The Best Of King Curtis (1962-65)

"Best of King Curtis collects the bulk of King Curtis' singles for Capitol, plus selected album tracks. Although he didn't have many hits while on Capitol -- only "Soul Serenade" hit the charts -- this collection demonstrates the depths of Curtis' talents, showcasing his stabs at jazz and blues in addition to his trademark R&B. Instant Soul remains a stronger introduction, but for fans that want to dig a little deeper, The Best of King Curtis is an excellent purchase." (Stephen Thomas Erlewine/AllMusic)







King Curtis in his pre-Atlantic Soul days...Fully into the Twist dance craze of the early 1960's...but with class. 
Rhythm & Blues had past it's best days...awaiting the advent of Soul & Funk...This safe ground of jazz covers and well played originals was as good as it got. at the time...and well recorded with guys that were so talented they continued to play as greats into the groovier, rootsier future...  It's what a Bluesman would have playing in his elevator ! Here as flac or mp3@320 - My rip & full scans - Gus

King Curtis - Instant Soul : The Legendary King Curtis

Repost with my newer rips & full scans...plus another compilation

"Curtis Ousley (February 7, 1934 – August 13, 1971), who performed under the stage name King Curtis, was an American saxophone virtuoso known 
for rhythm and blues, rock and roll, soul, blues, funk and soul jazz. Variously a bandleader, band member, and session musician, he was also a 
musical director and record producer. Adept at tenor, alto, and soprano saxophone, he was best known for his distinctive riffs and solos such 
as on "Yakety Yak", which later became the inspiration for Boots Randolph's "Yakety Sax" and his own "Memphis Soul Stew"
Curtis was killed on August 13, 1971, when he was stabbed during an argument with a pair of drug dealers he discovered on the steps outside his Manhattan apartment. Curtis was attempting to carry an air conditioner into his apartment when Juan Montanez refused to move from the entrance. A fight ensued and Montanez stabbed Curtis. Curtis later died at Roosevelt Hospital. In March 1972, Montanez was sentenced to seven years for second-degree manslaughter, but was released in late 1977 for good behavior.(Wiki)

I'm a guitarist...but my fave instrument is the Saxophone ! Of course I love all the great jazz masters and have their albums...too many to mention. KIng Curtis became a hero of mine many moons ago ...and many important recordings were hard or impossible to get back in the day. I now have most of them. Back in 1994 a really good compilation was released covering most of his career on a small independant label 'Razor & Tie'. I tried to get a copy but it soon became unavailable. Fortunately I later picked up this copy on the net, I know not from where or whom, but a big Ta is long overdue...So here it is for you guys...It's a great mix and an even better listen. And thumbs up to Anon for a reminder that we had no King Curtis here at Chitlins. We have now ! Cheers - Gus

The above was posted back in June 2016. I have since acquired a used CD copy and decided to post a new rip with scans in flac & mp3@320. It was the second version I bought as the first CD was damaged and 2 tracks were unplayable . 
I have also included a compilation of  King Curtis that I made years ago from original vinyl sources from my own albums (as flac & mp3@320) 'King Curtis Collection' ...and I think it is as good (if not better !) than the one Razor & Tie released...Judge for yourselves. Some of the tracks overlap but that shouldn't spoil the listening experience - Cheers Gus

Smokey Hogg - Original Folk Blues

Andrew 'Smokey' Hogg (January 27, 1914 - May 1, 1960)
Hogg was born near Westconnie, Texas, United States and grew up on the farm and was taught to play guitar by his father Frank Hogg. While still in his teens he teamed up with the slide guitarist and vocalist, B.K. Turner aka Black Ace and the pair travelled together playing the turpentine and logging camp circuit of country dance halls and juke joints that surrounded Kilgore, Tyler, Greenville and Palestine in East Texas.
In 1937 Smokey and Black Ace were brought to Chicago, Illinois by Decca Records to record, and Smokey had his first gramophone record ("Family Trouble Blues"/"Kind Hearted Blues") released, as by Andrew Hogg. It was an isolated occurrence - he did not make it back into a recording studio for over a decade. By the early 1940s Hogg was married and making a good living busking around the Deep Ellum area of Dallas, Texas.

Hogg was drafted in the mid-1940s and after a brief spell with the U.S. military, he continued working in the Dallas area where he was becoming well known. In 1947 he came to the attention of Herbert T. Rippa Sr, boss of the Dallas based record label, Bluebonnet Records, who recorded several sides with him and leased the masters to Modern Records.

The first release on Modern was the Big Bill Broonzy song "Too Many Drivers", and this racked up sufficient sales to encourage Modern Records to bring Hogg out to Los Angeles, California to cut more sides with their team of studio musicians. These songs included his two biggest hits, "Long Tall Mama" in 1949 and another Broonzy tune "Little School Girl" (#9 U.S. R&B chart) in 1950.Some blues fans tend to revere his two-part "Penitentiary Blues" (1952), which was a remake of the prison song, "Ain't No More Cane on the Brazos".

