Little Esther - Bad Baad Girl!

Side One:
01. Looking For A Man - Little Esther
02. The Deacon Moves In - Little Esther with The Dominoes
03. I'm A Bad, Bad Girl - Little Esther with Mel Walker
04. Ring-A-Ding Doo - Little Esther with Mel Walker
05. Aged And Mellow - Little Esther
06. Ramblin' Blues - Little Esther
07. The Storm - Little Esther
08. Hollerin' And Screamin' - Little Esther

Side Two:
01. Mainliner - Little Esther with The Robins
02. Saturday Night Daddy - Little Esther with Bobby Nunn
03. You Took My Love Too Fast - Little Esther with Bobby Nunn
04. Last Laugh Blues - Little Esther with Little Willie Littlefield
05. Flesh, Blood And Bones - Little Esther
06. Turn The Lamps Down Low - Little Esther with Little Willie Littlefield
07. Cherry Wine - Little Esther
08. Hound Dog - Little Esther

Little Esther - Bad Baad Girl! (Mega)

or

Little Esther - Bad Baad Girl! (Zippy)

Our previous post on Little Esther's big selling Savoy sides ended with the teenage chanteuse leaving that label for the newly founded Federal label, a Ralph Bass run subsidiary of King Records. Her first recording session for Federal took place in January 1951. In the meantime the Johnny Otis band continued to record for Savoy until March 19th 1951 but his anticipated transfer to Federal didn't happen. Instead he signed for Mercury and the band recorded for that label from December 1951 to July 1952. 

Thereafter Johnny went to Don Robey's Houston based Peacock Records for whom he worked in both Houston and Los Angeles as A&R man, producer and band leader on tracks recorded by artists like Big Mama Thornton, Johnny Ace and Little Richard.

However one look at the personnel on these Federal recordings by Little Esther (which you can find on the back cover of this LP) shows that the backing band on her 1951 and 1952 tracks is indeed the Johnny Otis Orchestra doing a spot of moonlighting.

As you can see in the original release information below, backing on Little Esther discs was at first credited to the "Earle Warren Orchestra," ex-Basie man Earle being the alto sax player in Johnny's band at that time. Then there was the not-at-all obvious pseudonym of the "J. and O. Orchestra," and by the time of the 1952 releases there was no mention of the accompanying band.

When Preston Love (Johnny's band mate back in the Omaha days and then in the early days of Johnny's big band) replaced Earle Warren on alto sax in 1952, some discs credited to the Preston Love Orchestra were released on Federal, again disguising the fact that they were by the Johnny Otis Orchestra.

During 1951 and at least the first half of 1952 Little Esther continued to tour with the Johnny Otis group. Other Otis-connected artists appearing on these sides are Mel Walker and Bobby Nunn, so this collection fits in nicely with our series of Johnny Otis related posts.

The very informative sleeve notes by Norbert Hess tell the tale of Little Esther's estrangement from Johnny Otis involving Esther's mother and a heap of cash. The Otis band backed Esther for the last time in August 1952. In a final session for Federal in March 1953, Little Esther was backed by King studio musicians including Rufus Gore and Hank Marr.

In July and September 1953 Little Esther recorded for Decca. These sides went nowhere and the recent spell of stardom already seemed to have faded fast away as what may euphemistically be called "health problems" began to take their toll. For the rest of her sadly all too short life Little Esther or Esther Phillips as she was now known would be plagued by addiction problems although there were periods when she recorded strong material and made dents in both the pop and R&B charts.

In 1975 her version of the Dinah Washington hit "What A Difference A Day Makes" was an international success, reaching number 20 in the US pop chart and number 6 in the UK chart. For the cognoscenti her 1971 recording of Gil Scott Heron's "Home Is Where The Hatred Is" is a harrowing classic. Esther Phillips died aged 48 in August of 1984.

But here on Be Bop Wino we rarely move beyond the 1950's so enjoy Little Esther, Johnny Otis and the band, Bobby Nunn, Mel Walker, The Dominoes and Little Willie Littlefield on these blasters from back in the day.

Atlanta, April 1951

Here are the original release details of the tracks:

Federal 12016 - "The Deacon Moves In" by Little Esther with the Earle Warren Orchestra, b/w "Other Lips, Other Arms" - Little Esther with the Earle Warren Orchestra. February 1951.

Federal 12023 - "I'm A Bad, Bad Girl" by Little Esther with the Earle Warren Orchestra, B-Side of "Don't Make A Fool Out Of Me" - Little Esther with the Earle Warren Orchestra. April 1951.

