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BLUES & GOSPEL

The Birmingham Jubilee Singers -> Blind Blake

 

 

THE BIRMINGHAM JUBILEE SINGERS Document DOCD 5346 Complete Recorded Works, Vol 2 : 1927-1930 ● CD $15.98
24 tracks, 76 min., recommended Volume two opens with eight straight secular numbers that demonstrate the Birmingham's minstrel show/vaudeville repertoire, including the delightful Louisiana Bo-Bo, Goodbye My Alabama Babe, Bohunkus and Josephus, Queen Street Rag, and Watermelon on the Vine. For its last five sessions (one at Victor, two at Columbia, and two at Vocalion), the group again mixes gospel with secular material. Highlights of these last a cappella sessions include Toot Toot Dixie Bound, Ain't That Good News, They Crucified My Lord, Great Gittin' Up Mawnin', Way Down in Egyptland, My Lovie Pie (Plantation Melody), and the musically prophetic Eliza. The group's career came to an end in the early years of the Great Depression, unfortunately accelerated by the deaths of two original members, bass Ed Sherrill and baritone Dave Ausbrooks. (DH)
THE BIRMINGHAM JUBILEE SINGERS: Ain't That Good News/ Bohunkus And Josephus/ Dixie Bo-bo/ Eliza/ Gambin' Man/ Goodbye, My Alabama Babe (144386)/ Goodbye, My Alabama Babe (40406)/ Great Gittin' Up Mawnin'/ Hope I'll Join That Band/ Louisiana Bo-bo/ My Lovie Pie (plantation Melody)/ Queen Street Rag (144826)/ Queen Street Rag (40407)/ Raise A Rukus To-night/ Rollin' Down To Jordan/ Run Mary/ Stop That Band!/ The Steamboat/ They Crucified My Lord/ Toot Toot Dixie Bound/ Wade In The Water/ Watermelon On The Vine/ Way Down In Egyptland/ What You Gonna Do When The World's On Fire

 
ELVIN BISHOP Alligator 4767 Big Fun ● CD $14.98
After taking about a decade off from recording, Elvin is back with an album that's a real treat. Big Fun is packed with killer cuts, including many originals featuring surprisingly effective vocals, snappy Texas-to-La. arrangements, and mature blues guitar delivered with unbelievable intensity. His She Puts Me In The Mood is a haunting minor-key grind which, if there is any justice, will become a classic blues standard by sometime next week. The instrumental Honest I Do is just perfect, a creamy dreamy wedding of slide, horns and harp - imagine Slim Harpo and Elmore James passed out under the table wishing they had done this one. By my count there are 4 more solid senders here, some sharp Dr. John piano work, more devastating guitar solos, and 5 tunes that diehard Bishop lovers love to love, like My Dog/ Fishin' Again/ Country Boy etc.

 
ELVIN BISHOP Alligator 4791 Don't Let The Bossman Get You Down ● CD $15.98
 

 
ELVIN BISHOP Epic 57630 Tulsa Shuffle - The Best Of Elvin Bishop ● CD $11.98
 

 
BLACK ACE Arhoolie 374 I Am The Boss Card In Your Hand ● CD $12.98
Texas bluesman Babe Karo Lemon Turner aka Black Ace was a delightful performer with his deep dark voice and lovely lyrical slide guitar playing for which he used a steel bodied guitar on his lap. This wonderful disc presents his complete recorded output 17 tracks recorded for Arhoolie in 1960 and 6 recorded in 1937. Even though Ace had not played for several years prior to his rediscovery you wouldn't know it to listen to his lovely melodic playing. His material is almost all original and is strong on slow to mid tempo songs - usual based on traditional themes but given a distinctive twist by Ace. 13 of the 1960 songs were previously on LP Arhoolie 1003 and most of the rest are previously unissued. On his 1937 recordings which includes several songs he remade for Arhoolie he he is accompanied by Smokey Hogg on second guitar which gives the performances a slightly different. But his 1960 performances are every bit as accomplished as his earlier ones and I'm surprised that Ace never made it onto the blues & folk circuit in the 60s - he was a substantial talent. Highly recommended. (FS)
BLACK ACE: 'Fore Day Creep/ Ace's Guitar Blues/ Ace's Guitar Breakdown/ Bad Times Stomp/ Beer Drinking Woman/ Black Ace/ Christmas Time Blues/ Drink On Little Girl/ Evil Woman Blues/ Golden Slipper/ Hitchhiking Woman/ I Am The Black Ace/ I've Been In Love With You Baby/ Little Augie/ Lowing Heifer/ New Triflin' Woman/ No Good Woman/ Santa Claus Blues/ Santa Fe Blues/ Trifling Woman/ Whiskey And Women/ You Gonna Need My Help Someday/ Your Legs' Too Little

