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mardi 13 juin 2017

CHICAGO/ The Blues Yesterday/ Volume 20

CHICAGO/ The Blues Yesterday/ Volume 20

           
Ouvrons ce 20 ème volume de notre série "Chicago/ The Blues Yesterday" avec Jo Jo Williams le plus connu des bluesmen ici présents. Né le 7 octobre 1923 à Coahoma (Ms), fils d'un employé des chemins de fer, Joseph Eginger Williams a connu Son House et Willie Brown, a vécu ensuite à Memphis où, fréquentant les théâtres et les clubs de Beale Street, il apprend la guitare vers 1942 et gagne Chicago bien décidé à vivre de sa musique. Il forme son propre groupe les Blues Rockers, fait partie du Muddy Waters Junior Band, tourne en Californie avec Little Walter puis s'installe à Minneapolis où il animera la scène du blues avec Lazy Bill Lucas et Mojo Buford durant des années, enregistrant en sideman et sous son nom la poignée de titres ici rassemblés. Il décède à Minneapolis le 16 juin 2010, une figure éminente de la scène locale du blues.


            Nombre de groupes se sont nommés Chicago All Stars. Celui-ci est l'agrégation de vétérans de la scène du blues et du jazz de Chicago - le trompettiste Johnny Morton, les saxophonistes Sugarman Penigar et Oett "Sax" Mallard et le batteur omniprésent Armand Jump Jackson - qui après la guerre ont formé un ensemble de R&B qui a connu un certain mais bref succès à la fin des années 1940.

            Clara Morris (c. 1921 - 2007) est une superbe chanteuse d'inspiration immanquablement rurale qui, hélas, ne nous laisse qu'une très belle séance de 1941 dans laquelle elle est accompagnée de Lonnie Johnson et Blind John Davis. Elle a encore enregistré quelques mois plus tard avec Big Bill Broonzy une séance demeurée inédite. Comme beaucoup, sa carrière a été définitivement interrompue par la guerre. Elle semble s'être mariée avec un certain Mr Proctor et est décédée à Lake Forest (Illinois).

            Enfin, le chanteur Frank Butler (à ne pas confondre avec le batteur de jazz du même nom) a émargé à la scène de Chicago dans les années 1955-70, enregistrant une poignée de 45t pour de petits labels comme Chief, Space Age ou Great Scott, ses derniers morceaux montrant une évolution très nette vers la Soul. Je ne connais rien de sa vie et tous renseignements seront les bienvenus.

                                                                       Gérard HERZHAFT

Tous nos remerciements à Steve Wisner et Sir Shambling pour leur aide.

            Let's open this 20th opus of our "Chicago/ The Blues Yesterday" series with Jo Jo Williams, certainly the most well known artist of this comp. Born in Coahoma on 7th October 1923, Joseph Eginger Williams is the son of a railroad employee. At an early age, he has met Son House and Willie Brown, lived as a teenager in Memphis where, under the influence of the local Beale Street acts, he learned to play the guitar around 1942 and left to Chicago, well determined to make a living out of his music. He formed his own band, The Blues Rockers with which he recorded a handful of singles under his own name, was a staunch member of the Muddy Waters Junior Band, toured the West Coast with Little Walter... During the 1960's Jo Jo went to live to Minneapolis where alongside Lazy Bill Lucas and Mojo Buford he would be a revered figure of the local blues scene. Jo Jo died in Minneapolis 16 June 2010.

            Several groups named themselves Chicago All Stars. This one here is the temporary aggregation at the end of the 1940's of Chicago blues and Jazz veterans, namely trumpet player Johnny Morton, saxophonists Oett "Sax" Mallard and Sugarman Penigar as well as the ubiquitous drummer and bandleader Armand "Jump" Jackson.

         
Clara Morris (c. 1920-2007) is a first rate singer with a strong rural feel who, unfortunately, leaves only one striking 1941 session backed by Lonnie Johnson and Blind John Davis. She will record another session a couple of months later, this time with Big Bill Broonzy, that never was issued. Like many, her career has been cut short by the war and to our knowledge she never recorded again. She married to a Mr Proctor and died at Lake Forest, Illinois.

