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The recent post "The Key of H" reminded me of an old cat (pianist) I played a gig with once in a strip joint on Bourbon street who very often would call a tune "in the Key of Love". I never was sure if that was just "his thing" or a term some of the older players on the strip used years before my time, nor did I ever get the origin. In years after that gig a few others would tell me they also heard of that phrase but could never tell me where it originated. By the way the "Key of Love" is the key of "F".
Well last week I played a gig and had my 88 year old friend who played many gigs at the New Orleans Roosevelt's Hotel's Blue Room (the place to be seen and heard in the top tier of the New Orleans music industry from the 30's through the 70's) and I called the tune "4 Leaf Clover", he asked, what key? I said without thinking "The Key of Love" and he responded great, in F. No he did not know either. We both think it may just have been some inside joke or catch phrase with a few older cats who played the strip years gone by.
Just wondering if any of you ever heard this phrase?
Later,
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Follow That Dream Sam Karaoke King -------------------- Turning that corner again - I have to keep following that dream, no matter what
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No, but I've heard of "Songs in the Key of Life". I also heard about "the 7 Day Bible" at a strip club in Chicago. ( I may have forgotten a day or two?) 
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Good one, Pete! 
Follow That Dream Sam Karaoke King -------------------- Turning that corner again - I have to keep following that dream, no matter what
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Yeah, I recall some of the old cats callin' it the key of love.
i always kinda figured that it was a way of making fun of old love songs from their day that were in F, but never researched it out.
The bandstand sign language for F is one finger pointing down, to indicate one flat. I also knew one old guy who would hold his "social finger" downward and announce, "Key o' Love, two, three, four..."
Then there are all those pianists who actually loved F. I once knew an old lady who could play *anything* by ear, but only in the key of F...
Living language, colloquialisms come and go.
--Mac
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Key of Love. Key of F. I'm not touching it, and for that re-joice.
John Conley
Musica est vita
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Quote:
Living language, colloquialisms come and go.
--Mac
Mac,
As simple but broad in concept the statement is it just may be the quintessential definition.
And yes you triggered my memory when you said holding up a number of fingers based upon how many flats in the key. I will never forget one time as a kid I was sitting in with my older much more musically seasoned than I cousin Murphy Campo calling out, I think it was Tea For Two and holding up five fingers. I'll bet my chord selections were correct at least 20% of the time. After the tune with a big grin on his face he told me that sometimes I should try playing in between those bars. Then he said it will come, it will come little cousin.
Thanks for the memory!
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I have a tribute to Laura Fygi on my webpage....the video, 5th one down... Laura Fygi: "I started my carreer in a girl group...they'd go out carousing after a show, and usually, I went back to the hotel bar lounge with our manager. I walked up to the jazz trio that was playing, and asked them if they would play "All of Me" in F and they said sure....probably with smiles on their faces! After she finished she walked back to her manager and he said..."you know...when the time is ripe......" (well you have to look at the video for the rest of the story) at Gig Baby's Home Page: http://www.thegigbaby (5th Fugi-Tribute Video down from the top) She gives tribute to that manager, the song, the key, the story...with this great musical rendition of "All of Me", in (smile), The Love Key!! Maestro, can you play ALL OF ME IN F ...(Of course she knew they would!) The orchestra leader turned to the orchestra and with the wave of "that one finger", they blasted off on ALL OF ME!! (Well, maybe it was just one...one nod of the head) and they were off swingin' into "All of Me" in "F"!! http://www.thegigbaby.com  Laura, who is multilingual, sang the song, switching each four or eight bars of "can't you see I'm no good without you, etc."....doing it in different languages without missing a note. She finished off the tune, swinging the last chorus and verse in English...while the orchestra roared on.... The solos taken by the sax, guitar and bass are really nifty...and this classy lady's rendition is truly memorable, and, coincidently, in "F"!!
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I've heard the phrase "key of love" but was not aware that it was F. Interestingly, our current reference standard of A = 440 Hz was not set until 1939. This means that the sound of the "key of F" has changed. I did a bit of a search on Wikipedia and, if anyone is interested, here's an excellent article on the history of concert pitch. History of concert pitch
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Interesting. You learn something new every day.
My local singer / songwriter club has an old honky tonk piano tuned a semi-tone lower than the A=440Hz. It makes it easier to keep tuned
Follow That Dream Sam Karaoke King -------------------- Turning that corner again - I have to keep following that dream, no matter what
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Yeah...I remember years ago hearing that F was the love key. With my crude thinking I assumed it was because of a particular word that starts with that letter.
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Me too! 
Follow That Dream Sam Karaoke King -------------------- Turning that corner again - I have to keep following that dream, no matter what
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i heard the term at a jam session. Only the one time. I thought the guy who called it - a veteran bluegrass player - was making up a weak joke.
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Quote:
I've heard the phrase "key of love" but was not aware that it was F. Interestingly, our current reference standard of A = 440 Hz was not set until 1939. This means that the sound of the "key of F" has changed. I did a bit of a search on Wikipedia and, if anyone is interested, here's an excellent article on the history of concert pitch.
History of concert pitch
The harsh reality is that less than one percent of the human population would even be able to detect this difference.
--Mac
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I always thought it was F because of the word that starts with that letter. (Do I mean FUN?????) When I was 18, I played in a strip club, and oddly enough, many of the songs were played in F. I really like playing the tenor sax in G (F concert) because the fingerings are very comfortable for me in that key and it fits the range of the sax very well - especially for R&B based songs (and back then, the strippers danced to those 12/8 feeling bluesy songs). BTW, playing in a strip club was quite an uplifting experience when I was 18 years old  Notes
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Follow That Dream Sam Karaoke King -------------------- Turning that corner again - I have to keep following that dream, no matter what
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Quote:
BTW, playing in a strip club was quite an uplifting experience when I was 18 years old
Notes
Same hear Notes; at 16-18 I stayed in some kind of trouble or other at the couple of strip gigs I played. 1st of all it did not take anyone very long to realize you do not need a guitar player in a strip club group. Did I say, "Group"? No group, as back in those days on Bourbon Street all that was needed in the way of instrumentation for backing strippers were a drummer and a Tenor man. And as the song says, "they worked hard for the money"! (drummer and sax man that is)
Later,
Last edited by Danny C.; 11/30/09 02:13 PM.
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I too played in a strip club (on Rush St. in Chicago) when I was 18, subbing for another guitarist. Very interesting experience! I was backstage on a break and one of the strippers (who was close to six feet tall) plopped down on my lap (I'm 5'6"). If memory (mammary?) serves, I was struck dumb for the rest of the break.
Last edited by marvjonesi; 11/30/09 09:08 PM.
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