Chuck Berry - Berry Is On Top

Side 1:
01. Almost Grown
02. Carol
03. Maybelline
04. Sweet Little Rock & Roller
05. Anthony Boy
06. Johnny B. Goode

Side 2:
01. Little Queenie
02. Jo Jo Gun
03. Roll Over Beethoven
04. Around And Around
05. Hey Pedro
06. Blues For Hawaiians

Berry Is On Top (Mega)

Berry Is On Top (Zippy)

Originally issued as Chess LP 1435 in June 1959. The John Sippel sleevenotes on the back cover are the notes which appeared on the original issue. "Sweet Little Rock & Roller" was originally titled "Sweet Little Rock And Roll" on its single release.

There are quite a few classics on this LP but I would class "Hey Pedro" and "Blues For Hawaiians" as filler and not killer! The rest? Rock 'n' roll, baby, rock 'n' roll.

Traxfax

Maybellene - recorded on May 21st 1955. Chuck Berry (guitar, vocal) with Johnnie Johnson (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Jasper Thomas or Ebby Hardy (drums); Jerome Green (maracas).

Released on Chess 1604 b/w "Wee Wee Hours" in July 1955.

Roll Over Beethoven - recorded on April 16th, 1956. Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar) with Johnnie Johnson (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Released on Chess 1626 b/w "Drifting Heart" in May 1956.

Johnny B. Goode - recorded on 29th or 30th December, 1957. Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar) with Lafayette Leake (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Released on Chess 1691 b/w "Around And Around" in April 1958.

Around And Around and Blues For Hawaiians - recorded on February 28th, 1958. Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar, dubbed 2nd guitar) with unknown piano, electric bass, drums.

Around And Around - released on Chess 1691, B Side of "Roll Over Beethoven" in April 1958.

Blues For Hawaiians not released on single.

Carol and Hey Pedro recorded on May 2nd, 1958. Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar) with Johnnie Johnson (piano on "Carol"); George Smith (bass); Ebby Hardy (drums).

Both sides released on Chess 1700 in August 1958.

Anthony Boy, Jo Jo Gun, Sweet Little Rock And Roll, were recorded on 28th September, 1958. Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar) with Johnnie Johnson (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums) with possibly Bo Diddley (2nd guitar).

Sweet Little Rock And Roll / Jo Jo Gun - released on Chess 1709 in October 1958.

Anthony Boy / That's My Desire - released on Chess 1716 in January 1959.

Little Queenie - recorded in January 1959. Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar) with Johnnie Johnson (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums); possiby Bo Diddley (2nd guitar).

Release - see below.

Almost Grown - recorded on February 17th, 1959. Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar) with Johnnie Johnson (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums); Harvey and The Moonglows (vocal group).

Almost Grown / Little Queenie released on Chess 1722 in March 1959.

Chuck Berry - Rockin' At The Hops

Side 1:
01. Bye, Bye Johnny
02. Worried Life Blues
03. Down The Road A Piece
04. Confessin' The Blues
05. Too Pooped To Pop
06. Mad Lad

Side 2:
01. I Got To Find My Baby
02. Betty Jean
03. Childhood Sweetheart
04. Broken Arrow
05. Driftin' Blues
06. Let It Rock

Download from here:

http://www18.zippyshare.com/v/alj2WaGy/file.html

Let's mark the recent passing of Chuck Berry with this 1980s reissue of his 1960 LP "Rockin' At The Hops." His own compositions "Let It Rock," "I Got To Find My Baby," and "Bye Bye Johnny" are classics but what I especially like about this album are the revivals of older 1940s blues and boogie material which demonstrate where Chuck's personal tastes lay. So enjoy Big Maceo's "Worried Life Blues," The Will Bradley Trio's "Down The Road A Piece," Johnny Moore and the Three Blazers' "Driftin' Blues," and Jay McShann and Walter Brown's "Confessin' The Blues." Cool renditions from the Chuckster.

Track details:

Too Pooped To Pop, Betty Jean, Childhood Sweetheart, Broken Arrow, Let It Rock were recorded in Chicago on July 29th, 1959. Personnel: Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar) with L.C. Davis (tenor sax); Johnny Johnson (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums); The Ecuadors (vocal group)

Bye Bye Johnny, Worried Life Blues, I Got To Find My Baby, Driftin' Blues were recorded in Chicago on February 12th, 1960. Personnel: Chuck Berry (vocal, guitar); L.C. Davis (tenor sax); unknown other saxes; Johnny Johnson (piano); Matt Murphy (guitar); Willie Dixon (bass); Eddie Hardy (drums); unknown vocal group

Down The Road A Piece, Confessin' The Blues, Mad Lad were recorded in Chicago on April 12th, 1960. Personnel same as on February 12th 1960 session.

