Scott Joplin was born in 1868 and died in 1917 At the time of his death, on April 1st in the Manhattan State Institute, Joplin, who had been committed to the hospital in the autumn of the previous year by the second Mrs. Joplin, was not only virtually insane, but also penniless. It is incredible to note that even during his period in the hospital, he still tried to compose — but alas the magic had gone for ever.
The story started on November 24th in 1868 when Joplin was born in Texarkana, Texas. His mother, a laundress, came from Kentucky and his father, a labourer and an ex-slave, from North Carolina. As a child, Joplin played the guitar and bugle and at the age of seven he started picking out melodies on a neighbour’s piano. At the age of eleven a local German music teacher, who recognised Joplin’s natural gifts, gave him free music lessons. After the death of his mother and following a dispute with his father over learning a trade, the fourteen year old Scott Joplin left home. He travelled the Mississippi Valley states playing in all-night cafes, bawdy houses, saloons and variety, anywhere that he could get basic wages or sometimes just tips. The new music being played at this time was Ragtime or, as it was then called, Ragged time. The man who became the Master of Ragtime as it developed from that strangely red-light world. was Scott Joplin.
He moved to St. Louis in 1885 and this was to become the centre of his activities for a number of years. He went to the Chicago Worlds’ Fair in 1893 where he formed an orchestra and worked regular hours. but out of hours it was back to the bars of the District and Ragtime. He wandered back to St. Louis, on to Sedalia and back to St. Louis, but in 1895 he returned to Sedalia and formed the Texas Medley Quartet. The Quartet took him as far as New York where he sold his first pieces for publication. Two years later he wrote Maple Leaf Rag, but such were the problems of a black musician at this time that it was not finally published until two years later. The music on this album covers over a decade of Joplin publications and is truly the best of Joplin.
About The Artist
Ronnie Price was born in Manchester and played with many local dance bands before finally forming his own sextet. Before entering the session music scene, he learned his trade by playing, for many years, with dance music greats like Teddy Foster and Sydney Lipton. He was a member of the Tito Burns Sextet for four and a half years playing alongside giants like Johnny Dankworth and Ronnie Scott. As a session musician he has played or recorded with many of the top talents around including Andy Williams, Burt Bacharach, Cliff Richard, Shirley Bassey, Judy Garland, Sammy Davis, Nelson Riddle, Henry Mancini, Michel Legrand etc. etc. etc.
Rex Oldfield.
