''Last of the Whorehouse Piano Players'', subtitled ''The Original Sessions'' is an album by pianists Ralph Sutton and

Jay McShann James Columbus "Jay" McShann (January 12, 1916 – December 7, 2006) was an American jazz pianist, vocalist, composer, and bandleader. He led bands in Kansas City, Missouri, that included Charlie Parker, Bernard Anderson (trumpeter), Bernard A ...

that was recorded in 1979 and originally released by the Chaz Jazz label as two LPs (subtitled ''Two Pianos Vol. I & II'') before being reissued with two additional unreleased tracks by the

Chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to achi ...

label in 1992. The 1992 CD reissue omitted two tracks from ''Two Pianos Vol. II'', "I'll Catch The Sun" which was a solo feature for Jay McShann and "Ain't Misbehavin'" which Ralph Sutton played solo. Another CD of 1989 recordings by the same group with the same title was released by Chiaroscuro on CD as '' Last of the Whorehouse Piano Players''.

Reception

In Sutton's obituary

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

's Peter Vacher noted "In 1979, in an inspired move, he teamed up with keyboard veteran Jay McShann as ''The Last of the Whorehouse Piano Players'', the two men producing some of the most rumbustious and lively music on the planet".Vacher, P
Ralph Sutton: 60 Years in the Footsteps of Fats Waller
The Guardian, January 3, 2002

Track listing

# "Little Rock Getaway" (

Joe Sullivan Michael Joseph O'Sullivan (November 4, 1906 – October 13, 1971) was an American jazz pianist. Sullivan was the ninth child of Irish immigrant parents. He studied classical piano for 12 years and at age 17, he began to play popular music in si ...

) – 5:08 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. I'' # "

Am I Blue? "Am I Blue?" is a 1929 song copyrighted by Harry Akst (music) and Grant Clarke (lyrics), then featured in four films that year, most notably with Ethel Waters in the movie '' On with the Show''. It has appeared in 42 movies, most recently ''Funny ...

" (

Harry Akst Harry Akst (August 15, 1894 – March 31, 1963)
- accessed November 19, 2011 was an American Grant Clarke Grant Clarke (May 14, 1891, Akron, Ohio – May 16, 1931, California) was an American songwriter. Clarke moved to New York City early in his career, where he worked as an actor and a staff writer for comedians. He began working on Tin Pan Alley, ...

) – 6:33 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. I'' # " All of Me" (

Gerald Marks Gerald Marks (October 13, 1900 – January 27, 1997) was an American composer from Saginaw, Michigan. He was best known for the song " All of Me" which he co-wrote with Seymour Simons and has been recorded about 2,000 times. He also wrote the s ...

Seymour Simons Seymour Simons (January 14, 1896 – February 12, 1949) was an American pianist, composer, orchestra leader, and radio producer. Biography Simons born in Detroit, Michigan, was originally trained in engineering and went to work as a researc ...

) – 4:26 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. I'' # "

Honky Tonk Train Blues "Honky Tonk Train Blues" is a song written by Meade Lux Lewis, and first recorded in 1927. A proto boogie-woogie song, it has many of the traits that would come to be identified with rock and roll. It is also the first recorded use of the term "ho ...

" (

Meade "Lux" Lewis Anderson Meade Lewis (September 4, 1905 – June 7, 1964), known as Meade Lux Lewis, was an American pianist and composer, remembered for his playing in the boogie-woogie style. His best-known work, "Honky Tonk Train Blues", has been recorded by ...

) – 4:30 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. I'' # "Rosetta" (

Earl Hines Earl Kenneth Hines, also known as Earl "Fatha" Hines (December 28, 1903 – April 22, 1983), was an American jazz pianist and bandleader. He was one of the most influential figures in the development of jazz piano and, according to one source, " ...

Henri Woode William Henri Woode (September 25, 1909 – May 31, 1994) was an American composer, lyricist, arranger, and singer. His compositions include '' A Night at the Vanguard'', ''Sweet Slumber'', '' You Taught Me to Love Again'', and the jazz standard ''B ...