This LP was originally released as Chess LP 1448 in July 1960.

Single releases of tracks:

Childhood Sweetheart / Broken Arrow, Chess 1737, September 1959
Let It Rock / Too Pooped To Pop ("Casey"), Chess 1747, January 1960
Bye Bye Johnny / Worried Life Blues, Chess 1754, May 1960
I Got To Find My Baby / Mad Lad, Chess 1763, August 1960

Rock on, Be Bop Winos!

Sonny Boy Williamson - Chess Masters

Side 1:
01. Don't Start Me To Talkin'
02. I Don't Know
03. All My Love In Vain
04. The Key (To Your Door)
05. Keep It To Yourself
06. Dissatisfied

Side 2:
01. Fattening Frogs For Snakes
02. Wake Up Baby
03. Your Funeral And My Trial
04. "99"
05. Cross My Heart
06. Let Me Explain

Side 3:
01. One Way Out
02. Too Young To Die
03. Trust My Baby
04. Checkin' Up On My Baby
05. Sad To Be Alone
06. Got To Move

Side 4:
01. Bring It On Home
02. Down Child
03. Peach Tree
04. That's All I Want
05. Too Old To Think

Download the 2LP set from here:

Sonny Boy Williamson (Mega)

As with so many of these early 1980s "Chess Masters" releases on PRT, absolutely no information on the artist or recordings is provided on this 2LP set. Of course the featured artist on this collection is the second Sonny Boy Williamson, whose real name has been thought to be William Miller, Rice Miller, or Aleck Ford. He could have been born in 1894 or maybe 1909. It's pretty certain that he was earning a living as a bluesman from the 1920s onward, and in 1936 he formed a long lasting partnership with guitarist Robert Jr. Lockwood.

In the 1940s while working on the "King Biscuit Time" radio show in Helena Arkansas he started calling himself "Sonny Boy Williamson" after the well known and influential Chicago based singer / harmonica player John Lee Williamson. It may have been an attempt to deliberately mislead the radio audience, but when the original Sonny Boy was murdered in 1948, the second "Sonny Boy" (who was in fact the older man) was left with the name.

His recording career started with Trumpet Records, Jackson, Mississippi in early 1951 and he recorded for this label until November 1954. Sonny Boy's first Chess recording session took place on the 12th August 1955, backed by the Muddy Waters band. Two tracks from this session, "Don't Start Me To Talkin'" and "All My Love In Vain" were released on Sonny Boy's first Checker single, the first of seventeen that he would release on the Chess subsidiary label.

O.K. sad sacks, here's the facts on the tracks that this album lacks!

First off here's the tracks with recording date and original release number:

01. Don't Start Me To Talkin' - 12th August 1955 - Checker 824
02. I Don't Know - 8th February 1957 - Checker 864
03. All My Love In Vain - 12th August 1955 - Checker 824
04. The Key (To Your Door) - 7th August 1956 - Checker 847
05. Keep It To Yourself - 7th August 1956 - Checker 847
06. Dissatisfied - 1st September 1957 - Checker 910
07. Fattening Frogs For Snakes - 8th February 1957 - Checker 864
08. Wake Up Baby - 27th March 1958 - Checker 894
09. Your Funeral And My Trial - 27th March 1958 - Checker 894
10. "99" - 1st September 1957 - Checker LP 1437
11. Cross My Heart - 1st September 1957 - Checker 910
12. Let Me Explain - 24th January 1956 - Checker 834
13. One Way Out - 30th April 1964 - Chess LP 1503
14. Too Young To Die - 14th December 1960 - Chess LP 1503
15. Trust My Baby - 15th September 1960 - Checker 963
16. Checkin' Up On My Baby - 14th April 1960 - Chess LP 1503
17. Sad To Be Alone - 30th January 1960 - Checker 943
18. Got To Move - 11th January 1963 - Chess LP 1503
19. Bring It On Home - 11th January 1963 - Checker 1134
20. Down Child - 15th September 1960 - Checker 1134
21. Peach Tree - June 1960 - Chess LP 1503
22. That's All I Want - 8th September 1961 - Chess LP 1503
23. Too Old To Think - 8th September 1961 - Chess LP 1503

Session details:

All sides recorded in Chicago with Sonny Boy Williamson on vocals and harmonica.