 
BLACK BOY SHINE/ BLACK IVORY KING Document DOCD 5278 Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order ● CD $15.98
22 tracks, 58 mins, recommended Terrific collection of Texas piano blues from two obscure but excellent performances. Black Boy Shine (Harold Holiday) was an excellent and imaginative piano player in the "Santa Fe" style with a harmonically varied left hand and a "stride" feel to his approach. He was also a fine singer with a solemn style rather like that of Walter Roland. Like many Texas bluesmen his songs are above average with references to his lifestyle and environment. Black Ivory King (Dave Alexander) is even better with a lovely fluid piano style and a wonderfully engaging vocal style. His songs are also above average - his Flying Crow about the train that traveled from Port Arthur, Texas to Kansas City is a real gem. His other songs are almost as good - what a shame he only recorded four sides. Excellent sound and above average notes by David Evans with some fascinating commentary about the artists nicknames. (FS)
BLACK BOY SHINE: Advice Blues/ Back Home Blues/ Bad Luck Town Blues/ Bed And Breakfast Blues/ Brown House Blues/ Business Woman Blues/ Coal Woman Blues/ Crazy Woman Blues/ Dog House Blues/ Gamblin' Jinx Blues/ Grey With Worry Blues/ Hobo Blues/ Ice Pick And Pistol Woman Blues/ Lonesome Home Blues/ Married Man Blues/ Sail On Little Girl No. 3/ Sugarland Blues/ Wrong Doing Woman Blues/ BLACK IVORY KING: Gingham Dress (alexander Blues)/ Match Box Blues/ The Flying Crow/ Working For The PWA

 
SCRAPPER BLACKWELL Document DOCD 5275 With Brooks Berry - 1959/60 ● CD $15.98
22 tracks, 76 mins, highly recommended Scrapper Blackwell is one of my favorite bluesmen with his wonderful and unique guitar technique and mournful vocal style. His classic pre-war recordings are available on Blues Documents 6029 and 6030 and are essential listening. Like many other pre-war bluesmen he was rediscovered in the late 50s and resumed his musical career which was cut short by a murderers bullet in 1962. Although Scrapper had slowed down bit he was a still a magnificent musician as this disc shows. Half of this album is from a previously unissued live concert tape from September, 1959 and in site of some tape deterioration is still a most worthwhile document (pun only slightly intended). Half the cuts feature Scrapper accompanying the outstanding Brooks Berry - the album they did together for Bluesville is overdue for reissue. The rest of the disc features tracks from March & April, 1960 that were originally issued on the Eglish "77" label. The music here is consistently fine and include a number of outstanding guitar instrumentals and one piano instrumental. Songs include Cold Blooded Murder/ My Heart Struck Sorrow/ Blues Before Sunrise/ / Goin' To Jail About Her, etc. (FS)