Hogg's country blues style, influenced by Broonzy, Peetie Wheatstraw and Black Ace was popular with record buyers in the South during the late 1940s and early 1950s. He continued to work and record until the end of the 1950s, but died of cancer, or possibly a ruptured ulcer, in McKinney, Texas in 1960.

Geater Davis - I'll Play The Blues For You

re-post from 2013 

"Vernon "Geater" Davis (29 January 1946 - 29 September 1984) was an American soul singer and songwriter. He has been described as "one of the South's great lost soul singers, an impassioned stylist whose voice was a combination of sweetness and sandpaper grit."

Davis was born in Kountze, Texas. In the late 1960s he was heard performing, along with Reuben Bell, by record producer Allen Orange. Orange arranged for them to record in Birmingham, Alabama, and started his own House of Orange label to release their output. Geater's first release, "Sweet Woman's Love", in 1970, reached # 45 on the Billboard R&B chart. His follow-up singles on the House of Orange label, including "I Can Hold My Own" and "Best Of Luck To You", were less commercially successful, but he recorded an album, Sweet Woman's Love, which is now considered a classic of the deep soul genre. He often wrote or co-wrote his own material.

After Orange closed his label in 1972, Davis recorded for the Luna label, and then for John Richbourg's 77 label, where several of his recordings such as "I'm Gonna Change" and "A Whole Lot Of Man" were made at the FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals. His 1973 single, "Your Heart Is So Cold" reached # 64 on the R&B chart. However, Davis' records did not generally sell well, despite heavy touring on the blues and chitlin circuits. He recorded for the Ace label in the mid 1970s, and later issued some disco singles on the revitalised House Of Orange label. In 1981 he joined the MT label run by James Bennett in Jackson, Mississippi, which issued several singles and an album, Better Days.

Davis died of a heart attack in Dallas, Texas in 1984 at the age of 38."

Sherman Robertson - Going Back Home (1998) & Guitar Man Live (2006)

Sherman Robertson is an American blues guitarist, songwriter and singer, who has been described as "one part zydeco, one part swamp blues, one part electric blues and one part classic rhythm and blues." (Wikipedia)

Sherman  Robertson  is  a  blues singer/guitarist born in Louisiana in 1948 and raised in Houston, Texas . He started playing professionally in his teens in the local bar scene and spent some time, during his formative years, on the road as Bobby Bland’s  guitarist. Clifton Chenier heard Robertson at a Blues Festival in 1982 and invited him to join his band – He appeared on a couple of his albums and stayed with him for 5 years up until Chenier's illness and subsequent death in 1987.
Robertson went on to join the bands of Rockin’ Dopsie and Terrance Simien & the Mallet Playboys. He also made an appearance on Paul Simon’s ‘Graceland’ album (on the track Crazy Love Vol II).

After going  solo  Robertson released his first album ‘I’m The Man’ in 1993 on the UK Indigo label produced by Mike Vernon , famous for his productions of  John Mayall’s Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton , Peter Green/ Fleetwood Mac’s early recordings and many others. The album received numerous positive reviews, and was nominated  for a W C Handy Award  He has since toured internationally and released further albums, Here & Now (1996) Going Back Home (1998) Guitar Man - Live (2006) all receiving critical acclaim .
Bruce Iglauer , President of Alligator Records, had this to say about him :
“When I saw him...he was on fire .He ruled the stage. had the audience in the palm of his hand, and his just plain physical showmanship reminded  me of Albert Collins... He’s got that Texas energy, great guitar chops, and is a wonderful, soulful singer.”
It was reported back in 2012 that Robertson had suffered a Stroke but I have still been unable to find any up-to-date reports on his recovery – Here’s hoping  he’s doing well. Anyone know his current situation ? - Gus (back in 2012 with update)
This guy is a beaut ! Just get these gems in your collection...listen and tell me he's not essential to modern Blues history ! ..He's got classic Blues Soul Gospel in his vocals and a modern exciting edge in his guitar style...I first heard him on a Rockin' Dopsie album...and he caught my ear then as a sideman...And still does,,, Louisiana born but Texas is the main influence here ( Albert Collins et al)...What better roots can you have ?...Gus

Albert Collins - Frostbite (1980) & Live '92 - '93 (1995)

Albert Collins (October 1, 1932 – November 24, 1993) was an American electric guitarist and singer with a distinctive guitar style. Collins was noted for his powerful playing and his use of altered tunings and capo. His long association with the Fender Telecaster led to the title "The Master of the Telecaster". (Wiki)

Albert Collins was a wonderful funky blues guitarist and  vocalist in the Texas tradition of  tough, flamboyant Blues players - He has an immediately recognizable and unique musical style and personality...His hard attack and snappy guitar style was a big influence on Robert Cray and Coco Montoya amongst others.. I consider him one of the Greats

Here are 2 great albums ...some years apart - ''Frostbite' was his second release on the Alligator label from 1980 whilst 'Live '92 - '93' on Pointblank, comes from his final years before succumbing to cancer in November 1993 aged 61. Enjoy 

The Very Best of Johnny Guitar Watson

Once again this is a Request rerun but just to spice it up I've added 4 more of JGW's earliest tracks including the original 'Gangster of Love'.

