The Wallflower / Hold Me, Squeeze Me - Etta James and "The Peaches" (Modern 947)

Recorded on November 25th 1954, Culver City. Personnel: Etta James, Abbye Mitchell, Jean Mitchell (The Peaches), Richard Berry (vocals); Don Johnson (trumpet); Maxwell Davis (tenor sax); Big Jim Wynn (baritone sax); Devonia Williams (piano); Chuck Norris (guitar); Chuck Hamilton (bass); Leard Bell (drums); Johnny Otis (vibraphone).

Listen to "The Wallflower"

Listen to "Hold Me, Squeeze Me"

With thanks to El Enmascarado for this 78 rpm disc which marked the recording debut of Etta James. In 1954 the 15 year old Jamesetta Hawkins  formed a female vocal trio (originally called The Creolettes) with two older sisters - Abbye (short for Abyssinia) and Jean Mitchell. The Mitchells in particular were big fans of The Midnighters who had a number one R&B hit that year with "Work With Me Annie", an irresistible piece of double entendre dancefloor stomp composed by lead singer Hank Ballard.

The Peaches wrote an answer song, "Roll With Me Henry" which they pitched to The Midnighters who weren't too enthusiastic. Abbye arranged a meeting with Johnny Otis who was sufficiently impressed by the group and their song to drive them out to the Modern studios at Culver City and a recording session with his band plus Maxwell Davis and Richard Berry. The Otis band remained uncredited on the record as he was under contract to Peacock Records at the time.

Richard Berry contributed  new introductory lines and a vocal which turned the opening and closing verses into a call and response duet with Etta. Maxwell Davis took a customarily classy tenor sax break, and in the background The Peaches wailed and the Otis outfit swung along merrily which all made for one classy piece of rhythm 'n' blues. A less suggestive title "The Wallflower" was chosen for the disc which climbed to the number one R&B spot in early 1955. The pop chart action was grabbed by a cover version (entitled "Dance With Me Henry") by Georgia Gibbs which spent three weeks at the top of the Billboard pop chart in the spring of 1955.

Thanks once more to El Enmascarado for the opportunity to focus on this piece of R&B and rock 'n' roll history, particularly as Etta James and Johnny Otis have now sadly left us.

Source: "Let The Good Times Rock! A fan's notes on post-war American roots music" by Bill Millar, Music Mentor Books, York, England, 2004. Another Boogiewoody recommended read!

Johnny Otis and Etta James

Johnny Otis

What a sad week for fans of R&B with two of the all time greats gone. There have been plenty of tributes and appreciations elsewhere so Be Bop Wino marks the passing of Johnny Otis and Etta James with a couple of streamed audio playlists.

The Johnny Otis tracks date from his big band days of the mid 1940s (with his first hit "Harlem Nocturne" plus the raunchy "My Baby's Business" with Jimmy Rushing) to the jump and boogie of his smaller groups of the late 1940s and early 1950s (with great contributions from the likes of Big Jay McNeely and Pete "Guitar" Lewis).

My first Etta James record - the Ace 10 inch LP from the early 1980s

The tributes to Etta James have tended to concentrate on her great soul sides for Chess such as "I'd Rather Go Blind" but my little playlist is made up of some of her 1950s sides for the Bihari Brothers' Modern label, starting with her first ever release - "Roll With Me Henry" - an answer record to The Midnighters' "Work With Me Annie." Recorded towards the end of 1954 (and subsequently renamed "The Wallflower") it was a big hit for the young Etta James who had been introduced to the Biharis by Johnny Otis. The list also includes "The Pick-Up" which is one of my all time favourite R&B records.

Thanks to Joan for the two Crown LP covers shown below.