Don't Start Me Talkin' (Checker 824)
All My Love In Vain (Checker 824)
Recorded 12th August, 1955. Additional personnel: Otis Spann (piano); Muddy Waters and Jimmy Rogers (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Let Me Explain (Checker 834)
Recorded 24th January, 1956. Additional personnel: Otis Spann (piano); Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

The Key (To Your Door) (Checker 847)
Keep It To Yourself (Checker 847)
Recorded 7th August, 1956. Additional personnel: Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

I Don't Know (Checker 864)
Fattening Frogs For Snakes (Checker 864)
Recorded 8th February, 1957. Additional personnel: Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Dissatisfied (Checker 910)
"99" (Checker LP 1437)
Cross My Heart (Checker 910)
Recorded 1st September, 1957. Additional personnel: Otis Spann (piano); Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Wake Up Baby (Checker 894)
Your Funeral And My Trial (Checker 894)
Recorded 27th March 1958. Additional personnel: Lafayette Leake (piano); Robert Lockwood and Eugene Pierson (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Sad To Be Alone (Checker 943)
Recorded 30th January, 1960. Additional personnel: Otis Spann (piano); Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Checkin' Up On My Baby (Chess LP 1503)
Recorded 14th April, 1960. Additional personnel: Otis Spann (piano); Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Unknown (electric bass); Fred Below (drums).

Peach Tree (Chess LP 1503)
Recorded June, 1960. Additional personnel: Otis Spann (piano);  Eddie King and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Trust My Baby (Checker 963)
Down Child (Checker 1134)
Recorded 15th September, 1960. Additional personnel: Lafayette Leake (piano); Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Too Young To Die (Chess LP 1503)
Recorded 14th December, 1960. Additional personnel: Otis Spann (piano); Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Odie Payne (drums).

That's All I Want (Chess LP 1503)
Too Old To Think (Chess LP 1503)
Recorded 8th September, 1961. Additional personnel: Otis Spann (piano); Robert Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Got To Move (Chess LP 1503)
Bring It On Home (Checker 1134)
Recorded 11th January, 1963. Additional personnel: Lafayette Leake or Billy Emerson (organ); Matt Murphy (guitar); Milton Rector (electric bass); Al Duncan (drums).

One Way Out (Chess LP 1503)
Recorded 30th April, 1964. Additional personnel: Lafayette Leake (piano); Buddy Guy (guitar); Jack Myers (electric bass); Clifton James (drums).


Original release details:

Don't Start Me Talkin' / All My Love In Vain (Checker 824) was released in September 1955.

Let Me Explain (b/w Your Imagination) (Checker 834) was released in March 1956.

Keep It To Yourself / The Key (To Your Door) (Checker 847) was released in October 1956.

Fattening Frogs For Snakes / I Don't Know (Checker 864) was released in June 1957.

Your Funeral And My Trial / Wake Up Baby (Checker 894) was released in May 1958.

Dissatisfied / Cross My Heart (Checker 910) was released in December 1958.

It's Sad To Be Alone was the B-Side of The Goat, Checker 943, released in January 1960.

Trust My Baby (b/w Too Close Together) (Checker 963) was released in October 1960.

Bring It On Home / Down Child (Checker 1134) was released in February 1966.

"99" is an alternate take of "Ninety Nine" which was released as the B-Side of "Born Blind" (Checker 883) in February 1958. "99" was released on Checker LP 1437 "Down And Out Blues" in 1959.

Checkin' Up On My Baby, Peach Tree, Too Young To Die, That's All I Want, Too Old To Think, Got To Move, One Way Out, were all first released on Chess LP 1053 "Sonny Boy Williamson - The Real Folk Blues" in January 1966.

You can find El Enmascarado's rip of a 78 rpm issue of Sonny Boy's first record for Checker here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2011/11/dont-start-me-talkin-all-my-love-in.html

In fact here they be, Sonny Boy's first and considerably successful sides on Checker:

And to finish off, here's the cover of the only Sonny Boy Williamson CD I possess, from the Chess Legendary Masters series. Like the other CDs in this series it's in superb sound quality. If you ever come across any of these CDs in your local hepcat record shop, or in a jumble sale, buy 'em.

Note the bowler hat - Sonny adopted a rather eccentric interpretation of the English gentleman style during his British tours in 1963/64. He recorded with The Animals, The Yardbirds and Chris Barber during this time and also made a recording in London in April 1965 with a band that included Brian Auger and Jimmy Page. He died the following month back home in the USA.

