Red Hot Peppers
The Red Hot Peppers were a recording jazz band led by Jelly Roll Morton from 1926–1930. They were a seven- or eight-piece band formed in Chicago which recorded for Victor and featured some of the best New Orleans-style freelance musicians available, including cornetist George Mitchell, trombonist Kid Ory, clarinetists Omer Simeon and Johnny Dodds, banjoists Johnny St. Cyr and Bud Scott, double bass player John Lindsay, and drummers Andrew Hilaire and Baby Dodds. Recordings made by the group in Chicago in 1926–27, such as "Black Bottom Stomp", "Smoke-House Blues" and "Doctor Jazz" set a standard for small group jazz that is still unrivaled. Morton's skills as a composer and arranger are apparent in the structure of the pieces, which combines clarity with variety and manages to maintain a balance between ensemble and solo playing while allowing for a substantial solo from every band member. The quality of the recordings is further enhanced by the band's careful rehearsals, which were uncommon in early jazz performances. A number of Morton's best piano solos can also be heard on these recordings. In 1928, Morton moved to New York, where he continued to make recordings under the name Red Hot Peppers, but collaborated with musicians from his regular band or from other orchestras. By 1930, the name Red Hot Peppers was no longer used. Recordings made by the Red Hot Peppers constituted a significant contribution to the race records industry, at its height in the 1920s and 1930s. The masterful blend of composition and improvisation demonstrated by Morton and his colleagues set a precedent for early jazz. |
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1926 - 1930
Roles Represented in DAHR: Musical group
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 59 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | BVE-36239 | 10-in. | 9/15/1926 | Black bottom stomp | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-36240 | 10-in. | 9/15/1926 | Smoke-house blues | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-36241 | 10-in. | 9/15/1926 | The chant | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-36283 | 10-in. | 9/21/1926 | Sidewalk blues | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band, with talk | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-36284 | 10-in. | 9/21/1926 | Dead man blues | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band, with talk | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-36285 | 10-in. | 9/21/1926 | Steamboat stomp | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band, with talk | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-37254 | 10-in. | 12/16/1926 | Someday sweetheart | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-37255 | 10-in. | 12/16/1926 | Grandpa's spells | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-37256 | 10-in. | 12/16/1926 | Original Jelly-Roll | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-37257 | 10-in. | 12/16/1926 | Doctor Jazz stomp | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-37258 | 10-in. | 12/16/1926 | Cannon ball | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-38627 | 10-in. | 6/4/1927 | Hyena stomp | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band, with laughing | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-38628 | 10-in. | 6/4/1927 | Billy goat stomp | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band, with goat imitations | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-38629 | 10-in. | 6/4/1927 | Wild man blues | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-38630 | 10-in. | 6/4/1927 | Jungle blues | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-38661 | 10-in. | 6/10/1927 | Beale Street blues | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-38662 | 10-in. | 6/10/1927 | The pearls | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-45619 | 10-in. | 6/11/1928 | Georgia swing | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-45620 | 10-in. | 6/11/1928 | Kansas City stomps | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-45621 | 10-in. | 6/11/1928 | Shoe shiner's drag | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-45622 | 10-in. | 6/11/1928 | Boogaboo | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-45623 | 10-in. | 6/11/1928 | Shreveport | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance ensemble | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-45624 | 10-in. | 6/11/1928 | Mournful serenade | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-45625 | 10-in. | 6/11/1928 | Honey babe | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | Musical group | |
Victor | BVE-45626 | 10-in. | 6/11/1928 | Sidewalk blues | Jelly Roll Morton ; Red Hot Peppers | Jazz/dance band | Musical group |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Red Hot Peppers," accessed November 2, 2024, https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/106012.
Red Hot Peppers. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 2, 2024, from https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/106012.
"Red Hot Peppers." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 2 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Red Hot Peppers (Musical group) - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n88641277
Wikidata: Jelly Roll Morton’s Red Hot Peppers - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q7304351
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/145557019
MusicBrainz: Jelly Roll Morton’s Red Hot Peppers - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/52e9e9d5-348e-4e25-a9ee-90daf87f9f1d
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