Muddy Waters - Chess Masters

Side One:
01) Mannish Boy
02) Screamin' & Crying
03) Just To Be With You
04) Walking In The Park
05) Walking Blues
06) Canary Bird

Side Two:
01) Same Thing
02) Gypsy Women
03) Rollin' & Tumblin'
04) 40 Days & 40 Nights
05) Little Geneva
06) You Can't Lose What You Never Had

Side Three:
01) I Just Want To Make Love To You
02) Long Distance Call
03) Louisiana Blues
04) Honey Bee
05) Rollin' Stone
06) I'm Ready

Side Four:
01) (I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man
02) She Moves Me
03) I Want You To Love Me
04) Standing Around Crying
05) Still A Fool
06) I Can't Be Satisfied

Muddy Waters Chess Masters (Mega)

Muddy Waters Chess Masters (Zippy)

Ah, another "Chess Masters" double LP set that's been put together by PRT with absolutely no care whatsoever. What's a blogger to make of this? No sleeve notes. The tracklist on the back cover reverses the track lists on the actual discs. Many of the song titles contain spelling mistakes and a couple of the titles are just wrong. Before I dig in just let me say that the actual music is dynamite Chicago blues straight from the top drawer, so the effort to dig out info is well worth it.

Firstly I've gone with the track lists as they are on the discs, so sides one and two on the back cover are now sides three and four, and vice versa. The track titles are more or less as they appear on this 2LP set. You'll find the titles as they appeared on the original singles in the chronological single releases section, along with R&B chart entries. The mp3s are tagged with the LP set titles. It should be noted that 2 of the titles on this set are very inaccurate. "I Just Want To Make Love To You" was originally "Just Make Love To Me" and "I Want You To Love Me" was originally "Mad Love."

The recording dates are mostly from the booklet of the 2CD set "Muddy Waters The Anthology" - see under recommended purchases. The original single release details are mostly from 45worlds.com and the chart entry details are from Robert Gordon's biography of Muddy, "Can't Be Satisfied." Again see recommended purchases. Also consulted - The Cash Box, Bruyninckx, The Red Saunders Research Foundation, and YouTube.

There were a lot of clicks and pops on the vinyl but I've managed to eliminate most of it. There is some distortion on "Mannish Boy" which should have been spelt "Manish Boy."

The tracks with recording dates and single release numbers

01) Mannish Boy - Chess 1602 - rec May 24th 1955

02) Screamin' & Crying - Aristocrat 406 - rec September 1949

03) Just To Be With You - Chess 1644 - rec June 29th 1956

04) Walking In The Park - Chess 1718 - rec late 1958

05) Walking Blues - Chess 1426 - rec February 1950

06) Canary Bird -Aristocrat 1311 - rec July 1949

07) Same Thing - Chess 1895 - rec April 9th 1964

08) Gypsy Women - Aristocrat 1302 - rec September 1947

09) Rollin' & Tumblin' - Aristocrat 412 - rec February 1950

10) 40 Days & 40 Nights - Chess 1620 - rec February 2nd 1956

11) Little Geneva - Aristocrat 1311 - rec July 1949

12) You Can't Lose What You Never Had - Chess 1895 - rec April 9th 1964

01) I Just Want To Make Love To You (Just Make Love To Me) - Chess 1571 - rec April 13th 1954

02) Long Distance Call - Chess 1452 - rec January 23rd 1951

03) Louisiana Blues - Chess 1441 - rec October 23rd 1950

04) Honey Bee - Chess 1468 - rec January 23rd 1951

05) Rollin' Stone - Chess 1426 - rec February 1950

06) I'm Ready - Chess 1579 - rec September 1st 1954

07) (I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man - Chess 1560 - rec January 7th 1954