 
SCRAPPER BLACKWELL Original Blues Classics  594 Mr. Scrapper Blues ● CD $11.98
10 tracks, 46 mins, essential Hallelujah! Fantasy has finally made this masterpiece available on CD domestically. This is a fabulous album, originally issued as Bluesville 1047 in 1961. Scrapper Blackwell was one of the greatest of all blues guitarists with uniquely distinctive style, intensely melodic; he makes effective use of string snapping and dazzling arpeggios. Best known for his recordings with the great Leroy Carr he also recorded some fabulous sides under his own name but retired from recording shortly after the death of his long time partner Carr in 1935. These 1961 recordings revealed him to still be a magnificent performer - his playing isn't quite as flowing as it was 30 years previously and his voice shows the sign of age and the tough life he led but, nonetheless, these are outstanding performances. The songs include songs made famous by Carr (Blues Before Sunrise/ George Street Blues), remakes of some of his own early recordings (Penal Farm Blues), blues standards (Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Down) and songs not recorded elsewhere (Little Girl Blues). There are also two sublime guitar instrumentals - "A" Blues and "E" Blues which send shivers down my spine. On one track Scrapper plays piano and shows that he is equally adept on that instrument. These tracks have been beautifully recorded and remastered bringing out all the wonderful resonances of Scrappers' guitar. (FS)

 
SCRAPPER BLACKWELL Yazoo 1019 The Virtuoso Guitar Of Scrapper Blackwell ● CD $15.98
This is a straight reissue of the Yazoo LP, featuring some of the finest work by this engaging Indianapolis blues guitarist. These fourteen tracks, recorded from 1928 to 1934, cover some of his most trenchant solo pieces as well as fine accompaniment of singers Black Bottom McPhail (three cuts) and Tommie Bradley (one song). Blackwell's most famous collaborator, pianist Leroy Carr, shows up for two numbers, most notably Good Woman Blues, which features lines like "I got so many women/ I don't care when one dies". Good sound considering the rare 78 sources; erudite notes by Nick Perls. Recommended. (JG)

 
REV. JOHNNY BLAKEY/ REV. M.L. GIPSON Document DOCD 5363 Son Of Thunder ● CD $15.98
22 tracks, 67 min., good/recommended. Blakey's 14 sides reveal a preacher for whom subtlety of delivery is not of uppermost importance. Aside from the absence of guitar and drums, Blakey's style is textbook "sanctified." Each sermon opens with a good 20 seconds of congregational singing, followed by preaching that starts at a dead shout and stays there. Such titles as The Sainted Devil, Fourteen Steps To Hell, and The Scarlet Thread In The Window seem designed to pique interest, although the lack of variety in approach limits the desirability of Blakey's cuts. The 8 sides by Gipson -- 4 of them unissued -- stand as rough and ready sanctified numbers, but are more musical by comparison. Oddly, though, Gipson sounds as if he's in a big hurry to get the sermons out. (JC)

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Ace CDCHD 302 The 3B Blues Boy ● CD $18.98
25 track CD of Bobby's Duke recordings from the 50's, including the previously unissued Million Miles From Nowhere and undubbed version of I Lost Sight Of The World. Of course, his early classics like Don't Want No Woman/ Woke Up Screaming/ Further Up the Road/ Little Boy Blue are here along with great obscure sides like No Blow, No Show/ Army Blues/ It's My Life Baby/ Time Out/ You've Got Bad Intentions and others.. Lots of great anguished vocals here from the man who was once B.B. King's valet! (MB)
BOBBY BLAND: Army Blues/ Bobby's Blues/ Don't Want No Woman/ Further Up The Road/ Honey Bee/ I Can't Put You Down Baby/ I Don't Believe/ I Learned My Lesson/ I Lost Sight On The World/ I Smell Trouble/ It's My Life, Baby/ Last Night/ Little Boy Blue/ Loan A Helping Hand/ Lost Lover Blues/ Million Miles From Nowhere/ No Blow, No Show/ Teach Me (How To Love You)/ Time Out/ Wise Man's Blues/ Wishing Well/ Woke Up Screaming/ You Did Me Wrong/ You Got Me (Where You Want Me)/ You've Got Bad Intentions

