“I started that Friday and ended fourteen years later.”

Abstract

I didn’t know Wellman Braud that night when he walked into the Nest, and he didn’t know me. He had heard about me through King Oliver and that was about it. He just sat there not talking to anyone until intermission came and then he asked me to join him at a table. He introduced himself and right away I knew he was a “home boy” from the way he spoke. Anyway, he told me that he could get me into the Duke Ellington Band, if I wanted. I just let him keep talking. “You see,” he said, “Duke has had this six-piece outfit on Broadway, but he has just landed this deal at the Cotton Club. The man there wants him to expand the band to ten pieces.” I kept listening. “Duke wants to get a clarinet player to take the place of Rudy Jackson. He is kind of tired of Rudy.” I just sat there with my drink and let Braud go on talking. “Rudy came to Duke with this song he called Creole Love Call and Duke liked it and recorded it for Mills. Now it turns out that Rudy stole the damned song from King Oliver. Oliver used to call it Camp Meeting Blues, but Rudy claimed it was his original so Oliver is suing them. Duke has had enough of it all so he wants someone to take Rudy’s place.” I guess I couldn’t blame him for getting rid of a guy that brought on so much trouble to his band. I mean, nobody needs law suits.