The Paragons Meet The Jesters (Jubilee LP 1098)

Side 1:

01. Florence - The Paragons

02. Please Let Me Love You - The Jesters

03. So Strange - The Jesters

04. Let's Start All Over Again - The Paragons

05. Now That You're Gone - The Jesters

06. The Vows Of Love - The Paragons

Side 2:

01. Hey Little School Girl - The Paragons

02. I'm Falling In Love - The Jesters

03. Love No One But You - The Jesters

04. Stick With Me Baby - The Paragons

05. I Laughed - The Jesters

06. Twilight - The Paragons

Download from:

http://www9.zippyshare.com/v/7qQgMKjC/file.html

The original post is (25th June 2008) is here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2008/06/paragons-meet-jesters-jubilee-jlp-1098_1524.html

We've had a few re-up requests for this one - Joan's contribution of  the 1959 Jubilee LP "The Paragons Meet The Jesters." The sides contained herein were originally released on Winley and its subsidiary Cyclone between February 1957 and June 1958. Winley was owned by Paul Winley and was distributed through Jubilee owner Jerry Blaine's  Cosnat company, hence the use of these sides on a Jubilee LP.

This was the first of a series of five Jubilee compilations of doo wop / vocal group tracks. The other titles in the series were: "Cadillacs Meet the Orioles", "Whoppers!", "Boppin'", and "Rumble." All the album covers featured cheesy photographs of models posing as biker / juvenile delinquent types complete with leather jackets and even on occasion baseball bats. Hilariously and unintentionally (?) camp.

For the full lowdown on these groups see Marv Goldberg's site:

http://www.uncamarvy.com/Paragons/paragons.html

http://www.uncamarvy.com/Jesters/jesters.html

I think Joan "reconstructed" these LPs from original 45 rpm singles which were pretty scratched. In fact there's a skip on the first track, but, hey, that's all part of the Be Bop Wino lo-fi aural experience.

With thanks to Joan K for the sounds and scans.

Drink Up!

Tracklist:

Side 1:

01. Mr. Bear Comes To Town - Mr. Bear

02. Hold Out Baby - Mr. Bear

03. Walking the Blues - Champion Jack Dupree

04. Peek-A-Boo - Mr. Bear

05. The Bear Hug - Mr. Bear

06. Hi-Fi Baby - Mr. Bear

07. Think I Know - Dr. Horse

08. I'm Gonna Keep My Good Eye On You - Mr. Bear

09. Drunk Again - Champion Jack Dupree

Side 2:

01. How Come? - Mr. Bear

02. I'm Tired Of  It - Dr. Horse

03. One Mint Julep - The Clovers

04. Salt Pork, West Virginia - Dr. Horse

05. Radar - Mr. Bear

06. Jack That Cat Was Clean - Dr. Horse

07. Drink Up - The Du-Droppers

08. Goodnight Blues - King Kolax Orchestra

09. Daybreak Rock - Mr. Bear with Champion Jack Dupree

Download from:

http://www79.zippyshare.com/v/wNUbY343/file.html

We're makin' the joints with the hippest cats in town. Bar-room philosophers Mr. Bear, Dr. Horse and Champion Jack Dupree are our companions on an all night booze-a-thon. They're up for it - just hear the rockin' vibes on "Mr. Bear Comes To Town." But soon the booze takes hold and our buddies are waxing philosophical about their troubled relationships with their women.

And then we find The Clovers slumped over a bar counter bewailing the consequences of an unwise mint julep but our fellow revellers laugh that off and soon we're in better company as The Du Droppers urge us to keep imbibing as the night wears on.

It's all over, surely, 'cos here's the King Kolax band wailing on an after hours sax instro as we make our way along the deserted streets as dawn begins to break. But Champion Jack and Mr. Bear have other ideas ... may the Lord have mercy on our poor lost souls.

