VA • Mercury Rhythm & Blues Story

Eddie 'Cleanhead' Vinson • Blues, Boogie & Bebop - 'Meat's Too High'

  

Review by arwulf arwulf
A powerful vocalist and a wickedly expressive alto saxophonist, Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson is celebrated with this JSP reissue compilation containing 15 choice cuts recorded in London, England, in May 1980 and March 1982. The earlier of the two dates yielded an album with the title Fun in London; unfortunately, an eight-minute jam called "The Theme" was excluded from this reissue. Vinson never ever fit into anybody's pigeon holes; a formidable improvising instrumentalist who excelled both as a balladeer ("Roxanne," "That's All") and as a straight-ahead hard bopper ("Travelin'," "Somebody Else Has Taken My Place," "Cleanhead's Thing," "Fun in London," "Straight Away"), Vinson's worldly command of the sax and his hormonally charged astringency as a blues shouter constitute two of the great dependable forces in all of blues and jazz. The words he puts across on "Meat's Too High" touch upon inflation, taxes, groceries, and human sexuality.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/blues-boogie-bebop-meats-too-high-mw0000056307


 Artist Biography by Bill Dahl
An advanced stylist on alto saxophone who vacillated throughout his career between jump blues and jazz, bald-pated Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson (he lost his hair early on after a botched bout with a lye-based hair-straightener) also possessed a playfully distinctive vocal delivery that stood him in good stead with blues fans.

Vinson first picked up a horn while attending high school in Houston. During the late '30s, he was a member of an incredible horn section in Milton Larkins's orchestra, sitting next to Arnett Cobb and Illinois Jacquet. After exiting Larkins' employ in 1941, Vinson picked up a few vocal tricks while on tour with bluesman Big Bill Broonzy. Vinson joined the Cootie Williams Orchestra from 1942 to 1945. His vocals on trumpeter Williams' renditions of "Cherry Red" and "Somebody's Got to Go" were in large part responsible for their wartime hit status.

Vinson struck out on his own in 1945, forming his own large band, signing with Mercury, and enjoying a double-sided smash in 1947 with his romping R&B chart-topper "Old Maid Boogie" and the song that would prove his signature number, "Kidney Stew Blues" (both songs featured Vinson's instantly identifiable vocals). A 1949-1952 stint at King Records produced only one hit, the amusing sequel "Somebody Done Stole My Cherry Red," along with the classic blues "Person to Person" (later revived by another King artist, Little Willie John).

Kidney Stew Is Fine
Vinson's jazz leanings were probably heightened during 1952-1953, when his band included a young John Coltrane. Somewhere along about here, Vinson wrote two Miles Davis classics, "Tune Up" and "Four." Vinson steadfastly kept one foot in the blues camp and the other in jazz, waxing jumping R&B for Mercury (in 1954) and Bethlehem (1957), jazz for Riverside in 1961 (with Cannonball Adderley), and blues for Blues Time and ABC-BluesWay. A 1969 set for Black & Blue, cut in France with pianist Jay McShann and tenor saxophonist Hal Singer, beautifully recounted Vinson's blues shouting heyday (it's available on Delmark as Old Kidney Stew Is Fine). A much later set for Muse teamed him with the sympathetic little big-band approach of Rhode Island-based Roomful of Blues. Vinson toured the States and Europe frequently prior to his 1988 death of a heart attack.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/eddie-cleanhead-vinson-mn0000137137/biography

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Revisión por arwulf arwulf
Un vocalista poderoso y un saxofonista alto malvadamente expresivo, Eddie "Cabeza Limpia" Vinson es celebrado con esta compilación de reedición de JSP que contiene 15 cortes selectos grabados en Londres, Inglaterra, en mayo de 1980 y marzo de 1982. La primera de las dos fechas dio lugar a un álbum con el título Fun in London; desafortunadamente, una improvisación de ocho minutos llamada "The Theme" fue excluida de esta reedición. Vinson nunca jamás encajó en los casilleros de nadie; un formidable instrumentista improvisador que sobresalió tanto como baladista ("Roxanne", "That's All") como en el hard bopper ("Travelin'", "Somebody Else Has Taken My Place", "Cleanhead's Thing", "Fun in London", "Straight Away"), el dominio mundano del saxo por parte de Vinson y su astringencia cargada de hormonas como gritador de blues constituyen dos de las grandes fuerzas fiables en todo el blues y el jazz. Las palabras que pone en "Meat's Too High" se refieren a la inflación, los impuestos, los alimentos y la sexualidad humana.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/blues-boogie-bebop-meats-too-high-mw0000056307


 Biografía del artista por Bill Dahl
Un estilista avanzado del saxofón alto que vaciló a lo largo de su carrera entre el jump blues y el jazz, el calvo Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson (perdió el pelo desde el principio después de una pelea chapucera con un alisador de pelo a base de lejía) también poseía una entrega vocal juguetonamente distintiva que le situaba en un buen lugar entre los aficionados al blues.

Vinson empezó a tocar la trompeta cuando asistía a la escuela secundaria en Houston. A finales de los años 30, fue miembro de una increíble sección de trompas en la orquesta de Milton Larkins, sentado junto a Arnett Cobb e Illinois Jacquet. Después de dejar el empleo de Larkins en 1941, Vinson aprendió algunos trucos vocales mientras estaba de gira con el bluesman Big Bill Broonzy. Vinson se unió a la orquesta de Cootie Williams de 1942 a 1945. Su voz en las interpretaciones del trompetista Williams de "Cherry Red" y "Somebody's Got to Go" fue en gran parte responsable de su estatus de éxito en tiempos de guerra.

Vinson se puso en marcha por su cuenta en 1945, formando su propia gran banda, firmando con Mercury, y disfrutando de un éxito de doble cara en 1947 con su retozante R&B "Old Maid Boogie" y la canción que probaría su número de firma, "Kidney Stew Blues" (ambas canciones presentaban las voces instantáneas de Vinson). Una temporada 1949-1952 en King Records produjo un solo éxito, la divertida secuela "Somebody Done Stole My Cherry Red", junto con el clásico blues "Person to Person" (más tarde revivido por otro artista de King, Little Willie John).

El guiso de riñón está bien
Las tendencias de Vinson en el jazz se acentuaron probablemente durante 1952-1953, cuando su banda incluía a un joven John Coltrane. En algún lugar de por aquí, Vinson escribió dos clásicos de Miles Davis, "Tune Up" y "Four". Vinson mantuvo firmemente un pie en el campo del blues y el otro en el del jazz, dando saltos de R&B para Mercury (en 1954) y Bethlehem (1957), jazz para Riverside en 1961 (con Cannonball Adderley), y blues para Blues Time y ABC-BluesWay. Un set de 1969 para Black & Blue, cortado en Francia con el pianista Jay McShann y el saxofonista tenor Hal Singer, relató bellamente el blues de Vinson gritando en su apogeo (está disponible en Delmark como Old Kidney Stew Is Fine). Mucho más tarde, Muse se unió a la simpática banda de Roomful of Blues de Rhode Island. Vinson recorrió Estados Unidos y Europa con frecuencia antes de su muerte en 1988 por un ataque al corazón.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/eddie-cleanhead-vinson-mn0000137137/biography

Etta James • The Best of Etta James

Jamesetta Hawkins (Los Ángeles, 25 de enero de 1938-Riverside, California, 20 de enero de 2012), más conocida por su nombre artístico Etta James, fue una cantante estadounidense de géneros soul, jazz y rhythm and blues, considerada una de las grandes voces en la historia del rhythm & blues.1​2​

James fue prodigiosa en su tono de voz y esto le permitió convertirse en una cantante de góspel, interpretando en el coro de su iglesia de barrio en Los Ángeles. Empezó a hacer interpretaciones en la radio a los cinco años, bajo la tutela e instrucción del profesor James Earle Hines. Se trasladó a San Francisco en 1950, formando de inmediato un grupo con otras dos cantantes. Cuando tenía 14 años, presentó su primera audición con el director de orquesta Johnny Otis.

A petición de su madre, Etta regresó a Los Ángeles para grabar "Roll With Me Henry" (rebautizada en la galleta del disco como "The wallflower") con la banda Otis y el vocalista Richard Berry para la compañía discográfica Modern Records. Otis llamó al trío vocal The Peaches (más tarde, un apodo de Etta). La canción "Roll with me Henry" llegó a los primeros puestos de las listas de éxitos en 1955.

The Peaches se disolvió pronto, y Etta siguió cantando para Modern Records durante toda la década de 1950 (frecuentemente bajo la supervisión del saxo Maxwell Davis). "Good Rockin' Daddy" fue otro éxito a finales de 1955, aunque otras canciones como "W-O-M-A-N" y "Tough Lover" no lo fueron tanto.