Long, long before he exploded back into the public eye in the mid 70's as the Gangsta of Love and became a heavyweight on the funk scene, {'Gangsta' itself was a 20 year old song when it became a hit}, Johnny 'Guitar' Watson was one of the early architects of R & B and Rock n Roll. His early songs are so good and the guitar (and piano) lines so stunning that it is mystifying that he is not hailed in the same breath with Little Richard and Chuck Berry and the like.

Just listen to Space Guitar (track 1) and then realize that this is freaking 1954! A Bad Dude!!! This Rhino collection spotlights those earliest sides that were still labeled Blues for lack of a better term but what you hear is a genius with a clear vision of where he was going with his amazing and unique sound.

"John Watson, Jr. was born in Houston, Texas. His father John Sr. was a pianist, and taught his son the instrument. But young Watson was immediately attracted to the sound of the guitar, in particular the electric guitar as played by T-Bone Walker and Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown.

His grandfather, a preacher, was also musical. "My grandfather used to sing while he'd play guitar in church, man," Watson reflected many years later. When Johnny was 11, his grandfather offered to give him a guitar if, and only if, the boy didn't play any of the "devil's music". Watson agreed, but "that was the first thing I did."  A musical prodigy, Watson played with Texas bluesmen Albert Collins and Johnny Copeland. His parents separated in 1950, when he was 15. His mother moved to Los Angeles, and took Johnny with her.

In his new city, Watson won several local talent shows. This led to his employment, while still a teenager, with jump blues-style bands such as Chuck Higgins's Mellotones and Amos Milburn. He worked as a vocalist, pianist, and guitarist. He quickly made a name for himself in the African-American juke joints of the West Coast, where he first recorded for Federal Records in 1952. He was billed as Young John Watson until 1954. That year, he saw the Joan Crawford film Johnny Guitar, and a new stage name was born.

He affected a swaggering, yet humorous personality, indulging a taste for flashy clothes and wild showmanship on stage. His "attacking" style of playing, without a plectrum, resulted in him often needing to change the strings on his guitar once or twice a show, because he "stressified on them" so much, as he put it.

Watson's ferocious "Space Guitar" album of 1954 pioneered guitar feedback and reverb. Watson would later influence a subsequent generation of guitarists. His song "Gangster of Love" was first released on Keen Records in 1957. It did not appear in the charts at the time, but was later re-recorded and became a hit in 1978, becoming Watson's "most famous song".

He toured and recorded with his friend Larry Williams, as well as Little Richard, Don and Dewey, The Olympics, Johnny Otis and, in the mid-1970s with David Axelrod. He also played with Sam Cooke, Herb Alpert and George Duke. But as the popularity of blues declined and the era of soul music dawned in the 1960s, Watson transformed himself from southern blues singer with pompadour into urban soul singer in a pimp hat. His new style was emphatic - the gold teeth, broad-brimmed hats, flashy suits, fashionable outsized sunglasses and ostentatious jewelry made him one of the most colorful figures in the West Coast funk scene.

He modified his music accordingly. His albums Ain't That a Bitch (from which the successful singles "Superman Lover" and "I Need It" were taken) and Real Mother For Ya were landmark recordings of 1970s funk. "Telephone Bill", from the 1980 album Love Jones, featured Watson rapping.


In his book Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke (2005), Peter Guralnick claimed that Watson was an actual pimp, as well as dressing like one as a performer. Watson himself, however, reportedly felt "ambivalent" about prostituting women, even though it "paid better" than music.

The shooting death of his friend Larry Williams in 1980 and other personal setbacks led to Watson briefly withdrawing from the spotlight in the 1980s. "I got caught up with the wrong people doing the wrong things", he was quoted as saying by the New York Times.

The release of his album Bow Wow in 1994 brought Watson more visibility and chart success than he had ever known. The album received a Grammy Award nomination.

In a 1994 interview with David Ritz for liner notes to The Funk Anthology, Watson was asked if his 1980 song "Telephone Bill" anticipated rap music. "Anticipated?" Watson replied. "I damn well invented it!... And I wasn't the only one. Talking rhyming lyrics to a groove is something you'd hear in the clubs everywhere from Macon to Memphis. Man, talking has always been the name of the game. When I sing, I'm talking in melody. When I play, I'm talking with my guitar. I may be talking trash, baby, but I'm talking".