Pardon the distortion, clicks and pops from our less than mint vinyl. Who cares? Whose round is it? Show me the way to the next whiskey bar. We're stumblin' in the neon groves.

We Love Earl Bostic - 2 LPs Re-Upped!

Dance To The Best Of Bostic (reissue of King LP 500):

Side 1:

01. Flamingo

02. Always

03. Deep Purple

04. Smoke Rings

05. What No Pearls

06. Jungle Drums

Side 2:

01. Serenade

02. I Can't Give You Anything But Love

03. Seven Steps

04. I'm Gettin' Sentimental Over You

05. Don't You Do It

06. Steamwhistle Jump

Download from here:

Dance To The Best Of Bostic (Mega)

Important note - this LP consists of 1959 re-recordings by Earl Bostic.

The original post from the 3rd April 2010 contains full recording details of the tracks plus some interesting comments "below the line." Please note that for this re-up I improved the scans of the back cover and the record labels.

Original post is here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2010/04/earl-bostic-dance-to-best-of-bostic.html

Earl Bostic Blows A Fuse (Charly CRB 1091):

Side 1:

01. Night Train

02. 8.45 Stomp

03. That's The Groovy Thing

04. Special Delivery Stomp

05. Moonglow

06. Mambostic

07. Earl Blows A Fuse

08. Harlem Nocturne

Side 2:

09. Who Snuck The Wine In The Gravy?

10. Don't You Do It

11. Disc Jockey's Nightmare

12. Flamingo

13. Steam Whistle Jump

14. What! No Pearls

15. Tuxedo Junction

16. Seven Steps

Download from here:

Earl Bostic Blows A Fuse (Mega)

The original post (2nd December 2009) contains a summary of Earl Bostic's career, recommended purchases and interesting comments below the line. For this re-up I have added label scans and a new back cover scan. Original post is here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2009/12/earl-bostic-blows-fuse-crb-1091.html

More re-ups are in the pipeline, including another great alto player and two vocal groups on a compilation with crazy cover art.

Lowell Hastings, Danny Turner, Eddie Woodland - Count "Red" Hastings

Tracklist:

Side A:

01. Diga Diga Do - Count Hastings

02. Sugar Cane - Count Hastings

03. Minor In The Diner - Count Hastings*

04. She's Funny That Way - Count Hastings

05. Patches - Count Hastings*

06. Begin The Beguine - Count Hastings

07. Candied Yam - Count Hastings

Side B:

01. Patches - Count Hastings

02. Baboo - Count Hastings

03. Minor In The Diner - Count Hastings*

04. Midnight Moan - Danny Turner*

05. Snap Case - Eddie Woodland*

06. Jumpin' With Pio - Eddie Woodland*

07. Danny's Jump - Danny Turner **

* = previously unreleased take
** = previously unreleased title

Download from:

http://www9.zippyshare.com/v/V0JcrxOp/file.html

Re-up of an LP originally posted on the 18th November 2007, back in the first few months of  Be Bop Wino. I've added new scans of the back and front covers plus the labels.

This is where R&B meets jazz or vice versa. Cool and jumping sax workouts from 1948 / 1949 for the Gotham label. The notes by Tony Burke explain all and include complete lists of all recording sessions by Lowell "Count" Hastings and Danny Turner. Count Hastings in particular had an extensive R&B career including sessions with Lucky Millinder, Illinois Jacquet, Wynonie Harris and Little Willie John. He was also a member of the bands of Earl Bostic and Louis Jordan.

The only sides on this LP which were released as a single were "Begin The Beguine" / "Candied Yam" on Gotham 171. These sides were recorded in New York on 29th November 1948. The rest of the Count Hastings tracks were recorded in New York on January 4th 1950 but remained unreleased at the time.

Danny Turner had one release on Gotham - "Give Me Some More Of That Real Fine Loving" / ""Midnight Moan" on Gotham 183, from his only session for Gotham under his own name in June 1949 in Philadelphia. The released take of "Midnight Moan" was different from the one presented on this album.

