Otis Rush - Cold Day In Hell 1975

A fitting companion to Right Place...recorded with one of Otis' best bands.

"COLD DAY IN HELL is one of the standouts from Otis Rush's 1970s catalogue. Rush's anguished vocals, piercing guitar leads, and overall gutsy attack are in full effect here on galloping rockers ("Cut You a Loose") and loping groovers ("Mean Old World") alike. Rush specializes in slow-burn down-tempo numbers--"You're Breaking My Heart," "Society Woman," and the wiry title track fall into this category, and each of these tracks give the Chicago axe-master plenty of room to stretch out on the fretboard. Unlike a lot of the post-'60s bluesmen, Rush never softened or commercialized his sound, and COLD DAY IN HELL upholds the artist's rough and raw ethos. His searing guitar work (which seems inseparable from his chunky amplifier tone) cuts a trail through the middle of these songs and is as appropriate on wrenching slow blues as it is on "Motoring Along," a sprightly, jazz-influenced instrumental. An alternate take of "You're Breaking My Heart" and the previously unissued "Part Time Love" are icing on this satisfying release. w. Abb Locke, Big Moose, Mighty Joe Young 1975. Personnel: Otis Rush (vocals, guitar); Bob Stroger (guitar, drums); Mighty Joe Young, Bob Levis (guitar); Chuck Smith (saxophone, baritone saxophone); Abb Locke, Abe Locke (tenor saxophone); Johnny "Big Moose" Walker (piano, organ, keyboards); Jesse Lewis Green (drums)."

Jump 'N' Shout! - New Orleans Blues And Rhythm

I scanned all of the notes for this little gem, so I won't get too much into the historical significance of this album. It's a collection of the hottest R&B New Orleans had to offer in the 40's and 50's. These artists recorded under the Regal, Deluxe or United labels.

What I will say is, wow! This collection is a real treasure that will instill pride in anyone with a stake in NOLA. For those who don't know what it means to miss New Orleans, a sense of romanticism will be hard to suppress.

I was only aware of Dave Bartholomew when I popped this in, but found myself clamouring for the notes every time the track changed. Technically we are listening to 40's/50's R&B, but at that point in time, the music was still holding on strongly to jump blues. There's a sense of swing on every track, some light and some heavy.

I fell in love right away with how much fun this music is. I also realized just how racy alot of the lyrics would have been for the time period. Some of it is cryptic and/or double entendre in style, but not too hard to figure out. I can only assume that they just didn't care, knowing that they wouldn't be getting airplay on mainstream radio. I think my favorite song has to be I Cried by Joseph "Google Eyes" August. To me, it embraced everything great about this music while not taking itself too seriously at all. See what y'all think...

This was ripped in secure mode of Media Monkey. 16/44.1 FLAC is the order of the day...enjoy!!!