Joan Spins Again! - Volume 1

Side 1
1. Get With It - The Flamingos
2. Night After Night - The Derbys
3. Angel Of My Dreams - The Sonnets
4. Can This Be Love - The Winners
5. 535 - The Dreamers
6. The Bells Ring Out - The L' Captans
7. Dreamin' and Dreamin' - The Scale-Tones
8. I Dream Of You Night After Night - The Senders
9. You For Me - The Hollyhocks

Side 2
1. Is It Right - The Castros
2. Ain't Got The Money To Pay For This Drink - The Thrills
3. You Belong To Me - The Radars
4. Little Island Girl - The Goldentones
5. Will You Be Mine - The Swallows
6. Rock, Lilly, Rock - The Corsairs
7. Joyce - The Radiants
8. Native Girl - The Native Boys
9. What Makes You Do The Things You Do - The Wrens

Joan K makes a welcome return to the blog with a stack o' rockin' records. If enough people like this, then there may well be another series to follow the great "Joan Selects." Let's listen to some words of wisdom from the lady herself while she spins the platters that matter:

The Joan Selects series is BACK! We launch into the New Year 2012 with a brand new volume of great obscure doo-wop harmonies. In this first volume we find several familiar groups and lots of really non-mainstream cuts.

The Flamingos open Volume One with "Get With It" recorded in November 1954. Members of the Flamingos were: Nate Nelson (lead), Johnny Carter (first tenor and falsetto), Zeke Carey (second tenor), Paul Wilson (baritone), and Jake Carey (bass). As on their later Chance sessions, the group was backed a combo led by bass player Al Smith and a four-horn front line Sonny Cohn, trumpet; Harlan “Booby” Floyd, trombone; Red Holloway, tenor saxophone; and Mac Easton, baritone sax. Shortly after this second Parrot session the Flamingos departed for Chicago's Checker Records.

There is a mix of up tempo and slow ballads in this first volume of Joan Spins Again. The Derbys recorded "Night After Night" for major label Mercury Records. The Winners were a late doo wop addition to the Bihari Brothers repertory of artists signed to their Modern, Flair, RPM and Crown marquees, this recording being issued on their Kent label. Also an up-tempo high-light in this volume is "535" by the Dreamers on Philadelphia's Grand Records; this one is evocative of the unreleased masterpiece by Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters in their great up-tempo "333".

The Hollyhocks were one of the first doo wop groups to issue a 45 for the Nasco Label, and sounded to some degree like label predecessors, the Marigolds, with their calypso tempoed "You For Me". The rarest recording in this first volume is The Thrills - "Ain't Got The Money To Pay For This Drink" recorded and issued on JAB 103 in June 1956.

The Radars and the Swallows represent harmonies from the very early 1950s, actually 1951. Junior Denby was lead vocalist for the Swallows: "Will You Be Mine" recorded on King 4458. The Native Boys issued "Native Girl" for Los Angeles based Modern Records in mid 1954. Soon thereafter, on the Combo label the Native Boys recorded "Strange Love", "Oh Let Me Dream" and "Laughing Love" during 1955. Volume One closes with New York’s fantastic Wrens from December 1955 on Rama 184, featuring the lead vocals of Bobby Mansfield, in "What Makes You Do The Things You Do".

Ripped from vinyl at 128 – 320 kbps.

Download from here:


Joan Spins Again - Volume 1 (Mega)


01 The Flamingos - Get With It - Parrot 811 1955
02 The Derbys - Night After Night - Mercury 71437 1957
03 The Sonnets - Angel Of My Dreams - Lane 501 March 1958
04 The Winners - Can This Be Love - Rainbow 331 1956
05 The Dreamers - 535 - Grand 131 1955
06 The L' Cap-Tans - The Bells Ring Out - Hollywood 1092 1958
07 The Scale-Tones - Dreamin and Dreamin - Jay-Dee 810 1956
08 The Senders - I Dream Of You Night After Night - Kent 320 1959
09 The Hollyhocks - You For Me - Nasco 6001 1957
10 The Castros - Is It Right - Lasso 502 1959
11 The Thrills - Ain't Got The Money To Pay For This Drink - JAB 103 June 1956
12 The Radars - You Belong To Me - Abbey 3025
13 The Goldentones - Little Island Girl - Hush 101 1959
14 The Swallows - Will You Be Mine - King 4458 1951
15 The Corsairs - Rock, Lilly, Rock - Hytone 110 1958
16 The Radiants - Joyce - Chess Demo, unreleased 1962
17 The Native Boys - Native Girl - Modern 939 1954
18 The Wrens - What Makes You Do The Things You Do - Rama 184 1955

Hope y'all dig this selection. I certainly do - it's been blasting out on my PC media player for a couple of days now. Thank you Joan!