Eddie Woodland had one release on Gotham under his own name, Gotham 194 "Snap Case" / "Jumpin' With Pio" recorded on May 20th 1949 in Philadelphia. Again, these were different takes to the ones presented here.

The original 2007 post on this LP can be found here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2007/11/lowell-hastings-danny-turner-eddie_5596.html

Earl Bostic - Sax "O" Boogie

Tracklist:

Side 1:

01. Bostic's Jump

02. Earl's Rhumboogie

03. Hot Sauce Boss

04. 8:45 Stomp

05. Bar Fly Baby

06. Bostic's Boogie Blues

07. Blip Boogie

08. From Midnight To Dawn

Side 2:

01. Swing Low Sweet Boogie

02. Nay, Nay, Go Away

03. Sugar Hill Blues

04. Choppin' It Down

05. No Name Blues

06. Way Down

07. Don't You Do It

08. Rockin' And Reelin'

Download from:

Sax "O" Boogie (Mega)

Sax "O" Boogie (Zippy)

This is a re-up of an LP which was originally posted in the very early days of the blog , the 17th November 2007, to be precise.

The original post is here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2007/11/earl-bostic-sax-boogie_4519.html

In those days I hadn't worked out how to do a complete scan of an LP cover, so the original upload had scans that missed out parts of the front and back covers. For this re-up I've replaced the old cover scans with new ones plus I've added label scans.

The tracks on this LP date from a 1948 session for Gotham and sessions for King in 1949, 1950 and 1951. They may come as a surprise to those who are familiar only with Earl's 1950s hit singles and the series of "dance" LPs issued by King during that decade. There is no sign here of Earl's hit formula - the swinging, sophisticated, big toned alto sax backed by vibes, but instead we have a series of wild and raucous jump numbers. Full sessions details are on the LP back cover.

Original release information:

Earl's Rhumboogie / 8.45 Stomp on Gotham 154

Bostic's Jump / Hot Sauce Boss on Gotham 155

Bar Fly Baby / Bostic's Boogie Blues on Gotham 161

Blip Boogie on King 4302 (other side was Earl's Blues)

From Midnight To Dawn on King LP 528 "After Hours" (Various Artists)

Swing Low Sweet Boogie on King EP 200 "Earl Bostic And His Alto Sax Volume 1"

'Nay, 'Nay Go Away / Sugar Hill Blues on King 4328

Choppin' It Down / No Name Blues on King 4343

Way Down on King 4420 (other sides was Merry Widow Waltz)

Don't You Do It on King 4683 (B Side of "Off Shore") but without the introduction on the version on this LP. Vibes are also prominent on the single version. The version on this LP is the same as the version on Charly LP "Earl Bostic Blows a Fuse."

Rockin' And Reelin' on King 4437 (other side was "I Can't Give You Anything But Love")

Further reading about Earl is on this post on "Earl Bostic Blows a Fuse.":

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2009/12/earl-bostic-blows-fuse-crb-1091.html

Coming soon - re-ups on Lowell "Count" Hastings (who is on many of the tracks on this LP) and "The Paragons Meet The Jesters".

Battle Of The Blues Volume 4 (King LP 668)

Tracklist:

Side 1:

01. Big Mouth Gal - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson

02. Bring It Back - Wynonie Harris

03. If You Don't Think I'm Sinking - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson

04. Trouble At Midnight - Roy Brown

05. Peas And Rice - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson

06. Rock Mr Blues - Wynonie Harris

Side 2:

01. Lonesome Train - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson

02. Old Age Boogie - Roy Brown

03. Bald Headed Blues - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson

04. Grandma Plays The Numbers - Wynonie Harris

05. Good Bread Alley - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson

06. Queen Of Diamonds - Roy Brown

Download from:

http://www26.zippyshare.com/v/ti1UZFka/file.html

Battle Of The Blues Volume 4 (Mega)

 

The 4th and final volume of King's "Battle Of The Blues" series has only 12 tracks - 6 by Eddie Vinson, and 3 each by Roy Brown and Wynonie Harris. Tracks recorded 1948 - 1954 and this LP was originally released in 1959. Session details are included in the download:

Once again many thanks to Joan K for this LP which was originally posted on the 13th December 2008 here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2008/12/eddie-cleanhead-vinson-roy-brown_13.html

More re-ups coming soon!