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 5000 First Class Blues ● CD $15.98
 

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 7429 Members Only ● CD $15.98
 

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 7439 After All ● CD $15.98
 

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 7444 Blues You Can Use ● CD $15.98
Bobby still manages to sound contemporary and timeless at the same time. This new one, leaning more on soul than blues, has 9 tunes, 8 written by the Malaco staff, including George Jackson and Earl Forrest. Backup group incl. Fame drummer Roger Hawkins and the Muscle Shoals Horns with Jim Horn. Lots of songs about cheating and breaking up including Get Your Money Where You Spend Your Time / Let's Part As Friends / For The Last Time. (GM)

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 7450 Midnight Run ● CD $15.98
10 cuts.

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 7458 Portrait Of The Blues ● CD $15.98
Mr. Bland's voice may not be the instrument of smoothness that once had some calling him "the black Sinatra" back in the 50's and 60's with Duke Records. But give him a decent band and a song about being crushed by a woman and see if he doesn't sound good. The Last One To Know/ Hurtin Love/ Ain't No Love For Sale/ When Hearts Grow Cold are the trump cards here. While the album is pleasant enough, it's a long way from strong, comparisons with the past notwithstanding. And whoever it was at Malaco who told Bland that clearing his throat sounded soulful should be shot. Best title: She's Puttin' Something In My Food. (JC).
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND: Ain't No Love For Sale/ Hurtin' Love/ I Can Take You To Heaven Tonight/ I Just Won't Be Your Fool Anymore/ Just Take My Love/ Let Love Have Its Way/ She's Puttin' Something In My Food/ The Last One To Know/ These Are The Things That A WOman Needs/ When Hearts Grow Cold

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 7469 Years Of Tears ● CD $15.98
 

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 7478 Sad Street ● CD $15.98
 

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND Malaco 7489 Live On Beale Street ● CD $15.98
 

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND & B.B. KING MCA MCAD 4160 Together For The First Time...Live ● CD $11.98
The legendary performance - double album set on one CD.

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND MCA MCAD 11783 The Duke Recordings : Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 ● CD $11.98
16 of Bobby's most popular Duke sides recorded between 1957 and 1969. Nearly all of them reached the R&B top ten and several were number 1s. Includes Farther Up The Road/ I Pity The Fool/ Don't Cry No More/ Who Will The Next Fool Be/ Stormy Monday Blues/ That's The Way Love Is/ These Hands (Small But Mighty)/ Good Time Charlie, Part 1, etc.

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND MCA MCAD 11809 Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 ● CD $11.98

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND MCA MCAD 11977 Blues & Ballads ● CD $11.98
16 track collection covering the 60s through the early 80s (Duke & ABC) concentrating on the softer side of Bobby's always soulful singing - I've Been Wrong So Long/ Ain't Nothing You Can Do/ Touch Of The Blues/ Georgia On My Mind/ I've Got To use My Imagination/ You've Always Got The Blues/ This Bitter Earth/ Never Let Me Go, etc

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND MCA 112 158 The Best Of Bobby Bland - The Millenium Collection ● CD $11.98
12 track collection featuring some of his best Duke & Dunhill sides - I Pity The Fool/ Turn On Your Love Light/ Who Will The Next Fool Be?/ Poverty/ Ain't Nothin' You Can Do/ I Wouldn't Treat A Dog (The Way You Treated Me), etc.