Federal 12036 - "Looking For A Man (To Satisfy My Soul)" by Little Esther with the Earle Warren Orchestra, b/w "Heart To Heart" - Little Esther and The Dominoes with the Earle Warren Orchestra. July 1951.

Federal 12055 - "Ring-A-Ding-Doo" by Little Esther and Mel with the J. and O. Orchestra, b/w "The Crying Blues" by Little Esther with the J. and O. Orchestra. November 1951.

Federal 12063 - "The Storm" by Little Esther, B-Side of "Summertime" - Little Esther. March 1952.

Federal 12078 - "Aged And Mellow" by Little Esther, B-Side of "Bring My Lovin' Back To Me" - Little Esther. May 1952.

Federal 12090 - "Ramblin' Blues" by Little Esther, b/w "Somebody New" by Little Esther. August 1952.

Federal 12100 - "Saturday Night Daddy" by Little Esther & Bobby Nunn, b/w "Mainliner" by Little Esther. October 1952.

Federal 12108 - "Last Laugh Blues" by Little Esther and Little Willie, b/w "Flesh, Blood And Bones by Little Esther. November 1952.

Federal 12115 - "Turn The Lamps Down Low" by Little Esther and Little Willie, b/w "Hollerin' And Screamin'" by Little Esther. February 1953.

Federal 12122 - "You Took My Love Too Fast" by Little Esther and Bobby Nunn, b/w "Street Lights" by Little Esther. April 1953.

Federal 12126 - "Hound Dog" by Little Esther, b/w "Sweet Lips" by Little Esther. April 1953.

Federal 12142 - "Cherry Wine" by Little Esther, b/w "Love Oh Love" by Little Esther. September 1953.

Cash Box February 1951

Whoppers! (Jubilee JGM-1119) re-upped

Side 1:

01. Marie - The Four Tunes

02. Take Me Back To Heaven - Billy Ward & The Dominoes

03. I Understand - The Four Tunes

04. Come To Me Baby - Billy Ward & The Dominoes

05. Sugar Lump - The Four Tunes

06. Sweethearts On Parade - Billy Ward & The Dominoes

Side 2:

01. Crying In The Chapel - The Orioles

02. Green Eyes - The Ravens

03. It's Too Soon To Know - The Orioles

04. Take Me Back To My Boots And Saddle - The Ravens

05. Tell Me So - The Orioles

06. I'll Always Be In Love With You - The Ravens

Released in June, 1960. A reissue of the 1956 LP "Best Of Rhythm And Blues" (Jubilee LP 1014).

Download from here:

http://www48.zippyshare.com/v/Gs3HkV4m/file.html

The last in the series of Jubilee vocal group compilations released in 1959 - 1960 and a real curiosity. The contents seem to be completely divorced from the teen hoodlums cover picture as the 12 numbers on offer all hark back to an earlier era of R&B and there's little here that could pass as rock 'n' roll. However, the collection is an R&B historian's delight as it includes the record that launched the career of The Orioles back in 1948, "It's Too Soon To Know" plus their big 1953 hit "Crying In The Chapel."

The Four Tunes (originally The Brown Dots) sides "Marie" and "I Understand" were big, big hits in 1953/54, not only in the R&B charts, but also in the pop charts.

Most of the rest of the tracks were issued between 1953 and 1956. The Ravens tracks are the latest releases of the collection, from 1956, long after their 1940s /early 1950s heyday on Savoy. Similarly, the Dominoes tracks are a world away from their early 1950s gospel influenced rockers on Federal with Clyde McPhatter on lead. These 1954-55 sides are from a time when Billy Ward was repositioning the group as a pop act. However, Jackie Wilson leads on "Take Me Back to Heaven."

What did Billboard make of this LP?

Not  a bad review! (June 13th 1960).

The original post of this LP (June 23rd 2008) with label scans by Joan K can be found here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2008/06/whoppers-jubilee-jgm-1119_2505.html

Here's some of the scans:

Thanks to Joan K for sights 'n' sounds.

The Dominoes - These Foolish Things

Side 1

1. No Says My Heart

2. Harbor Lights

3. The Deacon Moves In (Little Esther and The Dominoes)

4. I Can't Escape From You

5. Heart To Heart (Little Esther and The Dominoes)

6. When The Swallows Come Back To Capistrano

7. Deep Sea Blues

8. Love Love Love

9. No Room

Side 2

1. I'm Lonely

2. Yours Forever

3. These Foolish Things

4. Rags To Riches

5. Ringing In A Brand New Year

6. Can't Do Sixty No More

7. Over The Rainbow

8. O Holy Night

9. What Are You Doing New Years Eve

Link:

These Foolish Things (Mega)

This little homemade "LP" contains all the remaining Dominoes tracks I have on vinyl, outwith the previously featured album "Have Mercy Baby."