Battle Of The Blues Volume 3 (King LP 634)

Tracklist:

Side 1 (Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson):

01. Person To Person

02. I'm Weak But I'm Willing

03. Somebody Done Stole My Cherry Red

04. Queen Bee

05. Featherbed Mama

06. I Trusted You Baby

07. No Good Woman

08. Ashes On My Pillow

Side 2 (Jimmy Witherspoon):

01. The Last Mile

02. 24 Sad Hours

03. Blues In Trouble

04. Sad Life

05. Don't Tell Me How

06. Foolish Prayer

07. Highway To Happiness

08. I Done Told You

Download from here:

http://www119.zippyshare.com/v/YOpdZlHz/file.html

Volume 3 of King's "Battle Of The Blues" series was originally released in 1959. The recording details are in the original post from 8th December 2008 here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2008/12/eddie-vinson-jimmy-witherspoon-battle_08.html

The Eddie Vinson tracks were recorded for King between 1949 and 1952. The Jimmy Witherspoon tracks were recorded for Federal in 1952 and 1953.

The Eddie Vinson story can be read on these two blog posts:

"Mr Cleanhead Steps Out" (11th September 2010) at -

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2010/09/eddie-cleanhead-vinson-mr-cleanhead.html

and "Cherry Red Blues" (27th September 2010) at -

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2010/09/eddie-cleanhead-vinson-cherry-red-blues.html

Please note that "Battle Of The Blues Volume 4" was ripped at 128 kbps.

Thanks to Joan K for this series.

Battle Of The Blues Volume 2 (King LP 627)

Tracklist:

Side 1 (Roy Brown):

01. Hard Luck Blues

02. Dreamin' Blues

03. 'Long About Sundown

04. Double Crossin' Woman

05. Sweet Peach

06. Wrong Woman Blues

07. Brown Angel

Side 2 (Wynonie Harris):

01. Man, Have I Got Troubles

02. I'll Never Give Up

03. Here Comes The Night

04. Luscious Woman

05. Drinking Blues

06. Nearer My God To Thee

07. Tremblin'

Download from here:

http://www13.zippyshare.com/v/XtRcH8Tj/file.html

This is the second of four volumes of "Battle Of The Blues" that Joan K donated to the blog in 2008. Originally released in 1959, Volume 2 is a return bout between Roy Brown and Wynonie Harris, although this time the combatants opt for slow, moody blues songs rather than the all out rockin' R&B of the first volume. An interesting contrast in styles between the crying style of Roy and the hoarse voiced shouting of Wynonie. Superb musicianship on all tracks.

Original post (from 27th November 2008) is here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2008/11/roy-brown-wynonie-harris-battle-of_8199.html

The remaining 2 volumes will be posted soon as will other requested re-ups (Tab Smith, early Earl Bostic, Count Hastings, and The Paragons Meet The Jesters.)

Have a bluesing good Sunday!