En 1960 comienza a trabajar con la discográfica Chess Records de Chicago, cantando para la subsidiaria Argo. Inmediatamente, su carrera alcanzó un nivel altísimo de popularidad; no sólo hizo un par de dúos con su novio (el cantante líder de los Moonglows, Harvey Fuqua), sino que individualmente grabó canciones como la apasionada balada "All I Could Do Was Cry", alcanzando lo más alto de las listas de éxitos de R&B. Leonard Chess entendió a Etta como una cantante clásica de baladas con un potencial añadido para la canción popular, e hizo que la acompañase una orquestación de violines para su grabación de los temas «At Last» y «Trust in me» en 1961. No obstante, Etta no abandonó su lado más áspero: en 1962 grabó «Something's Got a Hold on Me», con tonos de góspel, en 1963 un vibrante disco en directo (Etta James Rocks the House) grabado en el New Era Club de Nashville, y en 1966 un dueto blusístico, «In the Basement», con su amiga Sugar Pie De Santo.

En 1967 grabó uno de sus temas clásicos, «Tell Mama», una balada soul optimista que contrastaba con otros temas más dramáticos de la misma sesión como "I'd Rather Go Blind". A pesar de la muerte de Leonard Chess, Etta permaneció en la compañía hasta 1975, aproximándose finalmente a la música rock.

Tras unos años difíciles, regresó en 1988 con un disco para Island titulado Seven Year Itch, que reafirmó su maestría en el soul sureño. Sus siguientes discos fueron variados, aproximándose tanto a la música más contemporánea (en 1990 con Sticking to My Guns) como a la emotividad más explícita (en 1992 con The Right Time), pasando por algunas aproximaciones al jazz y a la música navideña, como en 1998 con Etta James Christmas.

James poseía el rango vocal de contralto. Su estilo musical cambió a lo largo de su carrera. Al comienzo de su carrera como grabadora, a mediados de la década de 1950, James se comercializó como cantante de R&B y doo-wop. Después de firmar con Chess Records en 1960, se abrió paso como cantante de estilo pop tradicional, cubriendo los estándares de jazz y pop en su álbum debut, At Last!. La voz de James se hizo más profunda y áspera, moviendo su estilo musical en sus últimos años en los géneros del soul y el jazz.

James fue una vez considerada una de las músicas de blues y R&B más ignoradas en la historia de la música de los Estados Unidos. No fue sino hasta principios de la década de 1990 cuando comenzó a recibir importantes premios de la industria de los Grammy y la Blues Foundation, y comenzó a recibir un amplio reconocimiento. En los últimos años, se la vio como un puente entre el rhythm and blues y el rock and roll. James influyó en una gran variedad de músicos, entre ellos Diana Ross, Christina Aguilera, Janis Joplin, Bonnie Raitt, Shemekia Copeland y Hayley Williams de Paramore, así como en los artistas británicos The Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, Elkie Brooks y Amy Winehouse.

Su canción "Something's Got a Hold on Me" ha sido reconocida de muchas maneras. El acto musical de Bruselas Vaya con Dios cubrió la canción en su álbum de 1990 Night Owls. Otra versión, realizada por Christina Aguilera, fue en la película Burlesque, del 2010. Pretty Lights probó la canción en "Finally Moving", seguida del éxito de baile de Avicii "Levels", y nuevamente en el sencillo de Florida, "Good Feeling".

El 23 de diciembre de 2011 fue ingresada en el hospital Riverside Community de California con una leucemia terminal.3​ La cantante, ganadora de seis premios Grammy, fue adicta a la heroína durante muchos años. Falleció el 20 de enero de 2012 a los 73 años, lo anunció su amiga y representante Lupe de León.4​ Christina Aguilera conmemoró a Etta cantando en su funeral el sencillo "At Last".

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Jamesetta Hawkins, best known as Etta James (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012) was an American singer who performed in various genres, including blues, R&B, soul, rock and roll, jazz and gospel. Starting her career in 1954, she gained fame with hits such as "The Wallflower", "At Last", "Tell Mama", "Something's Got a Hold on Me", and "I'd Rather Go Blind". She faced a number of personal problems, including heroin addiction, severe physical abuse, and incarceration, before making a musical comeback in the late 1980s with the album Seven Year Itch.

James's powerful, deep, earthy voice bridged the gap between rhythm and blues and rock and roll. She won six Grammy Awards and 17 Blues Music Awards. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Blues Hall of Fame in 2001. Rolling Stone magazine ranked James number 22 on its list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time; she was also ranked number 62 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

            

Hawkins was born on January 25, 1938, in Los Angeles, California, to Dorothy Hawkins, who was 14 at the time. Although her father has never been identified, James speculated that she was the daughter of pool player Rudolf "Minnesota Fats" Wanderone, whom she met briefly in 1987. Her mother was frequently absent from their apartment in Watts, conducting relationships with various men, and James lived with a series of foster parents, most notably "Sarge" and "Mama" Lu. James referred to her mother as "the Mystery Lady".

James received her first professional vocal training at the age of five from James Earle Hines, musical director of the Echoes of Eden choir at the St. Paul Baptist Church, in South-Central Los Angeles. Under his tutelage, she suffered physical abuse during her formative years, with her instructor often punching her in the chest while she sang to force her voice to come from her gut. As a consequence, she developed an unusually strong voice for a child her age.

Sarge, like the musical director for the choir, was also abusive. During drunken poker games at home, he would awaken James in the early morning hours and force her with beatings to sing for his friends. The trauma of her foster father forcing her to sing under these humiliating circumstances caused her to have difficulties with singing on-demand throughout her career.

In 1950, Mama Lu died, and James's biological mother took her to the Fillmore district of San Francisco. Within a couple of years, she began listening to doo-wop and was inspired to form a girl group, the Creolettes (because of the members' light-skinned complexions).

At the age of 14, she met musician Johnny Otis. Stories on how they met vary. In Otis's version, she came to his hotel after one of his performances in the city and persuaded him to audition her. Another story was that Otis spotted the Creolettes performing at a Los Angeles nightclub and sought for them to record his "answer song" to Hank Ballard's "Work with Me, Annie". Otis took the group under his wing, helping them sign to Modern Records and changing their name from the Creolettes to the Peaches. He also gave the singer her stage name, transposing Jamesetta into Etta James. James recorded the version, for which she was given credit as co-author, in 1954, and the record was released in early 1955 as "Dance with Me, Henry". The original title of the song was "Roll with Me, Henry", but it was changed to avoid censorship due to the off-color title (roll implying sexual activity). In February of that year, the song reached number one on the Hot Rhythm & Blues Tracks chart. Its success gave the group an opening spot on Little Richard's national tour.

While James was on tour with Richard, pop singer Georgia Gibbs recorded a version of James's song, which was released under the title "The Wallflower" and became a crossover hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100, which angered James. After leaving the Peaches, James had another R&B hit with "Good Rockin' Daddy" but struggled with follow-ups. When her contract with Modern came up for renewal in 1960, she signed a contract with Chess Records instead. Shortly afterward she was involved in a relationship with the singer Harvey Fuqua, the founder of the doo-wop group the Moonglows.

Musician Bobby Murray toured with James for over 20 years. He wrote that James had her first hit single when she was 15 years old and went steady with B.B. King when she was 16. James believed that King's hit single "Sweet Sixteen" was about her. In early 1955, she and an aspiring singer, the 19-year-old Elvis Presley, then recording for Sun Studios and an avid fan of King's, shared a bill in a large club just outside Memphis. In her autobiography, she noted how impressed she was with the young singer's manners. She also recalled how happy he made her many years later when she found out that it was Presley who had moved her close friend Jackie Wilson from a substandard convalescent home to a more appropriate facility and, as she put it, paid all the expenses. Presley died a year later. Wilson went on to live for another ten years in the care center Presley found for him.

Dueting with Harvey Fuqua, James recorded for Argo Records (later renamed Cadet Records), a label established by Chess. Her first hit singles with Fuqua were "If I Can't Have You" and "Spoonful". Her first solo hit was the doo-wop–styled rhythm-and-blues song "All I Could Do Was Cry", which was a number two R&B hit. Chess Records co-founder Leonard Chess envisioned James as a classic ballad stylist who had potential to cross over to the pop charts and soon surrounded the singer with violins and other string instruments. The first string-laden ballad James recorded was "My Dearest Darling" in May 1960, which peaked in the top five of the R&B chart. James sang background vocals for her labelmate Chuck Berry on his "Back in the U.S.A."

Her debut album, At Last!, was released in late 1960 and was noted for its varied selection of music, from jazz standards to blues to doo-wop and rhythm and blues (R&B). The album included the future classic "I Just Want to Make Love to You" and "A Sunday Kind of Love". In early 1961, James released what was to become her signature song, "At Last", which reached number two on the R&B chart and number 47 on the Billboard Hot 100. Though the record was not as successful as expected, her rendition has become the best-known version of the song. James followed that with "Trust in Me", which also included string instruments. Later that same year, James released a second studio album, The Second Time Around. The album took the same direction as her first, covering jazz and pop standards and with strings on many of the songs. It produced two hit singles, "Fool That I Am" and "Don't Cry Baby".

