Don't Ask Me ..... I Don't Know

Sammy Myers - Sleeping In The Ground & My Love Is Here To Stay

2012-02-05T17:33:00.003+01:00

Sam Myers was an American blues musician and songwriter.
He was born in Laurel, Mississippi. Myers appeared as an accompanist on dozens of recordings for blues artists over the past five decades, and fronted one of the top blues bands in the world. He began his career as a drummer for Elmore James, but was most famous as a blues vocalist and blues harp player. Myers was in high demand for his authentic delta blues sound. For nearly two decades he was the featured vocalist for Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets.
Myers acquired an interest in music while a schoolboy in Jackson, Mississippi and became skilled enough at playing the trumpet and drums that he received a non-degree scholarship from the American Conservatory School of Music in Chicago. Myers attended school by day and at night frequented the nightclubs of the South Side of Chicago, meeting and sitting in with Jimmy Rogers, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, Hound Dog Taylor, Robert Lockwood, Jr., and Elmore James. Myers played drums with Elmore James on a fairly steady basis from 1952 until James's death in 1963, and is credited on many of James's historic recordings for Chess Records. In 1956, Myers wrote and recorded what was to be his most famous single, "Sleeping In The Ground", a song that has been covered by Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, and many other blues artists, as well as being featured on Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour show on Sirius XM.
From the early 1960s until 1986, Myers worked the clubs in and around Jackson as well as across the South in the Chitlin' Circuit.
He found himself touring the world with Sylvia Embry and the Mississippi All-Stars Blues Band.
In 1986, Sam met Anson Funderburgh, from Plano, Texas, and joined Anson’s band, The Rockets. Myers toured all over the U.S. and the world with The Rockets, enjoying a partnership that endured until the time of his death from complications from throat cancer surgery on July 17, 2006.

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Dr. Ross - One Man Band

2012-02-05T17:33:00.002+01:00

Isaiah "Doc" Ross was a throwback to a bygone era; a true one-man band, he played harmonica, acoustic guitar, bass drum, and hi-hat simultaneously, creating a mighty racket harking back to the itinerant country-blues players wandering the Delta region during the earlier years of the 20th century. Born Charles Isaiah Ross on October 21, 1925 in Tunica, Mississippi, he took early inspiration from the music of Robert Johnson, Blind Boy Fuller, and Sonny Boy Williamson I; primarily a harpist -- hence his nickname "The Harmonica Boss" -- he only added the other instruments in his arsenal in order to play a USO show while a member of the Army during World War II. (The "Doc" moniker was acquired because he carried his harmonicas in a doctor's bag.) Upon his release from the military, Ross settled in Memphis, where he became a popular club fixture as well as the host of his own radio show on station WDIA; during his club residency he was witness to a number of brutal murders, however, and swore off appearances in such venues during the later years of his life. During the early '50s, Ross recorded his first sides -- among them "Chicago Breakdown" -- for labels including Sun and Chess; in 1954 he settled in Flint, Michigan, where he went to work as a janitor for General Motors, a position he held until retiring. In 1965 he cut his first full-length LP, Call the Doctor, and that same year mounted his first European tour; as the years passed Ross performed live with decreasing frequency, however, and was infamous for backing out of shows to catch his beloved Detroit Tigers on television. Upon winning a Grammy for his 1981 album Rare Blues, he experienced a career resurgence, and played festival dates to great acclaim prior to his death on May 28, 1993.

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Ray Charles & Fred Dunn - Ray Charles

2012-02-05T17:33:00.000+01:00

Another low budget lp with 3 early Ray Charles tracks as a selling point but also with 7 tracks from Fred Dunn on piano.
Fred's boogie woogie recordings date from 1946 all recorded for the Signature label in New York.
Don't know if they have been re-released on lp or cd before.
Thanks got to the person who left the correct track listing in the comments.
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Irma Thomas - Sings

2012-02-05T17:32:00.001+01:00

The unrivaled Soul Queen of New Orleans -- a title officially bestowed by local officials, no less -- Irma Thomas ranks among Crescent City R&B's greatest and most enduring musical ambassadors, never enjoying the coast-to-coast commercial success of contemporaries like Aretha Franklin and Etta James but nevertheless breathing the same rarified air in the minds of many soul music aficionados. Born Irma Lee in Ponchatoula, LA, on February 18, 1941, as a teen she sang with a Baptist church choir, even auditioning for Specialty Records as a 13-year-old. A year later, she gave birth to her first child, marrying the baby's father and subsequently giving birth to another child before the union dissolved. At 17 she wed again, this time to one Andrew Thomas, having two more babies before she again divorced, all before the age of 20. Keeping her second ex-husband's surname, Thomas went to work as a waitress at New Orleans' Pimlico Club, occasionally sitting in with bandleader Tommy Ridgley. When the club's owner dismissed her for spending more time singing than waiting tables, Ridgley agreed to help her land a record deal, setting up auditions with the local Minit and Ronn labels. The latter issued her saucy debut single, "You Can Have My Husband (But Don't Mess with My Man)," in the spring of 1960, and the record quickly reached the number 22 spot on the Billboard R&B chart. However, Thomas accused Ronn of withholding royalties and after one more effort for the label, "A Good Man," she briefly landed with the Bandy label, releasing 1961's "Look Up" before relocating to Minit.
Thomas' first Minit release, "Girl Needs Boy," inaugurated a collaboration with songwriter and producer Allen Toussaint that would continue throughout her tenure with the label; although none of her six Minit singles were significant hits, each was brilliant, in particular 1962's "It's Raining" (memorably revived by filmmaker Jim Jarmusch for his cult classic Down by Law) and the following year's "Ruler of My Heart," reworked by Otis Redding as "Pain in My Heart." Imperial Records acquired Minit in 1963, and Thomas' contract was included in the deal. Her first single for the label, the starkly intimate "Wish Someone Would Care," capitalized on Imperial's deep pockets to vault into the Billboard pop Top 20, while its Jackie DeShannon/Sharon Sheeley-penned B-side, "Break-a-Way," proved a massive hit on New Orleans radio, later accumulating cover versions by singers from Beryl Marsden to Tracey Ullman. The follow-up, "Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand)," was even better, a magnificent ballad featuring one of Thomas' most finely wrought vocals, but was not a hit. Likewise, its Jerry Ragovoy-penned B-side, "Time Is on My Side," had its fans, not the least of them the Rolling Stones, who scored a massive hit with a virtual note-for-note cover version. Thomas closed out 1964 with a pair of minor chart entries, "Times Have Changed" and "He's My Guy," both of them written by Van McCoy; for subsequent efforts including "I'm Gonna Cry Till My Tears Run Dry" and "The Hurt's All Gone," she even traveled to New York City to record with hitmaker Ragovoy, but despite the pedigrees of those involved, her commercial momentum dissipated, and following the chart failure of 1966's James Brown-produced "It's a Man's-Woman's World," Imperial terminated her contract.
Thomas next signed with Chess Records, traveling to Rick Hall's legendary Muscle Shoals studio Fame to cut 1967's "Cheater Man." Neither that record nor its follow-up, "A Woman Will Do Wrong Charted," had much success, but her third Chess single, a reading of Redding's "Good to Me," was a minor R&B chart entry in 1968. It was not enough to extend Thomas' relationship with Chess, however, and she spent the next several years outside the studio. In the aftermath of the devastating Hurricane Camille, she relocated her family to Oakland, CA, in 1969, later settling in Los Angeles. During this time Thomas supported her children by working at retailer Montgomery Ward, resurfacing on record with 1971's Cotillion label release "Full Time Woman." Later that year, she also issued "Save a Little Bit" on the tiny Canyon label, followed in 1972 by "I'd Do It All for You." Thomas returned in 1973 with "These Four Walls" on Roker, followed by three singles on the horribly named Fungus label: "You're the Dog (I Do the Barking Myself)," "In Between Tears," and "Coming from Behind." She relocated back to New Orleans in 1976, a year later issuing "Hittin' on Nothin'" and a re-recorded "Breakaway" on Maison de Soul; in 1980, Thomas surfaced on the RCS label with Safe with Me, an ill-conceived LP that sought to update her sound to approximate disco-era R&B. It was the last record she would make for six years.
In the interim, Thomas accelerated her live schedule. With husband/manager Emile Jackson, she opened the Lion's Den, a New Orleans club where she regularly headlined, and she also toured Europe, where her records still merited regular airplay. In 1985, she was approached by Rounder Records producer Scott Billington to make a comeback record. The New Rules appeared the following year, earning solid reviews and selling respectably. The Way I Feel hit stores in 1988, and with 1991's Live! Simply the Best, Thomas earned her first-ever Grammy nomination. The following year she issued True Believer, and in 1993 released her first gospel effort, Walk Around Heaven. She waited until 1997 to release her next secular record, The Story of My Life, blaming the delay in interviews on her difficulty in finding material appropriate to her age and sensibility. Thomas shifted gears radically for 1998's Sing It!, which paired her with devout fans Marcia Ball and Tracy Nelson; two years later saw the release of My Heart's in Memphis: The Songs of Dan Penn, with Thomas tackling both Penn classics ("I'm Your Puppet," "Woman Left Lonely") and original compositions. After the Rain, released in 2006, was nominated for a Best Contemporary Blues Album Grammy. Simply Grand was issued on Rounder Records in 2008, and featured Thomas in an acoustic setting accompanied by a host of piano players, including Dr. John, Ellis Marsalis, Randy Newman, and others.

