Blind John Davis - Moanin' The Blues

Artist Biography by Bill Dahl

Versatility was integral to the musical mindset of John Davis. Although he was world-renowned as a blues pianist, he was proud of his innate ability to play ragtime, a little jazz, even a schmaltzy Tin Pan Alley ditty or two. And he did it all for more than half a century. Born in Mississippi, Davis was in reality a Chicagoan, having moved there before the age of three. He lost his eyesight after stepping on a nail when he was nine, but that didn't stop him from learning the 88s as a teen. That way, he could pick up a few bucks by playing in his father's "sporting houses."

Davis held down the enviable position of house pianist for prolific record producer Lester Melrose from 1937 to 1942, rolling the ivories behind the illustrious likes of Sonny Boy Williamson, Tampa Red, and Memphis Minnie for Bluebird, Columbia, Decca, and any other firm the powerful Melrose was connected with. After World War II, the blind pianist assembled his own trio, recording for MGM in 1949-1951. He traveled to Europe with Broonzy in 1952 in what may well have been the first overseas jaunt for any American blues artist.

The pianist remained musically active after that but seldom recorded domestically, saving most of his studio energy for his European tours (a jaunty, typically eclectic 1985 album for Chicago's Red Beans label being a notable exception). Davis' suave, genteel approach didn't jibe with the rough-edged Chicago blues of the '50s, but his sophistication was timeless.

Howlin' Wolf - Rockin' the Blues: Live in Germany 1964

Another cut-price CD issued in the UK that I found on my travels...Without details and a rarity...but a great recording (considering the times). Howlin' Wolf  cut like a razor with his voice and delivery...
Muddy and The Wolf (with Willie Dixon as their songwriter and Bassman) created modern Blues.
Here as flac & mp3@320 - Gus

'This is a reissue of the November 6, 1964, Bremen concert that was previously available as Live in Europe 1964 on the Sundown label, with the same incorrect title references. What is first-rate is the sound, which is head-and-shoulders above most of the Howlin' Wolf live recordings of this period, undoubtedly because the show was part of the American Folk-Blues tour, large chunks of which were recorded professionally, and also the performance, which comes from a time when Wolf was still in very robust health. It's been said that if Muddy Waters had been born in Africa, he would have been a king; this show, which Chess Records could only wish they'd recorded, is a reminder that if Howlin' Wolf had been born in Africa, he'd have been a witch doctor or shaman; he's spellbinding in his performance, and the band backing him (a kind of star combo itself, with Willie Dixon and Sunnyland Slim playing alongside Hubert Sumlin) is tight, if a little restrained. And to top it off, it's mid-priced.' (Bruce Eder/AllMusic)

Johnny Moore - Lonely Heart In The City

Okay so the previous information supplied was the wrong Johnny Moore of Chicago (There are at least 3 or 4). This Moore is from Mississippi, 1940 - moves to Chicago 1960, but finds most of his success as a prolific songwriter - he wrote Turn Back The Hands of Time for Tyronne Davis and 100's of other songs for the like of Syl Johnson and other Hi Records stars. These are likely all there is of HIS recordings as he never really found success as a singer himself.

The only bio is in the cd sleeve, but links to those scans are now in the notes.

Luther Allison - Live In Chicago 1999

Those of us who loved Luther were always aware that some nights he was good, some nights he was magical! Magic was most definitely in the air on these nights!

It had been a long time since I gave this a spin and already thru the first 5 tracks I have both tears in my eyes and a great big grin! LUTHER!! LUUUTHAAA!!! THIS is the guy who left you high as a kite,uncontrollably smiling and horny as hell! (fortunately your girlfriend was always similarly affected...remember dawlin'?).

Gimme Back My Wig, Baby....and let yo head go bald! Lordy, Lutha crushes it! When Things Go Wrong...I am in ecstasy! Such a badass!

Goodbye Mr. Charlie

RIP Mr. Charlie Sims, former proprietor of Donna's (a music club), a fine cook, and an even better man. Spending time with Charlie was always a worthwhile thing - we'd drink and have a smoke and swap stories and laugh...I'll miss you Charlie.

That's Charlie in the center, Tom McDermott to the left, I recognize the other gentleman, but don't know his name. Tom posted this photo on FB, couldn't resist throwing some love Mr Charlie's way from here too.