Battle Of The Blues (King LP 607)

Tracklist:

Side 1 (Roy Brown):
01. Boogie At Midnight
02. Big Town
03. Bar Room Blues
04. Love Don't Love Nobody
05. Miss Fanny Brown
06. Lolly Pop Mama
07. I've Got The Last Laugh Now

Side 2 (Wynonie Harris)
01. Bloodshot Eyes
02. Good Rockin' Tonight
03. Loving Machine
04. Shake That Thing
05. I Feel That Old Age Coming On
06. All She Wants To Do Is Rock
07. Good Morning Judge

Download from:

http://www11.zippyshare.com/v/doP5vbuo/file.html

Hang on to your hats, rockin' cats 'n' jivin' kittens, because someone has requested a re-up of the entire King "Battle Of The Blues" series. These LPs were originally issued in the late 1950s / early 1960s. They were collections of sides by Roy Brown, Wynonie Harris, Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson and Jimmy Witherspoon which had been released as singles on King / Federal / DeLuxe from the late 1940s through to the mid 1950s.

This LP, the first in the series, was issued in 1958. "Rousing" is the word for the music contained herein as Roy and Wynonie bawl the blues over a raucous backing of pounding drums and squealing saxes.

Joan K donated all 4 volumes to Be Bop Wino back in September 2008. The original music files were in m4a format which I then converted to mp3 (192 kbps), so the sound quality isn't so hi in the fi. It's still good enough to freak out the neighbours, especially if you hook up your laptop / desktop / tablet or whatever to your sound system like I do. Let the blues blast forth!

The original post can be found here:

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2008/11/roy-brown-wynonie-harris-battle-of_2311.html

More info and brilliant tracks by Roy Brown available on this post of the Gusto 2LP set "Hard Luck Blues":

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/roy-brown-hard-luck-blues.html

More info on Wynonie Harris on this post of the Route 66 LP "Oh Babe!":

http://bebopwinorip.blogspot.co.uk/2009/11/wynonie-harris-oh-babe.html

Al Sears - Ride The 'D' Train

Side 1

01. The Beautiful Indians Part 1 - Duke Ellington and his Orchestra

02. Searsy - Al Sears and his All Star Rhythm Section

03. Long Long Ago - Al Sears and his All Star Rhythm Section

04. Searsy's Blues - Johnny Hodges and his Orchestra

05. Castle Rock - Johnny Hodges and his Orchestra

06. Now Ride the 'D' Train - Al Sears and his Orchestra

07. Nell Don't Wear No Button Up Shoes - Al Sears and his Orchestra

08. Azores - Al Sears and his Orchestra

Side 2

01. Tweedle Dee - Al Sears and his Rock 'n' Rollers

02. Rock 'n' Roll Ball - Big Al Sears

03. Here's the Beat - Big Al Sears

04. Great Googa Mooga - Big Al Sears

05. So Glad - Big Al Sears

06. Teener's Canteen - Alan Freed and his Rock'n Roll Band

07. Teen Rock - Alan Freed and his Rock'n Roll Band

08. Right Now Right Now - Alan Freed and his Rock'n Roll Band

Download from:

http://www112.zippyshare.com/v/zbgZD9ZS/file.html

My thanks to a German sax fan for donating this fine album. Unfortunately he was unable to send scans of the inner pages of the original gatefold sleeve. If anybody out there has the means to scan and send images of these missing pages please get in touch via the comments or the blog email.

I don't think I've ever come across an LP where there is such a contrast between the first and second sides. I suppose this was inevitable when you consider the nature of Al Sears's career which spanned the days of big band swing, then the era of small group jazz and R&B, and then on into the age of the Big Beat - rock 'n' roll as promoted by Alan Freed and a host of others.

Al Sears gained experience in a number of the top big bands, including an early lineup of the Chick Webb band, Andy Kirk's Clouds of Joy, Lionel Hampton, and most famously The Duke Ellington Orchestra where he replaced Ben Webster in the featured tenor sax spot.

After leaving the Duke, Al spent most of the late 40s and early 50s (until summer 1951) in the small band of fellow ex-Ellingtonian Johnny Hodges. It was while with this group that Al had his biggest hit, "Castle Rock". After this success Al left off gigging with Hodges to concentrate on his music business career (he had taken business admin courses years earlier during a low point in music sales) but still kept recording, occasionally as leader and often as a session man. Among the R&B sessions he was involved in were dates with Screaming Jay Hawkins, Nappy Brown and Big Joe Turner ("Hide and Seek", "Flip Flop and Fly" in 1955).

