CHICAGO/ The Blues Yesterday Volume 23

CHICAGO/ The Blues Yesterday Vol. 23

            

For this new opus of our never ending (?) series Chicago/ The Blues Yesterday, let's put the limelights once again upon bluesmen/women who mostly escaped from any fame.

            Singer and drummer Jack Cooley is the best known of the three artists featured here but we don't know for sure his date (and place) of birth and death. He nevertheless recorded quite extensively, although most of his 78s and 45s are hard to find items. We have been able to get 16 tracks out of a total of 24. He started to record for Mayo Williams in 1945 for the short lived "Chicago" label and the following years backed by no other than Albert Ammons for Mercury. He seems to have been well known in the Chicago clubs and lounges as Cowboy Jack for his habit to wear a big Stetson hat on and out stage. During the 1950's, Jack Cooley recorded for many labels like Square Deal, Nashboro, States, Master, C&G... in a very driving R&B style with a good blues shouter's voice. It would be nice if anyone having the missing tracks would share them.

            Freddie Youngblood (often called Freddie Young or Freddy Youngblood) is a producer, singer and label owner from Chicago who was active during the 1960's to the 1980's. He is certainly not a great singer but his records are quite worthy for the backing musicians, Hubert Sumlin, Eddie Taylor, Lafayette Leake et al. I have included all his known sides, even the odd Sould Strings (B side of Youngblood's own label Sould Sound #752) which is in fact a straight reissue of a late Morris Pejoe's 45, Pejoe's Soul Strings without any mention of the real lead guitarist!

            Ann Carter is a complete unknown, having recorded only one 78 for the Blue Lake label in 1945. Good stuff anyway with a solid band led probably by drummer Red Saunders.

CHICAGO/ The Blues Yesterday/ Volume 23

JACK COOLEY, vcl/dms; His Cooley Boy, band. Chicago, Ill. June 1945

01. Time to think

Jack Cooley, vcl/ dms; Albert Ammons, pno; Ike Perkins, g; Israel Cosby, bs. Chicago, Ill. 2 July 1946

02. Why am I leaving you?

03. I don't want to see you

Jack Cooley, vcl/ dms; t-sax; pno; Israel Crosby, bs. Chicago, Ill. June 1947

04. The death of Piney Brown

I feel the blues

I deal in cats

I know the blues

Jack Cooley, vcl/dms; Roosevelt Sykes, pno. Chicago, Ill. 18 October 1947

05. Someting I'm going to be

06. Stop your evil ways

Jack Cooley, vcl/ dms; Buck Douglas, t-sax; band. Chicago, Ill. 1948

07. I'm a man

08. Douglas boogie

Caldonia's sister

Jack Cooley, vcl/dms; band. Chicago, Ill. 1950

09. Mr Two Gun Pete

10. 50 Dyna Flow

This is us

Ain't it nice

Jack Cooley, vcl; Tommy Jones, t-sax; Jimmy Robinson, pno; Israel Crosby, bs; Jump Jackson, dms. Chicago, Ill. 1951

11. It's so fine

12. Tom Tom boogie

13. Dyna Flow

14. Hear my story

Jack Cooley, vcl/dms; t-sax; pno; xyl; Willie Dixon, bs. Chicago, Ill. 16 February 1953

15. I could but I ain't

16. Rain on my window

Jack Cooley, vcl/dms; band. Chicago, Ill. 1956

Half way round the clock

Cooleys Cowboy Rock

FREDDIE YOUNGBLOOD, vcl/g; Eddie Taylor, g; Lafayette Leake, pno; Andrew Mc Mahon, bs; Robert Wright, dms. Chicago, Ill. 1964

17. Monkey business

18. Someday baby

Freddie Youngblood, vcl/g; Hubert Sumlin, g; band. Chicago, Ill. 1971

19. That ain’t right

20. A bit of soul

21. If the blues was whiskey

Freddie Youngblood, vcl; Hubert Sumlin, g; band. Chicago, Ill. 10 March 1975

22. Downbeat blues

23. West Side shuffle

Freddie Youngblood, vcl; band. Chicago, Ill. 1982

24. Sould strings (in fact 1969 by Morris Pejoe)

25. Last november

ANN CARTER, vcl; Sonny Cohn, tpt; Flip Ricard, tpt; Porter Kilbert, a-sxa; Leroy Washington, t-sax; Earl Washington, g; Jimmy Richardson, bs; Red Saunders, dms. Chicago, Ill. May 1954

26. You oughta quit it

27. Lovin' daddy blues

Thanks to our friends Klaus Killian and Tom Thumb who provided us a more correct Freddie Youngblood's discography. 

Unknown (ts) Freddy Young (g) unknown el-b and d. Chicago, early 1963

Dark river

Limbo rock

Freddy Young (vcl,g) acc by Lafayette Leake (org) Eddie Taylor (g) Andrew "Blueblood" Mac Mahon (el-b) Robert "Huckleberry Hound" Wright (d); Chicago, 1964

Monkey business (A bit of soul*)

That ain't right

Someday baby

Freddie Young Blood (vcl)  acc by Little Mack (hca) Sunnyland Slim (p) Lafayette Leake (org) Hubert Sumlin, Eddie Taylor (g) Odell Campbell (el-b) Willie Williams (d) Chicago, December 1971

If blues was whiskey

(This tune borrows the instrumental track from "Special agent" by Andrew "Blueblood" Mac Mahon substituting Young's vocal for Mac Mahon's and dubbing on at the same time the organ backing by Lafayette Leake.)

As Freddy Youngblood & Joann Adison (vcl duets) acc by unknown band Chicago, June 1974

The hickey game

That ain't right (the above title is identical to the one recorded in 1964)

Freddy Youngblood (vcl) acc by Hubert Sumlin (g) + others Chicago, c; March 10, 1975

Baby Brown

Note : At the above session 4 more unknown titles were recorded.

Freddie Youngblood (vcl) acc p, 2 g's, el-b and unknown d Chicago, 1981

Last November