"Viper's Drag" is a

stride piano Stride jazz piano, often shortened to stride, is a jazz piano style that arose from ragtime players. Prominent stride pianists include James P. Johnson, Willie "The Lion" Smith, Willie "the Lion" Smith, Fats Waller, Luckey Roberts, Mrs Mills a ...

composition by the jazz pianist, composer, and arranger

Thomas "Fats" Waller Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, violinist, singer, and comedic entertainer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz pi ...

History/background

"Viper's Drag" was written as a dance tune for a

ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that flourished from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers such as Scott ...

dance called a slow drag, often shortened to "drag" by songwriters of the day. The song has been performed by Waller and countless other

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

artists, including

Cab Calloway Cabell Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, conductor and dancer. He was associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he was a regular performer and became a popular vocalist ...

, who recorded a

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

swing version of the tune on November 12, 1930 as song 10246-1 on the

DOMINO Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also ca ...

label, album 4686 and

Judy Carmichael Judy Carmichael (born November 27, 1957) is a Grammy-nominated jazz pianist and vocalist who has been honored as a Steinway Artist.

, who recorded it for her

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

award-nominated '' Two-Handed Stride'' on the

Progressive Progressive may refer to: Politics * Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform ** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context * Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...

label in 1980. There are two versions by New Orleans piano masters Henry Butler and Allen Toussaint. It is the title cut to an album by Henry Butler/Steven Bernstein and the Hot 9, on Impulse (2014). It can also be found on "American Tunes"—the final recording from New Orleans jazz and R&B pianist Allen Toussaint, released on Nonesuch Records on June 10, 2016.

Appears on

"Viper's Rag" appears on the following recordings:Viper's Rag
- Fats Waller
AllMusic.com
/ref> * '' Fats Waller Memorial, Vol. 1'',

Fats Waller Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, violinist, singer, and comedic entertainer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz pi ...

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Aris ...

, 1970, 2:48 * '' Fats Waller: Legendary Performer'', Fats Waller, RCA, 1978 * '' You Rascal You'', Fats Waller

Pegasus Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...

Pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was mainly ...

, 1986 * '' The Joint Is Jumpin''', Fats Waller

RCA Bluebird Bluebird Records is a record label best known for its low-cost releases, primarily of kids' music, blues and jazz in the 1930s and 1940s. It was founded in 1932 as a lower-priced RCA Victor subsidiary label of RCA Victor. Bluebird became known ...

BMG BMG may refer to: Organizations * Music publishing companies: ** Bertelsmann Music Group, a 1987–2008 division of Bertelsmann that was purchased by Sony on October 1, 2008 *** Sony BMG, a 2004–2008 joint venture of Bertelsmann and Sony that wa ...

, 1987, 2:58 * '' The Definitive Fats Waller, Vol. 1: His Piano, His Rhythm'', Fats Waller, 1990, 2:25 * '' Turn on the Heat: The Fats Waller Piano Solos'', Fats Waller, RCA, 1991, 2:56 * '' A Handful of Fats: Original 1929-1942 Recordings'', Fats Waller, Naxos Jazz/ Pro-Arte Records, 1992, 2:59 * '' The Cream Series'', Fats Waller,

Pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

, 1993, 3:01 * '' 1934-1935 Fats Waller'',

, 1993, * '' The Indispensable Fats Waller, Vols. 1-2: 1926-1935'', Fats Waller

, 1995, * '' Ain't Misbehavin''', Fats Waller, ASV/ Living Era, 1995, 3:07 * '' ...Misbehavin''', Fats Waller,

RCA Camden The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

, 1997, 2:59 * '' Fats Waller: Members Edition'', Fats Waller, Membran, 1997, * '' Piano Masterworks, Vol. 2 (1929-1943)'', Fats Waller EPM, 1997, 2:58 * '' A Portrait of Boogie Woogie Piano'', Various artists, Gallerie, 1998, 2:57 * '' Masters of Jazz'', Fats Waller, Cee-Dee, 1999, * '' A Handful of Keys'', Fats Waller,

Proper Proper may refer to: Mathematics * Proper map, in topology, a property of continuous function between topological spaces, if inverse images of compact subsets are compact * Proper morphism, in algebraic geometry, an analogue of a proper map for ...

/ Proper Box, 1999, 3:00 * '' The Very Best of Fats Waller'', Fats Waller,

Collectors' Choice Music Collectors' Choice Music (CCM) is an Itasca, Illinois, company originally primarily in two businesses, but since 2010 only in the second. CCM was best known for reissuing albums originally recorded in LP record form as compact discs. , its catalog ...

, 2000, 2:58 * '' Cradle of Jazz'', Various artists,

Tokuma is a publisher in Japan, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. The company was established in 1954 by Yasuyoshi Tokuma in Minato, Tokyo. The company’s product portfolio includes music publishing, video game publishing, movies, anime, magazines, ...

