Today's performance takes a listen to some Japanese Dixieland played by the Shobi Dixieland Jazz Band with their version of Down By the Riverside filmed in about 2011!
Down By the Riverside is an American
spiritual that was first published in 1918 by the Rodeheaver Company in a
musical collection called "Rodeheaver's Plantation Melodies: A Collection of
Modern, Popular and Old-time Negro-Songs of the Southland."
Although Down By the Riverside has
been assumed to be a song that originally emanated from the struggle of slaves
for their freedom around the Civil War, unfortunately there is no solid evidence
in the written record of this.
The phrase "down by the riverside" is a fairly
common one in slave songs. Also, the way the song was written is similar to
other call out songs where one will lead the song and others will repeat. The
song has long been included in Baptist hymnals and it has been published under
various titles such as, Ain't Gonna Study War No More, Goin' to Lay
down My Burden, and Ain't Gonna Grieve My Lord No More among
others.
Not much information is available on the Shobi Dixieland Jazz Band of Japan, apart from the fact that the band in the video consists of six members. Three women and three men. It looks like the band consists of a saxophone, cornet, trombone, piano, tuba and drums.
There are several more videos posted online of this band all around 2010 and 2011. Check them out!
The Shobi Dixieland Jazz Band plays
Down By the Riverside in 2011.
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