Chuck Carbo - Drawers Trouble, The Barber's Blues

You have no idea how pleased I am to have copies of these two albums again. They were a gift from Hartmut, whom some of you will know from 'Don't Ask Me....' where his cool singles rips have been appearing.

During that killer period when Rounder Records discovered New Orleans one of the many things they got right was the good sense to do a couple albums on this man.

"AllMusic Review by Bill Dahl

Veteran New Orleans R&B singer Carbo proves he's a capable front man even without the presence of his '50s vocal group, the Spiders, on this infectious comeback set. With Crescent City vet Edward Frank handling piano and arranging duties, Carbo smoothly intones a mostly original lineup of songs (Jeannie & Jimmy Cheatham's lascivious standard "Meet Me with Your Black Drawers On" being one of the few exceptions). Dr. John contributes his considerable skills on keyboard and guitar to the project."

"AllMusic Review by Bill Dahl

Ex-Spiders lead Carbo returns with a Rounder encore that eschews Dr. John but brings back Edward Frank as co-producer and pianist. Some of the selections are a little on the hackneyed side (a permanent moratorium on "Everyday I Have the Blues," tplease!), but Carbo's second line-based "Hey, Mardi Gras! (Here I Am)," the title item, and a easy-on-the-ears reprise of the Cheathams' "Don't Boogie with Your Black Drawers On" hit the spot."

Chuck Carbo - Life's Ups and Downs (vinyl to flac)

A repost request -- 

This was the beginning of Carbo's 90's comeback. A pair of Rounder releases would follow. (If anyone has copies of those two, by all means let me know.) This was also the last session that Alvin 'Shine' Robinson played on, he died a couple months later. 
 
Review: "Several people with well-regarded opinions will, without prodding, tell you that the most distinct voice of the classic period of New Orleans rhythm and blues belonged to Chuck Carbo. That’s quite a compliment considering Carbo graduated from the same class as Johnny Adams, Danny White, Aaron Neville and Roland Stone. Carbo was the lead vocalist with the Spiders, who had a couple of national hits—and several great records—in the mid-1950s, and had a locally successful solo career in the early-1960s. The demise of the New Orleans sound hamstrung his career in the mid-1960s and Carbo was forced to deal with such mundane activities as finding a nine-to-five, raising a family, making car payments and such.

Chuck Carbo & Sugarboy Crawford at Jazz Fest

Thankfully, Carbo’s career was resurrected by Mike Dine at 504 Records in the late 1980s when New Orleans R&B was enjoying a brief resurgence. What helps this album is the inclusion of several members of the old guard in the trenches, including Edward Frank, Charles Burbank and “Shine” Robinson. Those old enough to remember might recall that the centerpieces of this album, “Second Line on Monday” and “Meet Me With Your Black Drawers,” deservedly got lots of airplay (not just WWOZ) around every Mardi Gras in the early- 1990s. Carbo did a good job recycling several previous successes, including a couple of Spiders titles, the best being the tried-and-true “Witchcraft,” but his own “Bells in My Heart” still rings true. Carbo does a few passable Imperial-era covers (the Spiders recorded for Imperial), and he does a superlative version of Earl King’s “Life’s Ups and Downs,” a rather appropriate song for our man. The sound is vintage here without being dated. Perhaps this was attained by putting the then up-and-comer Shannon Powell behind the drums." 
Jeff Hannusch