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Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band - Running Wild

2012-01-20T16:49:00.000+01:00

The Ram Jam Band were formed around 1964 and evolved out of a group called Les Blues who were formed to rival an English group with a Black American singer called Milton And The Continentals. Before taking on Geno Washington, they had been backing a British Blues singer by the name of Errol Dixon. Their first single featuring Dixon, "Shake, Shake, Senora" / "Akinla" released on Columbia had sunk without a trace.
Geno Washington was a U.S. airman stationed in East Anglia who became well known for his impromptu performances in London nightclubs. In 1965, guitarist Pete Gage needed a singer front his new band and replace the previous singer Errol Dixon, and asked Washington to join and the latter was discharged from the U.S. Air force, he became the band's frontman.
They had two of the biggest selling UK albums of the 1960s, both of which were live albums. Their most commercially successful album, Hand Clappin, Foot Stompin, Funky-Butt ... Live! was in the UK Albums Chart for 38 weeks in 1966, and was only out-sold by The Sound of Music and Bridge Over Troubled Water.[citation needed] The other album was Hipster Flipsters Finger Poppin' Daddies. They had some moderate hit singles released by the Pye label: "Water", "Hi Hi Hazel", "Que Sera Sera" and "Michael (The Lover)".
They managed to build up a strong following with the crowds and due to their touring and engergetic performances. Like their Pye label mates and rivals, Jimmy James and the Vagabonds, they became popular with the mod scene.
The band broke up in the autumn of 1969 and the band members went their own ways while Geno Washington continued as a solo artist before returning to the United States.
Washington temporarily reformed the band between February and June 1971 with new band members Dave Watts (organ), Mo Foster (bass), Mike Jopp (guitar) and Grant Serpell (drums)
The band's name came from the Ram Jam Inn, an old coaching inn on the A1 (Great North Road) at Stretton, near Oakham, Rutland.

http://www.genowashington.com/

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Live Experience Band - Voodoo Chile

2012-01-20T12:27:00.000+01:00

A couple of years ago I posted another LP from the Live Experience Band, still online, doing Hendrix as only stoned German(?) hippies can do it.
Someone at the time requested this LP but it's one that I forgot about then but here it is and better late than never. More fuzz, feedback and wah-wah.

side 1:
1. First trial of Star Spangled Banner/Purple Haze

side 2:
1. Voodoo Chile
2. 3rd Stone from the sun

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Cleo Page - Goodie Train Part 1 & 2

2012-01-20T12:20:00.003+01:00

There is not much on the internet about Cleo Page so I've copied a review, written by Ian Harrison, of his lp that was released on JSP and P-Vine.

In these times of so much stuff being available at the click of a mouse, it’s refreshing to listen to someone properly mysterious. Like Cleo Page - absent from blues encyclopaedias, let alone the internet, he was apparently active in Los Angeles in the ’70s, and probably wouldn’t have liked strangers nosing into his business anyway. A gruff, to-the-point presence who likes his liquor and women, he sings as if recording these songs was an inconvenience to be got through quickly. It’s admirably idiosyncratic stuff, with the drummer keeping an eye on him to see what to do as Cleo plays a guitar homemade out of fence wire and shouts rough and boozy as someone else plays one of the less expensive organs in the Sears & Roebuck catalogue. An expressive singer prone to misery and anger – see Red Nigger’s mournful tale of drunkenness, marital pain and planning to gun down the new boyfriend his woman hasn’t even got yet - he also does mellow and benign, as on the possibly-carnal Roll Your Belly Slow, or Drinkin’ Wine, which sees him wino’ing across America before suddenly upping sticks for Moscow and North Korea. Page also did the super-tough 45 Black Man Too Tough To Die and a rude record we haven’t heard called Hamburger, I Love To Eat It. Anyone got a copy?. Ian Harrison

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Various - Condition Your Heart Vintage Rhythm And Blues From St. Louis

2012-01-20T12:19:00.003+01:00

An excellent collection of rare tracks from:
THE KINGLETS, THE ROCKERS, LITTLE HERBERT AND THE ARABIANS, THE EMERALDS, FRED GREEN, IKE TURNER'S KING OF RHYTHM, CLAYTON LOVE, FONTELLA BASS, OLIVER SAIN, ART LASSITER, ROBERT T.SMITH

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Various - Mod Club Mojo Party

2012-01-20T12:19:00.001+01:00

From 2005 a freebie cd from Mojo magazine that's perfect for the car.