Side 1 of this collection takes us through the jazz years with Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges. Following the success of "Castle Rock" Al recorded a brilliant session at King in September 1951. The band was virtually identical to the Hodges group from "Castle Rock" and it was long rumoured that Hodges was in fact playing on that session. The last 3 sides on Side 1 are from this session and although promoted as R&B sides by King, they lie squarely in the small group jazz style of the Hodges band.

A December 1952 session for RCA Victor saw Al moving more towards the rockin' R&B style which would soon be promoted as rock and roll. In 1954 he recorded an out and out rock 'n' roll single for Herald - "Tweedle Dee" / "Goin' Uptown". The latter track is a real sax killer which is unfortunately not on this collection but is available on the Bear Family CD "Sear-iously."

"Tweedle Dee" kicks off the second or "rock 'n' roll" side of this album. The rest of this side is made up of tracks recorded for RCA subsidiary Groove, Jubilee ("So Glad" in more R&B vein) and three records credited to Alan Freed's Rock'n Roll Band. Al had originally recorded the Freed band titles for Coral with a small studio group in 1955. "Teener's Canteen" was originally called "Tina's Canteen" but with Freed making a play for the teenage audience a re-titling seems almost inevitable.

Al was one of a number of ex big band, swing veterans Freed called on to form his own "rock 'n' roll" big band for stage, radio and film appearances. Other recruits included Al's fellow NYC session men Sam "The Man" Taylor and Freddie Mitchell. Both Freddie and Al can be seen blowing enthusiastically in the film "Rock, Rock, Rock", Freddie on an adaptation of his "Moondog Boogie" re-titled "Rock 'n' Roll Boogie", and Al on a storming version of his own composition "Right Now Right Now." The final three tracks on this collection were featured on 2 Coral LPs of Alan Freed's "Rock 'n' Roll Dance Party" and were also released as singles.

Al did have one more jazz recording session as a leader in 1960 on the Swingville LP "Swing's The Thing." He continued to play and record occasionally but in a jazz style rather than rock 'n' roll or R&B. Al remained active in the business side of music, retiring in 1980 at the age of seventy. He passed away in 1990.

The tracks on this LP and the recommended Bear Family CD owe their excellence to a large number of musicians. In particular the contributions of the following should be noted: Lloyd Trotman, Dave Marshall, Sonny Greer, Jesse Stone, Johnny Hodges, Sam "The Man" Taylor, Mickey Baker, Budd Johnson and Haywood Henry. Whether playing jazz, R&B or rock and roll, Al Sears was invariably in the company of the most accomplished musicians.

Recommended purchases:

Anyone who likes the big, rasping sax sound of 1950s NYC rock 'n' roll just has to have the Bear Family CD "Sear-iously." 25 sides recorded between 1949 and 1956 for Coral, Herald and RCA / Groove. The 1949 sides feature Clarence Palmer and his original version of "Brown Boy", adapted from Lil Armstrong's "Brown Gal." The front cover has a picture of Al on stage with Sam "The Man" Taylor and Red Prysock.

The Bear Family CD doesn't have the King sides from 1951. The whole session (8 tracks) was included on the 1999 Westside CD "Groove Station" along with tracks by Preston Love, Wild Bill Moore, Fats Noel and Jesse Powell, all in fantastic sound quality. The CD is still around on the Bear Family Website, eBay and Amazon Marketplace. Well worth hunting down. In fact your life is incomplete without it.

Happy sax blasting! And remember if you have the inner sides of the "Ride The 'D' Train" gatefold sleeve and can obtain scans, please get in touch.

Finally, thanks again to our anonymous donor. You are now admitted to the Mystic Order of the Wailing Sax.