Preface by Ken Avery

When I was looking for a title to put on this book about dance and jazz bands in New Zealand, I remembered an admirable ad lib by the famous Wellington bandleader, alto sax and violin maestro, Laurie Paddi.  Laurie led the very polished Majestic Cabaret band for a number of years.  Perhaps his most amusing comment was made when he came into one of those overlit dance halls of the postwar years when neon tubes were the in-thing for lighting public buildings.  What with the lights and the dusting of ballroom powder on the floor, the place almost outshone the Western Desert for brightness.  Laurie walked in, shaded his eyes dramatically and casually asked of the band “Where are the camels?”

Having been in the Western Desert, that joke appealed to me; so here’s hoping that “Where are the Camels?” appeals to you.  This book is mostly about musicians who can go for nights without water, provided there’s something stronger around.  As Eddie Condon once said of the bebop fraternity (which specialized in diminished fifth chords) - “They flatten their fifths – we drink ours!”