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND MCA MCAD 112596 The Anthology ● CD $22.98
Two CD, 50 track retrospective of Bobby's Duke/ ABC recordings. Includes all 25 of his top ten R&B hits along with lesser known tracks, single edits, live tracks and some issued in stereo for the first time.
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND: 36-22-36/ Ain't Doin' Too Bad, Part 1/ Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City/ Ain't Nothing You Can Do/ Ain't That Lovin' You/ Ask Me 'bout Nothing (but The Blues)/ Blind Man/ Call On Me/ Chains Of Love/ Cry, Cry, Cry/ Do What You Set Out To Do/ Don't Cry No More/ Driftin' Blues/ Farther Up The Road/ Goin' Down Slow/ Good Time Charlie (part 1)/ I Pity The Fool/ I Smell Trouble/ I Take It On Home/ I Woke Up Screaming/ I Wouldn't Treat A Dog (the Way You Treated Me)/ I'll Take Care Of You/ I'm Not Ashamed/ I'm Too Far Gone (to Turn Around)/ I've Been Wrong So Long/ If You Got A Heart/ It Ain't The Real Thing/ It's My Life Baby/ Lead Me On/ Let The Good Times Roll/ Little Boy Blue/ Lovin' Blues/ Poverty/ Recess In Heaven/ Rockin' In The Same Old Boat/ Save Your Love For Me/ Share Your Love With Me/ Soon As The Weather Breaks/ Stormy Monday Blues/ That Did It/ That's The Way Love Is/ The Soul Of A Man/ These Hands (small But Mighty)/ This Time I'm Gone For Good (live)/ Turn On Your Love Light/ Who Will The Next Fool Be?/ Yield Not To Temptation/ Yolanda/ You're All I Need/ You've Got Bad Intentions

 
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND & B.B. KING MCA MCAD 27012 Together Again ... Live! ● CD $9.98
Reissue of ABC-Impulse album
BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND & B.B. KING: Everday (I have the blues)/ Feel So Bad/ Let The Good Times Roll/ Medley: Mother-In-Law Blues/Mean Old World/ Medley: The Thrill Is Gone/ I Ain't Gonna Be The First To Cry/ Medley: Stormy Monday Blues/Strange Things Happen

 
BLIND BLAKE Document DOCD 5024 Complete Recorded Works Vol. 1, 1926 - 1927 ● CD $15.98
The first of four compact discs to reissue the complete recordings of this brilliant East Coast musician. Though little is known of Blake's life he was a popular and influential performer. He was a fine singer and a dazzlingly fine guitarist with an endlessly imaginative technique. Of the 26 tracks here recorded between July 1926 and October 1927, 20 are by Blake himslef and 6 are accompaniments to vaudeville flavored singer Leola B. Wilson. Although sound on a few cuts is quite rough it is generally quite listenable and consistently fine. Good notes by Alan Balfour. (FS)
BLIND BLAKE: Ashley St. Blues (Leola B. Wilson/vcl)/ Bad Feeling Blues/ Black Biting Bee Blues/ Black Dog Blues/ Blake's Worried Blues/ Brownskin Mama Blues/ Buck-Town Blues/ Come On Boys Let's Do That Messin' Around (Take 2)/ Down The Country/ Dry Bone Shuffle (Take 2)/ Dying Blues (Leola B. Wilson/vcl)/ Early Morning Blues/ Hard Road Blues/ Hey Hey Daddy Blues/ One Time Blues/ Sea Board Stomp/ Skeedle Loo Doo Blues (Take 1)/ Skeedle Loo Doo Blues (Take 2)/ State Street Men Blues/ Stonewall Street Blues/ Tampa Bound/ That Will Never Happen No More/ Too Tight/ West Coast Blues/ Wilson Dam

 

Note: Volumes 2 & 3 in this series are now deleted.

BLIND BLAKE Document DOCD 5027 Complete Recorded Works Vol. 4, 1929 - 1932 ● CD $15.98
BLIND BLAKE: Ain't Gonna Do That No More/ Baby Lou Blues/ Blind Arthur's Breakdown/ Champagne Charlie Is My Name/ Cold Love Blues/ Depression's Gone From Me Blues/ Diddie Wa Diddie No. 2/ Guitar Chimes/ Hard Pushing Papa/ Lonesome Christmas Blues/ Playing Policy Blues/ Righteous Blues/ Rope Stretchin' Blues - Part 1 (take 2)/ Rope Stretchin' Blues - Part 2/ Sweet Jivin' Mama/ Third Degree Blues/ What A Low Down Place The Jailhouse Is/ Papa Charlie And Blind Blake Talk About It - Part I/ LAURA RUCKER: Fancy Tricks (Laura Rucker, vcl)/ IRENE SCRUGGS: Cherry Hill Blues (Irene Scruggs, vcl)/ Itching Heel (Irene Scruggs, vcl)/ You've Got What I Want (Irene Scruggs, vcl)