, 2001, 2:57 * '' Fats Waller: Jazz Indispensable'', Fats Waller, BMG, 2001, * '' Associated Transcription Sessions, 1935-1939'', Fats Waller, Jazz Unlimited, 2001, 2:26 * '' The Quintessence New York - Camden - Los Angeles: 1929-1943'', Fats Waller, Frémeaux & Associés, 2002, 2:58 * '' Portrait, Vol. 1'', Fats Waller, Documents Classics / The International Music Co., 2003, 2:58 * '' Totally Jazz Piano'', Various artists,

Pastels A pastel () is an art medium in a variety of forms including a stick, a square a pebble or a pan of color; though other forms are possible; they consist of powdered pigment and a binder. The pigments used in pastels are similar to those use ...

, 2003, 3:01 * '' Alligator Crawl'', Fats Waller Universal Division Jazz, 2004, 2:58 * '' Fats Waller Stomp/Fractious Fingering'', Fats Waller, Classic Jazz Music, 2004, 2:58 * '' Honeysuckle Rose'' ASV/ Living Era, 2004, 2:58 * '' Happy Birthday Fats'', Fats Waller, Fuel 2000, 2004, 2:23 * ''

Truckin' "Truckin" is a song by the Grateful Dead, which first appeared on their 1970 album ''American Beauty (album), American Beauty''. It was recognized by the United States Library of Congress in 1997 as a national treasure.''Grateful Dead: The Illus ...

'', Fats Waller, Proper Sales & Dist., 2004, 3:00 * '' The Best of Fats Waller: Jazz Forever'', Fats Waller, Jazz Forever, 2005, 2:57 * '' Two-Handed Stride'',

Judy Carmichael Judy Carmichael (born November 27, 1957) is a Grammy-nominated jazz pianist and vocalist who has been honored as a Steinway Artist.

, 1980 * '' If You Got to Ask, You Ain't Got It!'', Fats Waller,

Bluebird The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas. ...

Legacy In law, a legacy is something held and transferred to someone as their inheritance, as by will and testament. Personal effects, family property, marriage property or collective property gained by will of real property. Legacy or legacies may refer ...

, 2006, 2:58 * '' An Introduction to Fats Waller'', Fats Waller,

Fuel 2000 Fuel 2000 is an independent record label, formed in 1994 as part of the Fuel Label Group. One of the biggest independent record labels, it has amassed a catalog with over 20,000 master recordings. Since its inception, the company has released ove ...

, 2006, 2:23 * '' Complete Victor Piano Solos'', Fats Waller, Definitive Classics, 2006, 2:58 * '' RCA Original Masters: The Best of Fats Waller'', Fats Waller

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...

, 2008, 2:58 * '' Best of Fats Waller'' (Box Set), Fats Waller, Sony BMG, 2008, 2:58 * '' Royal Casino'', Various artists, Makin Friends, 2008, * '' Performance: Radio Recordings from 1931 to 1943'', Fats Waller Fuel 2000 / Varèse Sarabande, 2010, 2:23 * '' Fats Waller: 75 Original Great Performances'', Fats Waller, Gralin Music, 2010, 2:54 * '' Fats Waller Anthology'', Fats Waller, Jazzland, 2010, 2:57 * '' Believe in Miracles'', Fats Waller,

History History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

, 2010, 2:57 * '' Fats Waller Piano Solos (1929-1941)'', Fats Waller, Jazz Tribune, 2010, * '' Reefer Blues: Vintage Songs About Marijuana, Vol. 2'', Various artists, Grammercy Records, 2010, 2:57 * '' Jazz Piano Masters: 55 Famous Jazz Songs'', Various artists, Jazzland, 2010, 2:57 * ''

Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll "Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll" is a 1977 single by Ian Dury, who popularised the phrase. Sex and drugs and rock and roll may refer to: Music * '' Sex, Drugs & Rock 'n' Roll'', a 1989 album by American heavy metal band the Mentors * "Sex Drugs & Rock- ...

'', Various artists,

Delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), a letter of the Greek alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta") * Delta Air Lines, US * Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19 Delta may also re ...

, 2010, 3:02 * '' The Ultimate Jazz Archive, Vol. 18'', Various artists, 2010, 2:56 * '' The Ultimate Fats Waller Collection'', Vol. 4 AP'', Various artists, 2010, 3:08 * ''Viper's Drag'', Henry Butler/Steven Bernstein and the Hot 9, on Impulse (2014) 6:46 * ''

American Tunes ''American Tunes '' is the final recording from New Orleans jazz and R&B pianist Allen Toussaint, released on Nonesuch Records on June 10, 2016. It was produced by Joe Henry and includes music from a 2013 solo session at the pianist's home studio i ...

'', Allen Toussaint, 2016, (Nonesuch) 3:18

References

{{Reflist

External links

*https://www.allmusic.com/song/vipers-drag-mt0053154424 Piano compositions by American composers Cab Calloway songs