TEXAS BLUES/ Volume 6

TEXAS BLUES Volume 6

            Ce 6ème volume de notre série sur le Texas blues est consacré à deux musiciens fort différents, le premier représentant bien ce R&B Texan qui s'est développé durant les années de guerre et qui a été extrêmement populaire auprès des Noirs durant une bonne décennie; le deuxième le down home blues texan qui, lui, venu des pionniers du genre, perdurera longtemps dans les années 1960.

            Joe Fritz, surnommé "Papoose", sans doute pour des origines indiennes, est né à Houston le 13 novembre 1924 et a fait une carrière de saxophoniste alto et tenor et de chanteur au sein de son propre orchestre, très typique du R&B texan. On ne connaît que peu sa vie, bien qu'il ait accompagné en tournée et en studio des artistes de renom comme Junior Parker, Albert Collins ou

Huey Smith! Fritz a substantiellement enregistré sous son nom pour Modern, Sittin' In With, Peacock et pour Jet Stream jusqu'à la fin des années 60. A notre connaissance, il n'a jamais été interviewé et on connaît le lieu et la date de son décès (12 juin 1983 à Houston) par le fait qu'il était un vétéran de la Deuxième Guerre Mondiale! Quoi qu'il en soit, nous proposons ici presque toute son œuvre, quelques titres manquants encore malgré nos efforts.

            D.C. Bender (en fait Dick C. Bendy) est au contraire très profondément ancré dans le blues profond du Texas qui s'est développé dans les années 1920-30. Né à Urbana le 19 juin 1924 dans une famille de métayers, D.C. apprend la guitare avec un voisin bluesman Hardy Gibson et très jeune gagne sa vie en chantant dans les juke joints du Texas et de Louisiane ou dans les rues de Houston, rencontrant et partageant la scène avec Luther Stoneham, Smokey Hogg, Wright Holmes et surtout son cousin Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins. C'est Hopkins qui le présente au producteur Bill Quinn en 1949, ce qui lui permet d'enregistrer deux titres seul à la guitare sous le surnom de D.C. Washington (!). Les années suivantes, Bender s'associe avec un autre bluesman local Big Son Tillis. Le duo part tenter sa chance à Los Angeles où ils enregistrent une superbe séance pour le label Elko de J.R. Fullbright en 1953. De retour à Houston, D.C. Bender rejoint le groupe du batteur Ivory Lee Semien (qui comprend le guitariste Big H. Williams) avec lequel il grave une dernière séance en 1967. Il décède le 11 août 1982 à Houston.

                                                           Gérard HERZHAFT

            This 6th opus of our Texas blues series brings two artists representing two very different styles of Texas blues.

            Joe Fritz, nicknamed "Papoose" probably for some Native American origins (?) was born in Houston 13th November 1924 and made quite a long career playing the saxophone and sometimes singing in front of his own band, very typical of the then very popular Texas R&B. His whereabouts and life are little known although he had followed on the road and in studios big Texas blues names like Junior Parker, Huey Smith and Albert Collins. Fritz has also recorded more than twenty tracks under his own name for Modern, Sittin' In With, Peacock or Jet Stream from 1950 to the late 1960's. To my knowledge, he unfortunately has never been interviewed and we know the place and the date of his death (12 June 1983 in Houston) thanks to him being a WWII veteran! Whatever, we have tried to gather all his recordings but, despite our efforts, a few are still missing.

           

On the other hand, D.C. Bender (in fact Dick C. Bendy) is deeply rooted in the down home Texas blues tradition harking back to the 1920's and Blind Lemon, Texas Alexander or Little Hat Jones. Born at Urbana 19th June 1924 from a sharecropping family, D.C. learned guitar thanks to a neighbor bluesman Hardy Gibson. At a very young age, he left the farm and made a living playing in the Texas/Louisiana juke joints or in the streets of cities like Houston, meeting and playing with other local bluesmen like Luther Stoneham, Smokey Hogg, Wright Holmes or, chiefly, with his cousin Sam Lightnin' Hopkins. This is Hopkins who brought D.C. to producer Bill Quinn who recorded him as a solo artist in 1949 under the moniker of D.C. Washington! The following years, Bender teamed with another deep local bluesman Big Son Tillis and the two tried their luck as far as Los Angeles where they recorded a first rate session for J.R. Fullbright's Elko label in 1953. Unfortunately, those records went nowhere and D.C. came back to Houston, joining drummer Ivory Lee Semien's band with whom he waxed a last session in 1967. D.C. Bender died in Houston 11th August 1982.

