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 Luckey Roberts was perhaps the greatest of the Harlem
stride pianists. This, according to fellow musicians who heard
him play. However, he remains a mysterious, neglected figure
in the history of jazz, probably because he made relatively
few recordings (he didn't have to, as his society orchestra
was in such demand by New York City's most prestigious
families). Tom Roberts, a talented and experienced stride
pianist, takes on the daunting task of recording eighteen of
Luckey's always challenging compositions. He does so with great
aplomb, yet always respectful of Luckey's intentions as revealed
by the few recordings he did make. Beautiful piano performances
and an added bonus of extensive liner notes by Tom which reveal quite a
bit about the wonderful Charles Luckeyth Roberts.
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Record Label: Stomp Off Records 1345
Total Time: 72:33
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Tracks on
'Roberts Plays Roberts'
| 1. Ripples of the Nile [3:15] | | | 2. Spanish Fandango [5:12] | | | 3. Railroad Blues [3:04] | | | 4. Blue Fever [2:54] | | | 5. Spanish Venus (willie "the Lion" Smith Version) [4:03] | | | 6. Pork and Beans [3:01] |  Preview | | 7. Complanin' [2:53] | | | 8. Music Box Rag [3:13] | | | 9. Shy and Sly [3:37] | | | 10. Nothin' [3:21] | | | 11. Spanish Venus (eubie Blake Version) [4:38] | | | 12. The Junk Man Rag [3:41] | Preview | | 13. The Irresistible Blues [3:06] | | | 14. Outer Space [2:44] | | | 15. Inner Space [7:05] | | | 16. Palm Beach [3:53] | | | 17. Bon Ton Cakewalk [4:11] | | | 18. Mo' Lasses [4:49] | | | 19. Rose Time and You [3:53] | |
Reviews:
The Rag Times, July 2000, Jack Rummel:
Discovering this CD is like finding a priceless time capsule. In
it is contained the major musical output of a man whose talents
have not been heard for years. Charles Luckeyth "Luckey" Roberts
last recorded in 1958 on the Good Time Jazz label; prior to
that it was in 1946 for Circle Records. A few of his rags,
such as Pork and Beans, Junk Man Rag and Music Box Rag were
recorded by others, but for the most part his repertoire has
remained unknown - until now.
Why should such a master of the keyboard, whose students included
such well-known names as Duke Ellington, Earl Hines, James P.
Johnson, Eubie Blake, Willie "The Lion" Smith and George Gershwin,
remain in obscurity? The artist on this invaluable recording,
Tom Roberts, postulates the following in his fascinating
liner notes: (1) due to the complexity of his music there
was little no market for the published scores, and (2) Luckey was
a financially successful band leader who didn't need to make
records in order to survive.
That Tom Roberts decided to research and record Luckey Roberts is
lucky for us, for the music is nothing short of amazing. In
addition to the above-mentioned rags, there is Latin-tinged
music (Spanish Fandango, Spanish Venus), bouncy stride (Shy
and Sly, Palm Beach), snappy blues (Railroad Blues), swingy blues
(Complainin', Irresistible), fast stride (Nothin', Outer Space),
a raggy waltz (Inner Space), a pop song (Rose Time and You)
and even a fast, rippley rag, Ripples of the Nile, which
contained the nucleus for Luckey's smash hit of 1941 (via Glenn
Miller), "Moonlight Cocktail." Counting the other goodies that
are interspersed, this disc weighs in at 73 + minutes of wonderful
music.
Tom's touch is firm throughout, with only occasional delicate
passages. There is a bit of muddiness in his chromatics here and
there, but such lapses are far overshadowed by may admiration for
his successful tackling of such a challenging project. My
big concern is with the packaging, for nowhere on the front
or back does the name Luckey Roberts appear. Buyers who are
"in the know" will recognize Luckey's picture on the front
next to Tom's, but others may be rather confused as to which
one is Tom and who the "other" Roberts might be. (If we throw
in David Thomas Roberts and Marcus Roberts as candidates,
we can really mess things up!)