Varetta Dillard - Double Crossing Daddy

Side 1
1. Them There Eyes
2. Please Come Back To Me
3. Love And Wine
4. Double Crossing Daddy
5. I Love You Just The Same
6. Getting Ready For My Daddy
7. Love
8. (That's The Way) My Mind Is Working

Side 2
1. Send Me Some Money
2. You're The Answer To My Prayer
3. I Can't Stop Now
4. Got You On My Mind
5. Skinny Jimmy
6. One More Time
7. I Don't Know What It Is But I Like It
8. Scorched

There’s just time to squeeze in a last post for the year 2011. So here’s a 1984 Mr R&B compilation of Varetta Dillard sides: a mix of blues, ballads and the big beat!

In the early 1950s, a number of big voiced female R&B chanteuses followed in the wake of the great Dinah Washington. There was Ruth Brown, Big Maybelle, Marie Adams, Lavern Baker, Faye Adams and the subject of this post, Varetta Dillard. She was born in Harlem, New York, in 1933. A congenital bone disease left her with a disfigured leg and a lifelong limp but she dealt with these difficulties by throwing herself into a showbiz career, starting by entering local singing contests. She went on to win the prestigious Amateur Hour contest at the famed Apollo Theatre where she was spotted by Lee Magid who signed her to Savoy Records in 1951.

Her biggest hits for Savoy were “Easy, Easy Baby” (#8 R&B in 1952), “Mercy, Mr Percy” (#6 R&B in 1953) and a tribute to the late, great Johnny Ace – “Johnny Has Gone” (#6 R&B in early 1955). In 1956 she signed for the RCA subsidiary Groove, moving over to the main RCA label in 1957. Her contract was not renewed in 1958, and thereafter she had a few releases on Triumph and Cub, with her recording career ending in 1961.

Varetta’s forte was the big beat ballad, and there are some good examples on this excellent LP. “Love” is perhaps the pick of the bunch, with yours truly reaching for the whisky bottle (again!) when it blasts forth from the be bop wino music machine. “Double Crossing Daddy” is a more bluesy performance and just about worth the price of admission alone. “I Love You Just The Same” is another good weepy performance and “Getting Ready For My Daddy Tonight” (with the T.J. Fowler band) is a great sassy “let the good times roll” blaster. A lot of the Savoy material was recorded under the supervision of Leroy Kirkland and features top notch NYC session musicians.

I would go so far as to say there isn’t a weak track on the album. You can hear some of the tracks on the playlist featured below which also includes a couple of tracks not on the LP. The download includes good biographical notes by Glenn Slade. Varetta Dillard died in 1993.


Ripped from vinyl at 320 kbps.

Download from here:


Double Crossing Daddy (Mega)


1. Them There Eyes
Recorded in New York on July 18th, 1952
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by unknown ts, bar, p, prob. Mickey Baker (g) unknown b and d
Released on Savoy 859

2. Please Come Back To Me
Recorded in New York on September 18th, 1951.
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by Leroy Kirkland Orchestra: Nathaniel Allen, Emile De Villia (tb) George Kelly (ts) Sol Moore (bar) Fletcher Smith (p) Wally Richardson (g) Prince Babbs (b) Bobby Donaldson (d)
Released on Savoy 822

3. Love And Wine
Recorded in New York on September 18th, 1951.
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by Leroy Kirkland Orchestra: Nathaniel Allen, Emile De Villia (tb) George Kelly (ts) Sol Moore (bar) Fletcher Smith (p) Wally Richardson (g) Prince Babbs (b) Bobby Donaldson (d)
Released on Savoy 822

4. Double Crossing Daddy
Recorded in New York on July 18th, 1952
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by unknown ts, bar, p, prob. Mickey Baker (g) unknown b and d
Released on Savoy 871

5. I Love You Just The Same
Recorded in New York on July 1st, 1953
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by Buddy Tate's Orchestra: Bobby Johnson (tp) Buddy Tate (ts) Haywood Henry (bar) Skip Hall (p) unknown g, Carl Wilson (b) Billy Smith (d)
Released on Savoy 1107

6. Getting Ready For My Daddy
Recorded in Detroit on January 16th, 1953
Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by T.J. Fowler & his Orchestra: Dezie McCullers (tp) Frank Taylor (as) Walter Cox (ts) T.J. Fowler (p) Henry Ivory (b) Clarence Stamps (d)
Released on Savoy 884

