Charles Brown
Alone At The Piano
Savoy (2004) 17326
13 tracks, 40 minutes. Excellent. Taken primarily from radio station sessions recorded between 1989 and 1995, this superb CD displays Charles Brown alone at the piano (as the title suggests) delivering a quiet and relaxed set of music with great feel. Sonics are incredibly good giving you the impression that the piano wizard is in your listening room playing solely for your enjoyment. Moonrise, Gloria, I'll Miss You, Is You Is Or Is You Ain't, I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good) and Cottage For Sale are delicious, and Brown offers up a classic blues in the form of Black Nite that sizzles while remaining low-key. His voice was always a pleasure and it's no different here. The only complaint is the relatively short playing time, but Brown revives some old gems for a real treat. Billy Vera's liner notes are informative if a little scattered.
http://savoyjazz.com/sites/savoy/
John Lee Hooker
Rock With Me
Acrobat (2003) 701
11 tracks, 74 minutes. Excellent. While there are always plenty of John Lee Hooker releases available any given time from any number of sources, few are as consistently satisfying as this one. Some tracks include the assistance of Lowell Fulson, Carey Bell (on bass) and S.P. Leary, all working sympathetically with Hooker, and while the band remains unknown on the eighteen-and-a-half minute opus, I Hated The Day I was Born, the dynamics and delivery are spot-on. Crawling King Snake, Dazie-Mae, Hobo Blues, Sally Mae, and more find Hooker in great form putting across some lowdown material. Neil Slaven's liner notes are concise but good although a major complaint is a lack of session details, which would have been a considerable help, and although only ten tracks are listed, there's a hidden bonus cut included.
Luther Johnson
Born In Georgia
Black & Blue (2004) 462-2
15 tracks, 64 minutes. Essential. For fans of driving Post-war electric blues, this set is hard to beat. Luther (Georgia Boy or Snake) Johnson fronts a small band with Sonny Thompson at the piano, and a rhythm section of Emmett Sutton's bass and Bill Warren's in-the-pocket drumming. The rarely recorded Dusty Brown steps in for some fine harp on Bright Lights Big City, Take Enough Of Him, and a funked-up ride through Hoochie Coochie Man, while Johnny Shines appears on beautiful country blues pieces like Walkin' Blues, My Daddy Told Me, and Crawlin' King Snake. Includes four previously unissued cuts - Bright Lights/Am I Wrong For Loving You/Hoochie Coochie/Rock 'N Roll Every Day. Johnson is muscular throughout, both vocally and oplaying some storming guitar. An exceptional set of high-tension blues.
Robert Lockwood, Jr.
The Complete Trix Recordings
Savoy (2003) 17312
25 tracks, 2 CDs, 90 minutes. Excellent. This two-CD set consists of both Contrasts and Does 12, two projects recorded between 1973 and 1975 for Peter Lowry's Trix imprint. Although there's nothing in the way of previously unreleased material, the sound is exceptional as Robert Lockwood, Jr. works his way through some Robert Johnson songs (Dust My Broom, Mr. Downchild, Walkin' Blues, Terraplane Blues, Little Queen Of Spades), jazzy instrumentals (Red Top, Down Home Cooking, Half Steppin' and more), originals and a few other treats (Just A Little Bit, King Biscuit Time, and Driving Wheel). With a soulful voice and ridiculously good guitar skills, Lockwood is in fine form. While he helped write the book on Post-war Chicago Blues guitar, he expanded his playing style considerably in later years, and although this is about three decades old, it's still fresh sounding and a fine addition to any CD library. A small band of sax, bass, drums, and second guitar (on CD #2) assists for a good portion. Includes updated liner notes.
http://savoyjazz.com/sites/savoy/
Gatemouth Moore
Cryin' & Singin' The Blues
Savoy (2004) 17327
20 tracks, 60 minutes. Excellent. Gatemouth Moore's name might not come up as frequently as it should in discussions of great Post-war blues shouters, but his startling and booming voice is all over this well-done release. Nine of the twenty tracks are previously unissued (all recorded for the National label between May of 1945 and October of 1946) and stem from three separate sessions with either Dallas Bartley & His Smalltown Boys, Budd Johnson's Orchestra, or the Tiny Grimes Swingtet. Laced with buzzing and honking saxes and solid piano behind him, Moore's vocals soar above and dive below the jumping workouts. I Ain't Mad At You Pretty Baby, Did You Ever Love A Woman, Cryin' And Singin' The Blues, and much more make for a very enjoyable listening experience. Billy Vera's liner notes are informative, if a bit irregular in spots.
http://savoyjazz.com/sites/savoy/
© 2004 by Craig Ruskey
Plenty more on the way this week including the new James Cotton and Deborah Coleman on Telarc plus more. Please stay tuned...
While I try to remember to add links to label websites, some aren't easy to find. Black & Blue and Acrobat are a little difficult to pin down. I did find a link for the Acrobat label, but their listing wasn't anywhere near up-to-date, and Black & Blue were also hard to track. However, any retailer (online or neighborhood shops) should be able to order anything reviewed here. If you encounter problems ordering any titles with your favorite source, let me know.