And what about the real artist, Tom Roberts, who is he? No
biography is included, although we are invited to visit his
website to find out (www.TomRobertspiano.com). Fortunately, this music
speaks for itself. The bottom line is that a very competent
pianist named Roberts has recorded the awesome works of a
legendary, yet mysterious composer/pianist named Roberts, and in
so doing has rendered a wonderful service to American music
in general and ragtime in particular. Luckey has remained
in obscurity far too long. Three cheers for Tom!
The Mississippi Rag, June 2001, George A. Borgman:
Tom Roberts has made quite a name for himself as a solo and band
pianist, not only in Pittsburgh, his hometown, but in New
Orleans, at many festivals worldwide, and on radio, television
and numerous recordings.
On this compact disc, he plays the music of Charles Luckeyth
"Luckey" Roberts 1887-1968, originally from Philadelphia, who has
been called the grandfather of stride piano and the king of the
New York fast shout piano players. Among his disciples were
Eubie Blake, James P. Johnson, Willie "The Lion" Smith,
Earl "Fatha" Hines, Duke Ellington, and even George Gershwin.
Tom Roberts' excellent and comprehensive CD notes point out
Luckey Roberts' accomplishments: the first Harlem pianist to
be published--1913--and recorded--1916--and the composer of
more than a dozen musical comedies beginning in 1911, several big
band era hits, and symphonic works that were introduced at
Carnegie Hall and Town Hall in New York City. A Quaker who did
not drink or smoke, he was a society bandleader and, from 1940 to
'54, the operator of a Harlem bar, Lucky's Rendezvous, at 773 St.
Nicholas Avenue.
The opening "Ripples of the Nile" is a very difficult tune which,
it was said, nobody but Lucky Roberts could perform. It seems,
though, that Tom Roberts is the exception, for he plays it
extraordinarily well, providing the necessary rippling sounds in
the form of rapid arpeggios. According to the CD notes, Luckey
was trying to teach "Ripples of the Nile" to a fellow
pianist, and "in order to help his student master its
intricacies, he slowed the tempo down considerably. In the
process they discovered how pretty the melody was."
Luckey took the slower version and eliminated some ripples, Kim
Gannon wrote some lyrics for it, and the title was changed to
"Moonlight Cocktail," which was recorded by the Glenn Miller
Orchestra, with a vocal by Ray Eberle, and became a top hit
nationwide.
In August 1939, Luckey Roberts conducted his 55-piece
International Symphonic-Syncopated Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, and
one number featured was his "Spanish Suite," for piano and
orchestra. Tom Roberts plays two of its three movements, "Spanish
Venus" and "Spanish Fandango." "Spanish Venus" is performed as
both Willie "The Lion" Smith and Eubie Blake interpreted it.
Blake's version features more dynamic and tempo contrasts the The
Lion's and is, therefore, a bit more dramatic.
In 1908, Luckey Roberts wrote "Nothin," a very difficult and
showy rag in a fast tempo, and he used it in cutting contests in
Harlem. Tom Roberts really presents the tune as "somethin'," as
he displays his superb technique with rapid runs in the
treble, and plays the contrasting themes with dynamics. The
composer recorded this number for Harlem Piano Solos, a
Good Time recording released in 1958.
Much of Luckey Roberts' music is extremely complex, with florid
melodic ornamentations, including arpeggios, tremolos and trills,
mostly played on the treble end of the keyboard. Tom Roberts
performs all the pieces brilliantly and with technical finesse,
whether in the ragtime, stride or blues styles.
Tom Roberts is one of the top ragtime and Harlem-style piano
players around today and must be congratulated for this very
exciting recording of the wonderful music of Luckey Roberts, who has
unfortunately been somewhat neglected for years.
Great!!
 67.0%
 33.0%
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Weak
Total Votes: 3
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Tom Roberts (pn.)
Released in 1999
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List Price: $16.97
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