7. Love
Recorded in New York on August 20th, 1954
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by Leroy Kirkland Orchestra: unknown ts, bar, p, Mickey Baker (g) unknown b, prob. Bobby Donaldson (d)
Released on Savoy 1137

8. (That's The Way) My Mind Is Working
Recorded in New York on November 4th, 1953
Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by Sam Taylor (ts) Haywood Henry (bar) Mal Waldron (p) Wally Richardson (g) John Williams Sr. (b) Bobby Donaldson (d) Leroy Kirkland (arr)
Released on Savoy 1118

9. Send Me Some Money
Recorded in New York on August 20th, 1954
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by Leroy Kirkland Orchestra: unknown ts, bar, p, Mickey Baker (g) unknown b, prob. Bobby Donaldson (d)
Released on Savoy 1137

10. You're The Answer To My Prayer
Recorded in New York on May 3rd, 1955
Personnel: Varetta Dillard with The Roamers: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by Jerome Richardson, Sam Taylor (ts) Budd Johnson (bar) Ernie Hayes (p) Mickey Baker (g) Milt Hinton (b) Dave Bailey (d) The Roamers (vcl group) Leroy Kirkland, Kelly Owens (arr)
Released on Savoy 1160

11. I Can't Stop Now
Recorded in New York on May 3rd, 1955
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by Jerome Richardson, Sam Taylor (ts) Budd Johnson (bar) Ernie Hayes (p) Mickey Baker (g) Milt Hinton (b) Dave Bailey (d) Leroy Kirkland, Kelly Owens (arr)
Released on Savoy 1166

12. Got You On My Mind
Recorded in New York on June 26th, 1956
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by King Curtis (ts) Haywood Henry (bar) George Berg (bassax) George Rhodes (p) Mickey Baker (g) Lloyd Trotman (b) Panama Francis (d) unknown (vcl group) Leroy Kirkland (arr)
Released on Groove 4G-0159

13. Skinny Jimmy
Recorded in New York on June 26th, 1956
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by King Curtis (ts) Haywood Henry (bar) George Berg (bassax) George Rhodes (p) Mickey Baker (g) Lloyd Trotman (b) Panama Francis (d) unknown (vcl group) Leroy Kirkland (arr)
Released on Groove 4G-0159

14. One More Time
Recorded in New York on October 23rd, 1956
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) acc. by King Curtis (ts) Belford Hendricks (p) Eddie Thomas (g) Russ Saunders (b) Panama Francis (d) The Nightcaps (vcl group) Ray Ellis (arr)
Released on Groove 4G-0177

15. I Don't Know What It Is But I Like It
Recorded in New York on March 7th, 1961
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) with unknown acc. incl. vcl chorus
Released on Cub 9091

16. Scorched
Recorded in New York on February 24th, 1959
Personnel: Varetta Dillard (vcl) with unknown acc.
Released on Triumph 608

Chess Doo-Wop

Side 1
1. White Cliffs Of Dover - The Bluejays
2. Darling I Know - The El-Rays
3. Shoo Doo Be Doo (My Loving Baby) - The Moonlighters
4. Newly Wed - The Orchids
5. Show Me The Way - The Five Notes
6. Give Me (A Simple Prayer) - The Ravens
7. Nadine - The Coronets
8. Ding Dong - The Quintones

Side 2
1. 4 O'Clock In The Morning - The Tornadoes
2. I Want To Love - The Sentimentals
3. Teardrops - Lee Andrews & The Hearts
4. Soft Shadows - The Monotones
5. I'm So Young - The Students
6. So Far Away - The Pastels
7. This Broken Heart - The Sonics
8. False Alarm - The Ravels

Ah, the age-old question - what becomes of the broken-hearted? Well, I’ll tell ya what becomes of the broken-hearted. First of all we (I mean THEY) pull out this old doo-wop comp from a pile of mouldering vinyl and slap side 2 down on the turntable. Then we (no, THEY) reach into the drinks cabinet for a bottle of the real hard yet mellow stuff. Twelve-year old Scotch single malt should do the trick. This isn’t a job for mere wine. Pouring ourselves (no, themselves) a more than generous dram with a wee sensation of water to release the flavour, we (oh, I give up) return to the turntable, glass and bottle in hand and drop the tone arm straight on to “4 O’Clock In The Morning” by the Tornadoes. “It’s four o’clock in the morning, where can my baby be?” pleads our lovelorn, two-timed sufferer. That sets the mood.