Little Walter - Chess Masters

LP1 -

Side 1:
01. My Babe
02. Sad Hours
03. You're So Fine
04. Last Night
05. Blues With A Feeling
06. Can't Hold Out Much Longer

Side 2:
01. Juke
02. Mean Old World
03. Off The Wall
04. You Better Watch Yourself
05. Blue Lights
06. Tell Me Mama

LP2 -

Side 3:

01. Nobody But You
02. My Baby's Sweeter
03. Roller Coaster
04. As Long As I Have You
05. Oh Baby
06. Take Me Back
07. Everything's Going To Be Alright
08. Mellow Down Easy

Side 4:
01. Hate To See You Go
02. I Got To Find My Baby
03. Everybody Needs Somebody
04. Blue Midnight

Download the 2LP set from here:

Little Walter Chess Masters (2LP) Mega

1981 Little Walter double album. UK issue on PRT (Precision Records and Tapes) It was one of an extensive series of "Chess Masters" double and single LPs released on PRT (a successor to Pye International) in the 1980s. There are no notes or track details so I'll try to fill in some details below.

The tracks:

LP1:
01. My Babe
02. Sad Hours
03. You're So Fine
04. Last Night
05. Blues With A Feeling
06. Can't Hold Out Much Longer
07. Juke
08. Mean Old World
09. Off The Wall
10. You Better Watch Yourself
11. Blue Lights
12. Tell Me Mama

LP2:
13. Nobody But You
14. My Baby's Sweeter
15. Roller Coaster
16. As Long As I Have You
17. Oh Baby
18. Take Me Back
19. Everything's Going To Be Alright
20. Mellow Down Easy
21. Hate To See You Go
22. I Got To Find My Baby
23. Everybody Needs Somebody
24. Blue Midnight

Note that track titles in italics are not present on this double album. Titles in italics with an asterisk (*) are on the "Confessin' The Blues" LP available elsewhere on this blog.

Tracks 6 and 7 - released on Checker 758, August 1952. Juke / Can't Hold On Much Longer by Little Walter and His Nite Cats. Recorded on May 12th 1952. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Muddy Waters and Jimmy Rogers (guitars), Elga Edmonds (drums).

Tracks 2 and 8 - released on Checker 764, November 1952. Mean Old World / Sad Hours by Little Walter and his Nite Caps. Recorded in October 1952. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Louis Myers and David Myers (guitars); Fred Below (drums).

Tracks 9 and 12 - released on Checker 770, April, 1953. Tell Me Mama / Off The Wall by Little Walter and his Jukes. Recorded on March 4th, 1953. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Louis Myers and David Myers (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Track 5 - released on Checker 780, September, 1953. Blues With A Feeling / Quarter To Twelve* by Little Walter and his Jukes. Recorded on July 23rd, 1953.  Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Jimmy Rogers (guitar); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Track 3 - released on Checker 786, December 1953. Lights Out* / You're So Fine by Little Walter and his Jukes. Recorded on July 23rd 1953. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Jimmy Rogers (guitar); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Track 17 - released on Checker 793, April 1954. Oh Baby / Rocker* by Little Walter and his Jukes. Recorded on February 22nd, 1954. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood (guitar); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Tracks 10 and 11 - released on Checker 799, August 1954. You'd Better Watch Yourself / Blue Light by Little Walter and his Jukes. Recorded on July 14th, 1954. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood and David Myers (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Tracks 4 and 20 - released on Checker 805, November 1954. Mellow Down Easy / Last Night by Little Walter and his Jukes. Recorded on October 5th, 1954. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Track 1 - released on Checker 811, February 1955. My Babe / Thunder Bird by Little Walter and his Jukes. Recorded on January 25th, 1955. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood and Leonard Caston (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Track 15 - released on Checker 817 in May 1955. Roller Coaster / I Got To Go* by Little Walter and His Jukes. Recorded on April 28th, 1955. Little Walter (harmonica); Bo Diddley and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Track 21 - released on Checker 825 in October 1955. I Hate To See You Go / Too Late by Little Walter and His Jukes. Recorded on August 12th, 1955. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Track 18 - released on Checker 852 in December 1956. It's Too Late Brother / Take Me Back by Little Walter. Recorded on July 27th 1956. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Tracks 13 and 23 - released on Checker 859 in March 1957. Nobody But You / Everybody Needs Somebody by Little Walter. Recorded on March 5th, 1957. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Jr. Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

Track 14 - released on Checker 919 in March 1959. My Baby Is Sweeter / Crazy Mixed Up World* by Little Walter. Recorded on February 25th, 1959. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Luther Tucker and Jimmy Lee Robinson (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); George Hunter (drums).