Chess Soul

Another repost by request:

"While Chess made numerous legendary contributions to the fields of blues and rock & roll, its reputation as a major mover and shaker in the soul field from 1961 to 1971 is unassailed. This 2-CD, 45-track compilation is another excellent entry in the Chess 50th Anniversary Series and shows why the label had the Windy City almost sewn up when it came to brand-name artists and material. Whether the tracks were master purchases from a smaller Chicago or Southern label (Jan Bradley's "Mama Didn't Lie," Cookie and the Cupcakes' "I've Been So Lonely," the Kolettes' "Who's That Girl?," Big Maybelle's "Don't Pass Me By" or Denise LaSalle's "A Love Reputation") or in-house productions from Billy Davis and Leonard Caston, next to Stax or Atlantic, no one stood for soul music in the 1960s like Chess Records. Featuring the label's strong hitmakers and soul shouters Etta James (the devastating "Only Time Will Tell"), Billy Stewart (the scat classic "Summertime"), Fontella Bass ("Rescue Me"), Gene Chandler ("I Fooled You This Time"), Mitty Collier ("I'm Satisfied") and Sugar Pie DeSanto ("Soulful Dress") alongside isolated moments of Chi-Town brilliance (the Radiants' "Voice Your Choice," the Knight Brothers' "Temptation 'Bout to Get Me" and Tony Clarke's "The Entertainer") with early Muscle Shoals productions thrown in to give the big picture (Laura Lee's "Dirty Man," Maurice and Mac's "You Left the Water Running"), this is one very potent two-disc anthology and an essential addition to anyone's soul collection." by Cub Koda

Harold Burrage - The Pioneer of Chicago Soul

A companion post to the one running at "Don't Ask Me".

Harold Edwin Burrage (March 30, 1931 – November 26, 1966) was an American blues and soul singer, pianist, and record producer.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, Burrage did session work as a pianist in the 1950s and 1960s as well as recording under his own name. He released singles on Decca, Aladdin, States, and Cobra in the 1950s, and for Vee-Jay and M-Pac in the 1960s. Burrage's backing bands included the likes of Otis Rush, Willie Dixon, and Jody Williams, while Burrage supported Magic Sam, Charles Clark, and others as a pianist.

Burrage's only national hit as singer was the 1965 Chicago soul song "Got to Find a Way", which reached #31 on the Billboard R&B charts. The following year Burrage died in Chicago, aged 35, from heart failure at the home of Tyrone Davis, a musician whom Burrage influenced.

Lou Pride - The Memphis / El Paso Sessions 1970-73

Lou Pride (May 24, 1944 - June 5, 2012)
He was born George Louis Pride, in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Pride grew up on Chicago's north side and attended the First Baptist Church, where the pastor was Nat King Cole's father.

After service in the United States Army, Pride met and married a female singer and they settled in El Paso, Texas. They performed as a singing duo before, after seeing B.B. King perform live, Pride concentrated his singing future around the blues and soul music genres. Pride recorded his first two singles in the early 1970s. These were "I'm Com'un Home In The Morn'un" (1972) and "Your Love Is Fading," the latter released by Suemi Records. After relocating to New Mexico, he recorded sporadically whilst constantly performing in blues clubs and at festivals on the chitlin' circuit. Other tracks of his that were released over this period included "Look Out on Love," "We're Only Fooling Ourselves," "You've Got to Work for Love," and "Been Such a Long Time." Pride's debut album was entitled, Very Special (1979), which was released by Black Gold Entertainment. Several singles were issued before Gone Bad for a Very Special Reason (1988) was released, which had an almost an identical playlist to his debut effort.

Returning to Chicago, he became acquainted with Curtis Mayfield, which saw Gone Bad Again (1990) being issued. However, Pride's recordings remained second place to performing live. The WMB Records release, Love at Last (1995), contained re-recordings of several of Pride's earlier cuts. His 1997 Ichiban release was Twisting the Knife, followed by I Won't Give Up (2000). Pride signed a recording contract with Severn Records in 2002, which preceded his first release for them, Words of Caution. His early 1970s recordings were collected on the compilation album, The Memphis/El Paso Sessions 1970-1973, which Severn issued in June 2003. Allmusic noted that the collection "remains a treasure trove of previously obscure soul music that spotlights one of the many great singers almost lost to history."