08) She Moves Me - Chess 1490 - rec July 11th 1951

09) I Want You To Love Me (Mad Love) - Chess 1550 -September 24th 1953

10) Standing Around Crying - Chess 1526 - rec September 17th 1952

11) Still A Fool - Chess 1480 - rec July 11th 1951

12) I Can't Be Satisfied - Aristocrat 1305 - rec April 1948

Original Single Releases (titles as per record label)

Billboard R&B chart entries - highest position plus month & year record entered the charts

Gypsy Woman / Little Anna Mae - Muddy Water with Sunny Land Slim - Aristocrat 1302 - March 1948

I Can't Be Satisfied / I Feel Like Going Home - Muddy Waters with Rhythm Accompaniment - Aristocrat 1305 - June 1948 (B Side was #11 R&B September 1948)

Little Geneva / Canary Bird - Muddy Waters - Aristocrat 1311 - November 1949

Screaming And Crying / Where's My Woman Been - Muddy Waters - Aristocrat 406 - February 1950

Rollin' And Tumblin' Part 1 / Rollin' And Tumblin' Part 2 - Muddy Waters - Aristocrat 412 - April 1950

Rollin' Stone / Walkin' Blues - Muddy Waters - Chess 1426 - June 1950

Louisiana Blues / Evan's Shuffle - Muddy Waters - Chess 1441 - November 1950 (#10 R&B January 1951)

Long Distance Call / Too Young To Know - Muddy Waters and his Guitar - Chess 1452 - March 1951 (#8 R&B April 1951)

Honey Bee / Appealing Blues - Muddy Waters and his Guitar - Chess 1468 - July 1951 (#10 R&B July 1951)

My Fault / Still A Fool - Muddy Waters and his Guitar - Chess 1480 - September 1951 (#9 R&B November 1951)

She Moves Me / Early Morning Blues - Muddy Waters And His Guitar - Chess 1490 - January 1952 (#10 R&B February 1952)

Standing Around Crying / Gone To Main St. - Muddy Waters and his Guitar - Chess 1526 - November 1952

Mad Love / Blow Wind, Blow - Muddy Waters and his Guitar - Chess 1550 - October 1953 (#6 R&B November 1953)

I'm Your Hoochie Cooche Man / She's So Pretty - Muddy Waters and his Guitar - Chess 1560 - January 1954 (#3 R&B March 1954)

Just Make Love To Me / Oh! Yeh - Muddy Waters and his Guitar - Chess 1571 - May 1954 (#4 R&B June 1954)

I'm Ready / I Don't Know Why - Muddy Waters and his Guitar - Chess 1579 - September 1954 (#4 R&B October 1954)

Manish Boy / Young Fashion Ways - Muddy Waters And His Guitar - Chess 1602 - July 1955 (#5 R&B July 1955)

Forty Days & Forty Nights / All Aboard - Muddy Waters And His Guitar - Chess 1620 - April 1956 (#7 R&B May 1956)

Just To Be With You / I Got To Find My Baby - Muddy Waters - Chess 1644 - November 1956

Mean Mistreater / Walking Thru The Park - Muddy Waters - Chess 1718 - February 1959

The Same Thing / You Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had - Chess 1895 - May 1964

Recommended Purchases:

 Muddy Waters The Anthology 2CD set MCA / Chess

The above 50 track set is the only Muddy Waters CD I've ever bought. Great sound and most of the big ones are here.

Superb biography by Robert Gordon. Jonathan Cape, 2002 (UK). Most highly recommended.
 

Various Artists - Chess Masters

LP1:

Download LP1 from here:

http://www9.zippyshare.com/v/Pu2TH1QV/file.html

Side 1:

01. Sweet Black Angel - Robert Nighthawk

02. Walkin' Blues - Muddy Waters

03. Mad Man Blues - John Lee Hooker

04. Sad Hours - Little Walter

05. Dust My Broom - Elmore James

06. Diggin' My Potatoes - Washboard Sam

Side 2:

