular time in the 1800s. And then to go on to work for the U.S. Postal Service in Washington, D.C. Also, he spent some years at law school at Howard University in Washington, D.C. So there was no stopping this person with a father like that. And a mother who was a teacher, she taught piano. And you know, with parents like that, you can't help but to excel.

Kathy Richardson 15:42

Some might call it fate or just a coincidence, but when the Europe family moves to Washington, D.C. in 1890, the family rents a house only 10 doors down from famed U.S. Marine Corps March King John Philip Sousa.

Kathy Richardson 16:04

Sousa always encouraged his band members to mentor children in the area who demonstrated a special gift for music. And soon James is taking lessons with Sousa's assistant conductor, Enrico Hurley.

Kathy Richardson 16:19

By the age of 23, James is off to New York City, where he develops a style of music never heard before. A fusion of jazz and ragtime. He composes original music for black theater groups and Broadway shows, eventually teaming up with the legendary dance team Vernon and Irene Castle to create national dance crazes like the Turkey Trot and the Foxtrot.

Kathy Richardson 16:58

Europe uses his newfound fame to advocate for better pay and working conditions for African American musicians, in 1910, organizing the Clef Club, the first black musician's professional organization. His popularity continues to grow, especially with wealthy white patrons who hired James and the Clef Club band to play at their dinner parties, even though the band would have to enter the building through the back door.

Kathy Richardson 17:17

In 1912, his band plays Carnegie Hall, where they perform what is billed as a concert of Negro music, becoming the first black orchestra to perform at the iconic venue. One year later, the Victor Recording Company signed the Clef Club band and they recorded their first record, "Too Much Mustard," which was released in March 1914. One month later, they released their biggest selling record, "The Castle House Rag," a song that was added to the national registry in 2004.

James Europe in World War 1

Kathy Richardson 18:26

Kathy Richardson 18:26

Until 1912, black men could not join the New York National Guard. That changed in 1913 when the state passed a law making it legal to establish African American National Guard units. And with that, the 15th New York Colored Infantry was formed with volunteers from Harlem.

Kathy Richardson 18:44

By 1916, as a world war was raging, James was leading or managing 16 bands, but made the decision to enlist. After passing the officer exam, Europe's superiors commissioned him a lieutenant and assigned him to lead a machine gun company, the 15th New York. His regiment would be going to the front in France. Every company had a band of some sort. Europe's commanding officer, Colonel William Hayward, decided that the 15th New York needed one too. The band would not only entertain recovering soldiers, but also provide comfort and bring happiness to war-ravaged townspeople.

Kathy Richardson 19:23

Hayward merged two companies, the 15th New York and the 8th Illinois, putting James Reese Europe in command. In 1918, the unit was renamed the 369th Infantry, nicknamed by the German Army Hollenkampfer, or the Hell Fighters, for their refusal to surrender an inch of ground during battle. Two members of the unit single-handedly fought off a German patrol. Europe himself was wounded in a gas attack. While convalescing, he penned one of his most popular songs, "How You Gonna Keep Them Down on the Farm?

Kathy Richardson 20:36

The Hell Fighters would receive the Croix de Guerre and over 170 individual medals from the French government for their valor, the most of any unit to see battle.

Joe Cuhaj 20:54

November 11th, 1918. The war to end all wars is over.

Joe Cuhaj 21:03

The battlefields go quiet, the shooting stops, and James Reese Europe and the Hell Fighters return home to a hero's welcome in New York. The amazing story of the life and career of James Reese Europe comes to a tragic end one year later. Europe's drummer, Herbert Wright, is disgruntled and lashes out at Europe. The drummer fatally stabs the orchestra leader in the neck, killing the man and his music.

Joe Cuhaj 21:33

A solemn funeral procession is organized by the city of New York, the first for a black resident. The procession marches through the streets carrying the body of the slain band leader. Thousands of people line the streets to pay their respects. The Hell Fighters marched alongside their fallen leader, their instruments muted throughout the procession.

Joe Cuhaj 21:55

Years later, a close friend of Europe, piano great, Eubie Blake, said of the band leader...