The first 12 tracks are from the Clyde McPhatter era Dominoes, with the added attraction of Federal labelmate Little Esther on a couple of the sides. "Rags To Riches" has McPhatter's replacement, Jackie Wilson, on lead vocal.

"O Holy Night" and "What Are You Doing New Years Eve" were recorded and released on King in 1965, long after the early 1950s R&B heyday of the original Dominoes and long after their pop success in the late 1950s. The only connection this final incarnation of the group had with the successful earlier versions of The Dominoes was manager / vocal coach Billy Ward who was determined to keep the group going long after the demand for their style of music had faded.

Track details:

1. No Says My Heart - B side of Harbor Lights, released January 1951.

2. Harbor Lights - Federal 12010, January 1951.

3. The Deacon Moves In - Little Esther and The Dominoes with the Johnny Otis band. B side of "Other Lips, Other Arms", Federal 12016, released February 1951.

4. I Can't Escape From You - B side of "Sixty Minute Man" (Federal 12022), released April 1951.

5. Heart To Heart - Little Esther with The Dominoes (Federal 12036), released November 1951.

6. When The Swallows Come Back To Capistrano - B side of  first release of "That's What You're Doing To Me" (Federal 12059), February 1952.

7. Deep Sea Blues - B side of "Have Mercy Baby" (Federal 12068), released April 1952.

8. Love Love Love - B side of reissue of "That's What You're Doing To Me" (Federal 12072), May 1952.

9. No Room - Federal 12105, October 1952. Released as by "Billy Ward And His Dominoes", as were all subsequent Dominoes releases.

10. I'm Lonely - B side of "Yours Forever".

11. Yours Forever - Federal 12106, released November 1952.

12. These Foolish Things Remind Me Of You - Federal 12129, April 1953. Last release featuring Clyde McPhatter.

13. Rags To Riches - King 1280, released October 1953. The group's biggest success with a Jackie Wilson lead vocal, reached number 2 in the R&B chart.

14. Ringing In A Brand New Year - King 1281, B side of "Christmas In Heaven" released November 1953.

15. Can't Do Sixty No More - Federal 12209, released January 1955.

16. Over The Rainbow - King 1502, released September 1955.

17. O Holy Night - King 6016, released in September 1965.

18. What Are You Doing New Years Eve - B side of "O Holy Night".

Sources: "The Unsung Heroes Of Rock 'n' Roll" by St. Nicholas of Tosches

and of course: http://www.uncamarvy.com/Dominoes/dom01.html

Label shots are crops of original scans by Joan K. "LP" cover was adapted from Joan's scan of a Dominoes record in a Federal sleeve.

More rockin' R&B vocal groups are in the pipeline! Stay tuned to the blog that jumps, jives and wails!

The Dominoes - Have Mercy Baby

Side One

1 Chicken Blues
2 Do Something For Me
3 Weeping Willow Blues
4 Sixty Minute Man
5 That's What You're Doing To Me
6 I Am With You
7 Don't Leave Me This Way
8 Have Mercy Baby

Side Two

1 Pedal Pushin' Papa
2 I'd Be Satisfied
3 The Bells
4 I Ain't Gonna Cry For You
5 You Can't Keep A Good Man Down
6 My Baby's 3-D
7 I'm Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of Town
8 If I Never Get To Heaven

Link:

Have Mercy Baby (Mega)

1951 was the year of the big breakthrough for vocal groups in the R&B charts and leading the way were the Dominoes who were the second biggest selling R&B act (after Percy Mayfield) of the year. Their "Sixty Minute Man" was the top selling R&B record and they had other big sellers with "Do Something For Me" and "I Am With You." Success continued into 1952 with "That's What You're Doing To Me", "When The Swallows Come Back To Capistrano", "I'd Be Satisfied", "Have Mercy Baby" and "Love, Love, Love". That year The Dominoes were the 7th best selling R&B act, with The Clovers being the top vocal group and 2nd best selling R&B act (B.B. King was top in '52).

"Rags To Riches", "The Bells", "These Foolish Things Remind Me Of You" and "You Can't Keep a Good Man Down" helped the Dominoes to reach the number four spot in the best selling R&B artists list of 1953, but they were only the third best selling vocal group, coming in behind The "5" Royales (top selling act), and The Clovers (2nd best selling act). 3rd best selling R&B artist of '53 was Willie Mabon. Further down the list was a new group on Atlantic which featured the former star vocalist of The Dominoes, Clyde McPhatter, with The Drifters. Their "Money Honey" was the top selling R&B disc of 1953.

