If it was the '60s, the Five Musical Blackbirds might have promoted their recordings as a "super jam," or perhaps even released the four songs that resulted on a special slab of one-sided vinyl. But this was 1926 -- or 1927, depending on which discographer makes the best case. While recording session musicians had not become elevated into celebrities in their own right, they certainly were appreciated within the business, given special chances to create products of their own choosing with more than normal creative leeway. The members of this quintet were each among the most respected performers in the recording industry, which at this stage of the game hadn't been going much more than a decade.

There actually seemed to be more brown than black in the Five Musical Blackbirds. Herb Brown was an important part of the rhythm section on banjo, while Ted Brown was featured on alto saxophone. Clarinetist Bob Fuller and trumpeter Thomas Morris completed the horn lineup, with pianist Louis Hooper providing his usual orchestral elegance. The songs tracked in a single day at New York City's Pathe studios were Black Horse Stomp, Hot Coffee, Carolina Stomp and 18th Street Strut. The latter tune was one of many bouncy, intricate numbers co-written by Clarence Williams, Fats Waller and Andy Razaf. ~ Eugene Chadbourne, Rovi