1. Amen Corner - Expressway to Your Heart
2. The Contours - Just a Little Misunderstanding
3. Billy Preston - Billy's Bag
4. Rod Stewart & PP Arnold - PP Arnold
5. Timebox - Beggin'
6. The Quik - Bert's Apple Crumble
7. Tony Jackson Group - Fortune Teller
8. The Animals - I'm Crying
9. The Birds - Leaving Here
10. Ike & Tina Turner - I Can't Believe What You Say
11. Jimmy McGriff - All About My Girl
12. Phil Upchurch Combo - You Can't Sit Down (Parts 1 & 2)
13. The Small Faces - Get Yourself Together
14. Bettye Swann - Make Me Yours
15. Brenda Holloway - Every Little Bit Hurts

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Georgia Tom Dorsey - Come On Mama Do That Dance

2012-01-20T11:59:00.001+01:00

Tom Dorsey, who recorded and performed under the name "Georgia Tom" for years, is remembered more now as the "Father of Black Gospel Music." As such, he wrote such Gospel standards for both black and white performers as "Peace in The Valley" and "Take My Hand, Precious Lord." These two songs have been recorded by many performers from Red Foley to Elivis Presley and beyond, and were favorites of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. But before his religious conversion, "Georgia Tom" was a popular and prolific blues singer. Like many Southern musicians of blues and early rock 'n roll, he had a constant struggle with himself between his religious beliefs and his love for the "devil's music." Religion finally won out.
Certainly Tom Dorsey's gospel songs and performances are worthy of respect. It is his gospel music that probably has caused him to be one of the few blues performers included in the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. It is unfortunate, however, that his contributions to the blues before his conversion have been largely ignored or forgotten.
Thomas Andrew Dorsey was born in 1899 in Villa Rica, Georgia, the son of a minister. As a young man, he learned to play blues piano. The family moved to Atlanta in 1908, and he became a part of the burgeoning blues scene around Decatur Street. By the age of 12, he was playing at parties and brothels as "Barrel House Tom," and at the Eighty-One Theater, were he met Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith.
In 1916, Dorsey moved to Chicago where he studied music at the Chicago School of Composition and Arranging. After leaving school, he worked for a while as a composer and arranger for the Chicago Music Publishing Company and as a music coach for Vocalion and Paramount Records. Then, in 1924, he formed a band for Ma Rainey called the "Wild Cats Jazz Band."

In 1928, as "Georgia Tom," he teamed up with Tampa Red and recorded an enormously successful, very raunchy number called " Tight Like That." In all, Georgia Tom and Tampa Red recorded more than 60 songs, and he also performed with other famous blues musicians like Big Bill Broonzy, Memphis Minnie, Victoria Spivey, and Blind Lemon Jefferson.
Ironically, at the same time that Dorsey's blues career was at its height, his gospel music was also gaining increasing popularity. By 1931, he was directing three large gospel choruses in Chicago, while continuing to write and perform secular blues as well. But in 1932, his wife died in childbirth, and the baby died the next day. At that time, Tom Dorsey renounced the blues forever and dedicated himself to gospel music. He worked extensively with the great Mahalia Jackson in the 1930's and 1940's, and became the preeminent gospel blues composer and arranger of his time.
Tom Dorsey died in Chicago in 1993 of complications of Alzheimer's Disease. But he is still recognized as a legend in Gospel blues and deserves to be remembered as "Georgia Tom" as well.

LP has not been filtered as it's almost mint. Hissing and crackles are from the original 78's.
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Ray Charles/Mojo Buford - On Stage At The Palladium

2012-01-08T10:40:00.002+01:00

Blues harpist George "Mojo" Buford, best known for his work as part of the great Muddy Waters' band, passed away on Tuesday, October 11, 2011 in a Minneapolis hospital after suffering from various health issues since the summer. Buford was 81 years old.
Born in Hernando, Mississippi in 1929, Buford moved to Memphis as a child and became enamored of the blues. He would later re-locate to Chicago in 1952, forming the Savage Boys band. Buford first played with Waters in 1959 as a replacement for the departing Little Walter. A few years later, however, the talented blues harpist moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota to form his own band. He would re-join Waters' band in 1967 after James Cotton left, and played with the Chicago blues legend during the early 1970s.
Buford also enjoyed a modicum of success as a solo performer, recording albums like Mojo Buford's Blues Summit and Harpslinger for labels like Fedora Records, JSP Records, Rooster Blues, P-Vine, and Mr. Blues. Blues harpist Bob Corritore shares a funny story in his great newsletter about an alleged Ray Charles album on the Vernon label titled On Stage At The Palladium which featured Charles on only two tracks, the rest by Buford's band Mo Jo & The Mo Jo Chi Fours. Since Mojo's performances were so strong, few collectors complained!
Aside from Waters, Buford's gorgeous chromatic harp tones graces recordings from blues artists like Otis Spann, Luther "Snake Boy" Johnson, the Reunion Blues Band and others. He will always be remembered for the spirit and energy he brought to his work with Muddy Waters.

We can all say thanks to Scott for requesting this one for the Mojo Buford tracks. I managed to find a very beat up copy for a reasonable price and with some filtering it's very listenable.

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Various - California Jump Blues

2012-01-01T16:33:00.000+01:00

Nice jump blues LP bringing some lesser known artists, with Ray Agee been perhaps the most well known of them, together. As far I know this lp has not been re-released on CD though some of the tracks might have turned up on other compilations.

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Jimmy McCracklin - Blast 'Em Dead

2012-01-01T16:24:00.000+01:00

McCracklin grew up in Missouri, his main influence on piano being Walter Davis (little Jimmy's dad introduced him to the veteran pianist). McCracklin was also a promising pugilist, but the blues eventually emerged victorious. After a stint in the Navy during World War II, he bid St. Louis adieu and moved to the West Coast, making his recorded debut for the Globe logo with "Miss Mattie Left Me" in 1945. On that platter, J.D. Nicholson played piano; most of McCracklin's output found him handling his own 88s.
McCracklin recorded for a daunting array of tiny labels in Los Angeles and Oakland prior to touching down with Modern in 1949-1950, Swing Time the next year, and Peacock in 1952-1954. Early in his recording career, McCracklin had Robert Kelton on guitar, but by 1951, Lafayette "Thing" Thomas was installed as the searing guitarist with McCracklin's Blues Blasters and remained invaluable to the pianist into the early '60s.
By 1954, the pianist was back with the Bihari Brothers' Modern logo and really coming into his own with a sax-driven sound. "Couldn't Be a Dream" was hilariously surreal, McCracklin detailing his night out with a woman sent straight from hell, while a 1955 session found him doubling credibly on harp.
A series of sessions for Bay Area producer Bob Geddins's Irma label in 1956 (many of which later turned up on Imperial) preceded McCracklin's long-awaited first major hit. Seldom had he written a simpler song than "The Walk," a rudimentary dance number with a good groove that Checker Records put on the market in 1958. It went Top Ten on both the R&B and pop charts, and McCracklin was suddenly rubbing elbows with Dick Clark on network TV.
The nomadic pianist left Chess after a few more 45s, pausing at Mercury (where he cut a torrid "Georgia Slop" in 1959, later revived by Big Al Downing) before returning to the hit parade with the tough R&B workout "Just Got to Know" in 1961 for Art-Tone Records. A similar follow-up, "Shame, Shame, Shame," also did well for him the next year. Those sides eventually resurfaced on Imperial, where he hit twice in 1965 with "Every Night, Every Day" (later covered by Magic Sam) and the uncompromising "Think" and with "My Answer" in 1966.
McCracklin's songwriting skills shouldn't be overlooked as an integral factor in his enduring success. He penned the funky "Tramp" for guitarist Lowell Fulson and watched his old pal take it to the rarefied end of the R&B lists in 1967, only to be eclipsed by a sassy duet cover by Stax stalwarts Otis Redding and Carla Thomas a scant few months later. Ever the survivor, McCracklin made a string of LPs for Imperial, even covering "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" in 1966, and segued into the soul era totally painlessly. Latter-day discs for Bullseye Blues prove that McCracklin still packed a knockout punch from behind his piano -- no matter what his birth certificate says.