In 1954 R&B record sales were dominated by vocal groups The Midnighters, The Charms, The Clovers, The Spiders, The Chords, The Crows and of course ex-Domino Clyde McPhatter with his Drifters. But of the once dominant Dominoes there was no sign as their records bombed, and thereby hangs a tale.

And you can read that tale on Unca Marvy's R&B Notebooks which is the go-to site for seekers after arcane knowledge of 1950s vocal groups.

http://www.uncamarvy.com/Dominoes/dom01.html

The Dominoes were formed by vocal coach, pianist, arranger and songwriter Billy Ward in 1950. The original line up was - Clyde McPhatter (lead tenor), Charlie White (second tenor), Joe Lamont (baritone) and Bill Brown (bass). A former member of the gospel group The Mount Lebanon Singers, McPhatter was the star turn of The Dominoes, bringing holy roller fervor to rocking jump tunes, heartbroken blues and sentimental ballads. In an extraordinary performance in "The Bells" he weeps and wails his way through the song (or so it seemed to the listening public - in the studio he was actually laughing at his own absurdly over the top vocals).

The Dominoes' Federal oeuvre of 1951 - 1953 places them as pioneers in the development of both rock and roll and soul. "Sixty Minute Man" (featuring the deep honeyed bass voice of Bill Brown) is often cited as the first R&B vocal group record to cross over into the pop charts and it even contained the lyrics "I rock 'em, roll 'em all night long." Two absolute blasters featuring McPhatter on lead vocal, "That's What You're Doing To Me" and "Have Mercy Baby" are surely candidates for "the first rock and roll record."

The Dominoes were dogged by frequent personnel changes as various group members became disillusioned by Billy Ward's authoritarian management style and also by the lack of financial reward compared to the number of discs they were selling. Charlie White left in September 1951, Bill Brown quit in February 1952 and Clyde McPhatter baled out in April 1953.

The loss of McPhatter was a particularly hard blow. He was quickly signed by Atlantic to lead a new group formed to showcase his voice, The Drifters. Although he was replaced in The Dominoes by the very talented Jackie Wilson, somehow it wasn't quite the same as Ward began to move the group away from R&B towards pop. Wilson's biggest success with the group was a cover version of "Rags to Riches" in 1953. The contractual situation became rather messy in 1954 as the group were recording simultaneously for both King and Jubilee.

Pop success was achieved on Decca in 1956 with "St Therese Of The Roses" and again in 1957 on Liberty with "Star Dust." There's a post from 2008 on the blog, "The Dominoes After Federal" which showcases vinyl rips and scans by Joan K of the group's output on Jubilee, Decca and Liberty. I have updated the fileshare link on that post.

The Charly LP featured on this post was originally posted back in November 2007 but this time round I've rescanned the album sleeve and also included label shots. The shots of original Federal singles are from scans by Joan K. The sleevenotes by Bill Millar include a good overview of the Dominoes' glory years in the R&B charts.

The download includes a folder of Joan K's scans of Dominoes' records on Federal and King. Thanks Joan!

Here are some more label scans courtesy of Joan K:

Sources: Liner notes to "Have Mercy Baby" by Bill Millar.
              Marv Goldberg's R&B Notebooks
              Big Al Pavlow's R&B Book
              Unsung Heroes of Rock 'n' Roll by Nick Tosches

"Stardust" - The Dominoes after Federal

Joan K sent these Billy Ward & The Dominoes mp3s and label scans a while back but I thought I would delay posting them as I knew that Marv Goldberg would be writing about The Dominoes in Blues & Rhythm magazine. The second part of Marv’s story on The Dominoes is in the current edition of Blues & Rhythm and you can also read about them on his website at:

http://www.uncamarvy.com/Dominoes/dom01.html

The first four tracks on Joan’s collection were recorded for Jubilee while The Dominoes were still contracted to Federal / King. That contract expired in 1956 and the group signed up with Decca (tracks 5 – 10). Their first release, “St Therese of the Roses”, with Jackie Wilson on lead was a substantial pop hit but they failed to find a follow up hit while with Decca. In early 1957 Jackie Wilson left following the almost inevitable dispute with strict disciplinarian Billy Ward. The group was then signed to Liberty Records with Gene Mumford of The Larks being brought in as lead singer.

“Stardust”, their first release on Liberty, was a big success in the pop charts as was their next release “Deep Purple”. By this stage The Dominoes were no longer an R&B group. It had long been Ward’s ambition to turn them into a pop group and Las Vegas lounge act and he had now achieved his aim. There were further changes in personnel, including the departure of Mumford (replaced by Monroe Powell) but no further chart success. The Dominoes finished with Liberty and moved to ABC Paramount in 1960 for one recording session.