01. Third Degree - Eddie Boyd

02. Mama Talk To Your Daughter - J.B. Lenoir

03. I'm Ready - Muddy Waters

04. I'm Glad You Reconsidered - Lowell Fulson

05. I'm A Man - Bo Diddley

06. Walkin' By Myself - Jimmy Rogers

LP2:

Download LP2 from here:

http://www69.zippyshare.com/v/sS5w6Ggh/file.html

Side 3:

01. I Don't Know - Sonny Boy Williamson

02. Goin' Down Slow - Little Walter

03. So Many Roads - Otis Rush

04. All Your Love - Otis Rush

05. I Got My Eyes On You - Buddy Guy

06. The First Time I Met The Blues - Buddy Guy

Side 4:

01. The Sun Is Shining - Elmore James

02. Stormy Monday Blues - Elmore James

03. Spoonful - Howlin' Wolf

04. The Red Rooster - Howlin' Wolf

05. Help Me - Sonny Boy Williamson

06. Feel So Bad - Little Milton

I think this PRT (Precision Records and Tapes) Chess Masters double LP came out in the early 1980s. I bought quite a few titles in this series, including double LPs of Little Walter, Muddy Waters, Lowell Fulson, Bo Diddley, and Sonny Boy Williamson, and single LPs of Chuck Berry, Bobby Charles and Willie Mabon. PRT was the successor company to Pye, which had been issuing Chess material in the UK since 1961.

As the LP cover has no information on the tracks, I did a bit of burrowing around in the Bruyninckx Discography, various LP sleeves and CD booklets, and online: Billboard (via Google Books search), www.45worlds.com, www.45cat.com and www.wirz.de with horrendous consequences for my sanity. But here it is, the lowdown on the original single issues of these 24 tracks, plus details of who was (perhaps) playing on these recordings. I ain't gonna do this for every album I post!

The LP set was in decent condition, but there is a bit of "juddering" on the final track by Little Milton. Apologies! Please note that the track listed on the sleeve as "Reconsider Baby" by Lowell Fulson is in fact "I'm Glad You Reconsidered" by the same artist.

Track details for LP1:

Sweet Black Angel - Robert Nighthawk. Originally released as "Black Angel Blues" by The Nighthawks on Aristocrat 2301 (B side of Annie Lee Blues), November 1949. Recorded in Chicago on July 12th, 1949. Personnel: Robert Nighthawk (vocal, guitar); Ernest Lane (piano); Willie Dixon (bass).

Walkin' Blues - Muddy Waters. Originally released on Chess 1426 (B side of "Rollin' Stone"), June 1950. Recorded in Chicago, February 1950. Personnel: Muddy Waters (vocal, guitar); Ernest "Big" Crawford (bass).

Mad Man Blues - John Lee Hooker. Originally released on Chess 1462, May 1951. Credited to "John Lee Booker and his Guitar". Recorded in Detroit, 1950. Personnel: John Lee Hooker (vocal, guitar).

Sad Hours - Little Walter. Originally released on Checker 764 (B side of "Mean Old World"), November 1952. Credited to Little Walter and his Night Caps. Recorded in Chicago, October 1952. Personnel: Little Walter (harmonica); Louis Myers and David Myers (guitars); Fred Below (drums).

Dust My Broom - Elmore James. Originally released as "She Just Won't Do Right" on Checker 777, July 1953. Recorded in Chicago, January 17th, 1953. Personnel: Elmore James (vocal, guitar); J.T. Brown (tenor sax); Johnny Jones (piano); possibly Ransom Knowling (bass); Odie Payne (drums).

Diggin' My Potatoes - Washboard Sam.  Originally released on Chess 1545 (B side of "Bright Eyes"), July 1953. Recorded in Chicago, April 1953. Personnel: Washboard Sam (vocal, washboard); Big Bill Broonzy (guitar); Ernest "Big" Crawford (bass).

Third Degree - Eddie Boyd. Originally released on Chess 1541, May 1953. Credited to "Eddie Boyd and his Chess Men." Recorded in Chicago, May 1953. Personnel: Eddie Boyd (vocal, piano); Little Sax Crowder (tenor sax); Lee Cooper (guitar), Willie Dixon (bass); Percy Walker (drums).

