Mel Walker - Sunset To Dawn

Side One:
01. Cry Baby
02. Helpless
03. Dreamin' Blues
04. Lonely Blues
05. Strange Woman
06. Sunset To Dawn
07. Rockin' Blues
08. Fool's Gold

Side Two:
01. Feel Like Crying Again
02. Heartache Here I Come
03. Turn The Lights Down Low
04. It Can Never Happen Again
05. Just Another Flame
06. Help Me Blues
07. Walk My Blues Away
08. Three Magic Words

Mel Walker - Sunset To Dawn (Mega)

or

Mel Walker - Sunset to Dawn (Zippy)

While Little Esther was very much the star of the successful Johnny Otis Orchestra's run of hits in 1950, her co-singer on many of the discs, Mel Walker, also enjoyed success as a solo singer on several Savoy releases.

Mel Walker (real name Melvin Lightsey) was born in Bloomburg, Texas in November 1929 and raised in East Los Angeles. His ability to sing in a style not dissimilar to that of Charles Brown was spotted at the Barrelhouse Club and he became a regular performer in the shows there. His recording debut with the Otis band, accompanied by The Bluenotes (The Robins) came in January 1950 on "Cry Baby."

His first real solo recording success was with "Rockin' Blues" which reached number 2 in the Billboard R&B chart in March 1951. This was the first of a triple whammy of big hits with "Gee Baby" (Savoy 777, not on this collection) also reaching number 2 at the beginning of June 1951, and "Sunset To Dawn" hitting number 10 in January 1952. However, "Sunset To Dawn" was the final chart entry in the astonishing run of success which the Otis band and vocalists had enjoyed in 1950-51 on Savoy.

In December 1951 the Johnny Otis band, including Mel, started recording for Mercury but their spell with the major label resulted in only one further chart success, a cover version of Floyd Dixon's "Call Operator 210" featuring a vocal by Mel which reached number 4 on the Billboard R&B chart in August 1952.

Johnny Otis left Mercury in mid 1952, but in October 1953 Mel recorded for the label under his own name. He had three singles from these sessions out in the first half of 1954. The session details show that the backing band included Don Johnson, George Washington, Preston Love, Lorenzo Holden, James Von Streeter, Devonia Williams, Pete Lewis and Leard Bell. In other words, a Johnny Otis line up. Ben Webster and Curtis Lowe, who had featured on some Otis recordings for Mercury back in '51, were also included in a reinforced tenor sax section while the band was directed by Melba Liston.

Mel's Mercury singles failed to make much of an impression. He was still touring with Otis and Floyd Dixon in the first half of 1954 and at some indeterminate time during that year he was on a session for Peacock with the Otis band. "I Won't Be Your Fool No More" (Peacock 1636) which came out in October 1954 was a good blues performance which had harmonica by Pete Lewis.

At some time in the second half of 1954 the wheels came off Mel's music career in spectacular fashion when he was arrested and jailed on drugs charges in Baltimore while on tour with Johnny Otis. In fact Mel was already a heroin addict before he joined the Otis band. Sadly several members of the Otis organisation, Mel, Little Esther, and Von Streeter, had drug addiction problems.

Otis lost touch with Mel while he was serving his sentence and the singer slipped off the music radar. In 1964 Mel Walker's body was found in a Los Angeles alleyway, apparent cause of death being a drugs overdose. The 30th April 1964 copy of the California Eagle had a brief but very grim report on its front page.

Original release details:

Cry Baby / I'm Not Falling In Love With You (Regent 1016). "Cry Baby" by Johnny Otis Orchestra, vocal by Mel Walker and the Bluenotes. "I'm Not Falling In Love With You" by Johnny Otis Quintette, vocal by Devonia.  Released in February 1950.

Dreamin' Blues / Helpless (Regent 1018) - Mel Walker with Johnny Otis Orchestra. Released in May 1950.

Strange Woman / Lonely Blues (Regent 1022) - Johnny Otis Orchestra with Mel Walker. Released in September 1950.