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Jimi Hendrix - Davenport, Iowa '68

2012-01-01T16:17:00.000+01:00

Straight unfiltered rip from the original 2 lp vinyl (mint) set on the Creative Artistry label.
Blistering version of 'Are you experienced" and "Red House". Sound quality is muffled but still very listenable.

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Sax Kari - I Want To Wish You A Merry Christmas Baby

2011-12-23T14:56:00.000+01:00

New Orleans born "SAX" KARI has been shouting and singing the blues over
40 years. He has been associated with the likes of BIG MACEO, BIG JOE TURNER, POLKA DOT SLIM and countless others. Sax has been affiliated with the major labels such as CHESS, CHECKER, SAVOY APOLLO and VEE JAY in the 50's and has been involved with more obscure labels such as GREAT LAKES, LU PINE, INSTANT, SEVEN B and NOLA.
While his career began in the jazz vein, he envolved into doo-wops, soul and blues. He even used pseudonyms such as IRA GREEN, DIRTY RED MORGAN and more recently CANDY YAMS.
A discography would be next to impossible to compile, but a list of SAX's most memorable contribution would have to include:
Producing the hit "YOUR SO FINE" by the FALCONS who at that time consisted Wilson Pickett and EDDIE FLOYD; Flick and United Artists.
Producing the outstanding doo-wop by the CONQUEROS "BILLY IS MY BOYFRIEND"; LUPINE.
Producing and writing the tune AIN''T BROKE, AIN'T HUNGRY recorded by POLKA DOT SLIM (in Sax's living room!) INSTANT/
Recording and writing the tune "COLONEL CUNNINGHAM'S CURE ALL" under the name THE KING TWISTER on the MASTERCRAFT label.
This tune became the basis for RAY STEVENS hit "MRS. PEABODY'S POLY-UNSATURATED PILLS" for MERCURY.
Writing the tune "KNOCKIN' AT YOUR DOOR" recorded by JIMMY REED on EXODUS.
Writting the tune "KEY TO YOU DOOR" recorded by WARREN LEE TAYLOR on NOLA.
Recording "GREEN ONIONS"'and "TIME IS TIGHT" for the CAT label under the name CANDY YAMS.
Recording the rocker "SLOW DOWN BABY" and weepy ballad "TWO LOVERS" for the FLORIDA-ROCK label.
Sax also was involved with DELLA REESE (way, way way back" and the very talented DANNY WHITE when he was on the FRISCO label .
Other recordings by Sax include "LAND OF DREAMS" on CHESS, "DISC JOCKEY JAMBOREE" on CHECKER, "ALL THESE THINGS" on INSTANT and ultra rare
APOLLO recording: "THURSDAY EVENING BLUES" / SIGNIFYING MONKEY".
He even wrote songs for JERRY BUTLER on VEE JAY, NAPPY BROWN on SAVOY and WILSON PICKETT on WICKED.
While Sax has tried a bit of everything musically over the years, a listen to this KING BEE releases show that it's obvious Sax's roots lie with the blues.
These genuine tunes should establish him worldwide as an artist with many more records to offer music lovers who are hungry for the blues.

As Sax summed it all up "IT'S REALLY VERY SIMPLE FOR ME BECAUSE I'M DOING 'THE THINGS THAT I USED TO DO".

This is a crap single but it fits in with the Xmas spirit..... have a Merry Xmas and Happy New Year.

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Luther Allison - Gonna Be A Live One In Here Tonight!

2011-12-23T14:24:00.001+01:00

An American-born guitarist, singer, and songwriter who lived in France since 1980, Luther Allison was the man to book at blues festivals in the mid-'90s. Allison's comeback into the mainstream was ushered in by a recording contract with an American record company, Chicago-based Alligator Records. After he signed with Alligator in 1994, Allison's popularity grew exponentially and he worked steadily until his death in 1997.
Born August 17, 1939, in Widener, AR, Allison was the 14th of 15 children, the son of cotton farmers. His parents moved to Chicago when he was in his early teens, but he had a solid awareness of blues before he left Arkansas, as he played organ in the church and learned to sing gospel in Widener as well. Allison recalled that his earliest awareness of blues came via the family radio in Arkansas, which his dad would play at night. Allison recalls listening to both the Grand Ole Opry and B.B. King on the King Biscuit Show on Memphis' WDIA. Although he was a talented baseball player and had begun to learn the shoemaking trade in Chicago after high school, it wasn't long before Allison began to focus more of his attention on playing blues guitar. Allison had been hanging out in blues clubs all through high school, and with his brother's encouragement, he honed his string-bending skills and powerful, soul-filled vocal technique.
It was while living with his family on Chicago's West Side that he had his first awareness of wanting to become a full-time bluesman, and he played bass behind guitarist Jimmy Dawkins, who Allison grew up with. Also in Allison's neighborhood were established blues greats like Freddie King, Magic Sam, and Otis Rush. He distinctly remembers everyone talking about Buddy Guy when he came to town from his native Louisiana. After the Allison household moved to the South Side, they lived a few blocks away from Muddy Waters, and Allison and Waters' son Charles became friends. When he was 18 years old, his brother showed him basic chords and notes on the guitar, and the super bright Allison made rapid progress after that. Allison went on to "blues college" by sitting in with some of the most legendary names in blues in Chicago's local venues: Muddy Waters, Elmore James, and Howlin' Wolf among them.
His first chance to record came with Bob Koester's then-tiny Delmark Record label, and his first album, Love Me Mama, was released in 1969. But like anyone else with a record out on a small label, it was up to him to go out and promote it, and he did, putting in stellar, show-stopping performances at the Ann Arbor Blues Festivals in 1969, 1970, and 1971. After that, people began to pay attention to Luther Allison, and in 1972 he signed with Motown Records. Meanwhile, a growing group of rock & roll fans began showing up at Allison's shows, because his style seemed so reminiscent of Jimi Hendrix and his live shows clocked in at just under four hours!
Although his Motown albums got him to places he'd never been before, like Japan and new venues in Europe, the recordings didn't sell well. He does have the distinction of being one of a few blues musicians to record for Motown. Allison stayed busy in Europe through the rest of the 1970s and 1980s, and recorded Love Me Papa for the French Black and Blue label in 1977. He followed with a number of live recordings from Paris, and, in 1984, he settled outside of Paris, since France and Germany were such major markets for him. At home in the U.S., Allison continued to perform sporadically, when knowledgeable blues festival organizers or blues societies would book him.
As accomplished a guitarist as he was, Allison wasn't a straight-ahead Chicago blues musician. He learned the blues long before he got to Chicago. What he did so successfully is take his base of Chicago blues and add touches of rock, soul, reggae, funk, and jazz. Allison's first two albums for Alligator, Soul Fixin' Man and Blue Streak, are arguably two of his strongest. His talents as a songwriter are fully developed, and he's well-recorded and well-produced, often with horns backing his band. Another one to look for is a 1992 reissue on Evidence, Love Me Papa. In 1996, Motown reissued some of the three albums worth of material he recorded for that label (between 1972 and 1976) on compact disc.
Well into his mid-50s, Allison continued to delight club and festival audiences around the world with his lengthy, sweat-drenched, high-energy shows, complete with dazzling guitar playing and inspired, soulful vocals. He continued to tour and record until July of 1997, when he was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. Just over a month later, he died in a hospital in Madison, WI; a tragic end to one of the great blues comeback stories. 1998's posthumous Live in Paradise captured one of his final shows, recorded on La Reunion Island in April 1997. Thomas Ruf, who was inspired by and became a friend of Allison's shortly before the bluesman's death, issued Underground on Ruf Records in 2007.