James started adding gospel elements in her music the following year, releasing "Something's Got a Hold on Me", which peaked at number four on the R&B chart and was a Top 40 pop hit. That success was quickly followed by "Stop the Wedding", which reached number six on the R&B chart and also had gospel elements. In 1963, she had another major hit with "Pushover" and released the live album Etta James Rocks the House, recorded at the New Era Club in Nashville, Tennessee. After a couple of years of minor hits, James's career started to suffer after 1965. After a period of isolation, she returned to recording in 1967 and reemerged with more gutsy R&B numbers thanks to her recording at the legendary FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. These sessions yielded her comeback hit "Tell Mama", co-written by Clarence Carter, which reached number ten R&B and number twenty-three pop. An album of the same name was also released that year and included her take on Otis Redding's "Security". The B-side of "Tell Mama" was "I'd Rather Go Blind", which became a blues classic and has been recorded by many other artists. In her autobiography, Rage to Survive, she wrote that she heard the song outlined by her friend Ellington "Fugi" Jordan when she visited him in prison. According to her account, she wrote the rest of the song with Jordan, but for tax reasons gave her songwriting credit to her partner at the time, Billy Foster.

Following this success, James became an in-demand concert performer though she never again reached the heyday of her early to mid-1960s success. Her records continued to chart in the R&B Top 40 in the early 1970s, with singles such as "Losers Weepers" (1970) and "I Found a Love" (1972). Though James continued to record for Chess, she was devastated by the death of Leonard Chess in 1969. James ventured into rock and funk with the release of her self-titled album in 1973, with production from the famed rock producer Gabriel Mekler, who had worked with Steppenwolf and Janis Joplin, who had admired James and had covered "Tell Mama" in concert. The album, known for its mixture of musical styles, was nominated for a Grammy Award. The album did not produce any major hits; neither did the follow-up, Come a Little Closer, in 1974, though, like Etta James before it, the album was also critically acclaimed. James continued to record for Chess (now owned by All Platinum Records), releasing one more album in 1976, Etta Is Betta Than Evvah! Her 1978 album Deep in the Night, produced by Jerry Wexler for Warner Bros., incorporated more rock-based music in her repertoire. That same year, James was the opening act for the Rolling Stones and performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Following this brief success, however, she left Chess Records and did not record for another ten years as she struggled with drug addiction and alcoholism.

Though she continued to perform, little was heard of James until 1984, when she contacted David Wolper and asked to perform in the opening ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics, at which she sang "When the Saints Go Marching In". In 1987, she performed "Rock & Roll Music" with Chuck Berry in the documentary film Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll.

In 1989, she signed with Island Records and released the albums Seven Year Itch and Stickin' to My Guns, both of which were produced by Barry Beckett and recorded at FAME Studios. Also in 1989 James was filmed in a concert at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles with Joe Walsh and Albert Collins for the film Jazzvisions: Jump the Blues Away. Many of the backing musicians were top-flight players from Los Angeles: Rick Rosas (bass), Michael Huey (drums), Ed Sanford (Hammond B3 organ), Kip Noble (piano) and Josh Sklair, her longtime guitar player.

James participated with the rap singer Def Jef on the song "Droppin' Rhymes on Drums", which mixed James's jazz vocals with hip-hop. In 1992, she recorded the album The Right Time, produced by Jerry Wexler for Elektra Records. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.

James signed with Private Music Records in 1993 and recorded a Billie Holiday tribute album, Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday. The album set a trend of incorporating more jazz elements in James's music. The album won James her first Grammy Award, for Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female, in 1994. In 1995, her autobiography, A Rage to Survive, co-written with David Ritz, was published. Also in 1995, she recorded the album Time After Time. A Christmas album, Etta James Christmas, was released in 1998.

By the mid-1990s, James's earlier classic music was being used in commercials, including "I Just Wanna Make Love to You". After an excerpt of the song was featured in a Diet Coke advertising campaign in the UK, it reached the top ten on the UK charts in 1996.

By 1998, with the release of Life, Love & the Blues, she had added as backing musicians her sons, Donto and Sametto, on drums and bass, respectively. They continued as part of her touring band. She went on recording for Private Music, which released the blues album Matriarch of the Blues in 2000, on which she returned to her R&B roots; Rolling Stone hailed it as a "solid return to roots", further stating that with this album she was "reclaiming her throne—and defying anyone to knock her off it". In 2001, she was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame and the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, the latter for her contributions to the developments of both rock and roll and rockabilly. In 2003, she received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. On her 2004 release, Blue Gardenia, she returned to a jazz style. Her final album for Private Music, Let's Roll, released in 2005, won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album.

In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked her number 62 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

James at the 2006 Common Ground Festival in Lansing, Michigan

James performed at the top jazz festivals in the world, such as the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1977, 1989, 1990 and 1993. She performed nine times at the legendary Monterey Jazz Festival and five times at the San Francisco Jazz Festival. She performed at the Playboy Jazz Festival in 1990, 1997, 2004, and 2007. She performed at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in 2006, 2009, and 2012. She also often performed at free summer arts festivals throughout the United States.

In 2008, James was portrayed by Beyoncé Knowles in the film Cadillac Records, a fictional account of Chess Records, James's label for 18 years, and how label founder and producer Leonard Chess helped the careers of James and others. The film portrayed her pop hit "At Last". James later said that her previous critical remarks about Knowles for having performed "At Last" at the inauguration of Barack Obama were a joke stemming from how she felt hurt that she herself was not invited to sing her song. It was later reported that Alzheimer's disease and "drug-induced dementia" had contributed to her negative comments about Knowles.

In April 2009, at the age of 71, James made her final television appearance, performing "At Last" on the program Dancing with the Stars. In May 2009, she received the Soul/Blues Female Artist of the Year award from the Blues Foundation, the ninth time she won the award. She carried on touring but by 2010 had to cancel concert dates because of her gradually failing health, after it was revealed that she was suffering from dementia and leukemia. In November 2011, James released her final album, The Dreamer, which was critically acclaimed upon its release. She announced that this would be her final album. Her continuing relevance was affirmed in 2011 when the late Swedish DJ Avicii achieved substantial chart success with the song "Levels", which samples her 1962 song "Something's Got a Hold on Me". The same sample was used by the east coast rapper Flo Rida in his 2011 hit single "Good Feeling". Both artists issued statements of condolence upon James's death.

On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Etta James among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.

James possessed the vocal range of a contralto. Her musical style changed during the course of her career. At the beginning of her recording career, in the mid-1950s, James was marketed as an R&B and doo-wop singer. After signing with Chess Records in 1960, James broke through as a traditional pop-styled singer, covering jazz and pop music standards on her debut album, At Last! James's voice deepened and coarsened, moving her musical style in her later years into the genres of soul and jazz.

James was once considered one of the most overlooked blues and R&B musicians in the music history of the United States. It was not until the early 1990s, when she began receiving major industry awards from the Grammys and the Blues Foundation, that she received wide recognition. In recent years,[when?] she was seen as bridging the gap between rhythm and blues and rock and roll. James has influenced a wide variety of musicians, including Diana Ross, Christina Aguilera, Janis Joplin, Brandy, Bonnie Raitt, Shemekia Copeland, and Hayley Williams of Paramore as well as British artists The Rolling Stones, Elkie Brooks, Paloma Faith, Joss Stone Rita Ora, and Adele, and the Belgian singer Dani Klein.

Her song "Something's Got a Hold on Me" has been recognized in many ways. Brussels music act Vaya Con Dios covered the song on their 1990 album Night Owls. Another version, performed by Christina Aguilera, was in the 2010 film Burlesque. Pretty Lights sampled the song in "Finally Moving", followed by Avicii's dance hit "Levels", and again in Flo Rida's single "Good Feeling".

Personal life

James was hospitalized in January 2010 to treat an infection caused by MRSA, a bacterium resistant to many antibiotics. During her hospitalization, her son Donto revealed that she had received a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease in 2008.

James was diagnosed with leukemia in early 2011. The illness became terminal, and her husband Art Miller was appointed sole conservator of the James estate and to oversee her medical care. She died on January 20, 2012, five days before her 74th birthday, at Riverside Community Hospital in Riverside, California. Her death came three days after that of Johnny Otis, the man who had discovered her in the 1950s. Thirty-six days after her death, her sideman Red Holloway died.

James's tomb at Inglewood Park Cemetery

Her funeral was presided over by Reverend Al Sharpton and took place in Gardena, California eight days after her death. Stevie Wonder, Beyoncé, and Christina Aguilera each gave a musical tribute. She was buried at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Los Angeles County, California.

 

Joakim Tinderholt & His Band • Hold On To Me

 

 joakimtinderholt.com ... 

 

Slim Harpo • Sting It Then!

 

Esta grabación es una de las pocas registradas en vivo por Harpo, por aquel entonces, su época de esplendor (1961). El sonido no es de lo mejor pero sirve enormemente para saber como sonaba Harpo en aquellos tugurios de espeso humo y abundante alcohol.

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This recording is one of the few recorded live by Harpo, at that time, his heyday (1961). The sound is not the best but it is very useful to know how Harpo sounded in those dens of thick smoke and abundant alcohol.

Blues Junkers • Night Time

Fresh, joyful and stylish approach to the old time blues, rhytm'n'blues, soul and boogie woogie with absolutely exceptional blues female vocals!!!!

www.facebook.com/bluesjunkers ...

