The album is admittedly a schizophrenic mix of live and studio material and bands...I still wouldn't skip it. It's was a frequent late night choice. When others would play Lee Michaels' 'Stormy Monday' at me, this version was my response.
Showing posts with label Junior Wells. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Junior Wells. Show all posts
Monday, October 5, 2015
Junior Wells - It's My Life, Baby!
The album is admittedly a schizophrenic mix of live and studio material and bands...I still wouldn't skip it. It's was a frequent late night choice. When others would play Lee Michaels' 'Stormy Monday' at me, this version was my response.
Monday, September 28, 2015
Junior Wells - 1953-54 - Blues Hit Big Town
"Those wonderful folks at Delmark have opened the floodgates on another batch of blues treasures. Junior Wells' Blues Hit Big Town (Delmark DD-640; 48:38) is culled from historic 1953-'54 sessions that feature backing by Muddy Waters, Elmore James, Otis Spann, Willie Dixon, The Aces with Louis and Dave Myers and other Chicago blues stalwarts. Cut when the late Wells was only 19, it includes his first ever recording of "Hoodoo Man." An amazing document by one of the great 'real deal' bluesmen of all-time.
Tuesday, September 8, 2015
Junior Wells - Everybody's Gettin' Some (1995)
Monday, September 7, 2015
Junior Wells - Hoodoo Man Blues 1965
"Hoodoo Man Blues is one of the truly classic blues albums of the 1960s, and one of the first to fully document, in the superior acoustics of a recording studio, the smoky ambience of a night at a West Side nightspot. Junior Wells just set up with his usual cohorts -- guitarist Buddy Guy, bassist Jack Myers, and drummer Billy Warren -- and proceeded to blow up a storm, bringing an immediacy to "Snatch It Back and Hold It," "You Don't Love Me, Baby," "Chitlins con Carne," and the rest of the tracks that is absolutely mesmerizing. Widely regarded as one of Wells' finest achievements, it also became Delmark's best-selling release of all time. Producer Bob Koester vividly captures the type of grit that Wells brought to the stage. When Wells and his colleagues dig into "Good Morning, Schoolgirl," "Yonder Wall," or "We're Ready," they sound raw, gutsy, and uninhibited. And while Guy leaves the singing to Wells, he really shines on guitar. Guy, it should be noted, was listed as "Friendly Chap" on Delmark's original LP version of Hoodoo Man Blues; Delmark thought Guy was under contract to Chess, so they gave him a pseudonym. But by the early '70s, Guy's real name was being listed on pressings. This is essential listening for lovers of electric Chicago blues."
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Junior Wells & Earl Hooker - Messin' With The Kid 1957-1963 (expanded)
"Junior Wells (December 9, 1934 – January 15, 1998), born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr., was an American Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist. Wells, who was best known for his performances and recordings with Muddy Waters, Earl Hooker, and Buddy Guy, also performed with Bonnie Raitt, the Rolling Stones, and Van Morrison.Junior Wells was possibly born in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, and raised in West Memphis, Arkansas, though other sources report that his birth was in West Memphis, Arkansas. Initially taught by his cousin, Junior Parker, and Sonny Boy Williamson II, Wells learned how to play the harmonica by the age of seven with surprising skill. He moved to Chicago in 1948 with his mother after her divorce and began sitting in with local musicians at house parties and taverns. Wild and rebellious but needing an outlet for his talents, he began performing with The Aces (guitarist brothers Dave and Louis Myers and drummer Fred Below) and developed a more modern amplified harmonica style influenced by Little Walter. In 1952, he made his first recordings, when he replaced Little Walter in Muddy Waters' band and appeared on one of Muddy's sessions for Chess Records in 1952.
His first recordings as a band leader were made in the following year for States Records. In the later 1950s and early 1960s, he also recorded singles for Chief Records and its Profile Records subsidiary, including "Messin' with the Kid", "Come on in This House", and "It Hurts Me Too", which would remain in his repertoire throughout his career. His 1960 Profile single "Little by Little" (written by Chief owner and producer Mel London) reached #23 in the Billboard R&B chart, making it the first of two Wells' singles to enter the chart.
Wells' album Hoodoo Man Blues (1965) on Delmark Records featured Buddy Guy on guitar. The two worked with the Rolling Stones on several occasions in the 1970s. His album South Side Blues Jam came out in 1971) and On Tap in 1975. His 1996 release Come on in This House includes slide guitarists, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Derek Trucks, and others. Wells made an appearance in the film Blues Brothers 2000, the sequel to The Blues Brothers, which was released in 1998.
From Wells' "Hoodoo Man Blues" album cover Junior gives this story: "I went to this pawnshop downtown and the man had a harmonica prices at $2.00. I got a job on a soda truck... played hookey from school ... worked all week and on Saturday the man gave me a dollar and a half. A dollar and a half! For a whole week of work. I went to the pawnshop and the man said the price was two dollars. I told him I had to have that harp. He walked away from the counter – left the harp there. So I laid my dollar-and-a-half on the counter and picked up the harp. When my trial came up, the judge asked my why I did it. I told him I had to have that harp. The judge asked me to play it and when I did he gave the man the 50 cents and hollered "Case dismissed!" (1948)
Wells began to have serious health problems, including cancer and a heart attack, in 1997. He died in Chicago on January 15, 1998, and was interred in the Oak Woods Cemetery, Chicago." wiki
I've added 4 additional tracks that come from later re-issues of this same material - you will be able to tell by the covers - I left it to you as to where you want to incorporate them into the playlist.