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Calvin Boze - Havin' A Ball

2011-12-23T12:27:00.002+01:00

Calvin Boze was one of the many West Coast singers who took part in the development of the rhythm and blues scene in the late 1940s and early 1950s. His recordings are often reminiscent of Louis Jordan with their easy going swing and slyly witty lyrics.
Boze began his musical career as a trumpet player in a high school band in his native Wheatley in the 1930s. This band also featured Illinois Jacquet along with his brother Russell Jacquet and tenor saxophonist Arnett Cobb. In college he played with the Prairie View Collegians, a group that included Charles Brown. In the early forties Boze branched out as a vocalist with the Southwestern territory band of Marvin Johnson. By the mid-1940s he was a member of the Milton Larkins Orchestra where he was reunited with Illinois Jacquet. Another member of this band was alto sax player and singer Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson. After World War II, Boze settled in Los Angeles, where he developed a vocal style patterned after Louis Jordan.
He was signed by Aladdin Records in 1949 and had his first recording session on August 15, 1949. All four tracks from this session were released, first on Aladdin's Score subsidiary ("Working With My Baby"/ "Satisfied") and then the parent label ("Waitin' And Drinkin'"/"If You Ever Had the Blues", Aladdin 3045). His second session, in January 1950, would result in his only hit, "Safronia B" (Aladdin 3055), which went to # 9 on Billboard's R&B charts in June 1950. "Safronia B" is a classic if unsophisticated recording which, with its refrain of "I surrender! I surrender!", epitomises the sense of fun in the West Coast music scene just before the dawn of rock and roll. It was reissued on Imperial 5844 in 1962, the year in which Imperial purchased the Aladdin catalog.
Starting in January 1950, Boze had formed his own band, the Calvin Boze Combo (soon rechristened The Calvin Boze All-Stars), which toured heavily, not only on the West Coast, but also in the North East (including an appearance at the Apollo Theatre in New York) and in the Midwest, with Dinah Washington. Several more Aladdin sessions followed, always with Maxwell Davis and his orchestra, but the sales figures of his later singles did not measure up to those of his earlier efforts. These later recordings include "Looped" (also recorded by Melvin Smith and Tommy Ridgley), "Shamrock", the instrumental "Fish Tail" and "Hey Laudie Miss Claudie" (which preceded Lloyd Price's Specialty recording of "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" by five months). Calvin Boze did not record after 1952, but he continued to play at jam sessions around Los Angeles, while also developing a career as a social worker and school teacher, before his early death after prolonged ill health.
Thanks to Blackcat Rockabilly for the info

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Larry Williams Show - Same (Featuring Johnny "Guitar" Watson)

2011-12-23T12:10:00.001+01:00

Larry Williams was an R&B and rock-and-roll singer who also wrote songs and played piano. His career might have had more impact had he not allededly become seriously involved with the drug scene.
Larry was born in New Orleans in 1935. He wanted to be in the music business and apparently worked for a time as a valet to Lloyd Price, which led to his recording for Specialty. Larry played in Price's band in the early 50's. He also worked in bands that were headed by Roy Brown and Percy Mayfield. Williams moved to the West Coast and learned to play piano.
His first big hit was Short Fat Fannie, on Specialty. It was a wild party song somewhat similar to something that Little Richard was doing at the same time. Short Fat Fannie reached number five and established Larry Williams as a serious rock-and-roll performer in 1957. He followed it up with Bony Moronie later that year, backed with You Bug Me, Baby. He also had a lesser hit with Dizzy Miss Lizzie, a song that would later be covered by the Beatles.
After that Larry didn't have much success selling records. He recorded a number of songs in 1958 and 1959, including Heeby Jeebies, with band members such as Plas Johnson on tenor sax and Alvin "Red" Tyler on baritone, Barney Kessel on guitar, Gerald Wilson on trumpet, Ernie Freeman or Larry himself on piano, and Earl Palmer on drums. Williams was convicted of dealing narcotics in 1960, setting back his career considerably.
He came back in 1962 with a band that included Johnny "Guitar" Watson, and toured the United Kingdom. His shows were taped and resulted in the album The Larry Williams Show. In the late 60's Larry had some minor hits on the Okeh label with Watson, one of which was Mercy, Mercy, Mercy. He attempted a comeback as a disco singer in the late 70's, but met with little success.
On January 7, 1980, Larry Williams died from a gunshot wound.