In 1995, he was given a Pioneer Award from the Rhythm & Blues Foundation in a presentation and performance ceremony at the Hollywood Palladium. In February 1995, Watson was interviewed by Tomcat Mahoney for his Brooklyn, New York-based blues radio show The Other Half. Watson discussed at length his influences and those he had influenced, referencing Guitar Slim, Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa and Stevie Ray Vaughan. He made a special guest appearance on Bo Diddley's 1996 album A Man Amongst Men, playing vocoder on the track "I Can't Stand It" and singing on the track "Bo Diddley Is Crazy".

His music was sampled by Redman (who based his "Sooperman Luva" saga on Watson's "Superman Lover" song), Ice Cube, Eazy-E, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, and Mary J. Blige. Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre borrowed P-Funk's adaptation of Watson's catchphrase "Bow Wow Wow yippi-yo yippi-yay" for Snoop's hit "What's My Name".

"Johnny was always aware of what was going on around him", recalled Susan Maier Watson (later to become the musician's wife) in an interview printed in the liner notes to the album The Very Best of Johnny 'Guitar' Watson. "He was proud that he could change with the times and not get stuck in the past".
Death

Watson died of a myocardial infarction on May 17, 1996, while on tour in Yokohama, Japan. According to eyewitness reports, he collapsed in mid guitar solo. His last words were "ain't that a bitch", probably in reference to the song "Ain't that a Bitch". His remains were brought home for interment at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

Watson, a recognized master of the Fender Stratocaster guitar, has been compared to Jimi Hendrix and allegedly became irritated when asked about this comparison, supposedly stating: "I used to play the guitar standing on my hands. I had a 150-foot cord and I could get on top of the auditorium – those things Jimi Hendrix was doing, I started that shit."

Frank Zappa stated that "Watson's 1956 song Three Hours Past Midnight inspired me to become a guitarist". Watson contributed to Zappa's albums One Size Fits All (1975), Them or Us (1984), Thing-Fish (1984) and Frank Zappa Meets the Mothers of Prevention (1985). Zappa also named "Three Hours Past Midnight" his favorite record in a 1979 interview.

Steve Miller not only did a cover of "Gangster of Love", he made a couple of references to it in his 1969 song "Space Cowboy" ("Some call me the a gangster of love"; "Is your name "Stevie 'Guitar' Miller?") as well as in his 1973 hit song "The Joker" ("Some call me the gangster of love"). Miller also covered "The Gangster Is Back", on his 1971 album Rock Love.

Jimmie Vaughan, brother of Stevie Ray Vaughan, is quoted as saying: "When my brother Stevie and I were growing up in Dallas, we idolized very few guitarists. We were highly selective and highly critical. Johnny 'Guitar' Watson was at the top of the list, along with Freddie, Albert and B.B. King. He made magic."

Bobby Womack said: "Music-wise, he was the most dangerous gunslinger out there. Even when others made a lot of noise in the charts – I'm thinking of Sly Stone or George Clinton – you know they'd studied Johnny's stage style and listened very carefully to Johnny's grooves."

Etta James stated, in an interview at the 2006 Rochester Jazz Festival: "Johnny 'Guitar' Watson... Just one of my favorite singers of all time. I first met him when we were both on the road with Johnny Otis in the '50s, when I was a teenager. We traveled the country in a car together so I would hear him sing every night. His singing style was the one I took on when I was 17 – people used to call me the female Johnny 'Guitar' Watson and him the male Etta James... He knew what the blues was all about..."

Etta James is also quoted as saying: "I got everything from Johnny... He was my main model... My whole ballad style comes from my imitating Johnny's style... He was the baddest and the best... Johnny Guitar Watson was not just a guitarist: the man was a master musician. He could call out charts; he could write a beautiful melody or a nasty groove at the drop of a hat; he could lay on the harmonies and he could come up with a whole sound. They call Elvis the King; but the sure-enough King was Johnny 'Guitar' Watson." wiki & others

T-Bone Walker

A repost by request: 
 To anyone with a more than a passing knowledge of the music being discussed here the magnitude of dealing with T-Bone can't be lost on you. If we are to accept his personal mythology that extends back to himself and Charlie Christian playing on the street as early Teens with himself as the primary innovator. His certainty that no-one records on electric guitar before himself. (Les Paul, Tiny Grimes and George Barnes were never on his map)....then clearly I have been a complete idiot for not starting this blog with the words "In The Beginning There Was T-Bone Walker"....Obviously I didn't go there!

All that taken into account it would still be impossible to deny that Walker influenced damn near everybody in one way or another.


Once again I had the giant Mosaic collection to distill here. I can promise you that approaching him via that avenue would leave most ears numb. This time my benefactor Cliff provided both the dilemma and the solution with two earlier compilations from Charley and Blue Note that provide solid foundation and enjoyable listening both.

As I did with Amos Milburn and Charles Brown, I have followed the format of the Charly and Blue Note compilations but I used the superior Mosaic remasters as source.

