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The Jailhouse Jump


I probably shouldn't have posted this song and here's why:

Izzy ♂ : 70-year-old delusional songwriter. Enthusiastic, loves the music of the 1940s.
Gerda ♀: Izzy's 60-year-old partner. German, pragmatic, loves the Blues.

Izzy: Gerda , darling! Just the woman I wanted to see! I've finished it! The song! "The Jailhouse Jump!"
Gerda: "Ze Jailhouse Jump?" Sounds… ener-jetic, Izzy. Is it about escaping, Ja? Like in "The Great Escape"?
Izzy: (Beaming) Better! It's about dancing in the jailhouse! Imagine it, Gerda! Saxophones wailing, clarinet soaring, prisoners cutting a rug! I’ll play it for you. 🤑

(The song "The Jailhouse Jump" plays. Izzy starts tapping his foot and trying to get Gerda to dance. Gerda listens with a polite but unchanging expression.)

(Song ends. Izzy looks at Gerda expectantly.)
Izzy: Well? What do you think? A hit, eh? We'll be on Top of the Pops...well, Golden Oldies night anyway. ❔ ❓

Gerda: (Takes a sip of tea) ☕ It is…how you say…vesty. Very vesty, Izzy. Like zat music from…vhat vas ze movie? "Casablanca"? 😬
Izzy: "Casablanca" had great music!
Gerda: Ja, but zat vas…a long time ago, hmmm? Zese jailbirds…zey vould listen to…Rihanna now, no? Not zis…boppity-skippity-doo-vah…music. 😮
Izzy: (a wee bit deflated) 😒 It's swing, Gerda. 1940s swing. It’s got appeal! 🙄

Gerda: (Sighs dramatically) Izzy, dahling. Ve are not living in ze fortys anymore. You understand mein point? 😕
Izzy: Gerda! It’s vintage! It’s retro! People love that! 😳💘

Gerda: (She puts her hand on her chest). You need ze Blues, Izzy. 😨
Izzy: The Blues? But I can’t write the Blues! I’m not… blue enough! I’m a fundamentally cheerful person, Gerda! What do I know about suffering? I’ve had a lovely life! (◔_◔)

Gerda: (Raises an eyebrow) You are joined to me, nicht wahr? (Not true?). But seriously. Ze Blues… zey are timeless. Like a good sauerkraut. Or a lederhosen… okay, maybe not lederhosen. But ze Blues… zey are……echt. Real. ❤️🧡💛

Izzy: But...jazz has more...complexity. More sophisticated musicality.
Gerda: (Laughing) Complexity ist good for Einstein. For you, Izzy, simplify! 😞😒😟😠😢

.................................To be continued.


Lyrics On Soundcloud
Tempo 130
Style is _MISSION.STY (Mission Shuffle Blues Horns)
558:Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm Jazz Freddie Sw
3998:Horn Section, Rhythm BluesShuffleChris Sw
3482 Sax alto Soloist
764 Clarinet Soloist
Piano - a web midi file
Bass - courtesy of a friend
RealDrums :BluesShuffleHard^3-a:Snare, HiHat , b:Busy Snare, Ride

Absolutely love it, Izzy. Brian Setzer, eat your heart out.

Izzy...very cool tune...love the band you put together...even if you weren't a fan of this style of music your toes would be tapping...but I love this era of music...great lyrics very appropriate to the style...super vocal and great mix...nice production all round!

Izzy, a real toe tapper!
Super groove and instrumentation
Outstanding vocal and lyrics
This is one of if not your best to date

Heck, I loved this guy Izzy from my first reading, and now I can hear why the saying "behind every good man is a magnificent woman" as you introduce us to Gerda. Okay this is not fair. I'm on my 4th listen now. The first 2 were accompanied by that wonderful story above. You guys should have your own TV show. Best stuff ever.

Now to the song, the 3rd listen was for enjoying the lyrics and that amazing band you put together, Izzy. I have a clarinet constatntly playing in the background of my life. My feet were begging me to get off this chair and let go with the feel you created. My whole 70+ body hates you, but dang my brain and soul love you. Seriously this is magic, Izzy. Rhianna never made me want to dance.

Sweet! That's a rockin' band, and you crush the vocals. The solo trade off was nice, too. Like the cadence of the lyrics a lot, they really move the song along. I'm generally discouraged from dancing but...this could make me a bad boy indeed.

Sorry Gerda didn't get this. Not entirely her fault, being pragmatic and all.

Nicely done!

Great song, Izzy! Brilliant arrangement of the instruments in this.

Izzy,

Wow! What an absolutely great sound! Love the arrangement and your vocal.

Really great stuff!

Bob

Wonderful! So expertly done in every way! Full of life, energy, and lots of great BIAB goodness. Loved it!

Enjoyed your song introduction, clever dialog, I'm glad you posted the song despite depreciation. The song is very catchy and makes me feel home in your jailhouse, would be a great one to dance at a party. Captivating portrayals like "The warden’s keys they jingle loud/My sins they form a ghostly shroud".

Great instrument selection, strong rhythm, the horn section sounds awesome and the sax and the clarinet solos set the authentic mood perfectly.

Janne