Now we’ve gotta remain on the floor by the hi-fi on turntable duty ‘cos we’re going to skip a few tracks here. ‘Scuse me while I take another sip. Forget The Sentimentals, they’re sub Frankie Lymon pre-pubescent strictly for the kids merchants, so just go straight to the phenomenal Lee Andrews & The Hearts. “I sit in my room looking out at the rain …” He’s thinking of a lost romance. I gotta pour me another one.

“Soft Shadows” by The Monotones is another pleader “I’m crying, my poor heart is dying … Please don’t leave me, don’t ever go …” Lord have mercy. “I’m So Young” by The Students is another slow, but it’s more kids stuff, so we’re gonna skip it and go straight to the coup de grace, two absolute killers if you’re feeling emotional, guaranteed to finish me (them, we, you, the bottle, what the hell) off for once and for all. “So Far Away” by The Pastels which reeks of soulful longing and then just when you think it can’t get any deeper you get hit by “This Broken Heart” by The Sonics. “But no other heart will love you like this broken heart of mine.” Too late, she’s gone off with another guy.

The bottle’s nearly empty and I’m face down on the carpet. Just gotta raise enough effort to push the tone arm past the final track by The Ravels as it doesn’t fit the mood. I guess that’s why God invented PCs, media players and playlists. You can stay in your armchair with the bottle by your side, have your selections on repeat play and listen to the same tracks hour after hour before passing out. And they’ll keep on playing …

Ripped from tearstained vinyl at 320 kbps. Password = greaseyspoon

Download the LP from here:

http://www25.zippyshare.com/v/D7eIfLem/file.html

White Christmas - The Drifters featuring Clyde McPhatter and Bill Pinckney

 

Christmas has crept up on Be Bop Wino again, so there is nothing for it but to repost my favourite vocal group festive track - thanks to Joan K.

And of course we can't let Christmas go without reposting the link to the most popular of the Joan Selects collections - the Christmas Special.

Download from here: https://rapidshare.com/files/329639692/Joan_Selects_Volume_11.rar
Password = greaseyspoon

My thanks to all of you - contributors, commenters, followers, readers and email correspondents. It's you folks who really keep this show on the road. More rhythm and bluesin' goodies are in the pipeline so here's hoping we can all keep rockin' through what remains of 2011 and right through 2012.

Have a Merry Christmas, all of you out there on the hepcat internet.

Everything I Do Is Wrong / Don't You Want A Man Like Me - B.B. "Blues Boy" King And His Orchestra (RPM 411)

Both tracks recorded in Los Angeles in February / March 1954. Released on RPM 411 in June 1954.

Listen to "Everything I Do Is Wrong"

Listen to "Don't You Want A Man Like Me"

We're back with another El Enmascarado "Blues on 78" post. Sound quality is a bit rough on these shellac rips but the Masked One has performed a minor miracle to fashion listenable mp3s, especially on "Don't You Want A Man Like Me" which had a persistent sticky on the disc surface. Over to the Masked One who has consented to address his adoring R&B public in between suffering horrendous defeats in the wrestling ring, usually at the hands of tag teams consisting of small shrieking girls:

Don't You Want a Man Like Me has a bit of the dreaded Victrola Tonearm syndrome, but I went with it. B.B.'s chords behind the tenor sax solo are interesting- on first listen I thought it was a steel guitar of some sort. Notice how much the band speeds up at 1:58 when they shift back to the Latin feel. You gotta love old school Everybody In The Room At Once-style recording!

"Don't You Want a Man Like Me" was a rerecording of a number first recorded by B.B. in 1951. The title harks back to Walter Brown's "Confessin' The Blues" recorded with the Jay McShann Orchestra in 1941. The line also occurs in another 1941 recording, "Take Me Back Baby" sung by Jimmy Rushing with the Count Basie Orchestra.

1954 was a good year for B.B. King. He had two big hits with "You Upset Me Baby" and "My Heart Beats Like a Hammer." This disc wasn't quite up there with the other two, but still sold well in some locations.