Rockin' Blues / My Heart Tells Me (Savoy 766) - Johnny Otis Orch. with Mel Walker. Released in November 1950. #2 in Billboard best selling R&B records chart, 24th March 1951.

Sunset To Dawn / Feel Like Cryin' Again (Savoy 821) - Mel Walker with Johnny Otis Orch. Released in November 1951. #10 in Billboard best selling R&B records chart, 19th January, 1952.

Help Me Blues / Heartache Here I Come (Savoy 849) - Mel Walker. Released in June 1952.

"Three Magic Words" was first issued on the Savoy 2LP set "The Original Johnny Otis Show" (SJL 2230) in 1978.

"Fool's Gold," "Turn The Lights Down Low," "It Can Never Happen Again," "Just Another Flame," "Walk My Blues Away" aka ""Hand Me Down Blues" were first issued on the Savoy 2LP set "The Original Johnny Otis Show Volume II" (SJL 2252) in 1980.

Session details:

"Cry Baby" was recorded on January 11th, 1950, in Los Angeles. Personnel:

John Anderson (trumpet); Floyd Turnham (alto sax); Big Jay McNeely (tenor sax); Bobby McNeely (baritone sax); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Johnny Otis (drums); Mel Walker, The Bluenotes aka The Robins (vocals).

"Helpless"  was recorded on February 23rd, 1950, in Los Angeles. Personnel:

Possibly Lorenzo Holden or James Von Streeter (tenor sax); Johnny Otis (vibes); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums); Mel Walker (vocal).

"Dreamin' Blues" was recorded on February 27th, 1950, in Los Angeles. Personnel:

Don Johnson, Lee Graves (trumpets); George Washington (trombone); Lorenzo Holden, James Von Streeter (tenor saxes); Walter Henry (alto and baritone saxes); Johnny Otis (vibes); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums); Mel Walker (vocals).

"Lonely Blues" and "Strange Woman" were recorded on June 20th, 1950, in Chicago. Personnel:

as February 27th session with Hosea Sapp (trumpet) added.

"Sunset To Dawn" was recorded on August 12th, 1950, in New York. Personnel:

as June 20th session.

"Rockin' Blues" was recorded on September 19th, 1950, in New York. Personnel:

as August 12th session but Hosea Sapp (trumpet) out.

"Fool's Gold," "Feel Like Cryin' Again," "Heartache Here I Come," "Turn The Lights Down Low," and "It Can Never Happen Again" were recorded on January 5th, 1951, in Los Angeles. Personnel:

Don Johnson (trumpet); George Washington (trombone); Walter Henry (alto sax); Lorenzo Holden, James Von Streeter (tenor saxes); Johnny Otis (vibes); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums); Mel Walker (vocals).

"Just Another Flame" was recorded on January 10th, 1951, in Los Angeles. Personnel:

as January 5th session.

"Help Me Blues," "Walk My Blues Away," and "Three Magic Words" were recorded on 19th March, 1951, in New York. Personnel:

As January 5th and January 10th sessions with addition of Earle Warren (alto sax).

Sources for this post include -

Bruyninckx Discography, Billboard, The Cash Box, Pete Welding's sleevenotes and interview with Johnny Otis for the Savoy 2LP set "The Original Johnny Otis Show Volume II," www.discogs.com , www.45worlds.com , and YouTube.

The sad end of Mel Walker is referred to in his Wikipedia article and is sourced from "Blues - A Regional Experience" by Bob Eagle and Eric S. LeBlanc. His arrest in Baltimore and later demise is also referenced in Pete Welding's sleevenotes for "The Original Johnny Otis Show Volume II."