Johnny 'Guitar' Watson • The Essential Johnny 'Guitar' Watson

 

 

Biography by Bill Dahl
"Reinvention" could just as easily have been Johnny "Guitar" Watson's middle name. The multi-talented performer parlayed his stunning guitar skills into a vaunted reputation as one of the hottest blues axemen on the West Coast during the 1950s. Following his innovative 1954 instrumental "Space Guitar," he scored Top Ten R&B hits like "Those Lonely, Lonely Nights," 1962's "Cuttin' In," and 1967's "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy." However, by the '70s Watson had totally changed his image to that of a charismatic funkster, enjoying more popularity than ever with his down-and-dirty R&B smashes "A Real Mother for Ya," "Superman Lover," and his 1978 version of "Gangster of Love" (which became his theme song). He prefigured the rise of rap with 1980's "Telephone Bill" and even picked up a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Blues Album for 1994's Bow Wow just prior to his passing two years later.

Born in 1935, Watson's roots resided within the fertile blues scene of Houston. As a teen, he played with fellow Texas future greats Albert Collins and Johnny Copeland. But he left Houston for Los Angeles when he was only 15 years old. Back then, Watson's main instrument was piano; that's what he played with Chuck Higgins' band when the saxist cut "Motorhead Baby" for Combo in 1952 (Watson also handled vocal duties).

He was listed as Young John Watson when he signed with Federal in 1953. His first sides for the King subsidiary found him still tinkling the ivories, but by 1954, when he dreamed up the absolutely astonishing instrumental "Space Guitar," the youth had switched over to guitar. "Space Guitar" ranks with the greatest achievements of its era -- Watson's blistering rapid-fire attack, done without the aid of a pick, presages futuristic effects that rock guitarists still hadn't mastered another 15 years down the line.

Watson moved over to the Bihari Brothers' RPM label in 1955 and waxed some of the toughest upbeat blues of their time frame (usually under saxist Maxwell Davis' supervision). "Hot Little Mama," "Too Tired," and "Oh Baby" scorched the strings with their blazing attack; "Someone Cares for Me" was a churchy Ray Charles-styled slow-dragger, and "Three Hours Past Midnight" cut bone-deep with its outrageous guitar work and laid-back vocal (Watson's cool phrasing as a singer was scarcely less distinctive than his playing). He scored his first hit in 1955 for RPM with a note-perfect cover of New Orleanian Earl King's two-chord swamp ballad "Those Lonely Lonely Nights."

Though he cut a demo version of the tune while at RPM, Watson's first released version of "Gangster of Love" emerged in 1957 on Keen. Singles for Class ("One Kiss"), Goth, Arvee (the rocking introduction "Johnny Guitar"), and Escort preceded a hookup with Johnny Otis at King during the early '60s. He recut "Gangster" for King, reaching a few more listeners this time, and dented the R&B charts again in 1962 with his impassioned, violin-enriched blues ballad "Cuttin' In."

Never content to remain in one stylistic bag for long, Watson landed at Chess just long enough to cut a jazz album in 1964 that placed him back behind the 88s. Along with longtime pal Larry Williams, Watson rocked England in 1965 (their dynamic repartee was captured for posterity by British Decca). Their partnership lasted stateside through several singles and an LP for OKeh; among their achievements as a duo was the first vocal hit on "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" in 1967 (predating the Buckinghams by a few months).

Little had been heard of this musical chameleon before he returned decked out in funk threads during the mid-'70s. He hit with "I Don't Want to Be a Lone Ranger" for Fantasy before putting together an incredible run at DJM Records paced by "A Real Mother for Ya" in 1977 and an updated "Gangster of Love" the next year.

After a typically clever "Strike on Computers" nicked the R&B lists in 1984, Watson again seemed to fall off the planet. But counting this remarkable performer out was always a mistake. Bow Wow, his 1994 album for Al Bell's Bellmark logo, returned him to prominence and earned a Grammy nomination for best contemporary blues album, even though its contents were pure old-school funk. Sadly, in the midst of a truly heartwarming comeback campaign, Watson passed away while touring Japan in 1996.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/johnny-guitar-watson-mn0000242511#biography

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Biografía de Bill Dahl
"Reinvención" podría haber sido fácilmente el segundo nombre de Johnny "Guitar" Watson. El polifacético intérprete aprovechó sus impresionantes habilidades con la guitarra para ganarse la reputación de ser uno de los mejores músicos de blues de la Costa Oeste durante la década de 1950. Después de su innovadora instrumental de 1954 "Space Guitar", obtuvo los diez mejores éxitos de R & B como "Those Lonely, Lonely Nights", "Cuttin' In" de 1962 y "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" de 1967. Sin embargo, en los años 70 Watson había cambiado totalmente su imagen a la de un funkster carismático, disfrutando de más popularidad que nunca con sus éxitos de R&B sucios y sucios "A Real Mother for Ya", "Superman Lover" y su versión de 1978 de " Gangster of Love "(que se convirtió en su tema principal). Prefiguró el auge del rap con "Telephone Bill" de 1980 e incluso obtuvo una nominación al Grammy al Mejor Álbum de Blues Contemporáneo por Bow Wow de 1994 justo antes de su fallecimiento dos años después.

Nacido en 1935, las raíces de Watson residían en la fértil escena del blues de Houston. Cuando era adolescente, tocó con sus compañeros futuros grandes de Texas Albert Collins y Johnny Copeland. Pero se fue de Houston a Los Ángeles cuando solo tenía 15 años. En ese entonces, el instrumento principal de Watson era el piano; eso es lo que tocaba con la banda de Chuck Higgins cuando el saxofonista grabó "Motorhead Baby" para Combo en 1952 (Watson también se encargó de las tareas vocales).

Fue catalogado como el joven John Watson cuando firmó con Federal en 1953. Sus primeros lados para la filial King lo encontraron todavía tintineando los marfiles, pero en 1954, cuando soñó con la absolutamente asombrosa "Guitarra Espacial" instrumental, los jóvenes se habían cambiado a la guitarra. "Space Guitar" se ubica entre los mayores logros de su época: el abrasador ataque rápido de Watson, realizado sin la ayuda de una púa, presagia efectos futuristas que los guitarristas de rock aún no habían dominado otros 15 años.

Watson se mudó al sello RPM de los Hermanos Bihari en 1955 y encer algunos de los blues optimistas más duros de su época (generalmente bajo la supervisión del saxofonista Maxwell Davis). "Hot Little Mama", "Too Tired" y "Oh Baby" quemaron las cuerdas con su ataque ardiente; "Someone Cares for Me" era una canción lenta al estilo de Ray Charles, y "Three Hours Past Midnight" llegó hasta los huesos con su escandaloso trabajo de guitarra y su voz relajada (el fraseo genial de Watson como cantante era apenas menos distintivo que su interpretación). Obtuvo su primer éxito en 1955 para RPM con una versión perfecta de la balada de pantano de dos acordes de Earl King de Nueva Orleans "Those Lonely Lonely Nights."

Aunque grabó una versión demo de la canción mientras estaba en RPM, la primera versión lanzada por Watson de" Gangster of Love " surgió en 1957 en Keen. Singles para Class ("One Kiss"), Goth, Arvee (la introducción rockera "Johnny Guitar") y Escort precedieron a una conexión con Johnny Otis en King a principios de los 60. Volvió a grabar "Gangster" para King, llegando a algunos oyentes más esta vez, y volvió a entrar en las listas de éxitos de R&B en 1962 con su apasionada balada de blues enriquecida con violín "Cuttin' In."

Nunca contento con permanecer en una bolsa estilística por mucho tiempo, Watson aterrizó en Chess el tiempo suficiente para grabar un álbum de jazz en 1964 que lo colocó de nuevo detrás de los 88. Junto con su viejo amigo Larry Williams, Watson sacudió Inglaterra en 1965 (su dinámica réplica fue capturada para la posteridad por British Decca). Su asociación duró en los Estados Unidos a través de varios sencillos y un LP para OKeh; entre sus logros como dúo se encontraba el primer éxito vocal en "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" en 1967 (anterior a los Buckingham por unos meses).

Poco se había oído hablar de este camaleón musical antes de regresar ataviado con hilos de funk a mediados de los 70. Golpeó con "I Don't Want to Be a Lone Ranger" para Fantasy antes de armar una increíble carrera en DJM Records al ritmo de "A Real Mother for Ya" en 1977 y una actualización de "Gangster of Love" al año siguiente.

Después de que un "Ataque a las computadoras" típicamente inteligente arrasara en las listas de R&B en 1984, Watson pareció caer nuevamente del planeta. Pero descartar a este notable intérprete siempre fue un error. Bow Wow, su álbum de 1994 para el logotipo de Bellmark de Al Bell, lo devolvió a la prominencia y le valió una nominación al Grammy al mejor álbum de blues contemporáneo, a pesar de que su contenido era puro funk de la vieja escuela. Lamentablemente, en medio de una campaña de regreso verdaderamente conmovedora, Watson falleció mientras estaba de gira por Japón en 1996.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/johnny-guitar-watson-mn0000242511#biography

John Clifton • Nightlife

 

 

johnclifton.com ...  

 

The Meters • The Meters

 

 

Review from AllMusic (by Rovi Staff): The Meters were formed as the house band for Allen Toussaint and Marshall Sehorn's Sansu Enterprises. Their debut combines New Orleans funk with the tight interplay of Art Neville, Leo Nocentelli, George Porter Jr. and Joseph "Zigaboo" Modeliste. The review highlights the simplicity and rhythmic nuance of the album, particularly Nocentelli's guitar work on "Ease Back" and Modeliste's drumming on "6V6 LA", as well as the band's interpretations of "Sing a Simple Song" and "Stormy".

