The 1940's - New York City
In a general sense, there are three phases in "Dixieland" music. (But, keep in mind that the music is also developing elsewhere: Kansas City; St. Louis and Detroit, etc.)

The New Orleans Period:
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We have seen how a "dixieland" style was developed in New Orleans, the south and midwest.

The Chicago Period:
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When Storyville is closed down, many of the musicians, black and White, drift up the Mississippi to Chicago. The NORK is heard in Chicago and enthusiastically accepted. A significant number of 'new' dixieland bands are formed, such as The Chicagoans group; The Wolverines, Trumbauer's orch. and many others.

The New York Period:
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A 'true' Jazz was being played in New York City early in the 'teens'. (For example, Jimmy Durante's Novelty Jazz Orch., and others) With the Great Depression of 1929, many Chicagoans and others wend their weary way to New York City, where there are greater opportunities for employment. Earlier, the ODJB had a huge success in Reisenweber's Restaurant, paralleling the success of the NORK in Chicago. And, in the 1930s, 'Dixieland' was still riding high in New York.

However, there was some kind of Jazz played in New York well before this time. As a vaudeville center, the acts traveled the country bringing the music of small 'jazz' bands to smaller towns. And there were many musicians in NY spreading the 'gospel' of jazz. Including:

James Reese Europe's Orch. (Later musical director for the Castles.) Will Dixon's Nashville Students. (They were neither students nor Nashvilleans.) Louisiana Five, Led by Alcide "Yellow" Nunez. Original New Orleans Jazz Band, with Jimmy Durante. And there were many ragtime pianists, including:
    Eubie Blake
    "One Leg" Willie Joseph
    Sam Gordon
    William Turk
    Jess Pickett
    James P. Johnson

In the early 1910's, the music publishers were located in and around Union Square, in New York City, near the theaters including Tony Pastor's famous vaudeville theater. By the early 1920's, the publishers had moved to West 28th Street, between Broadway and Sixth Avenue. One of the newspapers sent their reporter, Monroe Rosenfeld, down to the district to get background on a story he was to write. Rosenfeld (who later did some composing of his own) wrote that the babble and noise coming from the open windows of the music publisher offices sounded like so many tin pans being beaten. From then on the cognomon 'Tin Pan Alley' became synonymous with the song publishing business. The Publishers would place strips of newspaper weaving between the strings of the piano to muffle the sound, and this didn't help the tone. By the late 1920's, the publishers had begun a slow migration to the area from 42nd Street to 50th Street. Finally, most of the publishers settled into the Brill Building on 50th Street and Broadway, - they're still there, today (1996).

As one might expect, Tin Pan Alley had a number of Piano merchants supplying pianos to the publishers and composers of the district. The most famous of these was a store called "Tonk Pianos". Mr. Tonk must have been a great salesman, for one could hear his piano sounds coming out of every open window. People visiting the 'Alley' said it was filled with 'honky Tonk' sounds. A great many Blues songs came out of Tin Pan Alley.

As a historical note, Red Nichols ,and Miff Mole were already in NY in 1923, and may be considered to be the first New York Dixielanders. Phil Napoleon & the Original Memphis Five, were also active in New York in the early 20's, as well as Bailey's Lucky Seven.

So, we can see an overall 'meshing' of the music. The original ragtimey 'jass' played in the south and midwest; the newer, and hard driving Chicago version, greatly inspired by the NORK; and the excitement in New York City when the ODJB visits and plays at Reisenweber's Restaurant. And all this is followed closely by the gradual drift of musicians from Chicago due to the depression.

In any Overview of the New York Scene, we have:
The National Radio networks home offices.
      At first a large number of radio stations, and then the
      home of the networks, NBC (1926), CBS and ABC. The Large number of 'classy' supper clubs, and
      places like Reisenweber's Restaurant; etc. The Large number of Hotels. NYC is a tourist center.
      The Taft; The Pennsylvania; The Astor, etc.
      There's 52nd Street -"Swing Street USA" , with the following clubs all on one block.
      The Onyx Club
      Kelly's Stables
      Club Samoa
      Three Deuces
      Toots Shor
      Spotlight Club
      The Famous Door
      Club Carousel
      The Bluenote
      Jimmy Ryan's
      The 21 Club
      (Eddie) Condon's
      Tony's
      Leon and Eddies

A large number of Recording companies.
      RCA Victor, Decca, The Commodore Music Shop; etc.

Greenwich Village and the small Clubs.
      Eddie Condon's Club, Nick's. The Pied Piper (mid-40's)

The Concert Halls
      Carnegie Hall; Town Hall. Stuyvesant Casino.

And, Harlem.
      Small's Paradise, The Savoy Ballroom.

Who was playing in New York? It was a 'who's who' of N.O. and Chicago Dixieland jazz. Eddie Condon; Mugsy Spanier; Rod Cless; George Brunis (nee Brunies, a numerologist told him to drop the 'e', it would be bad luck); George Wettling; Mezz Mezzrow; Sidnet Bechet; Pee Wee Russell; Wellman Braud; Red McKenzie; Max Kaminsky; James P. Johnson; Cecil Scott; Wild Bill Davison; Bud Freeman; Jimmy McPartland; Albert Nicholas; Edmund Hall; Omer Simeon; Wilbur de Paris; and a whole host of others.