"T-Bone Walker, nė Aaron Thibeaux Walker was born in Linden, Texas, of African American and Cherokee descent. Walker's parents, Movelia Jimerson and Rance Walker, were both musicians. His stepfather, Marco Washington, taught him to play the guitar, ukulele, banjo, violin, mandolin, and piano.

Early in the 1900s, the teenage Walker learned his craft among the street-strolling string bands of Dallas. His mother and stepfather (a member of the Dallas String Band) were musicians, and family friend Blind Lemon Jefferson sometimes joined the family for dinner. Walker left school at age 10, and by 15, he was a professional performer on the blues circuit. Initially, he was Jefferson's protégé and would guide him around town for his gigs. In 1929, Walker made his recording debut with a single for Columbia Records, "Wichita Falls Blues"/"Trinity River Blues," billed as Oak Cliff T-Bone. Oak Cliff was the community he lived in at the time and T-Bone a corruption of his middle name. Pianist Douglas Fernell was his musical partner for the record.

Walker married Vida Lee in 1935; the couple had three children. By age 25 Walker was working and the clubs in Los Angeles' Central Avenue, sometimes as the featured singer and guitarist with Les Hite's orchestra.

By 1942, with his second album release, Walker's new-found musical maturity and ability had advanced to the point that Rolling Stone claimed that he "shocked everyone" with his newly developed distinctive sound upon the release of his first single "Mean Old World", on the Capitol Records label. Much of his output was recorded from 1946–1948 on Black & White Records, including his most famous song, 1947's "Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)". Other notable songs he recorded during this period were "Bobby Sox Blues" (a #3 R&B hit in 1946), and "West Side Baby" (#8 on the R&B singles charts in 1948).

Throughout his career Walker worked with top notch musicians, including trumpeter Teddy Buckner, pianist Lloyd Glenn, Billy Hadnott (bass), and tenor saxophonist Jack McVea.

Following his work with Black & White, he recorded from 1950-54 for Imperial Records (backed by Dave Bartholomew). Walker's only record in the next five years was T-Bone Blues, recorded over three widely separated sessions in 1955, 1956 and 1959, and finally released by Atlantic Records in 1960.

By the early 1960s, Walker's career had slowed down, in spite of a hyped appearance at the American Folk Blues Festival in 1962 with Memphis Slim and prolific writer and musician Willie Dixon, among others. However, several critically acclaimed albums followed, such as I Want a Little Girl (recorded for Delmark Records in 1968). Walker recorded in his last years, from 1968–1975, for Robin Hemingway's Jitney Jane Songs music publishing company, and he won a Grammy Award for Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording in 1971 for Good Feelin', while signed by Polydor Records, produced by Hemingway, followed by another album produced by Hemingway; Walker's Fly Walker Airlines which was released in 1973. T-Bone Walker at the American Folk Blues Festival in Hamburg, March 1972

Persistent stomach woes and a 1974 stroke slowed Walker's career down to a crawl. He died of bronchial pneumonia following another stroke in March 1975, at the age of 64. Walker was interred in the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.

Z.Z. Hill - The Malaco Recordings

 "Texas-born singer Z.Z. Hill managed to resuscitate both his own semi-flagging career and the entire genre at large when he signed on at Jackson, MS-based Malaco Records in 1980 and began growling his way through some of the most uncompromising blues to be unleashed on black radio stations in many a moon. His impressive 1982 Malaco album Down Home Blues remained on Billboard's soul album charts for nearly two years, an extraordinary run for such a blatantly bluesy LP. His songs "Down Home Blues" and "Somebody Else Is Steppin' In" have graduated into the ranks of legitimate blues standards (and few of those have come along over the last couple of decades). "Texas-born singer Z.Z. Hill managed to resuscitate both his own semi-flagging career and the entire genre at large when he signed on at Jackson, MS-based Malaco Records in 1980 and began growling his way through some of the most uncompromising blues to be unleashed on black radio stations in many a moon. His impressive 1982 Malaco album Down Home Blues remained on Billboard's soul album charts for nearly two years, an extraordinary run for such a blatantly bluesy LP. His songs "Down Home Blues" and "Somebody Else Is Steppin' In" have graduated into the ranks of legitimate blues standards (and few of those have come along over the last couple of decades)....But Hill's vocal grit was never more effective than on his blues-soaked Malaco output. From 1980 until 1984, when he died suddenly of a heart attack, Z.Z. bravely led a personal back-to-the-blues campaign that doubtless helped to fuel the subsequent contemporary blues boom. It's a shame he couldn't stick around to see it blossom." Bill Dahl

Z.Z. Hill - The Brand New Z.Z. Hill

Arzell "Z. Z." Hill (September 30, 1935 – April 27, 1984) was an American blues singer, in the soul blues tradition, known for his 1970s and 1980s recordings for Malaco. His 1982 album, Down Home, stayed on the Billboard soul album chart for nearly two years. The track "Down Home Blues" has been called the best-known blues song of the 1980s. This track plus the songs "Taxi", "Someone Else Is Steppin' In", and "Open House" have become R&B/Southern soul standards.