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Resena de AllMusic (por Rovi Staff): The Meters se formaron como banda de estudio para Sansu Enterprises, de Allen Toussaint y Marshall Sehorn. Su debut combina el funk de Nueva Orleans con la precisa interaccion entre Art Neville, Leo Nocentelli, George Porter Jr. y Joseph "Zigaboo" Modeliste. La resena destaca la sencillez y el matiz ritmico del album, especialmente el trabajo de guitarra de Nocentelli en "Ease Back" y la bateria de Modeliste en "6V6 LA", ademas de las interpretaciones del grupo de "Sing a Simple Song" y "Stormy". 

 

Booker T. And The MG's • Best Of

 

https://bookert.com/

Joe Houston & His Rockets • Rock And Roll-The Essential Collection

 

Amos Milburn • Chicken Shack Boogie Man

Artist Biography by Bill Dahl

Boogie piano master Amos Milburn was born in Houston, and he died there a short 52 years later. In between, he pounded out some of the most hellacious boogies of the postwar era, usually recording in Los Angeles for Aladdin Records and specializing in good-natured upbeat romps about booze and its effects (both positive and negative) that proved massive hits during the immediate pre-rock era.

The self-taught 88s ace made a name for himself as "the He-Man Martha Raye" around Houston before joining the Navy and seeing overseas battle action in World War II. When he came out of the service, Milburn played in various Lone Star niteries before meeting the woman whose efforts would catapult him to stardom.

Persistent manager Lola Anne Cullum reportedly barged into Aladdin boss Eddie Mesner's hospital room, toting a portable disc machine with Milburn's demo all cued up. The gambit worked -- Milburn signed with Aladdin in 1946. His first date included a thundering "Down the Road Apiece" that presaged the imminent rise of rock & roll. But Milburn was capable of subtler charms too, crooning mellow blues ballads in a Charles Brown-influenced style (the two would later become close friends, playing together frequently).

The first of Milburn's 19 Top Ten R&B smashes came in 1948 with his party classic "Chicken Shack Boogie," which paced the charts and anointed his band with a worthy name (the Aladdin Chickenshackers, natch). A velvet-smooth "Bewildered" displayed the cool after-hours side of Milburn's persona as it streaked up the charts later that year, but it was rollicking horn-driven material such as "Roomin' House Boogie" and "Sax Shack Boogie" that Milburn was renowned for. Milburn's rumbling 88s influenced a variety of famous artists, notably Fats Domino.

With the ascent of "Bad, Bad Whiskey" to the peak of the charts in 1950, Milburn embarked on a string of similarly boozy smashes: "Thinking and Drinking," "Let Me Go Home Whiskey," "One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer" (an inebriating round John Lee Hooker apparently enjoyed!), and "Good Good Whiskey" (his last hit in 1954). Alcoholism later brought the pianist down hard, giving these numbers a grimly ironic twist in retrospect. Milburn's national profile rated a series of appearances on the Willie Bryant-hosted mid-'50s TV program Showtime at the Apollo (where he gave out with a blistering "Down the Road Apiece").

Aladdin stuck with Milburn long after the hits ceased, dispatching him to New Orleans in 1956 to record with the vaunted studio crew at Cosimo's. There he recut "Chicken Shack Boogie" in a manner so torrid that it's impossible to believe it didn't hit (tenor saxist Lee Allen and drummer Charles "Hungry" Williams blast with atomic power as Milburn happily grunts along with his pounding boogie piano solo). In 1957, he left Aladdin for good.

Milburn contributed a fine offering to the R&B Yuletide canon in 1960 with his swinging "Christmas (Comes but Once a Year)" for King. Berry Gordy gave him a comeback forum in 1962, issuing an album on Motown predominated by remakes of his old hits that doesn't deserve its extreme rarity today (even Little Stevie Wonder pitched in on harp for the sessions).

Nothing could jump start the pianist's fading career by then, though. His health deteriorated to the point where a string of strokes limited his mobility and his left leg was eventually amputated. Not too long after, one of the greatest pioneers in the history of R&B was dead.

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Biografía del artista por Bill Dahl

El maestro de piano de Boogie, Amos Milburn, nació en Houston, y murió allí poco después de 52 años. En el medio, luchó contra algunos de los mocos más infelices de la era de la posguerra, generalmente grabando en Los Ángeles para Aladdin Records y especializándose en los optimistas optimistas sobre el alcohol y sus efectos (tanto positivos como negativos) que demostraron éxitos masivos durante el Época inmediata del pre-rock.

El as autodidacta de los años 88 se hizo famoso como "la Martha Raye de He-Man" en Houston antes de unirse a la Armada y ver la acción de batalla en el extranjero en la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Cuando salió del servicio, Milburn jugó en varias clases de Lone Star antes de conocer a la mujer cuyos esfuerzos lo catapultaría al estrellato.

La persistente gerente Lola Anne Cullum presuntamente irrumpió en la habitación del hospital del jefe de Aladdin, Eddie Mesner, portando una máquina de discos portátil con la demostración de Milburn. El gambito funcionó: Milburn firmó con Aladdin en 1946. Su primera cita incluyó un trueno "Down the Road Cada uno" que presagiaba el inminente aumento del rock & roll. Pero Milburn también era capaz de encantamientos más sutiles, cantando baladas de azules suaves en un estilo influenciado por Charles Brown (los dos se convertirían más tarde en amigos íntimos, tocando juntos con frecuencia).

El primero de los 19 mejores diez éxitos de R&B de Milburn se produjo en 1948 con su clásico "Chicken Shack Boogie", que marcó el ritmo de las listas y ungió a su banda con un nombre digno (los Aladdin Chickenshackers, natch). Un "Bewildered" de terciopelo liso mostró el lado fresco de la persona de Milburn después de las horas de juego, ya que se extendió en las listas de éxitos más tarde ese año, pero fue material de cuernos como "Roomin 'House Boogie" y "Sax Shack Boogie" que Milburn era famoso por. El ruido de los 88 de Milburn influyó en una variedad de artistas famosos, en particular Fats Domino.

Con el ascenso de "Bad, Bad Whiskey" a la cima de las listas en 1950, Milburn se embarcó en una serie de éxitos similares: "Pensando y bebiendo", "Let Me Go Home Whiskey", "One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer "(¡una borrachera que John Lee Hooker aparentemente disfrutó!), Y" Good Good Whiskey "(su último éxito en 1954). Más tarde, el alcoholismo hizo caer al pianista con fuerza, dando a estos números un retorcido giro irónico en retrospectiva. El perfil nacional de Milburn calificó una serie de apariciones en el programa de televisión Showtime at the Apollo de Willie Bryant a mediados de la década de los 50 (donde se rindió con un "Down the Road cada uno").

Aladdin se quedó con Milburn mucho después de que cesaran los éxitos, enviándolo a Nueva Orleans en 1956 para grabar con el equipo de estudio de Cosimo. Allí recortó "Chicken Shack Boogie" de una manera tan tórrida que es imposible creer que no lo hizo (el saxista tenor Lee Allen y el baterista Charles "Hungry" Williams explotan con poder atómico mientras Milburn gruñe alegremente junto con su fuerte sonido de piano ). En 1957, dejó a Aladdin para siempre.

Milburn contribuyó con una excelente oferta al canon de R&B Yuletide en 1960 con su swing "Christmas (Comes but Once a Year)" para King. Berry Gordy le dio un foro de regreso en 1962, publicando un álbum en Motown predominado por los remakes de sus viejos éxitos que no merecen su extrema rareza hoy (incluso Little Stevie Wonder se lanzó sobre el armónica para las sesiones).

Sin embargo, nada podría hacer saltar la carrera decreciente del pianista para entonces. Su salud se deterioró hasta el punto en que una serie de golpes limitó su movilidad y su pierna izquierda finalmente fue amputada. No mucho después, uno de los más grandes pioneros en la historia de R&B estaba muerto.

Etta James • Tell Mama

 

Tiny Topsy & Lula Reed • Just A Little Bit Federal's Queens Of New Breed R&B

Compilado de estas dos reinas exponentes del sonido de Chicago de la década del 60, R&B, blues y soul sin desperdicio.

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Compiled exponents of these two queens Chicago sound of the 60s, R & B, blues and soul without waste.

Tiny Topsy

Lula Reed

Amos Milburn • Rare Masters

Artist Biography by Bill Dahl

Boogie piano master Amos Milburn was born in Houston, and he died there a short 52 years later. In between, he pounded out some of the most hellacious boogies of the postwar era, usually recording in Los Angeles for Aladdin Records and specializing in good-natured upbeat romps about booze and its effects (both positive and negative) that proved massive hits during the immediate pre-rock era.

The self-taught 88s ace made a name for himself as "the He-Man Martha Raye" around Houston before joining the Navy and seeing overseas battle action in World War II. When he came out of the service, Milburn played in various Lone Star niteries before meeting the woman whose efforts would catapult him to stardom.