As I’ve already pointed out, the full story can be read in great detail in Marv Goldberg’s articles. It is a story which fascinates as Ward ditched the raw gospel influenced R&B sound of the group’s early days with Clyde McPhatter as lead singer in a ruthless pursuit of pop success. The continual personnel changes and transformation of the group into just another lounge act did in fact bring such success but it was brief and the final days of the group do not make for very happy reading for fans of rhythm and blues.

One LP was released during the group’s Decca stay and Joan has sent a scan of the cover. The Liberty album “Sea of Glass” was a collection of religious songs. Many thanks again to Joan for this post.

Ripped from 1950s vinyl at 192 kbps. Surface noise present.

Download from here:

http://www22.zippyshare.com/v/3632532/file.html

The tracks on this collection are arranged in chronological order of release, each A side being followed by its B side.

1. Gimme Gimme Gimme
2. Come To Me Baby
3. Sweethearts On Parade
4. Take Me Back to Heaven
5. St Therese Of The Roses
6. Home Is Where You Hang Your Heart
7. I Don't Stand A Ghost Of A Chance
8. To Each His Own
9. When The Saints Go Marching In
10. September Song
11. Stardust
12. Lucinda
13. Deep Purple
14. Do It Again
15. Sweeter As The Years Go By
16. Solitude
17. Please Don't Say No
18. Behave Hula Girl

Tracks 1-4 were recorded for Jubilee in September 1954 and released in 1954/55.
Tracks 5-10 were recorded for Decca in June 1956 and January 1957. They were released between June 1956 and December 1957.
Tracks 11-18 were recorded for Liberty between March 1957 and some time in late 1958 or early 1959. They were released between April 1957 and February 1959.

Whoppers! (Jubilee JGM-1119)

Yep, those teenage tearaways are back, this time with that cool chick. Why are none of them looking at her? Jeez, I’m really beginning to wonder about those fellows ….

Thanks again to Joan for this 1960 compilation of vocal group sides from Jerry Blaine’s Jubilee label. This was a re-release of the 1956 LP “The Best of Rhythm and Blues” (Jubilee LP 1014) with a new title and a new teen rumble type cover which seems to be at odds with the actual musical content.

There’s not much here that could be called rock ‘n’ roll. The Orioles sides include their very first release (and phenomenal hit) from the summer of 1948 “It’s Too Soon to Know”. Joan has included a rare label shot of the original release on Blaine’s (It’s a) Natural label. National Records complained that “Natural” was a little too close to their own label name, so Blaine transferred the hit over to his Jubilee label. “Tell Me So” is a lovely ballad from 1949, and “Crying In The Chapel” was famously revived by Elvis in the 1960s.

The Four Tunes recordings are in pop style rather than R&B. “Marie” obviously owes a lot to The Ravens version (search for The Ravens on the blog), and “I Understand” may be pure pop but I love it. The Ravens were another pioneer R&B group from the 1940s who had enjoyed hits on National and Okeh.

Billy Ward and the Dominoes had a brief recording spell with Jubilee while they were still under contract to King/Federal. Only two singles were released by the group on Jubilee, neither of them reaching the charts. At this stage of their career the series of bluesy, sometimes salacious, and downright brilliant hits (many featuring the soaring voice of Clyde McPhatter) of the early 1950s were a fast fading memory as Ward tried to reposition the group as a pop act. “Take Me Back to Heaven” features lead vocals by McPhatter’s replacement, Jackie Wilson. For the full lowdown on The Dominoes read Marv Goldberg’s article in the latest edition of “Blues and Rhythm” magazine. Search the blog for the Dominoes to get more sounds from the Federal heyday of this brilliant group.

In the meantime groove along to Joan’s sights ‘n’ sounds!

Ripped at 192 kbps.

Download from here:

http://www48.zippyshare.com/v/Gs3HkV4m/file.html


1. Marie / The Four Tunes (1953)
2. Take Me Back To Heaven / Billy Ward & The Dominoes (1955)
3. I Understand / The Four Tunes (1953)
4. Come To Me Baby / Billy Ward & The Dominoes (1954)
5. Sugar Lump / The Four Tunes (1953)
6. Sweethearts On Parade / Billy Ward & The Dominoes (1955)
7. Crying In The Chapel / The Orioles (1953)
8. Green Eyes / The Ravens (1955)
9. It's Too Soon To Know / The Orioles (1948)
10. Take Me Back To My Boots And Saddle / The Ravens (1956)
11. Tell Me So / The Orioles (1949)
12. I'll Always Be In Love With You / The Ravens (1956)