In 2004, Pride undertook a brief tour in the UK. Alongside Darrell Nulisch, Pride was also the headline act at the Severn Records Soul and Blues Revue, in Chicago, in 2006. Snippets of his composition, "Bringin' Me Back Home," were used in the 2007 film, Feast of Love. Pride's appearance at the Severn Soul Review in 2010 was a significant comeback. He had been booked to appear in 2004, but he had had a heart attack before he could perform.

Following a period of ill health, Pride died in Chicago in June 2012 of natural causes. He was aged 68. (wikipedia)

Pilgrim Jubilees - The Nashboro Sides

This is part one of a series that will cover the history of this classic Gospel group - the series comes courtesy of Dr. Hepcat and was compiled by Mr. Bob Laughton and Mr. Alan Young. I'm not presenting them exactly chronologically, but in groups by label, first up is Nashboro. 

Artist Biography by Sandra Brennan

"Since the early '50s, the Pilgrim Jubilee Singers have used their hard, rockin' gospel music as a powerful means of testifying their faith, love, and charitable hope that humanity will find a way to bring itself closer to the kingdom of heaven. Over its long history, the group has undergone numerous personnel changes. The first incarnation originated in the 1940s on the Mississippi Delta by Elgie and Theopholis Graham, but the most famous version of the Pilgrim Jubilees began in Chicago, 1952, when younger Graham brothers Clay and Cleve resurrected the group. Since then, these two have remained the group's spiritual and musical core. While growing up in Mississippi, all four Graham brothers were trained to sing. It was Theopholis who left the first group to live in Chicago; the rest of his brothers followed in 1951, and all four briefly sang in the group. The Pilgrim Jubilees toured quite a bit (when not working their day jobs, which for the Graham brothers meant working in their separate barber shops), and this proved too much for the older brothers, who gradually dropped out. Shortly thereafter, Clay and Cleve invited baritone Major Roberson and lead singer Percy Clark (both from Mississippi) to join. They also took on guitarist Richard Crume and bassist Roosevelt English, and began recording; through the 1950s, they released sides and albums for assorted labels, including Peacock, Chance, and Nashboro. Soon after signing to Peacock in 1960, the band gained national exposure with their label debut, "Stretch Out." Its success allowed the Pilgrim Jubilees to finally go professional. Crume eventually left the group to join the Soul Stirrers, but the other three have remained together and carried on into the '90s."

Andrew 'Voice' Odum - Farther On Down The Road

The old ABC Bluesway imprint had some first class releases and this is certainly one of them. This comes from the period when Odum was teamed up with Earl Hooker in an everyday working band so the 'sympatico' here is outstanding. The band includes not only Earl, but Big Moose Walker, Jimmy Bond and Panama Francis! One serious bunch of heavyweights!

""Andrew ‘Big Voice’ Odom is a largely undiscovered gem of a Blues singer who plied his trade around the Chicago scene for many years, supplying his soulful vocal lines on many great performances by the èlite guitarists on the club circuit. His rich tone and superb timing might have made him a star, but he didn’t get a breakthrough as a solo artist.

Born in Denham Springs LA in 1936, Andrew Odom learned to sing in Church and in the mid-50s he moved to St. Louis where he began working with guitarist Albert King. Relocating to Chicago in 1960, he teamed up with his long-term partner Earl Hooker and, because Andrew’s voice had a strong resemblance to BB King and Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland‘s, he was billed as BB Odem, and sometimes as ‘Big Voice’ Odem.
He cut his debut solo album ‘Farther on Down the Road’ for Bluesway in 1969, with Johnny ‘Big Moose’ Walker on piano, but it remained unissued for several years. Andrew was the front man for one of the hottest bands around the Chicago club scene in the late 60s, with Earl at the top of his game, and with Pinetop Perkins, Carey Bell and Freddie Roulette behind him. This is the team that played on the brilliant ‘Two Bugs and a Roach’ and ‘Don’t Have to Worry’ albums, but when Earl passed away in 1970, Andrew began fronting Jimmy Dawkins‘ band. He spent most of the next decade gigging and recording with Jimmy including European Blues Festivals, and featuring on the excellent Delmark album ‘All For Business’.

