Phil Worde

With a name that sounds like some kind of obscure proofreading or layout instruction, '20s pianist and songwriter Phil Worde surely enraged insect-rights activists with his classic tune "Stompin' the Bug." The song was recorded by the great Fats Waller, quite an expert about things do with your feet at that. Worde's frequent co-writer was Thomas Morris, a New Orleans-style cornet player and bandleader. If their state of mind can be judged from the message content of their songs, these were people whose names would be best crossed out of the Rolodex. Besides the all-out assault on insect life, which can be forgiven since it was after all an instrumental, Worde and Morris seem to be all about asking favors: "Won't You Take Me Home?," for example -- or even worse, "Please Take Me Out of Jail." But maybe Worde had regrets about the latter number, since some releases credit Waller as the co-writer, editing Worde out. As a pianist, Worde was not in the category of Waller, but few were. He was a competent player from a fascinating era in which cutting-edge jazz and country blues came together in primitive recording studios. In the mid-'20s, Worde was one of many classic jazz and blues performers based out of Washington, D.C., and, in the '30s onward, he worked out of Philadelphia. Fans of both classic jazz and cult movies -- and there are plenty of these -- can give Worde a good word for his impressive credit as one of the major shareholders in the soundtrack to David Lynch's first and strangest feature film, Eraserhead. Two Waller recordings of Worde songs are featured, taking the edge off Lynch's own haunting theme for the "Lady in the Radiator." Although fans of cult cinema might not want to admit it, Worde's work as a pianist on sessions by classic blues singer Mamie Smith probably had much more of a cultural impact than Lynch, since these sides have been credited with creating the entire concept of an African-American market for records. In the mid-'20s, the collaboration with Morris also produced a series of lively instrumental sides with generous contribution from players such as trumpeter Rex Stewart and bassist Wellman Braud. These are titles that wet the appetite for action: "Jack Ass Blues,""Lazy Drag," "The Cinch," "Ham Gravy," "The Mess." The pianist had other songwriting partners such as Louis Godfrey, with whom he crafted the sensitive "Sympathizing Blues." He had one number co-written with Waller, a toss-off appropriately titled "Messing With the Blues." Worde also worked as a pianist with blues singer Helen Baxter, who recorded under her own name as well as the made-up ones Ellen Coleman and Mamie Spencer. ~ Eugene Chadbourne