Johnny Otis & His Orchestra - All Nite Long

Side 1:
01. Midnight In The Barrelhouse
02. Boogie Guitar
03. Hangover Blues
04. Head Hunter
05. New Orleans Shuffle
06. Turkey Hop Part 1

Side 2:
01. Turkey Hop Part 2
02. Blues Nocturne
03. Freight Train Boogie
04. Mambo Boogie
05. All Nite Long
06. Honky Tonk Boogie

Johnny Otis & His Orchestra - All Nite Long (Mega)

Johnny Otis & His Orchestra - All Nite Long (Zippy)

Another in the Savoy series of home made "LPs" and this time the quintessential New York indie record company goes way out west to the Land Where Dreams Come True as label prexy Herman Lubinsky recruits producer Ralph Bass (who had previously been with Black & White Records) to be Savoy's man on the Coast. And then Bass recruits Johnny Otis, his dynamite band (as you can hear on this collection) and his star vocal acts Little Esther, Mel Walker and The Robins. The result was a staggering series of R&B hits by the Otis organisation in 1950, including "Double Crossing Blues," "Mistrustin' Blues," "Cupid's Boogie" "Deceivin' Blues," "Wedding Boogie" and "Cry Baby."

These vocal hits will feature in future compilations but in this post I've concentrated on the mainly instrumental sides recorded by the band itself. Johnny Otis, drummer, vibes player, pianist, occasional vocalist, bandleader, impresario, nightclub owner, producer and arranger, talent spotter, song writer, disc jockey, label owner, political activist, minister of religion, artist, writer and chicken farmer was what you might call a Renaissance man. He simply did it all.

He was born John Veliotes in 1921 in Vallejo, California into a Greek immigrant family.  He was raised in Berkeley where his parents owned a grocery store which served the local Black community, a community with which Johnny would identify for the rest of his life. He was a fan of big band swing, especially of the band of Count Basie. As the 1930's turned to the '40's, Johnny took up playing the drums and gained his first band experience with a local small group, Count Otis Matthews & His West Oakland House Rockers.

The basic blues 'n' boogie of the group would stand Johnny in good stead in the future when the big band era came to end and rhythm 'n' blues took its place. But before that, back in 1941, Johnny got his chance to play in a big swing band when he joined the long established Omaha based outfit of Lloyd Hunter. Also in the band were alto sax man Preston Love, tenor sax players Paul Quinichette and James Von Streeter and bass player Curtis Counce, all of whom would spend spells in Johnny Otis led bands in the future.

Above: Omaha, 1941 - Preston Love and Johnny Otis in front of the Lloyd Hunter band bus

After two years with Lloyd Hunter, Johnny Otis and Preston Love quit to form their own band, but it was short lived as Count Basie came in for Love. Hearing that former Kansas City bandleader Harlan Leonard (now established at the Club Alabam in Los Angeles) was looking for a drummer, Johnny headed to LA where he got the spot, staying with Leonard until 1944 when he transferred to a band led by former Chick Webb front man Bardu Ali. Johnny and Bardu would later become business partners when they opened The Barrel House Club in Watts in late 1947.

In 1945 Johnny formed his own big band as the new house band at the Club Alabam and signed with Excelsior Records in the autumn of that year. His second disc for the label, "Jimmy's Round The Clock Blues," featuring Basie blues shouter Jimmy Rushing on vocals, backed with the classic bump 'n' grind instrumental "Harlem Nocturne" was a big seller and the band embarked on a national tour on the back of it. The Johnny Otis Orchestra recorded for Excelsior as a big band until December 1946 but by the next and final Excelsior session in December 1947 the band had slimmed down to an eight piece. The first track on this compilation "Midnight In The Barrelhouse" dates from that session although it was re-released on Savoy in 1951, thus justifying its inclusion here.

The final Excelsior line up included several musicians who would be mainstays of the Johnny Otis band during its most successful years - George Washington on trombone, Pete "Guitar" Lewis, and Mario Delagarde on bass. The band's next recording session was for Modern in August 1949 which was the first session to feature Little Esther on vocals. In November 1949 the band started recording for Savoy with Don Johnson on trumpet, Lorenzo Holden and James Von Streeter on tenor saxes, Walter Henry on baritone sax, Devonia Williams on piano and Leard Bell on drums. Along with Lewis, Washington and Delagarde this would be the core of the Johnny Otis band on Savoy and subsequently on Federal (unofficially) and Mercury.