A regular face on the Chicago scene in the 80s, Andrew cut an album for the French Black and Blue label in 1982 with Lucky Peterson on keyboards, backed by Magic Slim and the Teardrops. Andrew often sat in at club gigs with Slim, Buddy Guy, Little Milton and many others who loved his rich voice and passionate delivery. The Canadian band, the Gold Tops with guitarist Steve Katz, invited Andrew to join them, and their 1992 album ‘Goin’ to California’ was one of Andrew’s finest recordings. Sadly, it was released posthumously, as Andrew died from a heart attack while driving between Chicago gigs, just days after his 55th birthday." Allaboutbluesmusic.com

Thanks to the original uploader for this gem!

Jimmy Yancy

Yet another repost by request:


" James Edwards "Jimmy" Yancey (February 20, 1894 – September 17, 1951) was an African American boogie-woogie pianist, composer, and lyricist. One reviewer noted him as "one of the pioneers of this raucous, rapid-fire, eight-to-the-bar piano style".

Yancey was born in Chicago in 1898. His older brother, Alonzo Yancey (1894 – 1944) was a pianist as well; their father was a guitarist. Yancey started performing as a singer in traveling shows during his childhood. He was a noted pianist by 1915, and he influenced younger musicians, like Meade Lux Lewis and Albert Ammons.

While he played in a boogie-woogie style, with a strong-repeated figure in the left hand and melodic decoration in the right hand, his playing was delicate and subtle, rather than hard driving. He popularized a left hand figure which became known as the 'Yancey bass', which was later used in Pee Wee Crayton's "Blues After Hours", Guitar Slim's "The Things That I Used to Do", and countless other songs. A part of Yancey's distinctive style was that he played in a variety of keys but often ended pieces in E flat, even when playing in a different key; he also favored keys considered atypical for barrel house blues (like E flat and A flat).

Although Yancey did not record during the twenties, (he only performed at houseparties and clubs) his influence was still great. Yancey was first recorded in 1939, immediately causing a great stir in both blues and jazz circles.

While many of his recordings were of solo piano, he also recorded with vocals by his wife, Estelle 'Mama' Yancey, under the billing 'Jimmy and Mama'. They appeared together in concert at the Carnegie Hall in 1948 and in 1951, the couple recorded their first album, released by Atlantic Records, the following year.

During World War I, Yancey played baseball on a Negro league baseball team, the Chicago All-Americans. Throughout his life, Yancey kept a day job as a groundskeeper for the Chicago White Sox. Mr. Yancey died of a stroke secondary to diabetes in Chicago on September 17, 1951. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986." mostly wiki

Otis Clay - Respect Yourself

Our Otis Clay fest still isn't over and even after this there will be a couple more due to generous contributions from friends of the blog.

" AllMusic Review by Steve Leggett

Mississippi native Otis Clay hasn't changed much with the times, as this live set recorded at the Lucerne Blues Festival in Switzerland in 2003 quickly makes clear. From the start of his secular singing career in Chicago on the One-derful and Cotillion labels in the 1960s, through his high watermark on Hi Records in Memphis in the 1970s (where he was the hardest vocal hitter Hi ever recorded), Clay has stuck fast to his gospel-fueled roots, and his gruff, impassioned singing continues to be the very definition of deep soul. Backed by Tyrone Davis' old group, the Platinum Band, a nine-piece, horn-driven Chicago outfit, and given vocal support by veteran singers Theresa Davis and Diane Madison, Clay testifies hard and fast and fiery here, the way he always has. With deep, funky grooves filled out with punchy horns, and led by Clay's gruff and searing vocals, songs like the hard-driving "Nickel and a Nail," the teasing and playful "I Can Take You to Heaven Tonight," and the quick, crisp "Love & Happiness" (made famous by former Hi labelmate Al Green) burn the way the contemporary neo-soul movement can only dream about burning. This isn't retro soul, this is soul still alive and kicking, only a whisper away from a gospel revival meeting, and Clay finally takes listeners there, too, with "Amen/This Little Light of Mine" and a scorching, funky version of George Clinton's "I Just Wanna Testify." "It's a soul song, simply said," is how Clay introduces the set closer, "Respect Yourself," and anyone who thinks soul died in the 1970s will have a hard time explaining that to Otis Clay."

Otis Clay - Truth Is (2013)

A truly excellent 2013 effort from Otis - great songs, great arrangements, excellent backing musicians. One of his last and best efforts.

