"Oh, Rinehart!" (Harvard slogan)

[George Thompson]

> Harvard man Rinehart probably first came to the attention of the wider
> world when his name was used in a blues lyric by George Frazier, a
> Boston journalist, jazz fan and Harvard man.  The lyric was set to
> music by Tab Smith of the Basie band and recorded by Jimmy Rushing.
> The first mention of the song in Chris Sheridan's Count Basie: a
> Bio-
> Discography (1986) is from November 17, 1941, aparently referring
> to a
> live broadcast.  The 78 version has been released on LP and CD,
> and I'm
> sure is easy to find.  Check it out: a masterpiece.

I forgot to mention that the song was called "Harvard Blues"  Another
line:  "I get 3 Cs, a D, and think checks from home divine."  Rushing
sings it all with the appropriate seriousness.

GAT

George A. Thompson
Author of A Documentary History of "The African
Theatre", Northwestern Univ. Pr., 1998.