Born in Naples, Texas, United States, Hill began his singing career in the late 1950s as part of a gospel group called The Spiritual Five, touring Texas. Around 1960, he started collecting records by B. B. King, Freddie King, Sam Cooke, Bobby "Blue" Bland and Wilson Pickett and began singing and writing songs influenced by these styles.

In 1964, Hill moved to California and recorded "You Were Wrong" on his brother's M.H. record label. The single charted and Hill released several more singles for Kent, but none of them charted. He moved labels several times, including signing with Phil Walden's Macon, Georgia based Capricorn label, but Hill refused to record for Walden, and his recording contract was bought by Jerry "Swamp Dogg" Williams' Mankind label, where Hill finally fulfilled his end of the deal.

In 1971, Williams recorded Hill in Muscle Shoals, Alabama and they had hits including "Faithful & True" (Cash Box Top 100) and "Chokin' Kind" (Cash Box R&B #50). With his brother's help, Hill then signed to United Artists, where he released several successful singles. During the United Artist period in the mid 1970s, he was aided by arrangements and compositions by established R&B talents like Lamont Dozier and Allen Toussaint.

One of Hill's biggest selling hits came while signed to Columbia, "Love Is So Good When You're Stealing It," which spent 18 weeks on the Billboard R&B chart in the summer of 1977. Signed to Malaco Records in 1979, Hill's next hit single was "I'm Gonna Stop You From Givin' Me The Blues," in 1980. Hill's recording of songwriter George Jackson's "Cheatin' In The Next Room," was released in early 1982 and broke into the top 20 nationally, spending a total of 20 weeks on the charts. He had a number of best-selling albums on Malaco, the biggest one being Down Home Blues, which sold in excess of one million copies.[citation needed] Other Malaco sides that received airplay in the early 1980s were "Someone Else Is Steppin' In", "Bump And Grind", "Shade Tree Mechanic", and "Get You Some Business". George Jackson also wrote Hill's signature tune, "Down Home Blues", which label-mate Denise LaSalle later recorded.

Hill's song, "That Ain't the Way You Make Love", was sampled by Madvillain in their track, "Fancy Clown".

In 1984, Hill died in Dallas at the age of 48 from a heart attack after a road accident

Grey Ghost

For those of you who have read the opening  introduction piece here, the name of the Grey Ghost may be vaguely familiar. I was curious to figure out the reference and then suddenly Cliff was chortling about finding this rarity cheap. If you want the full  excellent story and obituary from the Austin Chronicle please visit this link.

http://www.austinchronicle.com/music/1996-07-26/532322/

Here is the abbreviated version:
" Pianist Roosevelt T. Williams, better known as "Grey Ghost," entertained Central Texas audiences from the 1920s through the 1990s with his jazz-tinged barrelhouse blues. Once called the "Thelonious Monk of Blues," Williams was born Dec. 7, 1903, in Bastrop. Armed with basic musical training as a teen, he used his good ear to absorb African-American, Anglo, Mexican, and Eastern European styles pouring out of area dances and roadhouses. Williams often traveled to and from gigs by slipping onto empty boxcars, which earned him the Grey Ghost appellation. In 1940, folklorist William Owens made a field recording of Grey Ghost singing "Hitler Blues" after hearing him perform at a Navasota skating rink. The song was mentioned in Time magazine and ultimately broadcast over BBC radio in an Alistair Cooke story about the American musical response to World War II. Although the notoriety of "Hitler Blues" did not make Grey Ghost a star, he became a familiar figure in East Austin clubs like the Victory Grill and Fat Green's during their postwar heyday. In 1965, local music historian Tary Owens recorded several Grey Ghost songs, which led to festival appearances alongside Mance Lipscomb and Janis Joplin. After years of relative obscurity, Owens tracked down Grey Ghost again in the mid-Eighties, introducing him to a new generation of blues fans via regular gigs at Antone's and the Continental Club. The city proclaimed Dec. 7, 1987, as Grey Ghost Day, and he was voted into the Austin Music Hall of Fame the following year. Grey Ghost's one eponymous solo album was released in 1992 on Owens' Spindletop label. He also appeared on Catfish's Texas Piano Professors compilation alongside Erbie Bowser and Lavada "Dr. Hepcat" Durst. Grey Ghost passed away on July 17, 1996, at age 92. – Greg Beets

Buddy Ace - The Duke Recordings

Another repost by request:

I've finally found a collection of Buddy Ace's Duke singles! They have not yet received any modern remastering so they are still mixed for jukeboxes, but it is better than nothing.