            At last, powerful singer Frank Butler (not to be confused with the jazz drummer of the same name) has been present on the Chicago blues scene during the years 1955-70, recording a handful of 45s for small local labels like Chief, Space Age or Great Scott, the last tracks in a more Soul vein. I unfortunately don't know anything more about his whereabouts and every piece of information would be most welcome.

                                                                       Gérard HERZHAFT

A lot of thanks to Steve Wisner and Sir Shambling for their invaluable help.

CHICAGO/ The Blues Yesterday/ Volume 20
JO JO WILLIAMS (Joseph Williams), vcl/g; Mojo Buford, hca; Lazy Bill Lucas, pno; Dave Myers, g; Sam Burton, dms. Cicero, Ill. 1959
01. Rock'n'roll boogie
02. Rock and roll can save your soul
03. All pretty women
04. Women's world
05. Davy Crockett's jingle bells
06. You can't live in this big world by yourself
Although the "Chicago ain't " Delmark album says that 05 & 06 are hitherto unissued titles, those two are in fact absolutely similar to 07 & 08 which were issued as an Atmic-H 45.
Jo Jo Williams, vcl/g; Little Smokey Smothers, g; Tommy Reader, a-sax; P.T. Hayes, hca; Elijah Jordan, bs; Robert Whitehead, dms. Chicago, Ill. 1959
07. Afro shake dance
08. You got to be loved
CHICAGO ALL STARS: Johnny Morton, tpt; Sax Mallard, a-sax/clt; Sugarman Penigar, t-sax; Bill Owens, pno; Elmer Ewing, g; Bali Beach, bs; Jump Jackson, dms. Chicago, 27 July 1947
09. Green light (vcl: Johnny Morton)
10. Hey hey big mama (vcl: Johnny Morton)
11. I love you mama (vcl: Sugarman Penigar)
12. No no baby (vcl: Sugarman Penigar)
Chicago All Stars, band. Same or Similar. Chicago, Ill. 26 December 1947
13. Are you getting married brother? (vcl: Cozy Eggleston)
14. Strange strange lover (vcl: Pro Mc Clam)
CLARA MORRIS, vcl; Lonnie Johnson, g; Blind John Davis, pno; Willie Mitchell, bs. Chicago, Ill. 27 March 1941
15. Cry on daddy
16. I stagger in my sleep
17. I'm blue daddy
18. Poker playing daddy
FRANK BUTLER, vcl; Cool Breeze (Joseph Bell), bs; band. Chicago, Ill. 1957
19. I can't believe it
Frank Butler, vcl; band. Chicago, Ill. 1965-66
20. Build a little house for you
21. How I feel about you
22. Someone outside
Frank Butler, vcl; band. Chicago, Ill. 1968
23. So many years
Frank Butler, vcl; band. Chicago, Ill. 1970
24. The love I need
25. If love don't change


13 commentaires:

  1. Chicago/ The Blues Yesterday/ Volume 20

    http://www112.zippyshare.com/v/TFs3ySzt/file.html

    OK?

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  2. I am a fan of these "Chicago/The Blues Yesterday/ collections : so much great , rare and "never heard before" music here .
    Thank you very much !
    Et merci aussi pour avoir mon nouveau blog dans votre liste .

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  3. Excellent. Thanks as always Gerard for making these rare recordings available to us all.

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  4. Thanks for continuing this series!

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  5. Thank you Gerard. There's something about Chicago that makes it the ultimate.

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  6. Excellent choice as usual Gerard. Thank you very much.

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  7. OK!! Great work as always!! Thanks!!
    Serge Zéni

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  8. All the volumes on this series have links still available.
    Volume 16:
    https://yadi.sk/d/FqNKoWo5oNZLr
    Volume 17:
    https://yadi.sk/d/Jr7rR7WXqXtiY
    Volume 18:
    https://yadi.sk/d/dr-K4VskuHd3n
    Volume 19:
    https://yadi.sk/d/Etg51ovy3KfrGp
    Volume 20:
    https://yadi.sk/d/1jWOtOfE3KZvYE
    Volume 21:
    https://yadi.sk/d/a-3q06tG3RaBak
    Volume 22:
    https://yadi.sk/d/uUvYvGWE3WZa2k

    Grab them while it lasts

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