[officemonkey]

Mezz Mezzrow was a Jewish C-list Jazz clarinetist from Chicago that was active during the depression.

He was also a successful marijuana dealer to the Jazz community. He married a black woman, moved to Harlem, and called himself a "voluntary Negro." When he was arrested at the Worlds Fair (60 marijuana cigarettes with intent to distribute) he convinced the cops he was black and thus was housed with black prisoners.

He was good friends with Louis Armstrong and has such a cult status among Jazz fans that there's a NYC Jazz Club named in his honor.

As Dylan wrote "To live outside the law, you must be honest." Especially so when conformity was life-threatening.

[selimthegrim]

So the claim is he actually released some OK stuff at the end. How true is that?

[officemonkey]

Trad clarinet isn't terribly difficult compared to post-bebop jazz. Pee Wee Russell and Benny Goodman were probably the best at it in the 60s. I don't think I have any post-1930s Mezzrow recordings to make an assessment.