Persistent manager Lola Anne Cullum reportedly barged into Aladdin boss Eddie Mesner's hospital room, toting a portable disc machine with Milburn's demo all cued up. The gambit worked -- Milburn signed with Aladdin in 1946. His first date included a thundering "Down the Road Apiece" that presaged the imminent rise of rock & roll. But Milburn was capable of subtler charms too, crooning mellow blues ballads in a Charles Brown-influenced style (the two would later become close friends, playing together frequently).

The first of Milburn's 19 Top Ten R&B smashes came in 1948 with his party classic "Chicken Shack Boogie," which paced the charts and anointed his band with a worthy name (the Aladdin Chickenshackers, natch). A velvet-smooth "Bewildered" displayed the cool after-hours side of Milburn's persona as it streaked up the charts later that year, but it was rollicking horn-driven material such as "Roomin' House Boogie" and "Sax Shack Boogie" that Milburn was renowned for. Milburn's rumbling 88s influenced a variety of famous artists, notably Fats Domino.

With the ascent of "Bad, Bad Whiskey" to the peak of the charts in 1950, Milburn embarked on a string of similarly boozy smashes: "Thinking and Drinking," "Let Me Go Home Whiskey," "One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer" (an inebriating round John Lee Hooker apparently enjoyed!), and "Good Good Whiskey" (his last hit in 1954). Alcoholism later brought the pianist down hard, giving these numbers a grimly ironic twist in retrospect. Milburn's national profile rated a series of appearances on the Willie Bryant-hosted mid-'50s TV program Showtime at the Apollo (where he gave out with a blistering "Down the Road Apiece").

Aladdin stuck with Milburn long after the hits ceased, dispatching him to New Orleans in 1956 to record with the vaunted studio crew at Cosimo's. There he recut "Chicken Shack Boogie" in a manner so torrid that it's impossible to believe it didn't hit (tenor saxist Lee Allen and drummer Charles "Hungry" Williams blast with atomic power as Milburn happily grunts along with his pounding boogie piano solo). In 1957, he left Aladdin for good.

Milburn contributed a fine offering to the R&B Yuletide canon in 1960 with his swinging "Christmas (Comes but Once a Year)" for King. Berry Gordy gave him a comeback forum in 1962, issuing an album on Motown predominated by remakes of his old hits that doesn't deserve its extreme rarity today (even Little Stevie Wonder pitched in on harp for the sessions).

Nothing could jump start the pianist's fading career by then, though. His health deteriorated to the point where a string of strokes limited his mobility and his left leg was eventually amputated. Not too long after, one of the greatest pioneers in the history of R&B was dead.

///////

Biografía del artista por Bill Dahl

El maestro de piano de Boogie, Amos Milburn, nació en Houston, y murió allí poco después de 52 años. En el medio, luchó contra algunos de los mocos más infelices de la era de la posguerra, generalmente grabando en Los Ángeles para Aladdin Records y especializándose en los optimistas optimistas sobre el alcohol y sus efectos (tanto positivos como negativos) que demostraron éxitos masivos durante el Época inmediata del pre-rock.

El as autodidacta de los años 88 se hizo famoso como "la Martha Raye de He-Man" en Houston antes de unirse a la Armada y ver la acción de batalla en el extranjero en la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Cuando salió del servicio, Milburn jugó en varias clases de Lone Star antes de conocer a la mujer cuyos esfuerzos lo catapultaría al estrellato.

La persistente gerente Lola Anne Cullum presuntamente irrumpió en la habitación del hospital del jefe de Aladdin, Eddie Mesner, portando una máquina de discos portátil con la demostración de Milburn. El gambito funcionó: Milburn firmó con Aladdin en 1946. Su primera cita incluyó un trueno "Down the Road Cada uno" que presagiaba el inminente aumento del rock & roll. Pero Milburn también era capaz de encantamientos más sutiles, cantando baladas de azules suaves en un estilo influenciado por Charles Brown (los dos se convertirían más tarde en amigos íntimos, tocando juntos con frecuencia).

El primero de los 19 mejores diez éxitos de R&B de Milburn se produjo en 1948 con su clásico "Chicken Shack Boogie", que marcó el ritmo de las listas y ungió a su banda con un nombre digno (los Aladdin Chickenshackers, natch). Un "Bewildered" de terciopelo liso mostró el lado fresco de la persona de Milburn después de las horas de juego, ya que se extendió en las listas de éxitos más tarde ese año, pero fue material de cuernos como "Roomin 'House Boogie" y "Sax Shack Boogie" que Milburn era famoso por. El ruido de los 88 de Milburn influyó en una variedad de artistas famosos, en particular Fats Domino.

Con el ascenso de "Bad, Bad Whiskey" a la cima de las listas en 1950, Milburn se embarcó en una serie de éxitos similares: "Pensando y bebiendo", "Let Me Go Home Whiskey", "One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer "(¡una borrachera que John Lee Hooker aparentemente disfrutó!), Y" Good Good Whiskey "(su último éxito en 1954). Más tarde, el alcoholismo hizo caer al pianista con fuerza, dando a estos números un retorcido giro irónico en retrospectiva. El perfil nacional de Milburn calificó una serie de apariciones en el programa de televisión Showtime at the Apollo de Willie Bryant a mediados de la década de los 50 (donde se rindió con un "Down the Road cada uno").

Aladdin se quedó con Milburn mucho después de que cesaran los éxitos, enviándolo a Nueva Orleans en 1956 para grabar con el equipo de estudio de Cosimo. Allí recortó "Chicken Shack Boogie" de una manera tan tórrida que es imposible creer que no lo hizo (el saxista tenor Lee Allen y el baterista Charles "Hungry" Williams explotan con poder atómico mientras Milburn gruñe alegremente junto con su fuerte sonido de piano ). En 1957, dejó a Aladdin para siempre.

Milburn contribuyó con una excelente oferta al canon de R&B Yuletide en 1960 con su swing "Christmas (Comes but Once a Year)" para King. Berry Gordy le dio un foro de regreso en 1962, publicando un álbum en Motown predominado por los remakes de sus viejos éxitos que no merecen su extrema rareza hoy (incluso Little Stevie Wonder se lanzó sobre el armónica para las sesiones).

Sin embargo, nada podría hacer saltar la carrera decreciente del pianista para entonces. Su salud se deterioró hasta el punto en que una serie de golpes limitó su movilidad y su pierna izquierda finalmente fue amputada. No mucho después, uno de los más grandes pioneros en la historia de R&B estaba muerto.

Montis, Goudsmit & Directie • Root Up

 

 

Review from Slagwerkkrant: Root Up keeps its groove, swing and infectious energy throughout all eight tracks, with the Hammond, guitar and drums maintaining the listener's attention from beginning to end. [https://slagwerkkrant.nl/nieuws/artikel/2-27974/release-van-de-week-montis-goudsmit--directie--root-up](https://slagwerkkrant.nl/nieuws/artikel/2-27974/release-van-de-week-montis-goudsmit--directie--root-up)

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Resena de Slagwerkkrant: Root Up mantiene su groove, swing y energia contagiosa a lo largo de sus ocho temas, con el Hammond, la guitarra y la bateria manteniendo la atencion del oyente de principio a fin. [https://slagwerkkrant.nl/nieuws/artikel/2-27974/release-van-de-week-montis-goudsmit--directie--root-up](https://slagwerkkrant.nl/nieuws/artikel/2-27974/release-van-de-week-montis-goudsmit--directie--root-up) 

 

King Curtis • Live at Fillmore West

  

 
Biography

Curtis 'King Curtis' Ousley was already a well-respected Jazz tenor saxophonist in 1952 when he moved to New York, to concentrate on doing session work for the growing Pop and R&B markets. Over the next decade, saxophone became the pre-eminent lead instrument within Rhythm & Blues/Rock n' Roll, and King Curtis became its leading exponent, spicing up massive numbers of hits with ear catching solos, sealing his reputation as one of the leading instrumentalists of that era. Perhaps he'll be most remembered as blowing that solo on The Coasters 1958 smash “Yakety Yak.”

King Curtis was originally part of the late 40's honking Texas tenor sax brigade, counting Arnett Cobb, Earl Bostic, and Illinois Jacquet as influences. He played in bands of Lionel Hampton and Horace Silver. Upon moving to New York from Fort Worth TX (his 1934 birthplace), he was already well grounded in Jazz, R&B, and Pop. Curtis could play any style on a moment's notice. Curtis had also pursued a highly successful solo career, primarily in contemporary R&B. But he also stretched out with the best Jazzmen: about half of his Prestige output circa 1960-62 he's surrounded by top line players like Jack McDuff, Billy Butler, Billy Gale, Ray Lucas, and Willie Rodriguez. On his classic “Soul Meeting,” the personnel includes: King Curtis (tenor saxophone); Nat Adderly (cornet); Wynton Kelly (piano); Paul Chambers, Sam Jones (bass); Oliver Jackson, Belton Evans (drums)

Recording with Capitol, Epic, and Atlantic, he garnered instrumental hits like 1962's “Soul Twist,” and 1967's “Memphis Soul Stew,” . That same year he did a successful cover of “Ode To Billie Joe.”

