Rock 'n' Roll (Regent MG-6015)

Side A
1. Rockin' Boy / Chuz Alfred Combo
2. Hot Rod / Hal Singer
3. Blues For Everybody / Bobby Banks Orch.
4. Playboy Hop / Rockin' Bros. Orch.
5. The Grinder / Rockin' Bros. Orch.

Side B
1. You Gotta Rock And Roll / Bob Oakes Orch.
2. Backbiter / T.J. Fowler
3. Wine Cooler / T.J. Fowler
4. Rooster Boogie / Paul Williams Orch.
5. Frog Hop / Hal Singer Orch.


The anonymous donor who sent in the Plymouth LP “Rock and Roll No. 2” also sent this 1950s LP on the Regent label. The album was released around 1956 and it’s another fine example of a record company using old R&B sides to exploit the rock and roll craze. The tracks on offer here range from early 1950s R&B honk and jump to a couple of jazz groups recording in an R&B / rock and roll style in the mid 1950s. Don’t get me wrong, this is a very listenable collection of sax dominated rockin’ music which is guaranteed to tickle the musical taste buds of Be Bop Wino fans, especially as it is sourced from the vaults of Savoy, home of the big fat tenor sax sound.

Founded by Herman Lubinsky in 1947, Regent was a sister label to his renowned Savoy label. In the early 1950s Regent released singles by established Savoy R&B names like Johnny Otis and the various artists associated with his group such as Mel Walker, Redd Lyte and Little Esther. Around 1952 it was unsuccessfully relaunched as a vehicle for pop releases. Throughout its existence Regent was always overshadowed by the longer established Savoy.

In the mid-50s Regent started releasing a line of LPs, the Regent 6000 series. Titles included classical, gospel, cocktail jazz and the kind of thing that the Schadenfreudian Therapy blog would thrive on – Mexican folk, polkas, hot harmonicas, swingin’ organs, military marches, Rudy Vallee, banjo music, Fingers Finnegan, Dixieland jazz, ye gods, I’m getting a headache just thinking about it.

But in amongst the cheese was a smattering of jazz and early R&B from Savoy, National and DeeGee – Billy Eckstine, Don Byas, Art Pepper, The Ravens, Dizzy Gillespie, live cuts by Wardell Gray and Dexter Gordon recorded in 1947, and another “rock and roll” LP with the imaginative title “Rock and Roll Party No. 2.” Like the LP featured here, it was very much a recycling of old Savoy R&B material including sides by Big Jay McNeely, Paul Williams, Hal Singer, T.J. Fowler, Little Esther and Nappy Brown. It would be very good listening for Be Bop Winos, if anyone out there has a copy they would like to donate.

Thank you once more to our ever generous anonymous donor for this vintage LP!

Ripped from vinyl at 128 kbps.

Download from here:

http://www20.zippyshare.com/v/DcKsy6Em/file.html

1. Rockin' Boy / Chuz Alfred Combo (1955)
2. Hot Rod / Hal Singer (1955)
3. Blues For Everybody / Bobby Banks Orch. (1955)
4. Playboy Hop / Rockin' Bros. Orch. (1954)
5. The Grinder / Rockin' Bros. Orch. (1954)
6. You Gotta Rock And Roll / Bob Oakes Orch. (1956)
7. Backbiter / T.J. Fowler (1952)
8. Wine Cooler / T.J. Fowler (1952)
9. Rooster Boogie / Paul Williams Orch. (1951)
10. Frog Hop / Hal Singer Orch. (1952)