Fax on the trax, Jack:

"Midnight In The Barrelhouse" recorded in Los Angeles, December 1947. Johnny Otis Orchestra : John Anderson (trumpet); George Washington (trombone); Cecil "Big Jay" McNeely (tenor sax); Lem Tally (baritone sax); "Darby Hicks" (piano); Pete "Guitar" Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Johnny Otis (drums).

Released on Excelsior JR 536 in February 1949. There were two virtually simultaneous Johnny Otis releases numbered Excelsior JR 536. "Happy New Year Baby" / "Barrel House Stomp" was listed in advance release notices in Billboard, 29th January 1949. This record was reviewed in Billboard on 12th February 1949. A second disc with the number 536, "Midnight In The Barrel House" / "Barrel House Stomp" was probably released shortly afterwards as it was rather late for a "New Year" release. 

"Midnight In The Barrelhouse" (note change in spelling) was re-released on Savoy 815 in September 1951 as the B-Side of an alternate take of "Harlem Nocturne" which was originally released on Excelsior JR 142.

Above: Billboard 30th April 1949

"Boogie Guitar" and "Hangover Blues" recorded in Los Angeles on November 10th, 1949. Johnny Otis and his Orchestra : Don Johnson and Lee Graves (trumpets); George Washington (trombone); Lorenzo Holden, James Von Streeter (tenor saxes); Walter Henry (baritone sax); Johnny Otis (vibraphone, drums); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Gene Phillips ( Hawaiian guitar on "Hangover Blues"); unknown 2nd guitar on "Boogie Guitar"; Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums).

This was the first Johnny Otis Orchestra session for Savoy.

"Boogie Guitar" first released on Savoy LP SJL 2230 "The Original Johnny Otis Show" in 1978.

"Hangover Blues" first released on Regent 1036 (also listed under Savoy 787), April 1951 as B-Side of "I Dream" (vocals by Mel Walker and Little Esther.)

"Head Hunter" and "New Orleans Shuffle" recorded in Los Angeles on December 23rd 1949. Probable personnel - Johnny Otis Orchestra: Lee Graves, Don Johnson (trumpets); George Washington (trombone); Big Jay McNeely, Lorenzo Holden (tenor saxes); Walter Henry (baritone sax); Johnny Otis (vibes); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums). It's possible that James Von Streeter is present in place of Big Jay McNeely.

"New Orleans Shuffle" / "Blues Nocturne" released on Savoy 743 in May 1950.

"Head Hunter" / "Cool And Easy" (vocal by Redd Lyte) released on Regent 1028 in January 1951. Also listed under Savoy 774.

"The Turkey Hop Parts 1 & 2" and "Blues Nocturne" recorded in Los Angeles on January 11th 1950. Personnel: John Anderson (trumpet); Floyd Turnham (alto sax); Big Jay McNeely (tenor sax); Bob McNeely (baritone sax); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Johnny Otis (drums); The Robins - vocals on "The Turkey Hop Part 2."

"The Turkey Hop Part 1" / "The Turkey Hop Part 2" released on Savoy 732 in February 1950.

Above: The Cash Box, 18th February 1950

"Blues Nocturne" released on Savoy 743 in May 1950, B-Side of "New Orleans Shuffle."

"Freight Train Boogie" was recorded in Chicago on June 20th 1950. Personnel: Johnny Otis Orchestra: probably - Don Johnson, Lee Graves, Hosea Sapp (trumpets); George Washington (trombone); Lorenzo Holden, James Von Streeter (tenor saxes) Walter Henry (alto, baritone saxes); Johnny Otis (vibraphone); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums).

"Freight Train Boogie" released on Regent 1021 (b/w "Good Time Blues" vocal Redd Lyte) in August 1950.

"Mambo Boogie" was recorded in Los Angeles on January 10th 1951. Personnel - Johnny Otis Orchestra: Don Johnson (trumpet); George Washington (trombone); Walter Henry (alto sax); Lorenzo Holden, James Von Streeter (tenor saxes); Johnny Otis (vibes); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums).