Otis Clay - Watch Me Now

I am not sure where this one came from, but thanks to the original source. A nice 1989 effort on Willie Mitchell's Waylo label - there is another one from the same time frame called "The Only Way Is Up" - anyone got it?

Otis Clay - Got To Find A Way, The Beginning

We have lost another giant of Southern Soul, the great Otis Clay has passed away. I will be doing a whole lot of Otis posts, but this one is the earliest material out there and it is among the rarest.

"The music industry liked to peg Chicago vocal master Otis Clay as a soul singer. Or an R&B king. Or a gospel titan. Or a high-energy showman. He was all of that, and more, Clay's roots in Mississippi and musical blossoming in Chicago making him an uncommonly eclectic musician who drew upon more stylistic influences than even his more ardent fans may have realized.

The artist, who churned out hits in the late 1960s with "That's How It Is (When You're in Love)," in the early '70s with "Trying to Live My Life Without You" (later covered by Bob Seger) and in the '80s with "When the Gates Swing Open," said he soaked up the music of Duke Ellington and Thomas A. Dorsey, Sam Cooke and Muddy Waters, and a great deal more.

Clay died Friday at age 73, said his longtime arranger and producer, Thomas "Tom Tom" Washington. Further details of Clay's death were not yet known, Washington said.

"Writing this with a very heavy heart and tears in my eyes as I recently heard the very sad news that the great Otis Clay suddenly passed on," Chicago blues musician Dave Specter wrote on Facebook. Specter collaborated with Clay on "Message in Blue," Specter's critically applauded 2014 album. "Otis conveyed power with soul music and with blues like very few people I've ever heard live," Specter said Saturday. "It was as good as it gets. "His live shows — it was so stirring, and so moving. And he was a great showman. Not when you think of a showman being an over-the-top entertainer on steroids. Nothing like that. It was so real."

Indeed, in concert Clay proved a galvanic force, his gravelly, rumbling low notes and fervent, imploring high ones showing a potent mixture of the sacred and the secular, the accessible and the sophisticated.

"My life always has been a combination of things musically," Clay told the Tribune in 2013, as he was celebrating the release of his album "Truth Is." "Every Saturday night I listened to the Grand Ole Opry," added Clay, who was born Feb. 11, 1942, in Waxhaw, Miss. "During the day, later on, you listened to (radio) coming out of Memphis. During the noonday, at 12 o'clock, we listened to (blues pioneer) Sonny Boy Williamson, coming out of Helena, Ark. (And) I'm listening to Vaughn Monroe and Rosemary Clooney and listening to Hank Williams and Roy Acuff." So the far-flung idioms those artists represented were set deeply in Clay's musical persona, even before he came to Chicago as a teenager, in the mid-1950s, to live with his uncle and aunt. In Chicago he absorbed further musical influences but in the flesh.

"I guess I've always loved Chicago," Clay said in the Tribune interview. "And people say, 'Well, you're from Mississippi.' And I say, 'Chicago is only a suburb of Mississippi.' It was the place to go. It was exciting, of course. "You got to be in a place where a lot of legends (lived), whether they were blues or gospel, they were in Chicago. I guess I was about 6 or 7 years old when I saw my first live show. I was living in Clarksdale, Miss., at that time, and that was Muddy Waters. "And now I'm in the same city that Muddy Waters is living in and playing local clubs and what have you, though I wasn't going to 'em yet. Sam Cooke was here, the Soul Stirrers, the Caravans and all these (other gospel) people. It was a lot of excitement."

By age 15, Clay was singing Chicago gospel with the Golden Jubilaires, and three years later, in 1960, touring America with Charles Bridges' Famous Blue Jay Singers. That experience only expanded Clay's artistic range, because "our audience was basically, most of the time, white," meaning the singers were expected to perform repertoire well outside gospel tradition. On Sundays, though, "most of the time we would be singing in black churches. … 1960: What was the greatest craze at the time? The twist. So we added that to our repertoire. We added 'That Old Gang of Mine,' 'Mother Machree.' We were variety singers, so therefore I had that exposure, so it wasn't so hard for me to do it."

