By Hal Smith

As a freelance musician in the 1930s, Scobey played with dance bands as well as theater and studio orchestras. Late in the decade, he became acquainted with Lu Watters, Turk Murphy, and other Bay Area musicians who were interested in older forms of jazz. He worked alongside Watters in his orchestra at Sweet’s Ballroom in Oakland and participated in the small-band sessions at the Big Bear Tavern where Watters, Murphy, Bob Helm, and others played the stomps, rags, marches, and blues that would soon form the basic repertoire of the Yerba Buena Jazz Band (YBJB).

Scobey was not in the original formation of the YBJB, but replaced trumpeter Byron Berry in time to appear on the band’s first broadcasts from the Dawn Club as well as the December 1941 and March 1942 recording sessions for the Jazz Man label.

From the beginning, Bob Scobey’s playing was bursting with energy and a headlong drive—pushing ahead of the beat, syncopating his phrases, and using a pronounced vibrato. The Yerba Buena Jazz Band’s 1942 recording of “Fidgety Feet” provides an example of the contrast between Lu Watters’ and Scobey’s playing. Watters takes the first break, playing on the beat. Scobey takes the second break, sounding as if he is straining to break free of the heavy two-beat rhythm.

When World War II broke up the Yerba Buena band, Scobey went into the Army and was stationed in Ft. Lewis, Washington. He recorded with the fledgling Castle Jazz Band, most likely during a furlough to Portland in 1944.

Following the war, Scobey rejoined the Yerba Buena Jazz Band and was present at their return to the Dawn Club in March, 1946. His trumpet playing on the West Coast 78s illustrates that his personal style did not change during the war.

He still pushed the beat, creating a marvelous tension in the ensemble passages with Watters continuing to play on the beat. Scobey’s broad vibrato—particularly when playing lead on slower numbers—was a hallmark of the four-horn Yerba Buena front line.

When the Yerba Buena Jazz Band moved operations to Hambone Kelly’s in June of 1947, Bob Scobey resumed his place alongside Watters on the huge bandstand. He was not interested in becoming part of the planned cooperative, however. He chose not to live at the venue, and like Wally Rose and Bill Dart, wanted to be a salaried performer rather than sharing the income. As the year progressed, Scobey tired of the relentless two-beat rhythm and the lack of dynamics in the YBJB. He was probably already thinking about leaving to form his own group when the Musicians Union announced a ban on recordings, effective January 1, 1948.

Despite his search for a different sound, Scobey returned to Hambone Kelly’s several times during 1948 - 49 when Lu Watters was sidelined by hernia surgery.

Turk Murphy handed in his notice to Watters in 1949 and was soon working frequently with Scobey. Murphy’s Hot Six were featured at the newly-opened Club Hangover in San Francisco with Scobey as the regular trumpet man. When Scobey booked casuals under his own name, Murphy was frequently the trombonist.

They were still working together when the Yerba Buena Jazz Band was engaged to perform at a concert on June 1 at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. This would have been the first performance outside the Bay Area for the YBJB, but Watters either was too ill to play, or, more likely, decided not to travel. Instead, he sent a sextet from Hambone Kelly’s: Bob Scobey, Turk Murphy, Bob Helm, Burt Bales, Harry Mordecai, and tubist Dick Lammi. Murphy was the leader and made the most of the trip to Southern California by setting up a record date with the brand-new Good Time Jazz label the day preceding the concert.

Turk Murphy’s San Francisco Jazz Band cut eight sides, then went on to give Southern California jazz fans their first exposure to live San Francisco-style jazz. One musician who was present at the concert recalled that some fans did not realize that the band makeup was different from the full Yerba Buena outfit. He mentioned that one member of the audience kept yelling, “Play ‘The Easy Winners,’ Lu!”

The records sold well and gained many new fans for Turk Murphy and his musicians. A follow-up session was recorded in 1950. This time, the personnel was slightly different. Watters was back on trumpet at Hambone Kelly’s, with Helm on clarinet and Lammi on tuba and bass. To replace Helm, Murphy hired young Bill Napier, a creative musician with a totally different concept from Helm’s. Bill Newman, who recorded previously with Alexander’s Jazz Band, was on guitar and banjo. Squire Girsback played bass and sousaphone and Stan Ward, who had substituted for Bill Dart with the Yerba Buena Jazz Band, was on drums. Burt Bales was once again on piano and Scobey remained on trumpet.

Though the Yerba Buena influence can still be heard on some of the recordings, the overall sound of the band is much looser and even swingier. With Newman switching to guitar, Bales striding à la Fats Waller, Girsback playing 4/4 on bass, and Ward romping on the drums, “Curse Of An Aching Heart” sounds closer to Eddie Condon or Bob Crosby’s Bob Cats than anything recorded by Watters. Scobey’s reaction to the swinging rhythm is a delight to hear. His playing displays a heat, drive, and creativity that were often kept under wraps in the four-horn front line of the Watters Band.

Despite the good music they made together, the Scobey-Murphy musical partnership ended in the summer of 1950. Murphy went to Southern California, and performed a series of engagements with a band consisting of Napier, Ward, Yerba Buena banjoist Pat Patton, Los Angeles pianist Skippy Anderson, and two former Castle Jazz Band musicians from Portland, trumpeter Don Kinch and tubist George Bruns.

Clancy Hayes’ vocals are featured for the first time. Before the end of the year, young reedman George Probert joined the band. When Hambone Kelly’s closed and the Yerba Buena Jazz Band disbanded on January 1, 1951, pianist Wally Rose joined Scobey’s group. They played concerts at venues such as Jenny Lind Hall, Victor and Roxie’s, the Greenwich Village, and the Melody Club.

