Biography
Regardless of musical style, supergroups seldom endure for extended periods. The New Orleans Feetwarmers arose in 1932 as a joint project between two leading figures in New Orleans jazz yet ultimately followed the common pattern, undone by shifting public preferences and routine internal conflicts. By then soprano saxophonist and clarinetist Sidney Bechet had already logged nearly two decades on the bandstand and was delivering fully mature, powerfully authoritative solos. Jazz listeners therefore prize the Feetwarmers’ Victor recordings as the pinnacle of his work. Bechet organized the ensemble alongside trumpeter Tommy Ladnier, a longtime associate who, though less mythologized than Bechet, had fronted numerous strong groups of his own. They completed the lineup with seasoned musicians such as Philadelphia trombonist Teddy Nixon, whose intermittent association with Fletcher Henderson dated back to the early 1920s. After low-key appearances in Jersey City and White Plains during the summer of 1932, the group launched an extended engagement at the Savoy Ballroom, where Fletcher Henderson frequently shared the bill, giving Nixon the opportunity to play throughout entire evenings. The still-rising Mills Brothers also appeared on these programs. The morning after their opening Savoy performance the band entered the Victor studios. Among the resulting sides, “Shag” stands out as an early instance of jazz that dispenses with any preset theme or “head,” the musicians instead launching directly into improvisation over the chord sequence of “I Got Rhythm,” a touchstone for later devotees of avant-garde and free jazz. “Sweetie Dear” showcases both a brisk tempo and the relaxed horn rapport between the co-leaders. Additional titles include “Lay Your Racket” and the alluring “I Want You Tonight,” the latter composed by Bechet and vocalist Billy Maxey. Most enduring as a statement on New Orleans music is their striking rendition of Scott Joplin’s “Maple Leaf Rag.” Only months after the Savoy run concluded, the Feetwarmers disbanded. Contemporary accounts cite two principal causes: Ladnier’s wife reportedly insisted that her husband assume sole leadership, reducing the outspoken Bechet to a subordinate role, while broader taste had turned away from loose Crescent City jamming toward densely scored saxophone sections and rigidly postured crooners. Those changing tastes likewise curtailed initial sales of the Victor masters and of two sides cut for Ajax in 1935. Subsequent decades, however, have more than compensated; the recordings have moved thousands of copies across repeated reissues and compilations.