Born Jimmy Lee Land in Jasper, TX, on November 11, 1936, bluesman "Buddy Ace" was known as "The Silver Fox of the Blues". His name was changed to "Buddy Ace" by Duke's Don Robey after Johnnie Ace's younger brother (St. Clair Alexander) had no success with the handle. Lee Land started out singing in gospel groups (at least one of which also contained Joe Tex) before going into R & B in the early 50s. He toured in Bobby Bland and Junior Parker's bands before he finally got a record contract of his own with Duke/Peacock in 1955. In the mid-'60s, Ace had several R&B hits including "Nothing in the World Can Hurt Me (Except You)" and "Hold On (To This Fool)," but he never scored a major breakthrough. Buddy relocated to Los Angeles in 1970 (after the sale of Duke and death of Don Robey) and later moved to Oakland; he spent much of this period touring in and around the Bay Area. (including Eli's Mile High Club, Jack's and Larry Blake's) Ace continued to perform and record into the '90s with 3 albums released on Leon Haywood's Evejim imprint. Ace passed away on December 26, 1994, at 58 while performing in Waco, TX.

Jabo - Hard Times

I don't know 'bout anyone else, but I'm finding Jabo to be an absolutely delightful disovery! On this album he effortlessly slides between killer Zydeco, Deep Southern Soul, and even some 'adult urban' Chitlin Circuit blues. The man has got some serious chops!

I defy you to sit your ass still during 'Hard Times'; dis here zydeco rocks the way Beau Jocque used to do! 'Happy Anniversary' is pure Southern Soul on a level that's pretty damn rare these days. 'Bang Me' is a magic mix of rude Boo Zoo zydeco with a dash of Hip Hop that somehow succeeds brilliantly.

This brother is seriously the real deal, a star already in full bloom. Every damn song is another revelation and the variety is impressive. The two female guest vocalists are Smokin', the musicians are playing real instruments and THEY are Smokin'...these 10 tracks are without a doubt ALL KILLA', NO FILLA'!!

Jabo & Lil Jabo - Southern Choice

"Donald Glenn, better known to Zydeco fans as Jabo The Texas Prince of Zydeco , started singing and playing music in churches at the age of 6. Jabo began his Blues career at 18 and started playing Zydeco at 25. His talented has been received international recognition and critical acclaim. His many accomplishments include:
Headlined in Texas largest magazine, “Texas Monthly” June 1992
The Houston Chronicle featured Jabo in the “Zest” magazine in 1992 & 1993 for Most Popular among the Texas Zydeco players.
Awarded Best Blues & Zydeco singer by “Houston Press” 1994
Featured in “Jam Source” magazine as highlighted artist of the month 2008
Jabo has performed along side such legendary performers as Bobby Blue Bland, Tyrone Davis, Rue Davis, Johnnie Taylor, Marvin Sease
As founding member of Southern Choice Productions, Jabo is committed to mentoring the next generation of Zydeco and Blues artists. His latest albums is a “Musical Zydeco Gumbo” of talent featuring Lil Jabo Prince Jr., Keyun, J. Paul, Carl Marshall, Donna Nash, Roger Valentine, and Zac Shaw just to name a few."

Freddie King - Larger Than Life (1975)

This was a Freddie King release in 1975 by RSO Records incorporating some studio tracks, not included on the previous album 'Burglar' - posted earlier here - and some tasty live cuts ( featuring some fine sax blowing from David 'Fathead' Newman ).
As it was originally released on a UK label , produced by Mike Vernon, it may have been overlooked in the USA and elsewhere (as was 'Burglar' it seems). So I offer it here to the Chitlins crowd as I know Freddie is a favourite and a Blues legend...Enjoy.

Tracks  : 01 It's Better To Have ( And Don't Need )  02 You Can Run, But You Can't Hide 03 Woke Up This Morning 04 It's Your Move 05 Boogie Bump 06 Meet Me In The Morning 07 The Things I Used To Do 08 Ain't That I Don't Love You 09 Have You Ever Loved A Woman

Freddie King - Burglar (1974)

Freddie King has always been one of my favourite Blues artists. I love all of his recordings, starting with his Federal/King classics ('Have You Ever Loved A Woman', 'Hideaway' etc) 2 albums for Atlantic/Cotillion, 3 for Leon Russell's Shelter Records and his final album 'Burglar' for RSO in 1974. He died way too early, of acute pancreatitus, on 28th December 1976 at the tender age of 42.
'Burglar' remains my favourite Freddie album as , to me,  it catches his raw and gritty guitar and vocals like no previous recordings. At the time of release, critics had mixed responses...Why ?...It may be that most of the sessions were recordrd in the UK with some fine players including the great Steve Ferrone on drums and/or it was full of Funky grooves  that some purists found unpalatable...Humbug !!!...