"Mambo Boogie" was released on Savoy 777 as the B-Side of "Gee Baby" (vocal - Mel Walker) in February 1951.

"All Nite Long" and "Honky Tonk Boogie" were recorded in New York City on March 19th and March 21st respectively, 1951. Personnel - Johnny Otis Orchestra: probably - Don Johnson (trumpet); George Washington (trombone); Earl Warren (alto sax); Lorenzo Holden (tenor sax); Walter Henry (alto and baritone sax); Devonia Williams (piano); Johnny Otis (vibes, percussion); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums); vocal: Johnny Otis, George Washington and the band.

The March 21st session was the last Johnny Otis Orchestra session for Savoy.

"All Nite Long" was released on Savoy 788 b/w "New Love" (vocal - Mel Walker) in July 1951.

"Honky Tonk Boogie" was first released on Savoy LP SJL 2230 "The Original Johnny Otis Show" in 1978.

Elsewhere on the blog:

Head Hunter / Cool And Easy

El Enmascarado's rips from a 78 rpm Johnny Otis disc. Includes added James Von Streeter and Big Jay McNeely tracks plus plenty of background info / speculation. Check it out.

More Johnny Otis coming soon!

Rock 'n' Roll (Regent MG-6015) - Re-up!

Side 1:

01. Rockin' Boy - Chuz Alfred Combo

02. Hot Rod - Hal Singer

03. Blues For Everybody - Bobby Banks Orch.

04. Playboy Hop - Rockin' Bros. Orch.

05. The Grinder - Rockin' Bros. Orch.

Side 2:

01. You Gotta Rock And Roll - Bob Oakes Orch.

02. Backbiter - T.J. Fowler

03. Wine Cooler - T.J. Fowler

04. Rooster Boogie - Paul Williams Orch.

05. Frog Hop - Hal Singer Orch.

Download from:

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

Original Post (1st May, 2010) is here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2010/05/rock-n-roll-regent-mg-6015.html

In response to a re-up request, here's a genuine 1950s LP which was sent in to the blog by an anonymous donor back in 2010.

A theme which has occasionally reared its head on this blog is "exploitation" and this is as fine an example of cashing in on the rock 'n' roll phenomenon as you could hope to see. The LP was issued on Regent in 1956 (probably in the second half of the year) and it consists of tracks recorded in 1954-56 as rock 'n' roll tracks, plus R&B tracks from 1951-52.

The repackaging of early 1950s and even late 1940s R&B as "rock n' roll" was a common practice of record labels as they tried to achieve sales among the burgeoning teen market of the second half of the 1950s. There have been several examples posted on this blog, including some LPs on Atlantic, and the whole "Hen Gates" saga on various budget labels. Of course the Twist craze of the late 1950s and early 1960s provided another opportunity for record companies to pitch old material at a new market. We had a fine example on this blog - A Crown LP of old Jimmy McCracklin tracks presented as "Twist" tracks. Ludicrous, but nevertheless a fine blues album!

Regent was a subsidiary label of Savoy, so they had access to a strong R&B back catalogue. Here's the deal on the contents of this LP:

01. Rockin' Boy - Chuz Alfred Combo - originally released on Savoy 1175 b/w "Rock Along." Recorded in Cincinnati, March 30th, 1955. Personnel: Ola Hansson (trombone); Chuz Alfred (tenor sax); Chuck Lee (piano, drums). Here are the Chuz Alfred Combo, the wild men of rock 'n' roll:

02. Hot Rod - Hal Singer - originally released on Savoy 1179 b/w "Rock And Roll." Recorded in NYC, October 27th, 1955. Personnel: Buddy Lucas, Hal Singer (tenor saxes); Kelly Owens (piano); Mickey Baker (guitar); Leonard Gaskin (bass); Panama Francis (drums). Hal Singer was a genuine rock 'n' roll wild man. His 1948 recording of "Corn Bread" (Savoy 671) contains every rock 'n' roll riff known to humankind.