                                                           Gérard HERZHAFT

TEXAS BLUES

Volume 6

JOE "PAPOOSE" FRITZ, vcl/a-sax; t-sax; band. Houston, Tx. March 1950

01. Wrong doing woman

02. If I be lucky

03. Better wake up baby

04. Real fine girl

Joe "Papoose" Fritz, vcl/a-sax; Willie Johnson, pno; Goree Carter, g; Don Cooks, bs; Ben Turner, dms. Houston, Tx. September 1950

05. Please get me off your mind

06. I love you my darling

07. I'm so sorry

08. Bad bad women blues

09. I've tried not to love you

10. Lady Bear boogie

Cool cool baby blues

I do love you

Joe "Papoose" Fritz, vcl/a-sax; Goree Carter, g; Connie Mc Booker, pno; Bill Harvey, t-sax; band. Houston, Tx. December 1950

11. Please my darling

12. They were right

Joe "Papoose" Fritz, vcl/a-sax; Bill Harvey, t-sax; Goree Carter, g; band. Houston, Tx. January 1951

13. Make her see things my way

Joe "Papoose" Fritz, vcl/a-sax; band. Houston, Tx. February 1951

14. Summer's coming on

15. I'm not suspicious but

Corelle

If I didn't love you so

In misery

Joe "Papoose" Fritz, vcl/a-sax; Geno Washington, pno; James Von Streeter, t-sax; Devonia Williams, pno; Pete Lewis, g; Albert Winston, bs; Leard Bell, dms. Houston, Tx. October 1953

16. Honey honey

17. The woman I love

Joe "Papoose" Fritz, vcl/a-sax; band. Houston, Tx. 1966

18. Good doctor, sweet soul

19. Aww she's a stepper

20. I'm a stepper

D.C. BENDER, vcl/g. Houston, Tx. 10 June 1949

21. Rebop boogie

22. Happy home blues

D.C. Bender, vcl/g; Big Son Tillis, g. Los Angeles, Ca. 1953

My baby wrote me a letter

23. I'm going upstairs

24. Cold blues

D.C. Bender, vcl/g; Earl Gilliam, og; Big H. Williams, g; Ivory Lee Semien, dms. Houston, Tx. June 1967

25. Boogie Children

26. Woke up this morning

D.C. Bender, g; Big Houston Williams, bs; Ivory Lee Semien, dms. Houston, Tx. 16 juillet 1967

27. D.C.'s freeze up

JOHN BRIM/ CHICAGO BLUES MASTER

JOHN BRIM: CHICAGO BLUES MASTER

           

Although not often credited as a big name of the postwar Chicago blues, John Brim has been instrumental in creating the genre and most of his recordings may be considered as classics, notably the wonderful Rattlesnake and Tough times.

           

Born in Hopkinsville (Kentucky) on April, 10th 1922, John has been influenced by local bluesmen like guitarist Homer Wilson and harmonica player Phineas Cox. In 1941, he goes for work to Indianapolis, a town whose blues is still strongly affected by the music of the famous duo Leroy Carr & Scrapper Blackwell. John quickly takes part of the local blues scene, meets Scrapper Blackwell, Jesse Eldridge, the great singer Harmon Ray and Pete Franklin whose whom he forms a duo à la Carr/Blackwell!

            In 1945, Brim leaves Indianapolis for Chicago, finds a good job in a laundry and plays in the Chicago clubs with Doctor Clayton, Tampa Red, Big Bill Broonzy and John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson, all of whom leaving their marks on his style. The younger John is also soon part of the "new" Chicago blues scene and he becomes friends and plays with Muddy, Little Walter, Willie Mabon and while also playing frequently in Gary (Indiana) he meets there Jimmy Reed, Eddie Taylor, Albert King and a young singer/ harp player Grace Millard who soon becomes her wife. They form a band together with Albert King on the drums. Albert being a little bit erratic on stage and in his life, Grace progressively takes the drummer role on the band. One night, one of the patron is none other than the pianist Big Maceo who offers them to go to Detroit and record with him in 1950 for the Fortune label.