) – 4:43 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. I'' # "

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the s ...

" (

W. C. Handy William Christopher Handy (November 16, 1873 – March 28, 1958) was an American composer and musician who referred to himself as the Father of the Blues. Handy was one of the most influential songwriters in the United States. One of many musici ...

) – 5:12 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. I'' # "

Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone" is a song published in 1930. It was written by Sam H. Stept with lyrics by Sidney Clare. The original publication also credited singer Bee Palmer as co-composer. Background The lyrics are an admonishmen ...

" (

Sam H. Stept Samuel Howard Stept (aka Sammy Stept; 18 September 1897 – 1 December 1964) was an American songwriter who wrote for Broadway, Hollywood and the big bands. He became known simply as Sam Stept or Sam H. Stept – he rarely used his full middle n ...

Sidney Clare Sidney Clare (August 15, 1892 – August 29, 1972) was an American comedian, dancer and composer. His best-known songs include "On the Good Ship Lollipop" (introduced by Shirley Temple), " You're My Thrill" (recorded by Billie Holiday), and "Ple ...

) – 4:25 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. I'' # "Girl of My Dreams" (Sunny Clapp) – 6:00 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. II'' # "

I Got Rhythm "I Got Rhythm" is a piece composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin and published in 1930, which became a jazz standard. Its chord progression, known as the "rhythm changes", is the foundation for many other popular jazz tunes such ...

" (

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...

Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the 2 ...

) – 4:50 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. II'' # "Dog Ass Blues" (Jay McShann, Ralph Sutton) – 5:16 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. II'' # "Hootie's Ignorant Oil" (McShann, Walter Brown) – 2:19 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. II'' # "Truckin'" ( Rube Bloom,

Ted Koehler Ted L. Koehler (July 14, 1894 – January 17, 1973) was an American lyricist. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1972. Life and career Koehler was born in 1894 in Washington, D.C. He started out as a photo-engraver, but w ...

) – 3:12 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. II'' # " After You've Gone" (

Turner Layton Turner Layton (July 2, 1894 – February 6, 1978), born John Turner Layton, Jr., was an African American songwriter, singer and pianist. He frequently worked with Henry Creamer. Life Born in Washington, D.C., United States, in 1894, he was the s ...

Henry Creamer Henry Sterling Creamer (June 21, 1879 – October 14, 1930) was an African American popular song lyricist and theater producer. He was born in Richmond, Virginia and died in New York. He co-wrote many popular songs in the years from 1900 to 1929, ...

) – 5:34 Originally released on ''Two Pianos Vol. II'' # "

I Ain't Got Nobody "I Ain't Got Nobody" (sometimes referred to as "I'm So Sad and Lonely" or "I Ain't Got Nobody Much") is a popular song copyrighted in 1915. Roger A. Graham (1885–1938) wrote the lyrics, Spencer Williams composed it, and Roger Graham Music Publi ...

" (

Spencer Williams Spencer Williams (October 14, 1889 – July 14, 1965) was an American jazz and popular music composer, pianist, and singer. He is best known for his hit songs " Basin Street Blues", "I Ain't Got Nobody", "Royal Garden Blues", "I've Found a New B ...

, Roger Graham,

Dave Peyton Dave Peyton (19 August 1889 – 30 April 1955) was an American songwriter, pianist, arranger, orchestra leader, and music critic columnist for the ''Chicago Defender''. Peyton first began as a pianist in the trio of Wilbur Sweatman, along wit ...

) – 3:40 Previously unreleased # "Variations on a Weeping Willow" (McShann, Sutton) – 4:11 Previously unreleased

Personnel

* Ralph Sutton–

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

, vocals *

– piano, vocals *

Milt Hinton Milton John Hinton (June 23, 1910 – December 19, 2000) was an American double bassist and photographer. Regarded as the Dean of American jazz bass players, his nicknames included "Sporty" from his years in Chicago, "Fump" from his time on the ...

– bass * Gus Johnson –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

References

{{Authority control Ralph Sutton albums Jay McShann albums 1980 albums 1992 albums Chiaroscuro Records albums