03. Blues For Everybody - Bobby Banks Orch. - originally released by The Bobby Banks Trio on Savoy 1186 in 1956. B side of "Shangri La." Recorded in NYC, December 29th, 1955. Personnel: Henry Durant (tenor sax); Bobby Banks (organ); Jimmy Schenck (bass); Rodney "Red" Alcott (drums).

04. Playboy Hop and 05. The Grinder - Rockin' Bros. Orch. - originally released on Savoy 1144, credited to The Rocking Brothers. Recorded in October or November 1954. Location and personnel unknown. "Playboy Hop" features excellent baritone sax while "The Grinder" is a fine example of striptease sleaze. A very good disc.

06. You Gotta Rock And Roll - Bob Oakes Orch. - originally released on Regent 7502, credited to Bob Oakes and his Sultans. B side of "Church Bells May Ring." Recorded NYC, April 13th 1956. Bob Oakes (vocals) with unknown personnel. Standard "rock and roll" vocal from Bob Oakes, but the band really cooks. Great wailin' tenor sax backing.

07. Backbiter and 08. Wine Cooler - T.J. Fowler - originally released on Savoy 857. Recorded in Detroit, Michigan, July 25th, 1952. Personnel: Elliott Escoe (trumpet); Lee Gross (alto sax); Walter Cox (tenor sax); T.J. Fowler (piano); Calvin Frazier (guitar); James Murphy (bass); Clarence stamps (drums). The real deal - good early 1950s R&B instrumentals. Also on the blog - "Early Detroit R&B" by T.J. Fowler

09. Rooster Boogie - Paul Williams Orch. - unissued Savoy track. Recorded February 26th, 1951. Location unknown. Paul Williams (baritone sax) with unknown personnel.

10. Frog Hop - Hal Singer Orch. - originally released on Savoy 861 in September 1952 as B side of "Indian Love Call." Recorded in NYC, August 21st 1952. Personnel: Hal Singer and Sam "The Man" Taylor (tenor saxes); Dave McRae (alto and baritone sax); Kelly Owens (piano); Mickey Baker (guitar) plus unknown trumpet, bass and drums. A rousing end to this compilation!

The original post ended with a plea for anyone who could send in a copy of the companion LP to this compilation. In 1957 Regent issued an LP "Rock and Roll Party" (MG-6042) with tracks by Nappy Brown, Little Esther, Big Jay McNeely, T.J. Fowler, Paul Williams, The Hot Shots, Hal Singer, and Heywood Henry. Can anyone out there help? Millions of rock 'n' roll fans would be eternally grateful (as would I).

Head Hunter / Cool And Easy – Johnny Otis Orchestra (Regent 1028)

“Head Hunter” was recorded in Los Angeles on the 23rd December, 1949. Probable personnel: Lee Graves, Don Johnson (trumpets); George Washington (trombone); Big Jay McNeely, Lorenzo Holden (tenor saxes); Walter Henry (baritone sax); Johnny Otis (vibes); Devonia Williams (piano); Pete Lewis (guitar); Mario Delagarde (bass); Leard Bell (drums)

“Cool And Easy” was recorded in Los Angeles on the 27th February, 1950. Personnel are as above except James Von Streeter replaces Big Jay McNeely on tenor sax and Redd Lyte is added on vocals.

Listen to "Head Hunter"

Listen to "Cool And Easy"

Many thanks to El Enmascarado for this 78 rpm disc which was released in January 1951. Billboard reviewed “Head Hunter” favourably: “Walkin’ and honkin’ medium blues refers to ‘Pinetop’s BW’ for backdrop riffs. Striding tenor sax and heavy bottom, rocking beat set this lung buster up for at least moderate coin collection.”

The B side was reviewed thus: “Redd Lyte warbles a southern style blues chant with a strong ork backdrop. Fine beat helps throughout.”

