Stretchin' Out - Blues Obscurities Volume Three

Side1:
01. Gonna Take Time - Gus Jenkins
02. Stretchin' Out - Don & Dewey
03. The Hurt Is On - Kid Thomas (Tommy Louis)
04. Let's Talk It Over - Blues Slim (Neal Johnson)
05. Going Back Home - Sonny Harper
06. Storm Clouds - C.C. Griffin
07. Lou Della - West Texas Slim

Side 2:
01. I Keep On Trying - K.C. Mojo Watson
02. You Told Me - Gus Jenkins
03. Soul Motion - Don & Dewey
04. Hard Life - Guitar Shorty
05. I Do Believe - C.C. Griffin
06. Lonely Stranger - Sonny Harper
07. Little Mae Bell - West Texas Slim

Stretchin' Out (Mega)

Stretchin' Out (Zippy)

The Be Bop Wino Autumn Blues Tour lands in Los Angeles for another collection of sides culled from small labels, and it's thanks once again to Charlie B. who kindly ripped and sent in this L.P.

The sides were recorded between 1953 and 1965, a time when the LA R&B scene was dominated by the "big" independents such as Aladdin, Imperial, Specialty and Modern / RPM. Then came a second tier of indy record companies like Combo, Dootone and John Dolphin's stable of labels such as Cash, Money, Lucky, and Recorded In Hollywood. And then somewhere considerably lower down the foodchain were the labels featured on this collection - Pioneer International, Rush, Muriel, Ball, Flame, Nanc, Flash, Joyce, Pull, and Allegro R&B. Nope, me neither. Well, almost. Our next post will take a look at the Flash Records setup, but most of the other labels here are a mystery to me.

Luckily the LP has good sleevenotes by Neil Slaven and then there is the music which is all hardcore blues. As Neil observes, the influence of B.B. King can be heard on some of these sides. The biggest name act here is probably Don & Dewey whose sides feature the electric blues violin of Don "Sugarcane" Harris. A personal favourite of mine is Sonny Harper who kind of reminds me of Lil' Son Jackson. Anyway that's enough from me. Download, listen and peruse the sleevenotes on the back cover. You'll find the usual origiinal release details below.

 Thanks once more to Charlie B.

 

Release details:

01. Gonna Take Time - Gus Jenkins: Spanky / Gonna Take Time - Pioneer International 101 - released 1959.

02. Stretchin' Out - Don & Dewey: Soul Motion / Stretchin' Out - Rush 1002 - released December 1962.

03. The Hurt Is On - Kid Thomas (Tommy Louis): Tommy Louis & The Rhythm Rockers - The Hurt Is On / I Love You So - Muriel M-1001 - released 1965.

04. Let's Talk It Over - Blues Slim (Neal Johnson): Blues Slim and his Band - Let's Talk It Over / Tell The Truth Baby - Pioneer International PI-1007 - released November 1961.

05. Going Back Home - Sonny Harper: Going Back Home / Lonely Stranger - Ball 1011 - released 1962.

06. Storm Clouds - C.C. Griffin: Storm Clouds / I Want To Be With You - Joyce 1001 - released June 1961.

07. Lou Della - West Texas Slim: Little Mae Bell / Lou Della - Flame 1007 - released 1953.

08. I Keep On Trying - K.C. Mojo Watson: Love Blood Hound / I Keep On Trying - Nanc 003 - released October 1961.

09. You Told Me - Gus Jenkins: You Told Me / Tricky - Flash 115 - released November 1956.

10. Soul Motion - Don & Dewey: Soul Motion / Stretchin' Out - Rush 1002 - released December 1962.

11. Hard Life - Guitar Shorty: Hard Life / Ways Of A Man - Pull 301 - released December 1951.

12. I Do Believe - C.C. Griffin: I Do Believe / Sitting And Waiting - Allegro R&B-2001 - released circa 1965.

13. Lonely Stranger - Sonny Harper: Going Back Home / Lonely Stranger - Ball 1011 - released 1962.

14. Little Mae Bell - West Texas Slim: Little Mae Bell / Lou Della - Flame 1007 - released 1953.