Mama Talk To Your Daughter - J.B. Lenoir. Originally released on Parrot 809, January 1955. Credited to J.B. Lenore. Recorded in Chicago, October 6th, 1954. Personnel: J.B. Lenoir (vocal, guitar); Lorenzo Smith (tenor sax); Joe Montgomery (piano); Al Galvin (drums).

I'm Ready - Muddy Waters. Originally released on Chess 1579, September 1954. Credited to "Muddy Waters and his Guitar." Recorded in Chicago, September 1st, 1954. Personnel: Muddy Waters (vocal); Little Walter (harmonica); Jimmy Rogers (guitar); Otis Spann (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

I'm Glad You Reconsidered - Lowell Fulson. Originally released on Checker 959, September 1960. Recorded in Los Angeles, June 2nd 1960. Personnel: Lowell Fulson (vocal, guitar); Earl Brown (alto sax); Louis Williams (tenor sax); Big Jim Wynn (baritone sax); Lloyd Glenn (piano); Billy Hadnott (bass); Robert "Snake" Sims (drums).

I'm A Man - Bo Diddley. Originally released on Checker 814 (B side of "Bo Diddley"), April 1955. Recorded in Chicago, March 2nd 1955. Personnel: Bo Diddley (vocal, guitar); Billy Boy Arnold (harmonica); Otis Spann (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Clifton James (drums); Jerome Green (maracas).

Walkin' By Myself - Jimmy Rogers. Originally released on Chess 1643, January 1957. Recorded in Chicago, October 29th, 1956. Personnel: Jimmy Rogers (vocal, guitar); Walter Horton (harmonica); Otis Spann (piano); Robert Jr. Lockwood (guitar); Willie Dixon (bass); A.J. Gladney (drums).

Track details for LP2:

I Don't Know - Sonny Boy Williamson. Originally released on Checker 864 (B side of "Fattening Frogs For Snakes"), June 1957. Recorded in Chicago, February 8th 1957. Personnel: Sonny Boy Williamson (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Goin' Down Slow - Little Walter. Unissued Checker recording. Possibly recorded in Chicago, December 1959. Possible personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); George Hunter (drums). A different version of the same song (composed by St. Louis Jimmy Oden), retitled "I Had My Fun" and probably recorded in June 1957, was released by Little Walter on Checker 945, February 1960.

So Many Roads - Otis Rush. Originally released as "So Many Roads, So Many Trains" on Chess 1751, March 1960. Recorded in Chicago, January 1960. Personnel: Otis Rush (vocal, guitar); Bob Neely (tenor sax); Lafayette Leake (piano); Matt Murphy (electric bass); Willie Dixon (bass); Odie Payne Jr. (drums).

All Your Love - Otis Rush. Originally released on Chess LP 1538 "Door To Door" (Albert King and Otis Rush). Recorded at same session and with same personnel as "So Many Roads" January 1960. This is a re-recording of "All Your Love (I Miss Loving)" by Otis Rush & His Band, Cobra 5032, released July 1959.

I Got My Eyes On You - Buddy Guy. First released on Chess 1753, April 1960. Recorded in Chicago, March 2nd 1960. Personnel: Buddy Guy (vocal, guitar); Jarrett Gibson and Bob Neely (tenor saxes); Donald Hankins (baritone sax); Little Brother Montgomery (piano); Jack Myers (electric bass), Fred Below (drums).

The First Time I Met The Blues - Buddy Guy. B side of "I Got My Eyes On You" (Chess 1753). Recorded at the same session and with the same personnel.

The Sun Is Shining - Elmore James. Alternate take of Chess 1756 (B side of "I Can't Hold Out") which was released in May, 1960. Recorded in Chicago, April 14th, 1960. Personnel: Elmore James (vocal, guitar); J.T. Brown (tenor sax); Unknown (tenor sax); Little Johnny Jones (piano); Homesick James (guitar); Henry Harris (drums).