Track 19 - released on Checker 930 in July 1959. Everything Gonna Be Alright / Back Track by Little Walter. Recorded on July 21st, 1959.  Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Otis Spann (piano); Robert Jr. Lockwood and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Billy Stepney (drums).

Track 24 - released on Checker 955 in June 1960. My Babe / Blue Midnight by Little Walter. The A Side, "My Babe" is a remastered version of Checker 811 with added vocal chorus. "Blue Midnight" was recorded in October 1952. This was its first release. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Louis Myers and David Myers (guitars); Fred Below (drums).

Track 16 - released on Checker 968 in February 1961. I Don't Play / As Long As I Have You by Little Walter. Recorded in December 1960. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Otis Spann (piano); Luther Tucker and Fred Robinson (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); George Hunter (drums).

Track 22 - released on Checker 1013 in May 1962. Just You Fool / I Got To Find My Baby by Little Walter. Recorded on May 22nd 1954. Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Otis Spann (piano); Robert Jr. Lockwood and David Myers (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

In the downloads I have included versions of the LP cover surrounded by a white frame.

Elsewhere on the blog - "Confessin' The Blues" by Little Walter.

This LP contains five tracks which were on the reverse side of the original single releases of tracks on the "Chess Masters" 2LP set.

Little Walter - Confessin' The Blues (re-up)

 

Side 1:

01. It Ain't Right

02. Rocker

03. I Got To Find My Baby

04. Lights Out

05. One More Chance With You

06. Crazy Legs

07. Temperature

Side 2:

01. I Got To Go

02. Crazy Mixed Up World

03. Quarter To Twelve

04. Confessin' The Blues

05. The Toddle

06. Up The Line

07. Rock Bottom

08. Mean Old Frisco

Download from here:

http://www26.zippyshare.com/v/BN8kpPxd/file.html

or here:

Confessin' The Blues (Mega)

Original post (13th August 2012):

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/little-walter-confessin-blues.html

This is a 1982 Italian re-issue of an album originally issued on Chess in 1974. The sleevenotes by Pete Welding are in Italian. Sound quality seems slightly muffled on some tracks. Your intrepid blogger, still reeling from his efforts on the Chess Masters Various Artists post, went back on the discographical trail to round up the info on these tracks.

I swore I wouldn't get involved in original release dates and dates of recording sessions and who was or wasn't present on each track, but what the heck, these are LITTLE WALTER tracks! We must do right by the man, so here's the lowdown as far as I can make it out. Sources: Bruyninckx, www.wirz.de, notes to 2CD set "Blues With A Feeling", and even occasionally my own ears.

All tracks recorded in Chicago. Guitarist Robert Lockwood is variously listed as "Robert Lockwood Jr." and "Robert Jr. Lockwood" depending where you look. Apparently his given name was Robert Lockwood, Jr. but he was also known as Robert "Junior" Lockwood, hence the variation in different discographies.

Track details:

01. It Ain't Right - Checker 833 (B side of "Who"), February 1956. Recorded December 1955. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Lockwood Jr. and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass), Fred Below (drums).

02. Rocker - Checker 793, April 1954. "Little Walter and His Jukes". Recorded February 22nd, 1954. Personnel: Little Walter (harmonica); Robert Lockwood Jr. and Louis Myers (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

03. I Got To Find My Baby - Checker 1013 (B side of "Just Your Fool"), May 1962. Recorded May 22nd, 1954. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Louis Myers and Robert Lockwood Jr (guitars); Otis Spann (piano); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

04. Lights Out - Checker 786, December 1953. "Little Walter and His Jukes." Recorded July 23rd, 1953. Personnel: Little Walter (harmonica); Louis Myers and Dave Myers (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

05. One More Chance With You - Checker 838, May 1956. Recorded December 1955. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Lockwood Jr. and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass), Fred Below (drums).

06. Crazy Legs - Checker 986 (B side of "Crazy For My Baby"), July 1961. Recorded January 1953. Personnel: Little Walter (harmonica); Louis Myers and David Myers (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass), Fred Below (drums).