Bill Haley And His Comets - Rock Around The Clock EP (Brunswick OE 9250)

Side 1
1. (We're Gonna) Rock Around The Clock
2. Mambo Rock

Side 2
1. R-O-C-K
2. See You Later, Alligator

Download from here:

http://www10.zippyshare.com/v/RQhQygSC/file.html

Thanks again to donor Allan for contributing this Bill Haley EP which was released in the UK in June, 1956.

All 4 tracks were recorded at the Pythian Temple, New York City in 1954 – 55.

“Rock Around The Clock” was recorded on the 12th April, 1954. The Comets were:

Bill Haley (vocal and rhythm guitar); Danny Cedrone (lead guitar); Billy Williamson (steel guitar); Joey d'Ambrosio (tenor saxophone); Johnny Grande (piano); Marshall Lytle (double bass); Billy Gussak (drums)

“Mambo Rock” was recorded on the 5th January, 1955. The Comets were:

Bill Haley (vocal and rhythm guitar); Franny Beecher (lead guitar); Billy Williamson (steel guitar); Joey d'Ambrosio (tenor saxophone); Johnny Grande (piano); Marshall Lytle (double bass); Cliff Leeman (drums)

Scan courtesy Joan K

“R-O-C-K” was recorded on the 22nd November, 1955. The Comets were:

Bill Haley (vocal and rhythm guitar); Franny Beecher (lead guitar); Billy Williamson (steel guitar); Rudy Pompilli (tenor saxophone); Johnny Grande (piano); Al Rex (double bass); Cliff Leeman (drums)

“See You Later, Alligator” was recorded on the 12th December, 1955. The Comets were:

Bill Haley (vocal and rhythm guitar); Franny Beecher (lead guitar); Billy Williamson (steel guitar); Rudy Pompilli (tenor saxophone); Johnny Grande (piano); Al Rex (double bass); Ralph Jones (drums)

Ripped from vinyl at 256 kbps.

Review: Wailin’ Daddy – The Best of Maxwell Davis (1949-1959)

Normally any CD reviews on Be Bop Wino are to be found at the end of posts on the artist or artists featured on the said CDs. However, this recent 3CD set released on Fantastic Voyage deserves its own post for 2 reasons – (1) it’s a superfine collection which fits right in with the kind of music so beloved of your blog host and many of the collaborators and followers of BBW and (2) it centres on an artist about whom I posted way, way back and therefore many blog followers would miss out if the review of “Wailin’ Daddy” were to be buried deep in the BBW archive.

Maxwell Davis is truly an Unsung Hero of Rock and Roll and the compiler of this set, Dave Penny, has set about rescuing his name from undeserved obscurity with the true fervour of an evangelist of rhythm and blues. For those of you who have missed out on the previous Maxwell Davis posts on Be Bop Wino and are wondering what all the fuss is about, he was one of the most important figures in the development of West Coast rhythm and blues in the 1940s and 1950s. He was an accomplished tenor sax player (listen to his brief but brilliant solo on “Safronia B” by Calvin Boze) but his importance really lies in his abilities as a bandleader, arranger, producer and song writer which saw him play a vital background role on many, many hit R&B records, especially a series of fantastic recordings by Amos Milburn, Percy Mayfield, Charles Brown, Peppermint Harris, and B.B. King.

He performed a role similar to that of Jesse Stone at Atlantic, Dave Bartholomew at Imperial and Willie Dixon at Chess. They were multi talented instrumentalists, songwriters, producers and arrangers who shaped the sound of post World War II Afro-American music, forging the new form of rhythm and blues and in its turn rock and roll. What makes Maxwell Davis different is that he worked for many labels in the Los Angeles area, most noticeably at Aladdin but also for Specialty and the Bihari brothers’ Modern / RPM set up. Those three are just the tip of the iceberg, for “Wailin’ Daddy” also includes recordings for Black & White, Pacific, 4Star, Excelsior, Capitol, Torch, Atomic, Down Beat, Miltone, Exclusive, Supreme, Swing Time, Imperial – I’ll just stop there, but there’s plenty more.