He made a big impression in the late 60's, hooking up with artists like Eric Clapton who performed on King's “Teasin'” album in 1970. The saxophonist had meanwhile put together a superb studio group: The Kingpins, with Richard Tee, Cornell Dupree, Jerry Jemmott and Bernard Purdie, all of whom contributed to several of Aretha Franklin's finest records. King Curtis topped the R&B charts in 1971, handling the sax on Aretha Franklin's version of “Bridge Over Troubled Waters,” and played on several tracks on John Lennon's 'Imagine' album that same year.

When King Curtis departed this world in 1971 -the victim of a brutal stabbing outside his apartment- he wasn't yet 40, but was at the apex of his career. In 2000, King Curtis was inducted into the Rock&Roll Hall of Fame.

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Biografía

Curtis 'King Curtis' Ousley ya era un respetado saxofonista tenor de Jazz en 1952 cuando se mudó a Nueva York, para concentrarse en hacer trabajo de sesión para los crecientes mercados de Pop y R&B. Durante la siguiente década, el saxofón se convirtió en el principal instrumento del Rhythm & Blues/Rock n' Roll, y King Curtis se convirtió en su principal exponente, condimentando un gran número de éxitos con solos que atrapan las orejas, sellando su reputación como uno de los principales instrumentistas de esa época. Tal vez sea más recordado por soplar ese solo en Los Posavasos de 1958 y aplastar "Yakety Yak".

King Curtis fue originalmente parte de la brigada de saxos tenor de Texas a finales de los 40, contando a Arnett Cobb, Earl Bostic e Illinois Jacquet como influencias. Tocó en bandas de Lionel Hampton y Horace Silver. Al mudarse a Nueva York desde Fort Worth TX (su lugar de nacimiento en 1934), ya estaba bien arraigado en el Jazz, el R&B y el Pop. Curtis podía tocar cualquier estilo en un momento. Curtis también había desarrollado una exitosa carrera en solitario, principalmente en el R&B contemporáneo. Pero también se extendió con los mejores Jazzmen: alrededor de la mitad de su producción de Prestige alrededor de 1960-62 está rodeado de jugadores de primera línea como Jack McDuff, Billy Butler, Billy Gale, Ray Lucas, y Willie Rodríguez. En su clásico "Soul Meeting", el personal incluye: King Curtis (saxo tenor); Nat Adderly (corneta); Wynton Kelly (piano); Paul Chambers, Sam Jones (bajo); Oliver Jackson, Belton Evans (batería)

Grabando con Capitol, Epic y Atlantic, obtuvo éxitos instrumentales como "Soul Twist" de 1962 y "Memphis Soul Stew" de 1967. Ese mismo año hizo una exitosa portada de "Oda a Billie Joe".

Causó una gran impresión a finales de los 60's, uniéndose a artistas como Eric Clapton, quien actuó en el álbum "Teasin'" de King en 1970. Mientras tanto, el saxofonista había formado un magnífico grupo de estudio: The Kingpins, con Richard Tee, Cornell Dupree, Jerry Jemmott y Bernard Purdie, todos los cuales contribuyeron a varios de los mejores discos de Aretha Franklin. King Curtis encabezó las listas de éxitos de R&B en 1971, manejando el saxo en la versión de "Bridge Over Troubled Waters" de Aretha Franklin, y tocó en varios temas del álbum'Imagine' de John Lennon ese mismo año.

Cuando el rey Curtis partió de este mundo en 1971 -víctima de una brutal puñalada fuera de su apartamento- aún no tenía 40 años, pero estaba en la cúspide de su carrera. En el año 2000, King Curtis fue admitido en el Rock&Roll Hall of Fame

Joe Houston • Combo

Biography

He was born in Bastrop, a suburb of Austin, Texas, and studied trumpet in school, changing to saxophone later. As a teen he began emulating a touring band by buying a red suit with white pants. One night in 1941 a saxophone player did not show for a gig with the band and Houston took his place. Between 1943 and 1946, Houston toured with King Kolax's band through Kansas City and Chicago and throughout the Mid-West.

After World War II Houston returned to Texas, and recorded with the pianist Amos Milburn and singer Big Joe Turner. Initially playing alto sax, he switched to tenor in the wake of such "honking" saxophonists as Big Jay McNeely and Paul Williams. Turner got Houston his first recording contract on Freedom Records in 1949. Houston moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana and played with Betty Roche and Wynonie Harris.

Eventually, Houston formed his own band The Rockets, and moved to Los Angeles in 1952. He scored his only two chart hit singles in 1952 with "Worry, Worry, Worry", and "Hard Time Baby" both of which peaked at #10 on Billboard's R&B singles chart. He recorded for many record labels, including Modern and Crown, and contributed vocals as well as saxophone on some of his records.

Houston was based in Los Angeles throughout most of his career. He toured and recorded with his band the Defrosterz, started by the bassist Mark St. John, who acted as his bassist and manager almost 20 years, plus the keyboardist Mike Malone. They toured North America and recorded throughout the 1990s and 2000s. The band was signed to the Shattered Records label.

Houston's musical career ended after he suffered a stroke in 2006. Joe returned to the stage in July 2008 and performed at The Long Beach lobster Festival. He continued to entertain until 2012 due to his health. He died on December 28, 2015 in Long Beach, California, following a some health issues.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Houston

From http://www.rockabilly.nl/references/messages/joe_houston.htm

August 2011

Born Joseph Abraham Houston, 11 July 1926, Bastrop, Texas

Died 28 December 2015, Long Beach, California

R&B saxophonist Joe Houston was a honker. "Honking" is described in the following terms by Wikipedia : "The honkers were known for their raucous stage antics and expressive, exhibitionist style of playing. They overblew their saxophones and often hit on the same note over and over, much like a black southern preacher, until their audiences were mesmerized." The style began in 1942 with Illinois Jacquet's solo on Lionel Hampton's "Flying Home" (a # 3 R&B hit in 1943). Other well-known honkers from the 1940s and 1950s were Big Jay McNeely, Hal Singer, Lynn Hope, Wild Bill Moore, Red Prysock, Chuck Higgins and Freddie Mitchell. Belittled by jazz fans ("honking is pure and simple grandstanding aimed at audiences with a limited capacity to discriminate"), these guys, as they walked the bars, fell to their knees, lay on their backs, or led their audiences outside to the street, pied-piper fashion. Honking was predominantly a Los Angeles phenomenon.

Houston studied trumpet in school, but soon switched to the sax. At the age of seventeen, Joe got a steady gig playing alto sax in King Kolax's big band out of Chicago. In 1947 he switched to the tenor sax and spent the next year touring variously with Amos Milburn, Wynonie Harris, Savannah Churchill and Betty Roche. By 1949 he settled in Baton Rouge, Louisiana (with his new wife, pianist Marian McKinley) and put together a local club band for Big Joe Turner. Their stint together led to Joe Houston accompanying Turner to a recording session in Houston, Texas, for the Freedom label, and while there he recorded a few sides under his own name (resulting in two singles), as a bandleader, not a saxophonist.

Not until late 1950 or early 1951 did Houston put himself front and centre as a honking tenor sax man. Until the frantic "Blow Joe Blow" (1951), recorded for the Macy label, he was strictly a blues player. That disc set the pattern for most of his subsequent recordings. Subtlety went out the window and Joe just let loose in the studio, usually choosing a climactic note and wringing the hell out of it. "Blow Joe Blow" wasn't a hit, but Jules Bihari got wind of it in Los Angeles, purchased the master and reissued it on Modern 830 in August 1951. This was soon followed by four other Modern singles, recorded at Joe's house in Baton Rouge with portable equipment, but in 1952 (the year in which Houston relocated to Los Angeles) there were also releases on Imperial, Combo and Mercury. The latter label had purchased an earlier vocal blues, "Worry, Worry, Worry", from the Sphinx label in Atlanta,Georgia, and this became Houston's only chart entry, peaking at # 10 on the R&B charts in February 1952.

But the song for which Joe Houston is best remembered is not that hit, but "All Night Long", recorded for the Money label in 1954. It was based on a Rusty Bryant record, but the two versions bear little resemblance to each other. When Bryant was recorded live in 1953 at the Carolyn Club in Columbus, Ohio, his biggest crowd-pleaser was Jimmy Forrest's "Night Train", which led the audience into a vocal chant of "Let it roll, let it roll, all night long", from Lucky Millinder's 1944 hit "Let It Roll". It was originally issued on Carolyn 333 in 1953 (as "Nite Train"), then purchased by Dot and reissued as "All Nite Long" (Dot 15134) in February 1954. Houston heard Bryant's version, but gave it his own interpretation, incorporating a riff from Hal Singer's "Cornbread" and avoiding "Night Train" altogether. Joe's "All Night Long" was and is one of the most exciting honking records ever made and was a huge territorial seller on the West Coast. Though Houston had sold the tape to John Dolphin's Money Records, the recording later showed up on LP's on Modern and Combo, in 1956 and 1957 respectively.