Though Clay began releasing soul records on Chicago's One-derful label in the 1960s, he never lost touch with his gospel roots, recording and performing that repertoire through the decades. When disco was ascendant in the 1970s, Clay found a growing and devoted audience for his earthy music on the other side of the world, in Japan. This came as a surprise to him. "I had no idea," he said in the Tribune interview. "I thought when we got ready to go to a foreign country, we were going to go Europe. I didn't think I was going to go to Japan, because I'm thinking Pearl Harbor, WWII. … (I thought:) What am I going to sing? I thought it was one of the craziest ideas. "And then I go to Japan. I find that they are so up on the music. That, too, was a lesson well learned. … They know the songs, they know the meaning of the songs."

Clay had been scheduled to perform Saturday night on Chicago's West Side, said arranger-producer Washington. Specter spoke to Clay on Wednesday: "When you get a FaceTime call from Otis Clay, it's a big deal," said Specter, honored by the call and noting that the singer looked to be in fine spirits.

"He was just a combination of his voice, his passion, his intensity," Specter said. Performing with Clay was "the most inspiring feeling I ever got," he said. "I remember the first rehearsal at Delmark (Records) for 'Message in Blue' – his voice made me cry. And it was just a rehearsal. "I've worked with a lot of great singers. But I don't think I've worked with anybody who had that feeling."

Funeral plans have not been announced."  Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

Washboard Sam 1935 - 1947

Whether Washboard Sam really was a half-brother of Big Bill Broonzy (and his 17 or 18 brothers and sisters) as is often claimed, is relatively unimportant in the face of the role he himself played as blues pioneer.
Born as Robert Brown in Arkansas in 1910, Washboard Sam is one of the great black musicians, singers and lyric composers of the pre-1945 period, without whom the developments in rhythm & blues in Chicago, the blues capital of the post-war years, would scarcely have been imaginable. Sam came to Chicago in 1932, played a little washboard and sang, and soon found himself with an exclusive contract with Bluebird, the label under which the Victor company (now known as the Bluebird Record Company) managed to make a business out of country blues in the 1930s. Washboard Sam and

Big Bill Broonzy made a considerable contribution to this success. They gathered together a whole group of instrumentalists for their recording sessions including pianists such as Roosevelt Sykes, Bob Call (Black Bob), Joshua Altheimer and even at this stage, electric guitarists such as George Barnes. Washboard Sam wrote the music and lyrics of both humorous and melancholic melodies; however those that are most loved have always been the ones with the most swing to them. The wide choice of titles available cover the entire range of his musical ideas and achievements. After the War, sales of records produced by the 'older' blues generation, i e that of Washboard Sam, Big Bill or Tampa Red began to drop and were increasingly replaced by the new, more aggressive recordings by artists such as Muddy Waters, Lightnin' Hopkins or B B King. In 1946, Washboard Sam withdrew from the overheated, unpredictable music scene of Chicago. He became a policeman with a ...'quiet family life' (S B Charters) which he only interrupted for a few recordings in 1953 and 1954, and a European tour in 1964. Washboard Sam died in 1966 following heart failure. (From sleeve notes)

Note : 18 tracks 17 of which appear on CD for the first time - CD cover has error missing out the number 12 and showing a jump from 11 to 13 !!! Sloppy !!!...Full personnel etc shown in scans  

Magic Slim & the Teardrops - Bad Boy

Ripped from my CD in FLAC with full scans... enjoy!!!

Magic Slim turned 75 in 2012, but his growling vocals have the fire and brimstone of a Young Lion and his guitar playing is still as razor-sharp as it was when he turned pro in the '50s. Slim doesn't bring many modern touches to his music; he plays in the classic Chicago style that laid the foundation for today's rock and blues and that's just fine. With his backing Teardrops -- Jon McDonald on guitar, Andre Howard on bass, and B.J. Jones on drums -- he continues making first-class albums that sound like they were cut in 1955 and that's a good thing. Denise LaSalle's "Someone Else Is Steppin' In" gets a humorous reading with Howard singing a high lead vocal to complement Slim's growl, which often slips into a Howlin' Wolf-like growl. "Champagne and Reefer," a Muddy Waters tune, is taken at a smoky laid-back pace, as befits the subject matter, with Slim's vocal inflections suggesting Muddy in his prime. "Older Woman," first cut by Lil' Ed & the Blues Imperials, is taken at a leisurely pace that suggests the slow, smoldering tempo of mature love, although Slim sets off plenty of sizzling sparks with his bristling solos. Slim's originals are just as solid as the covers. "Sunrise Blues" is an old-fashioned slow shuffle with smooth Albert King-meets-Chuck Berry guitar work. "Gambling Blues" and the mostly instrumental "Country Joyride" give Slim a chance to show off his considerable chops, showcasing solos full of thick comped chords, distorted bass runs, and clear chiming lead lines. - J. Poet / AMG

Blues and Gospel from the Bandera, Laredo and Jerico Road labels of Chicago

 These sets seem to be nearly endless, but I've got to say that this one is entirely worthwhile. The first 17 tracks are some entertaining blues, the last 10 tracks are some even more entertaining gospel. The aren't any "names" here, but there ain't no duds either.