An excellent studio lp with the British band "Stormsville Shakers" backing with a young Philip Goodhand-Tait on electric piano. Checkout http://www.stormsvilleshakers.com/ for more info and cd's from them.
Also I was surprised by the inclusion of the track "For Your Love"that was a hit for the Yardbirds. There is a clip of Graham Gouldman (10 c.c.) who wrote the song doing an acoustic version on Youtube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byqvpnZADYk&feature=related

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Albert King - Lonsome & You Threw Your Love On Me Too Strong

2011-12-10T11:25:00.001+01:00

Raised in Forrest City, Arkansas, Albert taught himself how to play guitar when he was a child, building his own instrument out of a cigar box. At first, he played with gospel groups - most notably the Harmony Kings - but after hearing Blind Lemon Jefferson, Lonnie Johnson and several other blues musicians, he solely played the blues.
Albert told Dan Forte in a Guitar Player mag interview, " First one was Blind Lemon, later I heard the records but I used to see him in these parks, like on Saturday afternoons in these little country towns in Arkansas. One day he was playing acoustic guitar , sounded like Richie Havens, he had a crowd around him and we'd put nickels in his cup. It was amazing to see him count his money , he would feel the coin's face and tell you what it was. He'd put it in his pocket and play some more. I also saw Memphis Minnie".
In 1950, he met MC Reeder, who owned the T-99 nightclub in Osceola, AK. King moved to Osceloa shortly afterward, joining the T-99's house band, the In The Groove Boys. The band played several local Arkansas gigs besides the T-99, including several shows for a local radio station.
After enjoying success in the Arkansas area, King moved to Gary, IN, in 1953, where he joined a band that also featured Jimmy Reed and John Brim. Both Reed and Brim were guitarists, which forced King to play drums in the group. Jimmy would often get drunk and wouldn't go to work. At this time, he adopted the name Albert King, which he assumed after B B King's "Three O'Clock Blues" became a huge hit. Albert met Willie Dixon shortly after moving to Gary, and the bassist/songwriter helped the guitarist set up an audition at Parrot Records. King passed the audition and cut his first session late in 1953. Five songs were recorded during the session and only one single, "Be On Your Merry Way" / "Bad Luck Blues," was released; the other tracks appeared on various compilations over the next four decades. Although it sold respectably, the single didn't gather enough attention to earn him another session with Parrot. In early 1954, King returned to Osceola and re-joined the In The Groo ve Boys; he stayed in Arkansas for the next two years.
In 1956, Albert moved to St. Louis, where he initially sat in with local bands. By the fall of 1956, King was headlining several clubs in the area. King continued to play the St. Louis circuit, honing his style. During these years, he began playing his signature Gibson Flying V, which he named Lucy. By 1958, Albert was quite popular in St. Louis, which led to a contract with the fledgling Bobbin Records in the summer of 1959. On his first Bobbin recordings, King recorded with a pianist and a small horn section, which made the music sound closer to jump blues than Delta or Chicago blues. Nevertheless, his guitar was taking a center stage and it was clear that he had developed a unique, forceful sound. King's records for Bobbin sold well in the St. Louis area, enough so that King Records leased the "Don't Throw Your Love on Me So Strong" single from the smaller label. When the single was released nationally late in 1961, it became a hit, reaching number 14 on the R&B charts. Ki ng Records continued to lease more material from Bobbin - including a full album, The Big Blues, which was released in 1963 - but nothing else approached the initial success of "Don't Throw Your Love on Me So Strong." Bobbin also leased material to Chess, which appeared in the late '60s.

Albert King left Bobbin in late 1962 and recorded one session for King Records in the spring of 1963, which were much more pop-oriented than his previous work; the singles issued from the session failed to sell. Within a year, he cut four songs for the local St. Louis independent label Coun-Tree, which was run by a jazz singer named Leo Gooden. Though these singles didn't appear in many cities - St. Louis, Chicago, and Kansas City were the only three to register sales - they foreshadowed his coming work with Stax Records. Furthermore, they were very popular within St. Louis, so much so that Gooden resented King's success and pushed him off the label.
Following his stint at Coun-Tree, Albert King signed with Stax Records in 1966. Albert's records for Stax would bring him stardom, both within blues and rock circles. All of his '60s Stax sides were recorded with the label's house band, Booker T. & the MGs, which gave his blues a sleek, soulful sound. That soul underpinning gave King crossover appeal, as evidenced by his R&B chart hits - "Laundromat Blues" (1966) and "Cross Cut Saw" (1967) both went Top 40, while "Born Under a Bad Sign" (1967) charted in the Top 50. Furthermore, King's style was appropriated by several rock & roll players, most notably Hendrix and Clapton, who copied Albert's "Personal Manager" guitar solo on the Cream song, "Strange Brew." Albert King's first album for Stax, 1967's Born Under A Bad Sign, was a collection of his singles for the label and became one of the most popular and influential blues albums of the late '60s. Beginning in 1968, Albert King was playing not only to blues audiences, but als o to crowds of young rock & rollers. He frequently played at the Fillmore West in San Francisco and he even recorded an album, Live Wire/Blues Power, at the hall in the summer of 1968.
Early in 1969, King recorded his first true studio album and later that year, he recorded a tribute album to Elvis, King Does The King's Things and a jam session with Steve Cropper and Pops Staples, Jammed Together, in addition to performing a concert with The St Louis Symphony Orch. For the next few years, Albert toured America and Europe, returning to the studio in 1971, to record the Lovejoy album. In 1972, he recorded I'll Play The Blues for You, which featured accompaniment from the Bar Kays and the Memphis Horns. The album was rooted in the blues, but featured distinctively modern soul and funk overtones.
By the mid-'70s, Stax was suffering major financial problems, so King left the label for Utopia, a small subsidiary of RCA Records. Albert released two albums on Utopia, which featured some concessions to the constraints of commercial soul productions. Although he had a few hits at Utopia, his time there was essentially a transitional period, where he discovered that it was better to follow a straight blues direction and abandon contemporary soul crossovers. King's subtle shift in style was evident on his first albums for Tomato Records, the label he signed with in 1978. Albert stayed at Tomato for several years, switching to Fantasy in 1983, releasing two albums for the label.
In the mid-'80s, Albert King announced his retirement, but it was short-lived - Albert continued to regularly play concerts and festivals throughout America and Europe for the rest of the decade. King continued to perform until his sudden death in 1992, when he suffered a fatal heart attack on December 21. The loss to the blues was a major one - although many guitarists have tried, no one can replace King's distinctive, trailblazing style. Albert King is a tough act to follow.
Blues Rock stars like Bloomfield, Clapton, Hendrix, Vaughan, Cray and Gary Moore have all been heavily influenced by this unique left handed guitarist, holding the guitar upside down and stringing it as for a right handed player!! Albert, BB and Muddy helped keep the real blues alive in the late 60s/70s when the more heavy white blues rock threatened to replace the real thing.
Thanks to Blackcat Rockabilly for the info

Way back in the late 70's I went to a show with Albert King playing on the bill and all I can remember about it was that he smoked a pipe.... and that's why I included the the photo.

