It’s the 21^st of April…ALREADY! How did that happen? Time just keeps tickin’ away. Whatever, it’s time to reveal the winner of my last BATTLE OF THE BANDS, but before we go there I want to tell you something.

Last Saturday night I went to a concert at Harrah’s Casino in Stateline, NV in their South Shore Room. The South Shore Room (SSR) is an incredible venue. More like a nightclub than a concert hall. Very small and intimate. Anyhow, I’m sure you’re wondering who I saw. Well, ya all know my fondness for those gravelly voiced guys, who really need to sing from the heart, because they don’t have the ‘smooth’ tones of a crooner.

Anyway…the artist; Mr. Leon Russell. I love his music, I love his voice and his piano playing…well, you all know that a common expression for playing the piano is ‘tickling the ivories’. With respect to Mr. Russell when he plays, he pounds that piano to a white hot frenzy. I love that ‘honkey-tonk’ style. He played everything from ‘His Eye Is On the Sparrow’ to ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’.

The very best part of the concert was the ‘YAK’. Between each song he told us stories about his experiences and particularly about meeting other performers. It was like sitting down in the living room of grandpa’s house and having him tell you about his life. I was in heaven. He told us about meeting Elvis, Dylan, and B.B.King. He seemed genuinely surprised and appreciative of the many standing ovations that he received telling us we were ‘too kind’.

My advice to you; if you have the chance to see some of these ‘old rockers’; take it. They ain’t gonna be around forever. If you have a chance to see them at the SSR at Harrah’s in Stateline, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Here's one of my favorite LR tunes for your enjoyment.

Now, onto BOTB. I received a fabulous comment early today from Bish Denham. It was one of those special memories that had been evoked by these two songs. Because most of you probably missed it, because it came in so late, I’m gonna reprint it here.

Why or why did you have to make this one so hard? This is the music I grew up hearing around the house? Count Basie actually came to St. Thomas and played at the Lionel Roberts Ball Field. My father took me and my grandmother to see/hear him. I actually heard this rendition of April in Paris LIVE!

But Ella and Satchmo... I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Ella. When I sang in a jazz trio (only for a short time, but I did sing in a jazz trio) Ella was my idol, the singer I most wanted to sing like (which of course could never happen, still....) And my dad was given a handkerchief that had been used by Satchmo (long gone now, you know how hard the tropics can be on things, but still...)

Why oh why did you have to make this one so hard.

I'm going to have to dig deep into my bag of memories, remembering how my dad looked/acted when he heard and played certain songs. (He played trombone and was always in some kind of band or other...) That said, I can so clearly see his smile, see the sparkle in his eyes, see the movement of his hand as if conducting the band, feel the energy of his love for the music... So my vote is going to Count Basie.

This post has made me cry (good tears) remembering my father and the joy he took listening to music, the joy he took in educating my sister and me. Thank you.

No, Bish, THANK YOU! That was a wonderful comment. I enjoy hearing stories and memories like that.

As I was counting up the votes it was neck and neck for quite some time and then I had a few votes (three to be exact) come in late and all three were for that fabulous duo of Ella and Stachmo. I waivered all week with my vote. Like a lot of you said, it depended on the day. Some days I felt soft and mellow and would listen to the dynamic duo over and over. Then at other times I loved to sit at the computer and ‘jive’ along with the Count. Today is decision day and I need a little pep in my life (I was really sick all day yesterday and spent the day in bed), so… drum roll please. My vote goes to the Count. In the end it was not enough. The final tally…

        Count Basie and His Orchestra               10 votes (including mine)

        Ella and Satchmo                                  12 votes

This proved to be one of my favorite BATTLES. I’m particularly glad it didn’t end up in a tie, because then I would have had to REALLY choose, but it was close enough that I knew all of you liked both versions too.

Again, thanks to all of you who took the time to stop by and vote, especially those of you immersed in the A to Z (only 9 more posts to go). I’ll see you back here on the 1^st of May with my next BATTLE.

Until that time…Happy Trails to you!