I cherish the feel of these recordings and have no reservations recommending 'Burglar' to my fellow Chitlins pals here...
Give it a spin and enjoy Freddie doing his Thing ! The track 'Sugar Sweet' was recorded in Florida and features Eric Clapton's band of the time - Full personnel is included in the scans

Tracks : 01 Pack It Up 02 My Credit Didn't Go Through 03 I Got The Same Old Blues 04 Only Getting Second Best 05 Texas Flyer 06 Pulp Wood 07 She's A Burglar 08 Sugar Sweet 09 I Had A Dream 10 Come On (Let The Good Times Roll)

Ruthie Foster - Let It Burn

Found this one on plixid or somewhere like that and it is refreshing to find another modern artist with substance. Ruthie is a Texas gal from a gospel family who sings a blend of blues, folk and gospel.

"2012 release from the Soulful vocalist. Let it Burn is a deeply intimate recording: a smoky mix of original songs coupled with inventive interpretations of an unexpected collection of covers - ranging from Adele to Los Lobos, and from The Black Keys to Johnny Cash. Recorded in New Orleans at Piety Street studios, with a small group of A-List musicians that includes George Porter Jr. of the legendary Meters, this album takes the listener on Ruthie's most personal journey yet. With her deeply moving vocals at the core, Ruthie is supported along the way by some very special guests - gospel legends The Blind Boys of Alabama and Stax Records soul man William Bell."

The Best of Austin City Limits: Big Blues Extravaganza!

Pretty self-explanatory, great line up of artists performing live on the set of Austin City Limits.  Ripped from my CD with EAC to FLAC.  Scans includes a fold out poster... enjoy!!!


1. Albert Collins - Travelin' South  4:39
2. Lightnin' Hopkins - Rock Me Baby  3:48
3. Stevie Ray Vaughan - Love Struck Baby  3:02
4. Jimmie Vaughan and the Tilt-A-Whirl Band - Six Strings Down  4:16
5. Miss Lavelle White - I've Never Found a Man to Love  3:35
6. Keb' Mo' - Tell Everybody I Know  3:31
7. Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown - Born in Louisiana  4:20
8. Dr. John - Since I Fell for You  4:36
9. Buddy Guy - Mary Had a Little Lamb   5:30
10. Taj Mahal - Queen Bee  5:48
11. The Neville Brothers - Yellow Moon  6:14
12. Rory Block - Big Road Blues  2:15
13. W. C. Clark - Ain't It Funny How Time Slips Away  5:31
14. B. B. King - Night Life  6:17
15. Delbert McClinton - Leap of Faith  4:02

Peppermint Harris - Lonesome As I Can Be

Harrison D. Nelson Jr. (July 17, 1925 – March 19, 1999) known as Peppermint Harris, was an American rhythm and blues and jump blues singer and guitarist.

Artist Biography by Bill Dahl

"The contemporary blues boom resuscitated the career of many a veteran blues artist who had been silent for ages. Take guitarist Peppermint Harris, who in 1951 topped the R&B charts with his classic booze ode "I Got Loaded." Nobody expected a new Peppermint Harris CD in 1995, but Home Cooking producer Roy C. Ames coaxed one out of old Pep for Collectables nonetheless. Texas on My Mind may not be as enthralling as Harris' early-'50s output, but it was nice to have him back in circulation. By the time he was in his early twenties, Harrison Nelson, Jr. was lucky enough to have found a mentor and friend on the Houston blues front: Lightnin' Hopkins took an interest in the young man's musical development. When Harris was deemed ready, Lightnin' accompanied him to Houston's Gold Star Records. Nothing came of that jaunt, but Harris eventually recorded his debut 78 for the company in 1948 (as Peppermint Nelson).

Bob Shad's Sittin' in With label was the vehicle that supplied Harris' early work to the masses -- especially his first major hit, "Raining in My Heart," in 1950. These weren't exactly formal sessions; one legend has it one took place in a Houston bordello. Nor was Shad too cognizant of Pep's surname; when he couldn't recall it, he simply renamed our man Harris.

Harris moved over to Eddie Mesner's Aladdin Records in 1951, cutting far tighter sides for the firm in Los Angeles (often with the ubiquitous Maxwell Davis serving as bandleader and saxist). After "I Got Loaded" lit up the charts in 1951, Harris indulged in one booze ode after another: "Have Another Drink and Talk to Me," "Right Back on It," "Three Sheets in the Wind." But try as they might, the bottle let Harris down as a lyrical launching pad after that.

He drifted from Money and Cash to RCA's short-lived subsidiary "X" and Don Robey's Duke logo (where he allegedly penned "As the Years Go Passing By" for Fenton Robinson) after that, but it wasn't until a long-lasting association with Stan Lewis' Shreveport, Louisiana-based Jewel Records commenced in 1965 that Harris landed for longer than a solitary single. Later, Harris worked various day jobs around Houston, including one at a record pressing plant, before moving to Sacramento, California, and then to New Jersey to be with his daughter.