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Hot Shot Love

2011-12-05T14:17:00.001+01:00

Coy "Hot Shot" Love was a renaissance man, of a kind, in blues: sign-painter, street denizen, and a magician with a harmonica, who liked to adorn his leather jacket and his bicycle, and other personal items with messages regarding his outlook on life. He lived on Gayoso Street in Memphis, an itinerant musician and sometime sign-painter who got his one moment of glory in the recording studio on January 8, 1954, when he entered Sam Phillips' Sun Studios to record "Wolf Call Boogie" b/w "Harmonica Jam," backed by Mose Vinson at the piano, Pat Hare on guitar, Kenneth Banks on bass, and Houston Stokes on the drums. The A-side, of which an outtake exists, is practically a monologue with musical accompaniment, set at a tavern and filled with insults directed at a bartender and wry observations on life and love. The B-side is a duet between Love and Pat Hare, with the former getting the better of the guitar player, vocally and blowing some Sonny Terry-style harp, in a mismatched competition. Love never cut another single for Sun -- accounts suggest he was juggling relationships with as many as seven women at once, indicating that he had better things to do than go into the recording studio -- but "Wolf Call Boogie" is one of the most anthologized of all Sun blues tracks, appearing on numerous compilations from Rhino, Rounder, Charly, and Bear Family, and is regarded, at least in its freewheeling style and raunchy subject matter, as a step forward on the road from country blues to rock & roll. Love survived for decades after his one claim to recorded music legend, and died in a car accident in Interstate 55. ~
Bruce Eder, All Music Guide

Additionally there's a somewhat mysterious 45 by Hot Shot Love, with two
songs on one side and one song on the other:
Hot Shot Boogie Mr. Bo Weevil VB-01-A
Foxchase Boogie Mr. Bo Weevil VB-01-A
Freight Train Blues Mr. Bo Weevil VB-01-B

(I have no details on this 45. It appears to be a rather unprofessionally
done bootleg - the name of the label is stamped on with a rubber stamp.
Neither the release nor the songs are listed in any standard discography
and I don't know when, where, or under what circumstances these were
recorded...) from: Harp-L archives sept. 2000

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Various - Three KIngs And The Queen

2011-12-05T14:10:00.001+01:00

THREE KINGS AND THE QUEEN was released by SPIVEY MUSIC back in 1962 and features 4 legendary Blues musicians doin’ their thang, including ROOSEVELT SYKES, BIG JOE WILLIAMS, LONNIE JOHNSON and of course the label’s owner herself VICTORIA SPIVEY… If you’re not familiar with this woman, you should know that back in the day, Ms. SPIVEY would on occasion record songs of a suggestive and fairly sexual nature, which was obviously not very common
The rest of this collection is pretty good as well, and probably earns it’s “rareness status” because of two historic tracks, the first being “Sitting On Top of the World” which features a young BOB DYLAN on harmonica and vocals, alongside BIG JOE WILLIAMS… He also joins the Delta Blues guitarist on the song “Wichita”
1. Roosevelt Sykes “This Is a New World”
2. Lonnie Johnson “Mr Johnson’s Guitar Talks”
3. Big Joe Williams with Bob Dylan (harmonica/vocals) “Sitting On Top of the World”
4. Victoria Spivey “All You Men”
5. Roosevelt Sykes “Lake Charles Stomp”
6. Big Joe Williams “Strange Girl Blues”
7. Lonnie Johnson “Stick By Me Baby”
8. Victoria Spivey “Turpentine”
9. Roosevelt Sykes “Let’s Play Mommie and Daddy”
10. Big Joe Williams with Bob Dylan (on harmonica) “Wichita”
11. Victoria Spivey “Brown Skin”
12. Lonnie Johnson “Stop Talking”

13. Big Joe Williams “No Partnership Woman”
14. Victoria Spivey “Blues For Robert Calvin No. 2″
15. Lonnie Johnson “Four Shots of Gin”
16. Roosevelt Sykes and Victoria Spivey “Thirteen Hours”

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Bobby "Guitar" Bennet - When Girls Do It

2011-11-26T16:26:00.001+01:00

Bobby "Guitar" Bennett, according to "BLUES RECORDS 1943 -1966", made two

records in 1965, one on World Artists and one on the Junior label, neither of which sold. What Leadbitter & Slaven don't tell us is that Bennett is alive and doing very well in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia has never been known as a blues town and it was quite by accident that a friend and I happened to run across him in Scottty's Bar on 52nd Street in West Philadelphia. Scotty's, quite apart from the bars and lounges in Chicago where entertainment is featured, has a well‘furnished interior and even a small lounge where the musician can go after each set. There was about fifty people in Scotty's when Bobby's first set started and barely any notice was given to the group as they ran through the current R&B standards. On the last number though, more than a few eyebrows were raised as Bobby broke into a flashy Freddy King type instrumental, showing off some of his guitar prowess. After the set we called him over and he was more than happy to talk to us.

Bobby was born in Rayford, N.C. and when he was learning to play, fashioned himself after B.B. King and Jimmy Reed. He toured with soul singer Chuck Jackson for a while until he settled in Philadelphia, where he plays today in one of many bars throughout the city which feature live entertainment. Since the first set consisted mainly of soul material except for the teasing
last number, we asked him if he would play some blues, an idea which he happily obliged to. He opened the set with a version of "Stormy Monday" which would have made T- Bone sit up and take notice, with his big guitar screaming...punctuating Bobby's strident, ballsy vocal.
The set continued like this for the best part of forty‘five minutes and the
normally passive audience was screaming for more, whereupon Bobby launched
into a ten-minute version of B.B's "Don't Answer The Door",and ended the set
completely exhausted, with an instrumental in which he stole a few tricks
from Buddy Guy's book and played the guitar with his teeth, one handed, and
wrapped round a curtain!
Bobby Bennett, like many bluesmen, has had to adapt to changing tastes, but it is plain from the audience reaction that the blues still has a few fans in Philadelphia. Although Bobby doesn't usually include many blues in his sets he is always happy to play them when requested, and he always
shows off his guitar playing virtuosity. Bobby reputation has even reached. Chicago, and. one man there who has seen the best Chicago got to offer, compared. him favorably to people like Otis Rush and Magic Sam, Bobby is doing okay financially but a little publicity might get him playing outside of Philadelphia and. maybe a record. company contract with a company that knows how to treat blues musicians.
Joe McEwen "Philadelphia Blues" in BU 92, June 1972

... and here's the track that gave the title to one best comps with the worst cover designs from the early 70's.

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Mr. Bo & His Blues Boys

2011-11-26T15:42:00.001+01:00

Highly regarded for a handful of 45s he had recorded for various Detroit labels during the '50s, '60s and '70s, his recording career had take a long hiatus while his live performing career continued to thrive. Louis Bo Collins was born on April 7, 1932 in Indianola, Mississippi; he moved north to Chicago in 1946 and settled in Detroit in the early 1950s. Befriended by Washboard Willie, his growing interest in performing the blues was encouraged, and he was soon playing house parties throughout Detroit, performing with the likes of Jhn Lee Hooker, Eddie Burns and Little Sonny. Under the name "Mr Bo," Collins began a recording career in 1959 which would eventually be responsible for some of the finest blues ever to come out of Detroit. The singles reveal a singer and guitarist influenced by B B King and T-bone Walker, but they also reveal an artist who created a blues style that was uniquely his own. Perhaps the most enduring recording from this period is "If Trouble Was Money," penned by his brother Little Mac Collins and covered by many since its 1966 release. On September 19, 1995 he succumbed to pneumonia at Detroit's Harper Hostipal. Only 63, Mr Bo's death brought to a close the career of one of Detroit's finest blues artists.