In 1951 and early 1952, Scobey made some of his greatest records, for Good Time Jazz. Higuera’s dynamic drumming, Scobey’s unfettered trumpet playing, and Clancy Hayes’ sunny vocals combined to give the band a distinctive and appealing sound which was totally different from the Watters and Murphy bands. Under the new name, Bob Scobey’s Frisco Band, the group recorded several tracks featuring Hayes’ vocals. “Ace In The Hole,” “Peoria,” “Silver Dollar,” “South,” “Melancholy,” “Chicago,” and Hayes’ own composition “Huggin’ And A Chalkin’ ” would become favorites with traditional jazz fans. The records were issued on 78 rpm, and later on 45 rpm, 10” LP and 12” LP. They remain in print to this day on compact disc.

If there is an equivalent in traditional jazz to Bunny Berigan’s record of “I Can’t Get Started,” it would surely be Bob Scobey’s 1952 Good Time Jazz recording of “All The Wrongs You’ve Done To Me.” Scobey opens with a brilliant cadenza, with an augmented front line playing whole notes. The trumpet playing that follows is simply majestic. If he had never recorded again, Scobey would have been able to point to “All The Wrongs” as a genuine jazz classic.

That same year, the Frisco Band played a Gene Norman Just Jazz concert in Southern California, opposite Louis Armstrong’s All-Stars. Here rare photos by the great jazz photographer Ray Avery, found in the SFTJF Collection, show both bands onstage at the same time, making one wish that someone had been able to sneak a live recording of Louis and Scobey together.

Just Jazz concert with Louis Armstrong’s All-Stars and Bob Scobey’s Frisco Band. Clancy Hayes, banjo; George Probert, reeds; (probably) Marty Napoleon, piano; Jack Buck, trombone; Trummy Young, trombone; Bob Scobey, trumpet; Squire Girsback, bass; Louis Armstrong, trumpet; Fred Higuera, drums; Barney Bigard, clarinet; Cozy Cole, drums; Arvell Shaw, bass.

Photo credit: Copyright© Ray Avery Photo Archives/CTSIMAGES. Used with permission. All rights are reserved to CTSIMAGES

Despite interest generated by the Good Time Jazz records, Scobey’s Frisco Band was not able to find steady work in the Bay Area. That made it difficult to keep a regular band lineup. During 1952 - 53, Burt Bales alternated with Rose, and sometimes Jack Buck switched to piano, his second instrument. Bassists/tubists Dick Lammi, Bob Short, and Gene Mayl filled in for Girsback. Clancy Hayes occasionally moved to drums, if Higuera or Bill Dart was not available. When Probert left to join Kid Ory, Scobey was able to recruit Ellis Horne. He stayed just long enough to play at the 1953 Dixieland Jubilee in Los Angeles, where the Frisco Band accompanied Sidney Bechet.

When the concert ended and the musicians were packing up their instruments, Beebe approached Davis with a puzzled expression. Before he could say a word, Davis looked at him and said, “You’ve been reading too much Leonard Feather!”

By 1954 Scobey’s situation was much better. He was a father of two boys and one girl. There were more musical engagements, more recordings for Good Time Jazz, and the inestimable Bill Napier joined the band on clarinet. The group had a new look, too. In the mid-‘50s, most bands of the era still wore suits, but the Frisco Band wore colorful vests and string ties on their appearances at the Italian Village, El Rancho Grande, Pioneer Village, The Tin Angel, and on the short-lived Clancy’s Corner television program.

In 1955, Bob Scobey traveled to Los Angeles to record an album of popular standards with vocalist Claire Austin. The band included modern jazzmen Barney Kessel on guitar and Shelly Manne on drums, as well as studio/Dixieland musicians Stan Wrightsman on piano and Morty Corb on bass. The musicians, particularly Scobey, did an outstanding job accompanying the vocals. Though it is obvious that Austin was much better suited to singing “Mecca Flat Blues” than “Come Rain Or Come Shine,” the overall effect is much like the 1950s recordings by Lee Wiley with Bobby Hackett or Barbara Lea with Johnny Windhurst. The record certainly proves that Scobey was a consummate musician, capable of playing great music in a non-traditional setting.

Meanwhile, the Frisco Band personnel was still fluid in 1954 - 55. Ernie Lewis, then Tiny Crump played piano while Dick Lammi was on string bass, followed by Hal McCormack. Bob Short was added on tuba for recordings, and Earl Watkins played drums for almost two years before Fred Higuera returned.

One bright spot during this period was Bob Scobey’s appearance with Bing Crosby on a Victor album entitled Bing With A Beat. The musicians were the powerhouse studio/Dixieland players who recorded with such groups as the Rampart Street Paraders, Paducah Patrol, and Pete Kelly’s Big Seven. It turned out to be one of the best recordings of Scobey’s career. He was obviously inspired by Matty Matlock’s imaginative arrangements and Crosby’s high-spirited vocals.

Scobey was in a position usually filled by trumpeters like Dick Cathcart, John Best or Clyde Hurley, and his playing is in a class with their best work in similar surroundings. Clancy Hayes played guitar, but there were no vocal duets with Bing. Ralph Sutton was also on the session, playing a beautiful mix of Fats Waller and Jess Stacy-style piano. Nick Fatool’s drumming is another highlight of the session with well-timed percussive punctuation, flawless timekeeping, and glorious swing behind Scobey’s solos. Based on his asides to the musicians, Crosby was extremely pleased with this superb ensemble.

Bob Scobey’s subsequent records are a letdown in comparison to Bing With A Beat. Band personnel continued to change frequently, and finally the Scobey-Clancy partnership dissolved in seething ill will, according to most accounts, over who should receive top billing when they recorded a jingle for Marlboro cigarettes.