Eubie Blake's James Reese Europe Eulogy

Dennis Gould 22:01

Before Europe, Negro musicians were just like wandering minstrels. Play in a saloon and pass the hat, and that's it. Before Jim, they weren't even supposed to be human beings. Jim Europe changed all that. He made a profession for us out of music. He was our benefactor and inspiration. The Martin Luther King of Music.

Creola Ruffin 22:22

I think the biggest contribution that James Reese Europe made to the world was the Big Band. He introduced the Big Band music style. Prior to James Reese Europe, when you had classical orchestras, but never a big band with 24 more people. And a conductor. So he really introduced big band music to the world.

The Treniers

Kathy Richardson 22:56

By 1947, the music scene was changing. The sound of big bands was being replaced with a new sound and beat that would literally rock the world. It was a combination of rhythm and blues, swing, and straight-up blues with a driving beat. What would later be called rock and roll. Leading the way was a group from Mobile that would influence the likes of early rockers, including Bill Haley.

Pattie Page 23:22

So get ready to R O C K Rock to the Treniers.

Claude Trenier 24:24

We had a couple of brothers who used to sing around our hometown, Mobile, Skip's father and Buddy. We just started singing, too, because they had a lot of girls hanging around them, you know what I mean? So I said, whoa, look at here. This must be the thing. You get the girl. So we started singing around local things. I mean, uh, I went up to Alabama State College. They gave me a scholarship. We quit school in 41, and I went on the road, and I've been on the road ever since.

Kathy Richardson 24:45

As Claude Trenier said in that 1994 interview, the group got its start when brothers Cliff and Claude Trenier began performing while they were attending college at Alabama State University, calling themselves the Alabama State Collegians. The twins joined Jimmy Lunsford's orchestra in 1943, playing venues like the Cotton Club, but eventually left the band four years later to perform as a duet, the Trenier Twins. The group became known as the Rockin' and Rollin' Treniers in 1947, when they were joined by their brother buddy, nephew Skip, and friends Eugene Gilbo, Henry Tucker Green, and Don Hill, now calling themselves simply the Treniers.

Joe Cuhaj 25:25

That same year, the Treniers signed a recording contract with Mercury Records, releasing their first record, "Buzz Buzz Buzz." The Treniers were rock pioneers. Many music historians cite them as being the bridge between swing, R&B, and early rock. While their musical style helped set the stage for what was to be the next big thing in music, it was the Trenier's stage act that really set them apart. It was packed with high-energy choreography, high jumps, and intricate dance steps that set the audience literally rocking. Check out this episode's show notes and follow the link to see the Treniers in action performing Rockin' on Saturday night in the classic 1950s rock film Don't Knock the Rock.

Claude Trenier 28:11

Hey man! Don't stop now!

Episode 4 Part 2 Preview

Kathy Richardson 28:18

It's now the 50s. Parents are terrified by this new and radical music sweeping the nation-rock and roll. And the port city is primed to welcome the newly crowned king of rock and roll, Elvis Presley. That's next time in part two of The Beat of the Bay here on Meanwhile Mobile.

Show Close

Dennis Gould 28:40

Thanks to Creola Ruffin for sharing her insights into the singers, instrumentalists, and composers from down the bay. Learn more about the Celebration of Mobile Music Legends Project and the effort to share Mobile's musical history with the world by visiting

Dennis Gould 28:56

Mobile MusicLegends.org.

Dennis Gould 29:02

Meanwhile, Mobile is produced at Soundworks in Mobile, Alabama by Kathy Richardson, Joe Cuhaj, and me, Dennis Gould. No generative AI has been used in the research, writing, or recording of this podcast. Visit us on Facebook for additional information about this and upcoming episodes and links to related material. For comments, questions, or ideas for future podcasts, contact us at meanwhile mobile at gmail.com. Please leave a review wherever you get your podcasts. But more importantly, tell just one person about Meanwhile ...Mobile. Word of mouth, more than any other form of promotion, is how creative works get noticed and sustain themselves. Thank you very much for listening.