This mid price set covers his career from 1945 to 1959. CD1 (subtitled “Bluesville: The Best of Maxwell’s Singles) is a collection of recordings Maxwell made under his own name. Included are some of the poppy instrumentals he recorded at Aladdin in the 1950s, some of which you can find on this post, plus the harder hitting instrumentals he cut for Modern and RPM, some of which you can find on this post. There’s also a whole bunch of mid to late 1940s jump blues cuts from the likes of Black & White, 4Star, Swing Beat and Modern many of which have probably never been compiled on CD or vinyl.

The remaining two CDs follow Maxwell’s career as a producer / arranger through the 1940s and 1950s, being titled “Swingin’ An Echo: Blowin’ Through The ‘40s” and “Blow, Man, Blow: Rockin’ Through The ‘50s.”

Now it would have been the easiest thing in the world to throw together a collection of the big hits like “Bad, Bad Whiskey” or “Please Send Me Someone To Love” or “Black Night” or “You Upset Me Baby” but our indefatigable compiler has dug real, real deep to bring us a mix of the unexpected, the not so well known and the long forgotten. Sure the big names are there – on CD2 you get Lowell Fulson, Amos Milburn, Percy Mayfield, Lloyd Glenn and Jimmy Witherspoon among others, but there’s also Big Speed McDaniels, Felix Gross, Effie Smith, Mary De Pina and Geechie Smith. CD3 also has its share of well known names such as T-Bone Walker, B.B. King, Floyd Dixon and Joe Liggins but you also get La Melle Prince, Rock Heart Johnson, The Cocoas, and Rusty McDonald. As for unexpected big names there’s Ray Anthony (on a version of “Blow Man Blow”) and June Christy.

With such a selection this 3CD set should appeal to both the long time R&B fan and the newbie. It’s not only a history lesson, it’s real fun to listen to with loads of jumpin’ and rockin’ goins on for you hepcats out there. Those short but always on-the-money sax breaks by Maxwell are simply superb with their big warm tone, and where required, buzz saw rasping. Give ‘em a big ending is a basic rule for compiling an R&B mix and the sequence on CD3 from track 24 through to track 30 certainly does that with blasters like “Flip Your Daddy” and “Hot Banana” guaranteed to fill the dance floor or at least get you bouncing round your living room.

In the UK “Wailin’ Daddy” should cost you about £12. Packaging is good with the discs coming in a digi box similar to those old Capitol Blues Collection sets. You get 89 tracks and a 20 page booklet with photos (including a basketball team featuring Charles Mingus and Maxwell Davis), label shots and the usual informative essay by Dave Penny. That’s pretty much a bargain. This is the first issue of a series called “The Architects of Rock ‘n Roll” which may well include more Be Bop Wino heroes. I’ll keep you posted.

Wailin' Daddy: The Best Of Maxwell Davis (Fantastic Voyage FVTD130)

See also these Maxwell Davis posts where you can grab some tracks and read some info:

Maxwell Davis - Father of West Coast R&B

Maxwell Davis And His Tenor Sax

Rockin' And Rollin' / Peace Breaking People - Lil' Son Jackson (Imperial 5113)

Recorded on the 16th December, 1950, in Houston, Texas. Personnel: Lil' Son Jackson (vocal, guitar).

Listen to "Rockin' And Rollin'"

Listen to "Peace Breaking People"

Blues on 78 is back with another El Enmascarado offering, ripped from the original 78 rpm shellac disc.

Released in March 1951, "Rockin' and Rollin'" was a territorial tip in Billboard for the Dallas area. Although it wasn't a big hit, this record became very influential, generating a good cover version by Jesse Allen in 1954 and various versions by Muddy Waters throughout the 1950s, including "I Want You To Love Me" in 1954 and "Rock Me" in 1956.

The best known version is probably "Rock Me, Baby" by B.B. King which was a hit in 1964. The relaxed but insistent beat also inspired several Slim Harpo recordings such as "I'm A King Bee" and of course Jimi Hendrix performed a 100 mph version at Monterey.


Billboard, May 5th, 1951

It's probable that Lil' Son Jackson had a 1944 recording of "Rock Me Mama" by Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup in mind when he composed "Rockin' and Rollin'. Anyway it's a great blues which has little to do with what we think of as rock and roll music but leaves us in little doubt as to what that phrase really meant.

With thanks once more to El Enmascarado.