The Last Hurrah
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In 1938, they re-discovered Bunk Johnson. He was fitted with a new set of teeth and a brand new trumpet. After that, they managed to convince Kid Ory to take a leave from his chicken ranch. And then the rush was on to find other 'lost' New Orleans Jazzmen. For a brief 10 year period, Dixieland jazz had one last moment in the sunlight.

Once again, the world heard Sidney Bechet; Mezz Mezzrow, James P. Johnson, George Baquet; Alphonse Picou; Pops Foster; "Slow Drag" Pavageau; Daby Dodds; Alton Purnell; Lawrence Marrero; Kid Ory; Thomas "Papa Mutt" Carey; Paul Barbarin; Bunk Johnson; plus still very active Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Jack Teagarden, and many more.

Ca. 1947, the BeBop craze started. In retrospect, we can now see that it was one of the signals pointing to the end of the wonderfully entertaining music.

The 1940's - San Francisco, CA., the last gasp of Dixieland Jazz:
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Some of the bands of this period, were:
     The Yerba Buena Jazz Band
     Turk Murphy Jazz Band
     Bob Scobey's Dixielanders
     Monty Ballou's Castle Jazz Band
     Firehouse Five + Two
     Dick Oxtot's Polecats
     Bob Wilbur's Jazz Band
     The Red Onion Jazz Band
     The Dukes of Dixieland
     Dixieland Rhythm Kings
     The Lawson-Haggart Band.

In 1948, former Casa Loman, Trombonist Pee Wee Hunt and his band cut a huge hit record of the "12th Street Rag", in the Dixieland style. Perhaps this signalled the coming end. But there was one more "flare up" of Dixieland jazz to come, this time on the West Coast.

The seminal band was Lu Watters' Yerba Buena Jazz Band, formed in San Francisco in 1940. Lu and the others felt deeply that Jazz had somehow or other taken a wrong turn, and the only thing to do, was to go back to the roots. The unique thing to recall here, is that these men used the work of the 'Old Masters' as the starting point for their new creative activity. They eschewed all of the work of the Swing Bands; Big Band Jazz and all of the 'white' variations on the New Orleans style (meaning the Chicagoans, etc.). They studied the music of King Oliver's Original Creole Jazz Band and also Jelly Roll Morton's Band.

Their music, absorbed from the ragtime and brass bands of old New Orleans, 'must' also have been influenced by the whole California tradition of 'Good Time' music that had existed since the days of the Barbary Coast. The band developed what may be called a San Francisco Dixieland style.

And, in 1940, they found a home in the Dawn Club, where they performed until the start of WW2, unknown to all except the San Franciscans. After the war, the band was reformed and, on March 1, 1946, again started playing in the Dawn Club. In June, 1947 Lu Watters opened his own "Hambone Kelly's" club.

As mentioned above, the Yerba Buena Jazz Band was the seminal orchestra. Various differences finally split the group apart. In 1951, trombonist Turk Murphy formed his own dixieland group for a gig in the Beverly Caverns club in LA. When Turk took his group on tour in 1954, it marked the first time that the music was heard outside of the native San Francisco habitat. (They played at Child's Paramount in New York City)

Bob Scobey, Watters' 2nd trumpet, formed his group in 1955, and also plyaed in New York in the spring of '55. Others were to follow in the Yerba Buena Jazz Band steps. Monty Ballou's Castle Jazz Band started in Portland, OR., in 1955.

Down in Hollywood, trombonist Ward Kimball formed the 'Firehouse Five + Two' band. (The men in the band were Walt Disney artists, who had a hobby of collecting old Fire Engines and Railroad Cars.) Dick Oxtot's Polecats and Bob Wilbur's Jazz Band were two more San Francisco start ups. In New Orleans, Trumpeter Frank Assunto formed the Dukes of Dixieland Band. (Louis Armstrong sat in on some sessions of the 'The Dukes of Dixieland'.) In Milwaukee, WI., trumpeter Doc Evans also had a group.

In the mid-40's in New York City, the Red Onion Jazz Band was active. The sidemen included Bob Hodes, trumpet, Robin Wetterau, piano; Chas. Sonnanstine, trombone; Bob Thompson, drums and Joe Muranyii, clarinet.

In the mid-40's the Dixieland Rhythm Kings were formed in Dayton, Ohio by Gene Mayl. (Carl Halen trumpet and Jan Carroll, banjo.) The 1955 version of the Rhythm Kings had acquired Robin Wetterau and Charlie Sonnanstine from New York's short lived Red Onion Jazz Band.

In the 50's, Eddie Condon, the old Chicagoan, was promoting "Jazz Jubilees" in New York's Town Hall. These were performances with the old timers of New Orleans as well as some enterprising new comers.

But, the best of the Dixieland revival was by the Lawson-Haggart Orch., later (in the 70's) to be known as "The Greatest Jazz Band in the World". And, also 'Matty Matlock's Dixielanders' should be mentioned. Both of these two orchs. used sidemen (and Leaders) from the Big Bands and some sidemen from the old Bob Crosby Orch.

With the end of the 1970's, Dixieland had fallen silent. But that's not the end of the story. I am happy to report that "Dixieland Lives", - all over the World! Of course, we can today still listen to the legacy of records that the great early bands left us, but there are new - and wonderful - Dixieland Jazz bands playing concerts, festivals, dances, and recording too, - worldwide. I am sure that if the old Dixielanders could be with us today, they would have a warm feeling knowing that their Good Time, Happy Music lives, and is popular with folks everywhere.