 
BLIND BLAKE JSP 7714 All The Published Sides ● CD $28.98
5 CDs, 110 tracks, essential
Since 1991, when Document issued a four volume series of Blind Blake recordings, a further 10 alternate takes have been released on another six Document CDs. This reissue brings all this material together in an attractive box set with notes by Drew Kent under the heading "The Vanished Bluesman". Certainly little is known about Blind Blake other than that he originated from Florida and may have died there shortly after his last recordings. What is beyond doubt is that he was one of the most accomplished of the pre-war guitarists, a talented composer and an amazingly consistent performer during his six years as a Paramount star. Blake did not have the most expressive of singing voices, but somehow his relaxed delivery leaves more room to appreciate his marvellous guitar. Capable of accurate fingerpicking at lightning speed, he had a creative genius to match his technical skills, often executing brilliant arrangements most blues guitarists couldn't even have attempted. The variety of musical settings here include Southern Rag and Police Dog Blues which provide a showcase for his fingerpicking and thumb bass work, a memorable session with clarinettist Johnny Dodds, superb accompaniments to female singers like Leola B. Wilson, minstrel/medicine show songs, piano/guitar duets of the highest quality and sombre, reflective blues. (If this were not enough, anybody who can come up with a song title like Rumblin' and Ramblin' Boa Constrictor Blues just has to be a bit special.) After their Patton and Jefferson sets JSP know all about the challenges posed by the notorious sound quality of Paramount 78s, and they have again worked their magic with this set. Most of the crackles, clicks and pops in the originals have been removed, and while some of the more worn discs are still pretty rough, sound quality generally shows a marked improvement over the Document reissues. This means that great performances which were quite noisy on Document such as Detroit Bound Blues with its lovely double time passages can now be fully enjoyed. The speed of the JSP transfers also appears to be more accurate on tracks like Ice Man Blues. My only quibble concerns Rope Stretchin' Blues a skillfully constructed two part blues about a condemned man contemplating his execution, which is dismissed as "maudlin stuff" in Mr.Kent's otherwise informative booklet notes. Certainly the sequencing of this song doesn't help its appreciation. While presenting tracks in strict chronological order as they are here is usually the best way to enjoy pre-war blues, the recording chronology means that we get Part Two, followed by Part One (alternate take) and finally the issued Part One. I wish JSP had been brave enough to sequence the issued takes in their proper order, but apart from this (and Mr. Kent's lapse of taste) this reissue is an absolute delight. (DPR)

 
BLIND BLAKE Yazoo 2058 The Best Of Blind Blake ● CD $15.98
A collection of 23 sides from this fine and important east Coast singer and guitarist.
BLIND BLAKE: Blake's Worried Blues/ Blind Arthur's Breakdown/ Chump Man Blues/ Come on Boys, Let's Do That Messin' Arou/ Depression's Gone from Me Blues/ Diddie Wa Diddie No. 2/ Doggin' Me Mama Blues/ Dry Bone Shuffle/ Early Morning Blues/ Georgia Bound/ Guitar Chimes/ He's in the Jailhouse Now/ Ice Man Blues/ No Dough Blues / Panther Squall Blues/ Rope Stretchin' Blues, Pt. 1 / Seaboard Stomp/ Skeedle Loo Doo Blues / Southern Rag/ Too Tight Blues No. 2/ Wabash Rag/ West Coast Blues/ You Gonna Quit Me Blues

 

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