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"The Entertainer" on the soundtrack. Ironically, Joplin known as "The King of Ragtime Composers" and famous for his "Maple Leaf Rag," died destitute in New York City and his music generally was ignored until recently.

One of the most colorful and controversial who played ragtime was Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton, who composed, played and sang. His checkered jazz career has been extensively documented by Alan Lomax for the Folk song Archives of the Library of Congress and were issued in twelve albums entitled: "The Saga of Mr. Jelly Lord." A few of Morton's most memorable rags include: "King Porter Stomp," "Milenberg Joys," "The Pearls," "Chicago Breakdown," "Superior Rag."

The ragtime era revolutionized piano playing. It demanded a new sense of rhythm and fingering. It was intricate and brought out champions of the keyboard like James P. Johnson, Willie "the Lion" Smith, Luckey Roberts, and one of the most precocious talents of all time - Thomas "Fats" Waller. He sky-rocketed to fame in his teens and during his rollicking but brief lifetime of 30 years he made some 500 records and copyrighted over 400 compositions which included such jazz classics as: "Ain't Misbehavin'," "HoneusuckleRose," "Jitterbug Waltz," "Blue Turning Grey Over You," "Black and Blue," "Keeping Out of Mischief Now." Waller remains incomparable in the annals of jazz.

No ragtime pianist is more beloved today than 93-year old Eubie Blake who probably has played this music longer than any other musician. Born February 7, 1883 in Baltimore, he is witty and brimming over with ragtime memories of the golden days which he delights in recounting to his audiences. 

Eubie says he can't remember when he wasn't playing the piano, but it's a safe guess he wasn't much older than fifteen when he started playing the Baltimore sporting houses. At sixteen, he created his first composition, "The Charleston Rag," which belted him into the ragtime league.

Still in his teens, Blake was a star and composer of copyrighted rags. In 1915 he teamed up with Noble Sissle and together they made Broadway history with their shows. "Shuffle Along," their first venture included such national hits as: "I'm Just Wild About Harry," "Love Will Find a Way," "Gypsy Blues," and "Bandanna Days."

One of the wonders of jazz is something new happens all the time. Like a kaleidoscope there are endless, changing patterns in jazz being made by the musicians who create it. Just when ragtime and stride piano were all the rage, a young man born December 28, 1905 in Homestead, Pa., had ideas to change those styles into one of his own. He is Earl "Fatha" Hines. His inventive genius and original piano techniques brought the jazz piano into solo eminence and made it a dynamic force in the band. The impact of his fresh approach to the piano profoudly influenced a new generation of pianists who in turn were to use it as a springboard for their own individual styles and lead jazz into the modern and avant garde worlds.

Genius, it seems, attract genius in jazz and it was inevitable that Hines would meet in his youth, one of the greatest jazz immortals of all time, Louis Armstrong. Both young men were in their twenties when they met and each inspired the other. As a result of their encounter, Hines was said to have developed a "trumpet style" piano, but like all labels there was more than met the ear.

Without exception Louis Armstrong is one of the world's best-known and beloved jazz musicians. He was and continues to be a symbol of American jazz throughout the world. No other single instrumentalist has matched his technical skill, showmanship, or charisma in expressing the genuine depth of jazz. His impact is incaluable and his genius touched every area of entertainment here and world-wide. Over the years thousands of trumpeters have been influenced by his trumpet and almost as many by his vocalizing. Armstrong's records alone are a shrine to jazz.

Hines was by no means singular in complimenting the genius of Louis Armstrong. The list is lengthy of the musicians who accompanied him and who went on to establish outstanding names of their own. Nor, should the great names be forgotten who fostered Armstrong's talent during his apprentice years: Fate Marable who gave him his first professional job on a New Orleans riverboat, Kid Ory, King Oliver, Lilian Hardin [pianist who became his second wife]; Fletcher Henderson, Zutty Singleton, Erskine Tate, Clarance Williams, Carroll Dickerson.

Here are just a few of the tremendous talent who teamed up at one time or another with "Satchmo": Barney Bigard, Baby Dodds, Pops Foster, JOhnny St. Cyr, Sidney Catlett, Arvell Shaw, Trummy Young, Cozy cole, Albert Nicholas, Edmund Hall, Sidney Bechet, Jay C. Higginbotheam and many., many more.

It should be remembered, too, Armstrong was among the first to popularize jazz in Europe - some say the greatest - since his first performance over there in 1932. The record shows Blacks were the first to take American jazz abroad back in 1905 when a James Reese Europe - how's that for strange coincidence department - is credited with taking over the Tennessee Students Band. The group was by no means representative of top American jazz talent but they did manage to give Europeans a taste of what was to come.

Immediately after World War I, Sidney Bechet was in Europe, 1919, with Will Marion Cook's Band and you might say he was the first real pro on the scene. However, the first big, professional jazz band was Sam Wooding's 12-piece orchestra, "The Chocolate Kiddies."

Born in Philadelphia, June 17, 1895, "The Black Dean of Jazz" pioneered as the: First jazz-touring big band in Europe, 1925; first to record abroad; first in Russia, 1926; first in South America, 1927; first Black Jazz Concert in Copenhagen, 1932.

Following Wooding's "firsts" came Louis Srmstrong, Fats Waller, Coleman Hawkins, and the Duke Ellington Orchestra, and a parade of others. Ol' Sam is still going strong with his own band but it's a far cry from "The Kiddies." At 80, Sam philosophizes, "You can't stand still in jazz. It's okay to remember the old days but don't overdo it. Some of the times they were the greatest and others were the worst, especially for Black musicians. What happened yesterday is over with. Keep your mind on what's happening now and what you're going to do tomorrow."

Well, what's happening now with Blacks on the jazz scene? Everything. And where are they going? The easy and obvious answer is, don't sweat it, just relax and enjoy. The chances are the "perfect he or she" is a Black musician leading the jazz parade. After all, they started it, and your money looks good if you bet they keep the lead.