Mr. Bo also released a very fine cd "If Trouble Was Money" in 1995 which is still easily available and serves as a testament to the career of Louis Mr Bo Collins.

I've posted the 2 45's that I have which are:
Big D 851 - I ain't gonna suffer/If trouble was money
Big D 852 - Lost love affair part 1&2

Mr. Bo might be familiar to you if you have the Red Lightnin' lp/cd "When Girls Do It" which is where I heard him for the 1st time.

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George "Wild Child" Butler - Wild Child

2011-11-26T15:23:00.001+01:00

A product of the "Great Migration," George "Wild Child" Butler (1936-2005) left his native Alabama for Chicago, Illinois, where he became a noted blues performer and harmonica player in that city's blues tradition. He referred to his personal style as "the swamp sound," which was characterized by his gutsy baritone growl.
Autaugaville native George “Wild Child” Butler (1936- ) George "Wild Child" Butler Butler, the youngest of nine children, was born on October 1, 1936, in Autaugaville, Autauga County, to a Beatrice Butler, a sharecropper; his father was not present in his life. He displayed musical talent from his earliest days: at age five, Butler began singing at parties thrown by his family for their friends. Indeed, it was his habit of crawling across the floor and pulling at the skirts of the women guests at these parties that earned Butler his ubiquitous, lifelong nickname, "Wild Child." Butler's youthful mischief passed, but his musical talent blossomed. When he was 12, Butler fashioned a makeshift harmonica out of a can of Prince Albert tobacco and quickly learned to play the instrument. Perhaps as a result of this self-education, Butler played the harmonica upside-down for his entire career.
Butler lived most of his childhood in Alabama, save for a few years in the 1940s when he lived with his sister and mother in Chicago. In the mid-1950s, Butler returned to Chicago, following the path of the "Great Migration" that brought millions of African Americans to the urban North and that made Chicago the center of blues music in the 1950s. Butler quickly began playing around the city's bustling network of blues venues, as well as in Detroit with stars like John Lee Hooker and Sonny Boy Williamson II (Aleck "Rice" Miller). Butler also occasionally performed in Alabama as well. In 1963, he made his first recording of two tunes he wrote—"Aching All Over"/"Down In The Chili"—for Sharp Records, a small independent label based in Montgomery. Despite the early promise, Butler's tenure at Sharp was unfulfilling and unprofitable. In 1968, he left the label to begin recording for Jewel Records, with whom he recorded 20 tracks. While working for Jewel, Butler also recorded several tracks at Chess Studios, the legendary Chicago recording house that produced many of the key recordings in Chicago blues and early rock and roll. By 1968, Chess was past its prime, but Butler was able to record with a group of marquee sidemen, including Jimmy Dawkins, Willie Dixon, and Big Walter Horton. Jewel surprisingly never released any of the sides Butler recorded at Chess. Instead, the label leased them out to other labels, including Charly Records, which finally released an album's worth of the sessions under the title Open Up Baby. Butler claimed that he received no payment under this arrangement.
Although his recording experiences had been negative, Butler remained popular on the performance circuit. By the late 1960s, he was performing frequently in the musically rich corridor between Houston, Texas, and New Orleans, Louisiana. He even played on a few sessions with Houston native Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins during this period. The journeyman musician occasionally made a few recordings, including an album for Mercury Records, Keep On Doing What You're Doing, which produced his signature song, "Gravy Child." In 1977, Butler released Funky Butt Lover on the TK Records label featuring Pinetop Perkins and Jimmy Rogers. It was popular enough to be reissued later by blues imprint Rooster. Butler, however, made most of his money and his fame touring, both in the United States and abroad. In 1981, he and his wife Elaine resettled in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, across the border from Detroit.
He kept up his active performing schedule, and continued to record on a variety of independent labels. His releases include Lickin' Gravy, released first on MC Records in 1989 and re-released in 1998, two releases on Bullseye Blues, These Old Men Blues (1991), Stranger (1994), and Sho' 'Nuff, released on APO Records in 2001. When asked about whether he would ever modify his classic sound for the sake of potential commercial success in a 2001 interview, Butler was quick to rebuke the notion.
Butler's link between the larger blues tradition and his personal place within it reflected his ability to distinguish himself as an artist and performer while placing his music within a continuum of sounds, songs, and musicians. Butler remained a true believer in the "rootsy" blues that was his trademark up until his death from a pulmonary embolism in Windsor, on March 1, 2005; he was buried there shortly thereafter.
Although George "Wild Child" Butler is perhaps not as famous as many of his contemporaries, his life and work is as much a testament to the continuing power of blues traditions as any of his more well-known counterparts.

If you like this lp also try "Keep On Doing What You're Doing" and "Funky Butt Lover" that I posted some time ago.

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Willie Trice - Blue & Rag'd

2011-11-12T17:29:00.001+01:00

This LP collects recordings made of the North Carolina singer and guitarist Willie Trice by Peter B. Lowry in the period July, 1971--December, 1973. The music that Willie Trice plays here is superlatively strong and in a personal style of considerable complexity, to the extent that much of what Willie Trice played can be fairly said to be distinctively his own. That degree of originality and particularity of voice is very rare, in any style.

At the time at which Peter Lowry and Bruce Bastin found Willie Trice, after a tip from Buddy Moss, Willie had gone through a period in which he had not done a lot of playing. Moreover, he had serious physical challenges, and had recently lost both of his legs from the knee down due to diabetic complications. That having been said, it is apparent from the first notes that Willie Trice plays on the LP that there is no need to make allowances for his infirmities in listening to his music. Far from being the pale memory of a once-great player's music, the renditions here are muscular and alertly engaged, from the beginning of the program right through to its end.
How can Willie Trice's sound be characterized? Willie's singing voice was a light baritone with a bright sort of overtone to it, and his delivery was very country. He was not an urban guy and made no bones about it. His tone on the guitar was big, full, and ringing--not sloppy, but also not being struck carefully to avoid mistakes. Willie's most distinctive quality, it seems to me, resided in his phrasing and sense of time. In these areas, he was so much his own man, and definitely not a member of the musical herd adhering to formal conventions. As a result, his phrasing could be angular, metrically irregular and yet swinging and danceable. Indeed, the infectiousness of his rhythm often masks the thorniness of his conception until you listen with an ear to figure out what he's doing, at which point you say, "Wait a second!" He was fond of inserting chordal resolutions into forms in places where you are not accustomed to hearing them. He was not a player who relegated the thumb of his right hand to any kind of regular time-keeping; it's the sign of a player very secure in his rhythmic sense, for you don't have to play the pulse for it to be there, ticking away, whether or not you state it explicitly. In this respect, Willie Trice's playing is like Buddy Moss's or Lemon Jefferson's, and in a couple of instances it shares an even less common trait with Lemon's treatment of time: a temporary suspension of pulse altogether, so that the musical idea is swimming freely until the time when he chooses to re-introduce the pulse. It takes confidence to be comfortable choosing such a vertiginous course, but when it works, it's like magic. Good for Lemon and good for Willie, and may the rest of us keep striving!
Johnm

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