07. Temperature - Checker 867 (B side of "Boom, Boom Out Goes The Lights"), August 1957. Recorded June 20th, 1957. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Lockwood Jr. and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

08. I Got To Go - Checker 817 (B side of "Roller Coaster"), May 1955. Recorded April 28th 1955. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Robert Lockwood Jr. and Luther Tucker (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

09. Crazy Mixed Up World - Checker 919 (B side of "My Baby Is Sweeter"), March 1959. Recorded February 25th 1959. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Luther Tucker and Freddy Robinson (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); George Hunter (drums).

10. Quarter To Twelve - Checker 780 (B side of "Blues With A Feeling"), September 1953. Recorded July 23rd, 1953. Personnel: Little Walter (harmonica); Jimmy Rogers and David Myers (guitars); Willie Dixon (bass); Fred Below (drums).

11. Confessin' The Blues - Checker 890 (B side of "The Toddle"), March 1958. Recorded January 1958. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Luther Tucker and Jimmy Lee Robinson (guitars); Lafayette Leake (organ); Willie Dixon (bass); George Hunter or Odie Payne (drums).

12. The Toddle - Checker 890. Recording date and personnel same as per "Confessin' The Blues" except no vocal and Lafayette Leake plays piano instead of organ.

13. Up The Line - Checker 1043, April 1963. Recorded February 5th 1963. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Jarrett Gibson (tenor sax), Donald Hankins (baritone sax); Billy Emerson (organ); Lafayette Leake (piano); Buddy Guy (guitar); Jack Myers (bass); Al Duncan (drums).

14. Rock Bottom - Checker 904 (B side of "Key To The Highway), September 1958. Recorded August 1958. Personnel: Little Walter (harmonica); Otis Spann (piano); Muddy Waters (slide guitar); Luther Tucker (guitar); Willie Dixon (bass); George Hunter (drums).

15. Mean Old Frisco - Checker 1117, July 1965. "Mean Ole Frisco." Recorded July 21st 1959. Personnel: Little Walter (vocal, harmonica); Otis Spann (piano); Robert Lockwood Jr. and Luther Tucker (guitars), Willie Dixon (bass); Bill Stepney (drums).

CD covers from my collection.

The Proper set is a good overview of Little Walter from his earliest recordings for the Ora Nelle label in 1947, through a couple of early tracks with Sunnyland Slim and then Jimmy Rogers, and then on to the huge hit "Juke" recorded for Chess in May 1952, with backing from the Muddy Waters band billed as Little Walter and His Night Cats. The rest of the tracks are from October 1952, March 1953 and July 1953 sessions by Little Walter and His Jukes. This line up usually consisted of Little Walter (vocal / harmonica); Louis and David Myers on guitars, Willie Dixon on bass, and Fred Below on drums. The July 1953 session had Jimmy Rogers on guitar instead of the Myers brothers. It's all good stuff!

A Proper Introduction To Little Walter: Juke. (Intro CD 2006) Compiled and annotated by Joop Visser. Digipack, 23 tracks. Published 2004.

The 2CD set "Blues With A Feeling" in the Chess Collectibles series is a wide ranging set of tracks from 1952 to 1966. There are many alternate takes (including an alternate of "Juke") and quite a few unreleased tracks in the selection, so this is by no means a comprehensive review of the chart career of Little Walter. One for those who wish to dig deep.

Blues With A Feeling - Chess Collectibles, Volume 3. (MCA Chess CHD2-9357) Compiled and produced by Andy McKaie and Mary Katherine Aldin. Two CD set, 40 tracks. Published 1995.

Walking The Blues / If You're Mine - Willie Dixon and The Allstars (Checker 822)

                                       

Listen to "Walking The Blues"

Listen to "If You're Mine"

Our "Blues on 78" series continues with this latest gem from El Enmascarado.

Released in July 1955, this disc was Willie Dixon's first solo disc. "If You're Mine" was recorded in May 1955 with Harold Ashby (tenor sax), Lafayette Leake (piano) and Fred Below (drums). "Walking The Blues" was recorded in June 1955 with Lafeyette Leake (piano) and Fred Below (footsteps).

"Walking The Blues" was a cover of the Champion Jack Dupree single on King, which had Mr. Bear doing the walking sounds. Champion Jack's version was the more successful, reaching number seven in the R&B best seller charts, and number six in the most played R&B records on juke boxes at the end of August 1955. In the same week the Willie Dixon version made it to number nine in the juke box plays chart.

Many thanks to El Enmascarado for these rips from the original 78 rpm shellac disc and also for the label scans.