Dusty Brown is one of those guys who you would cheerfully catch at a local blues club and come away satisfied.

Jimmy Lee Robinson is the kind of blues guy who was likely a local sensation, a regional star. There is a lot of variety to his sounds and he was clearly very creative in his ear for sound palates.

The Grover Pruitt single is worth the listen as is the Bobby Davis material - both of these are rock n roll crossover attempts that are easily as listenable as tracks from those better-known.

The 'memorable' quotient increases with the gospel material included. The A side of the Norfleet Brothers single is destined for a compilation. Both sides of the Space Spiritual Singer are good enough to have me keeping an eye for them from now on. The six tracks from The Faithful Wanderers and Elder Samuel Patterson are all easily good enough to be welcome additions to any collection of obscure gospel -- the kind of thing I love having in my pocket.

Freddie King - Getting Ready...

This is the next album in my chronological Freddie King discography posts.
After his two recordings for the Atlantic/Cotillion label (see my previous post) and his notable appearance at the 1969 Texas Pop Festival, he was was signed to Leon Russell's Shelter Records label, where he was to release 3 records. 'Getting Ready...' was the first of these, including some well-known blues covers and some fine originals, notably the first recording of the Don Nix composition 'Going Down', later covered by Jeff Beck and many others.
The album was recorded at Chess Studios, Chicago in October 1970, released in April 1971, and features :
Freddie King - Guitar & Vocals, Leon Russell - Piano & Guitar, Don Preston - Guitar, Jon Gallie - Organ, Donald 'Duck' Dunn - Bass, Charles Blackwell & Charles Myers - Drums, plus Backing Vocals
This is from my CD version on Sequel Records and includes 2 bonus tracks :
01 Same Old Blues 02 Dust My Broom 03 Worried Life Blues 04 Five Long Years 05 Key To The Highway 06 Going Down 07 Living On The Highway 08 Walking By Myself 09 Tore Down 10 Palace Of The King ... Bonus Tracks... 11 Gimme Some Lovin' 12 Send Me Someone To Love
I will post the next 2 Shelter albums 'The Texas Cannonball' (1972) and 'Woman Across The Water' (1973) in the near future ... Enjoy

McKinley Mitchell - The Complete Malaco Collection

McKinley Mitchell (December 25, 1934 – January 18, 1986) He was born in Jackson, Mississippi, and died in Chicago Heights, Illinois, from a heart attack, at the age of 51.

"Blessed with an extraordinary set of soaring pipes, McKinley Mitchell waxed a series of superb Chicago soul platters during the 1960s, later veering stylistically closer to contemporary blues in his last years of performing.

At age 16, Mitchell was already fronting a gospel group, the Hearts of Harmony, in Jackson. After spending time singing spirituals in Springfield, MS, and Philadelphia, Mitchell hit Chicago in 1958 and went secular. A rocking debut for the tiny Boxer label the next year preceded his signing with George Leaner's fledgling One-derful logo in 1961.

His first single for the firm, the gorgeous soul ballad "The Town I Live In," proved a national R&B hit and launched the imprint in high style. Mitchell's One-derful follow-ups, including the imaginative "A Bit of Soul," failed to equal the heights of his first single; neither did 45s for Chess (produced by Willie Dixon) and a variety of Dixon-owned labels.

Finally, in 1977, Mitchell returned to the R&B charts with "The End of the Rainbow," another beautiful R&B ballad, for Malaco's Chimneyville subsidiary. An eponymous LP for the label the next year stunningly showcased Mitchell's still-potent voice on a program that combined blues and soul material. A 1984 LP for Retta's, I Won't Be Back for More, was among the singer's last releases (by then, he was back living in Jackson)." AMG