Stormy Monday Blues - Elmore James. Unreleased as a single. First released in 1968 on Blue Horizon LP "Tough" (Elmore James and John Brim). Recorded at the same session and with the same personnel as "The Sun Is Shining", April 14th, 1960.

Spoonful - Howlin' Wolf. First released on Chess 1762, July 1960. Recorded in Chicago, June 1960. Personnel: Howlin' Wolf (vocal); Otis Spann (piano); Hubert Sumlin and Freddy Robinson (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

The Red Rooster - Howlin' Wolf. First released on Chess 1804, October 1961. Recorded in Chicago, May 1961. Personnel: Howlin' Wolf (vocal, guitar); Johnny Jones (piano); Hubert Sumlin (guitar); Willie Dixon (bass); Sam Lay (drums).

Help Me - Sonny Boy Williamson. First released on Checker 1036, February 1963. Recorded in Chicago, January 11th, 1963. Personnel: Sonny Boy Williamson (vocal, harmonica); Lafayette Leake or Billy Emerson (organ); Matt Murphy (guitar); Milton Rector (bass); Al Duncan (drums).

Feel So Bad - Little Milton. First released as a single on Checker 1162, December 1966. Also released in December 1966 on Checker LP 3002 "Little Milton Sings Big Blues." Recorded in Chicago, June 3rd 1966. Personnel: Little Milton (vocal, guitar); Sonny Thompson (piano); Roosevelt Williams (electric bass), Maurice White or Ira Gates (drums).

Juke Joint Jukebox

Side 1

1 Sonny Boy Williamson - Don't Start Me To Talkin'

2 John Lee Hooker - This Is Hip

3 Jimmy Reed - You Got Me Dizzy

4 Otis Rush - All Your Love

5 Elmore James - Sho Nuff I Do

6 Guitar Slim - The Things That I Used To Do

7 Little Junior Parker - Sweet Home Chicago

8 John Lee Hooker - Boom Boom

Side 2

1 Jimmy Reed - Big Boss Man

2 Little Junior Parker - 5 Long Years

3 Johnny "Guitar" Watson - Hot Little Mama

4 Muddy Waters - I'm Ready

5 Pee Wee Crayton - Crayton's Blues

6 Doctor Ross - The Boogie Disease

7 Elmore James - Elmo's Shuffle

8 Jimmy Rogers - Walkin' By Myself

All tracks ripped from vinyl at 320 mbps.

Download from here:

https://mega.co.nz/#!EQkixb6Y!54sT2RImw1eNpd1zwHQWMkotxdk27tDOENJYXaep0f4

or here:

http://www7.zippyshare.com/v/56729788/file.html

Now back before I discovered the joys of jump blues, I used to listen to the "real" blues, mainly electric guitar and harmonica driven blues from Chicago. Growing up in the UK in the 1960s, you couldn't help but hear the blues "second hand" via groups like The Stones, The Pretty Things, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and my favourite British blues group, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac.

It was thanks to a school pal, one Shuggy Cameron, that I first heard some of the original blues artists when round about 1970 he lent me 2 LPs - "Muddy Waters at Newport" and "Blues is King" by B.B. King. The awful results of that exchange of records (I lent him the debut albums of Steppenwolf  and Fleetwood Mac) are all too visible on this blog 44 years later. Shuggy probably went on to become a brain surgeon or airline pilot or some such while here I am half buried in a great heap of vinyl.

So here's a home made compilation of the kind of blues we don't have often enough on Be Bop Wino. All 1950s or even early 60s sides from Chess, VeeJay, RPM, Specialty and Duke, and mostly well known tracks. No extensive notes this time. Just download and groove to these stompers and swayers. I've decided to try the new Mega site as my slow broadband connection makes uploading to Zippyshare just about impossible. Hope the link works OK!