Billboard, January 1951

Released initially on Herman Lubinsky’s secondary label Regent, rather than his Savoy label, “Head Hunter” failed to chart, possibly because the Otis band was still riding high in the charts with “Rockin’ Blues.” In 1950 the Johnny Otis Orchestra was the nation’s top selling R&B act mainly thanks to a series of hits featuring the vocal pairing of Little Esther and Mel Walker. “Cupid’s Boogie,” “Mistrustin’ Blues,” “Deceivin’ Blues,” and “Wedding Blues” were all big hits for the duo in 1950, along with “Dreamin’ Blues” and “Rockin’ Blues” (both featuring Mel Walker) and the biggest seller for the band, “Double Crossing Blues” (Little Esther and The Robins).

The band failed to maintain the same level of success in 1951, however, mainly due to disagreements with Herman Lubinsky, the notoriously tight-fisted honcho of Savoy and Regent. In late 1950, Ralph Bass, the Savoy A&R man on the West Coast was lured away by Syd Nathan of King Records who set him up with his own subsidiary label, Federal. One of the first signings made by Bass for the new label was Little Esther who began recording for Federal in late January 1951. Backing for her recordings through 1951 and 1952 was provided by a moonlighting Johnny Otis Orchestra which made their last recordings for Savoy in March 1951 and later signed for Mercury towards the end of the year.

Given such a background it was no surprise that the Johnny Otis Orchestra failed to reach the levels of success it had achieved in 1950. There were only three chart entries for the group in 1951: “Rockin’ Blues” (released in late 1950), “Gee Baby” / “Mambo Boogie” and “All Nite Long.”

“Head Hunter” (a tribute to deejay Hunter Hancock) may have failed to chart but as you can hear, it’s a tremendous instrumental featuring great guitar work from Pete Lewis followed by screeching sax by Big Jay McNeely and all underpinned by driving horns and brass. There is some doubt as to the personnel performing on the number. Both Bruyninckx and the jazzdisco.org website list the band as consisting of only one horn player, Big Jay McNeely, plus vibes, piano, guitar, bass and drums. As you can hear on this post, however, it’s pretty obvious that there is more than one sax plus brass present on the track.

Our benefactor, El Enmascarado, says: “There's certainly more than one saxophone playing on Head Hunter- in the opening seconds, the huge saxophone "power chord" couldn't be less than two, and could easily be three. The lower note of the "power chord" is below the range of the tenor, and is a baritone sax.”

For “probable personnel” on the track, I’ve stuck with the complete band which was present at this session according to jazzdisco.org and ignored their suggestion that only Big Jay plus rhythm played on “Head Hunter.” Of course there is always the possibility that it isn’t Big Jay but James Von Streeter or Lorenzo Holden on lead tenor sax here.

Big Jay McNeely

Big Jay had started his recording career with the Johnny Otis Orchestra on Excelsior in 1948 before going solo on Savoy in late 1948 and then Exclusive in the first half of 1949. However in late 1949 and early 1950 Big Jay is credited on sitting in with the Otis band on several sessions, perhaps because regular Otis honker Von Streeter was becoming unreliable due to “lifestyle issues.” Moreover at the time of this session Big Jay was “between” recording commitments as Exclusive was about to go out of business and he was about a month away from signing with Aladdin. So let’s stick with Big Jay. Judge for yourselves!

Redd Lyte

The B-side “Cool And Easy” is another excellent track with fine blues guitar from Pete Lewis and a fine vocal from shouter Redd Lyte. Both Lewis and Lyte had graduated to the Otis band via the talent show at The Barrelhouse Club where Otis had a long standing residency. All in all this is a first class record with two strong sides. Thanks again to El Enmascarado for his rips from shellac (in very good sound quality) and label scans.

We’re not quite finished yet! Here’s a little bonus streaming audio playlist of Big Jay McNeely’s other tribute to Hunter Hancock – “Hoppin’ With Hunter” recorded for Exclusive in April 1949. Also present is a track recorded by James Von Streeter & His Wig Poppers for the small Scoop label in August 1949. The similarity to Big Jay’s style is remarkable. Keep on honkin’ and bluesin’, Be Bop Winos!

Listen to "Hoppin' With Hunter"

Listen to "Landslide"

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)