Houston didn't have to change his style to adjust to rock 'n' roll. In the early days of the Big Beat, when a TV or movie producer wanted to portray a rock n roll atmosphere, we usually got to see a scene from a nightclub where a hard blowing, honking and screaming sax player was inevitably heard. So what Joe was playing was rock n roll avant la lettre. All that had to be adjusted were the song titles. And when rock n roll waned in popularity, Joe recorded "twist" and "surf" albums for the Bihari brothers' Crown label that didn't sound very different from what he was doing a decade before. Houston remained active musically, but recorded only sporadically after 1963. Gradually he began to slow down, emphasizing his blues vocal talents, but he would still close most of his shows with "All Night Long" (although not on his back). He was forced to retire from performing after suffering a stroke in 2005. Recently his health took another downward turn and he has remained secluded for the last year or so.

Houston is a discographer's nightmare. He avoided contracts and recorded for whoever would pay cash up front. For that reason, his material came out on over a dozen labels, often at the same time, and he was not averse to recording essentially the same tune under different titles for different companies. Some of Joe's recordings were released by one company, then reissued by another, sometimes under a new title. Add to this the fact that the Biharis (Modern, RPM, Crown) haphazardly slapped albums together without regard to whether the track listings matched the music inside and the confusion is complete.

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Biografía

Nació en Bastrop, un suburbio de Austin, Texas, y estudió trompeta en la escuela, cambiando a saxofón más tarde. Cuando era un adolescente, comenzó a emular una banda de gira comprando un traje rojo con pantalones blancos. Una noche en 1941, un saxofonista no se presentó para un concierto con la banda y Houston tomó su lugar. Entre 1943 y 1946, Houston realizó una gira con la banda de King Kolax por Kansas City y Chicago y por todo el Medio Oeste.

Después de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, Houston regresó a Texas y grabó con el pianista Amos Milburn y el cantante Big Joe Turner. Inicialmente, tocando saxo alto, cambió a tenor como consecuencia de saxofonistas tan grandes como Big Jay McNeely y Paul Williams. Turner consiguió en Houston su primer contrato de grabación en Freedom Records en 1949. Houston se mudó a Baton Rouge, Louisiana, y jugó con Betty Roche y Wynonie Harris.

Finalmente, Houston formó su propia banda The Rockets, y se mudó a Los Ángeles en 1952. Obtuvo sus dos únicos singles de éxitos en 1952 con "Worry, Worry, Worry" y "Hard Time Baby", los cuales alcanzaron el puesto # 10. en la lista de singles de R&B de Billboard. Grabó para muchos sellos discográficos, incluyendo Modern and Crown, y contribuyó con voces y saxofones en algunos de sus discos.

Houston residió en Los Ángeles durante la mayor parte de su carrera. Realizó una gira y grabó con su banda The Defrosterz, iniciada por el bajista Mark St. John, quien actuó como su bajista y manager durante casi 20 años, más el tecladista Mike Malone. Hicieron una gira por América del Norte y grabaron durante los años 90 y 2000. La banda firmó con el sello Shattered Records.

La carrera musical de Houston terminó después de sufrir un derrame cerebral en 2006. Joe regresó al escenario en julio de 2008 y actuó en el Festival de la langosta de Long Beach. Continuó entreteniendo hasta 2012 debido a su salud. Murió el 28 de diciembre de 2015 en Long Beach, California, debido a algunos problemas de salud.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Houston

De http://www.rockabilly.nl/references/messages/joe_houston.htm

Agosto 2011

Nacido Joseph Abraham Houston, 11 de julio de 1926, Bastrop, Texas.

Falleció el 28 de diciembre de 2015 en Long Beach, California

El saxofonista de R&B Joe Houston fue un honker. "Honking" se describe en los siguientes términos en Wikipedia: "Los honkers eran conocidos por sus ruidosas travesuras en el escenario y su expresivo estilo de juego exhibicionista. Exageraban sus saxofones y solían tocar la misma nota una y otra vez, como un sur negro. Predicador, hasta que sus audiencias quedaron hipnotizadas ". El estilo comenzó en 1942 con el solo de Illinois Jacquet en "Flying Home" de Lionel Hampton (un # 3 hit de R&B en 1943). Otros conocidos honkers de la década de 1940 y 1950 fueron Big Jay McNeely, Hal Singer, Lynn Hope, Wild Bill Moore, Red Prysock, Chuck Higgins y Freddie Mitchell. Despreciados por los fanáticos del jazz ("tocar la bocina es pura y sencillamente grandiosa, dirigida a audiencias con una capacidad limitada para discriminar"), estos muchachos, mientras caminaban por los bares, se arrodillaron, se tumbaron de espaldas o llevaron a sus audiencias fuera de la La calle, la moda de pied-piper. Honking era predominantemente un fenómeno de Los Ángeles.

Houston estudió trompeta en la escuela, pero pronto cambió al saxofón. A la edad de diecisiete años, Joe consiguió un concierto estable tocando saxo alto en la gran banda de King Kolax en Chicago. En 1947 cambió al saxo tenor y pasó el año siguiente de gira con Amos Milburn, Wynonie Harris, Savannah Churchill y Betty Roche. En 1949 se estableció en Baton Rouge, Louisiana (con su nueva esposa, la pianista Marian McKinley) y formó una banda de club local para Big Joe Turner. Su paso juntos llevó a Joe Houston a acompañar a Turner a una sesión de grabación en Houston, Texas, para el sello Freedom, y mientras estuvo allí grabó algunos lados con su propio nombre (resultando en dos singles), como líder de banda, no como saxofonista.

Hasta finales de 1950 o principios de 1951, Houston se puso al frente y al centro como un hombre de saxo tenor. Hasta el frenético "Blow Joe Blow" (1951), grabado para el sello Macy, era estrictamente un jugador de blues. Ese disco estableció el patrón para la mayoría de sus grabaciones posteriores. La sutileza salió por la ventana y Joe simplemente se soltó en el estudio, generalmente escogiendo una nota culminante y escupiéndole el infierno. "Blow Joe Blow" no fue un éxito, pero Jules Bihari se enteró de ello en Los Ángeles, compró el maestro y lo reeditó en Modern 830 en agosto de 1951. A esto le siguieron otros cuatro sencillos modernos, grabados en la casa de Joe en Baton Rouge con equipo portátil, pero en 1952 (el año en que Houston se mudó a Los Ángeles) también hubo lanzamientos en Imperial, Combo y Mercury. La última etiqueta había comprado un blues vocal anterior, "Worry, Worry, Worry", de la etiqueta Sphinx en Atlanta, Georgia, y se convirtió en la única entrada de las listas de Houston, alcanzando el puesto número 10 en las listas de R&B en febrero de 1952.

Pero la canción para la que mejor se recuerda a Joe Houston no es ese éxito, sino "All Night Long", grabada para el sello Money en 1954. Se basó en un disco de Rusty Bryant, pero las dos versiones se parecen poco entre sí. Cuando Bryant fue grabado en vivo en 1953 en el Carolyn Club en Columbus, Ohio, su mayor público fue el "Night Train" de Jimmy Forrest, que llevó al público a un canto vocal de "Let it roll, let it roll". ", del éxito de Lucky Millinder en 1944" Let It Roll ". Originalmente se emitió en Carolyn 333 en 1953 (como "Nite Train"), luego fue comprada por Dot y reeditada como "All Nite Long" (Dot 15134) en febrero de 1954. Houston escuchó la versión de Bryant, pero le dio su propia interpretación, incorporando un riff de "Cornbread" de Hal Singer y evitando el "Night Train" por completo. "All Night Long" de Joe fue y es uno de los registros de excitación más emocionantes que se haya hecho y fue un gran vendedor territorial en la costa oeste. Aunque Houston había vendido la cinta a Money Records de John Dolphin, la grabación más tarde apareció en LP en Modern and Combo, en 1956 y 1957, respectivamente.

Houston no tuvo que cambiar su estilo para adaptarse al rock 'n' roll. En los primeros días de Big Beat, cuando un productor de cine o televisión quería representar una atmósfera de rock and roll, solíamos ver una escena de un club nocturno en el que inevitablemente se escuchaba a un saxofonista. Así que lo que Joe estaba tocando era rock n roll avant la lettre. Todo lo que había que ajustar eran los títulos de las canciones. Y cuando el rock n roll disminuyó en popularidad, Joe grabó los álbumes "twist" y "surf" para el sello Crown de los hermanos Bihari que no sonaban muy diferentes de lo que estaba haciendo una década antes. Houston se mantuvo activo musicalmente, pero grabó solo esporádicamente después de 1963. Poco a poco comenzó a disminuir la velocidad, enfatizando sus talentos vocales de blues, pero todavía cerraría la mayoría de sus programas con "All Night Long" (aunque no en su espalda). Se vio obligado a retirarse de su desempeño después de sufrir un derrame cerebral en 2005. Recientemente, su salud dio un giro hacia abajo y se ha mantenido aislado durante el último año.

Houston es la pesadilla de un discógrafo. Evitó los contratos y grabó para quien pagaría en efectivo por adelantado. Por esa razón, su material salió en más de una docena de etiquetas, a menudo al mismo tiempo, y no era reacio a grabar esencialmente la misma melodía bajo diferentes títulos para diferentes compañías. Algunas de las grabaciones de Joe fueron lanzadas por una compañía, luego reeditadas por otra, a veces bajo un nuevo título. Agregue a esto el hecho de que Biharis (Modern, RPM, Crown) aleatoriamente juntaron álbumes sin importar si las listas de canciones coincidían con la música interior y la confusión está completa.