Alone At The Piano
Savoy (2004) 17326
13 tracks, 40 minutes. Excellent. Taken primarily from radio station sessions recorded between 1989 and 1995, this superb CD displays Charles Brown alone at the piano (as the title suggests) delivering a quiet and relaxed set of music with great feel. Sonics are incredibly good giving you the impression that the piano wizard is in your listening room playing solely for your enjoyment. Moonrise, Gloria, I'll Miss You, Is You Is Or Is You Ain't, I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good) and Cottage For Sale are delicious, and Brown offers up a classic blues in the form of Black Nite that sizzles while remaining low-key. His voice was always a pleasure and it's no different here. The only complaint is the relatively short playing time, but Brown revives some old gems for a real treat. Billy Vera's liner notes are informative if a little scattered.
http://savoyjazz.com/sites/savoy/
John Lee Hooker
Rock With Me
Acrobat (2003) 701
11 tracks, 74 minutes. Excellent. While there are always plenty of John Lee Hooker releases available any given time from any number of sources, few are as consistently satisfying as this one. Some tracks include the assistance of Lowell Fulson, Carey Bell (on bass) and S.P. Leary, all working sympathetically with Hooker, and while the band remains unknown on the eighteen-and-a-half minute opus, I Hated The Day I was Born, the dynamics and delivery are spot-on. Crawling King Snake, Dazie-Mae, Hobo Blues, Sally Mae, and more find Hooker in great form putting across some lowdown material. Neil Slaven's liner notes are concise but good although a major complaint is a lack of session details, which would have been a considerable help, and although only ten tracks are listed, there's a hidden bonus cut included.
Luther Johnson
Born In Georgia
Black & Blue (2004) 462-2
15 tracks, 64 minutes. Essential. For fans of driving Post-war electric blues, this set is hard to beat. Luther (Georgia Boy or Snake) Johnson fronts a small band with Sonny Thompson at the piano, and a rhythm section of Emmett Sutton's bass and Bill Warren's in-the-pocket drumming. The rarely recorded Dusty Brown steps in for some fine harp on Bright Lights Big City, Take Enough Of Him, and a funked-up ride through Hoochie Coochie Man, while Johnny Shines appears on beautiful country blues pieces like Walkin' Blues, My Daddy Told Me, and Crawlin' King Snake. Includes four previously unissued cuts - Bright Lights/Am I Wrong For Loving You/Hoochie Coochie/Rock 'N Roll Every Day. Johnson is muscular throughout, both vocally and oplaying some storming guitar. An exceptional set of high-tension blues.
Robert Lockwood, Jr.
The Complete Trix Recordings
Savoy (2003) 17312
25 tracks, 2 CDs, 90 minutes. Excellent. This two-CD set consists of both Contrasts and Does 12, two projects recorded between 1973 and 1975 for Peter Lowry's Trix imprint. Although there's nothing in the way of previously unreleased material, the sound is exceptional as Robert Lockwood, Jr. works his way through some Robert Johnson songs (Dust My Broom, Mr. Downchild, Walkin' Blues, Terraplane Blues, Little Queen Of Spades), jazzy instrumentals (Red Top, Down Home Cooking, Half Steppin' and more), originals and a few other treats (Just A Little Bit, King Biscuit Time, and Driving Wheel). With a soulful voice and ridiculously good guitar skills, Lockwood is in fine form. While he helped write the book on Post-war Chicago Blues guitar, he expanded his playing style considerably in later years, and although this is about three decades old, it's still fresh sounding and a fine addition to any CD library. A small band of sax, bass, drums, and second guitar (on CD #2) assists for a good portion. Includes updated liner notes.
http://savoyjazz.com/sites/savoy/
Gatemouth Moore
Cryin' & Singin' The Blues
Savoy (2004) 17327
20 tracks, 60 minutes. Excellent. Gatemouth Moore's name might not come up as frequently as it should in discussions of great Post-war blues shouters, but his startling and booming voice is all over this well-done release. Nine of the twenty tracks are previously unissued (all recorded for the National label between May of 1945 and October of 1946) and stem from three separate sessions with either Dallas Bartley & His Smalltown Boys, Budd Johnson's Orchestra, or the Tiny Grimes Swingtet. Laced with buzzing and honking saxes and solid piano behind him, Moore's vocals soar above and dive below the jumping workouts. I Ain't Mad At You Pretty Baby, Did You Ever Love A Woman, Cryin' And Singin' The Blues, and much more make for a very enjoyable listening experience. Billy Vera's liner notes are informative, if a bit irregular in spots.
http://savoyjazz.com/sites/savoy/
© 2004 by Craig Ruskey
Plenty more on the way this week including the new James Cotton and Deborah Coleman on Telarc plus more. Please stay tuned...
While I try to remember to add links to label websites, some aren't easy to find. Black & Blue and Acrobat are a little difficult to pin down. I did find a link for the Acrobat label, but their listing wasn't anywhere near up-to-date, and Black & Blue were also hard to track. However, any retailer (online or neighborhood shops) should be able to order anything reviewed here. If you encounter problems ordering any titles with your favorite source, let me know.