            Their recording career is then launched: John waxes another session with Roosevelt Sykes, signs with Joe Brown for his fledgling label JOB and records several stunning tracks in 1951-52, almost all masterpieces: broody voice, excellent lyrics, tight interaction between the guitar of Brim and the piano of Sunnyland Slim, a perfect updating of the Carr/ Blackwell music.

            But JOB is a small outfit that never pays his artists and in 1953, John Brim who wants more from his music is in the Chess studio with the cream of the Chicago bluesmen, particularly Little Walter, Louis Myers, Eddie Taylor and Fred Below: Rattlesnake, blatantly inspired by Hound Dog, is a hit but Chess, facing a lawsuit by Leiber and Stoller, composers of Hound Dog, has to withdraw the record. In 1953, Brim plays the guitar behind his friend Albert King on his first ever session and also waxes the very strong Tough times which will become his best selling number as well as his trademark and an all-time Chicago postwar blues classic!

            But there is not a strong feeling between John and Phil Chess and when, convinced by Jimmy Reed, he tries his luck at Vee Jay's (but no record issued whatsoever), Chess drops him definitively. The late 1950's are lean years for the deep blues like John Brim's. The Brims leave then Chicago for settling in Gary where they buy a laundry. But the music bug is still there, John teaching guitar and bass to his sons. And in 1971, the Brim family record a new 45 that unfortunately goes nowhere. He will have to wait 18 more years to be rediscovered by the valiant Austrian label Wolf, recording a new excellent session . Then, encouraged by young admirers, he will resume his musical career, appearing as a "living legend" in several festivals and recording two excellent CDs.

            He dies on October, 1st, 2003 four years after his wife Grace, leaving a small but brilliant record legacy.

                                                                       Gérard HERZHAFT

JOHN BRIM/ The Complete Recordings 1950-71

John Brim, vcl/g; Big Maceo, pno. Detroit, Mi. 1950

01. Bus driver

John Brim, vcl/g; Roosevelt Sykes, pno. Saint Louis, Mo. 1951

02. Dark clouds

03. Lonesome man blues

John Brim, vcl/g; Sunnyland Slim, pno/vcls; Moody Jones, bs. Chicago, Ill. 27 septembre 1951

04. Young and wild

05. I love my baby

06. Trouble in the morning

07. Humming blues

John Brim, vcl/g; Sunnyland Slim, pno; Eddie Taylor, g; Moody Jones, bs; Grace Brim, dms/hca. Chicago, Ill. 22 août 1952

08. Hard pill to swallow

09. Drinking woman

John Brim, vcl/g; Ernest Cotton, t-sax; Sunnyland Slim, pno; Pete Franklin, g; Big Crawford, bs; Alfred Wallace, dms. Chicago, Ill. octobre 1952

10. Don't leave me (No name blues)

11. Moonlight blues

John Brim, vcl/g; Little Walter, hca; Louis Myers, g; Dave Myers, g; Willie Dixon, bs; Fred Below, dms. Chicago, Ill. mars 1953

12. Rattlesnake

13. It was a dream

John Brim, vcl/g; Little Walter, hca; Eddie Taylor, g; Elga Edmonds, dms. Chicago, Ill. 4 mai 1953

14. Ice cream man

15. Lifetime baby

John Brim, vcl/g; Jimmy Reed, hca; Eddie Taylor, g; Grace Brim, dms. Chicago, Ill. mars 1954

16. Tough times

17. Gary stomp

John Brim, vcl/g; James Dalton, hca; W.C. Dalton, g; Grace Brim, dms. Chicago, Ill. janvier 1955

18. Go away

19. That ain't right

John Brim, vcl/g; Little Walter, hca; Robert Lockwood Jr, g; Willie Dixon, bs; Fred Below, dms. Chicago, Ill. 5 avril 1956

20. Be careful

21. You got me

John Brim, vcl/g; John Brim Jr, g; Steve Brim, bs; Grace Brim, dms. Chicago, Ill. 1971

22. You put the hurt on me

23. Movin' out

Alternate takes and tracks by Grace Brim are not included here