BIG WALTER HORTON/ Complete Recordings 1951-66

 

         

I guess it's certainly not necessary to present Big Walter Horton, also named Shakey Horton, to the followers of my blog. His reputation is very very high among blues buffs all around the world and particularly among harmonica players and fans for whom he is considered as one of the most accomplished and influential blues harp players of all times.

Heavy or piercing, hazy or precise, the harmonica playing of this "Big" Walter – the main competitor of the other Walter, the so called "Little" – is almost always full of feeling and imagination. Many of his solos are masterpieces and now classics of the genre and have been heavily emulated up to those days.

Although most of his biographies mention his birth date as 6^th April 1918 at Horn Lake, Arkansas and Blues/ A regional experience gives a birth certificate (for a named Harton) from September 1921, Big Walter has always appeared to all who saw him, including yours truly, as a much older man than that.

Walter was certainly neither a leader nor a very reliable informant and during most of his career he was equally not a very reliable band player, the stories about how he didn't show at a gig or quit during the middle of a performance abound. And this certainly explains why he never reached any stardom, not even being able to make a living out of his music.

But of course when he was playing or recording, Big Walter was certainly a huge master of his instrument.

I had the opportunity to see him quite often while he was touring Europe either with the AFBF's 1965, 1968 and 1970 or when he was a band member of the Willie Dixon's Chicago Blues all stars. I also had the privilege to meet him in Chicago in 1979 when he was backing Floyd Jones on a tiny West Side club. And we drove him to his shabby home where he was living in ugly poverty while posters on the walls were testifying of his great reputation all around the world!

Anyway, this compilation tries to gather all the recordings he made under his name during the years 1951-66, from his early days in Memphis to his first European tour. Of course all of those have been issued and sometimes still available but scattered on many records with a majority of them out of stock. To have them together seemed to me a very interesting way to appreciate his terrific talents as a musician.

After 1966, Walter made a handful of albums for Alligator (maybe his very best) and with several young (at that time) bands like Hot Cottage or John Nicholas' and even appearing in the best selling album Fleetwood Mac/ Blues jam at Chess. All of those are very worthwhile.

Walter died in Chicago on 8^th December 1981. To my eyes, he was certainly older than 60 years old.

                                                 Gérard HERZHAFT

BIG WALTER HORTON/ Discography

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La meilleure boutique spécialisée dans l'harmonica en ligne est certainement HARMONICALAND

JAMES COTTON/ Complete Early recordings 1953-66

 JAMES COTTON/ Complete Early Recordings 1953-66

     Si James Cotton jouit aujourd'hui à juste titre d'une grande réputation et figure au Panthéon des grands harmonicistes de blues, cela n'était certainement pas le cas lorsqu'au début des années 60 le petit cercle d'amateurs de blues européens le découvrit.

           Cotton n'était alors essentiellement connu qu'en tant que remplaçant de Little Walter au sein de l'orchestre de Muddy Waters, et pas forcément à son avantage!

           Né le 1er juillet 1935 à Tunica dans le Mississippi, James Cotton apprend très jeune à jouer de l'harmonica en écoutant les disques de John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson que son oncle lui prêtait et l'émission de radio King Biscuit Time dans laquelle officiait Sonny Boy "Rice Miller" Williamson. Persuadé que Rice Miller était le Sonny Boy des disques, Cotton convainc son oncle d'aller le voir. Flatté, Miller prend l'adolescent sur la route avec lui et Cotton le remplace sur scène (ou derrière le rideau selon les lieux étant donné son jeune âge) quand Sonny Boy est trop imbibé pour jouer. Lorsque Miller part soudainement vers le Nord, Cotton se retrouve embauché à Memphis par Joe Hill Louis puis Howlin' Wolf. Dans le groupe, Cotton noue une amitié durable avec les frères Murphy (Floyd et Matt), Pat Hare, Junior Parker, Willie Johnson... Presque naturellement, Sam Phillips enregistre James sur Sun, deux 78t de R & B de très bon niveau mais dans lesquels Cotton ne joue pas d'harmonica et qui ne se vendront guère.

           James gagne Chicago au milieu des années 50. Lorsque Muddy Waters licencie Big Walter Horton de son orchestre à cause de ses nombreuses inconséquences, James Cotton devient l'harmoniciste du groupe. Une fonction qu'il conservera une dizaine d'années. Cotton enregistre abondamment avec Muddy Waters et se fait ainsi connaître du grand public. Au début, il semble quelque peu gêné par la présence occulte de ses grands prédécesseurs (Little Walter notamment, au style très différent). Mais il développe peu à peu un jeu d'harmonica, bien plus terrien que celui des Walters, swinguant, tout en puissance et finalement extrêmement efficace.

            Lorsque Muddy emmène James avec lui en Angleterre, l'infatigable jazzman britannique Chris Barber en profite pour enregistrer James, huit titres qui ne paraîtront qu'en Europe sur deux 45t EP. Malgré un accompagnement laborieux et peu inspiré, cette séance de 1961 permet à Cotton de prouver l'étendue de ses talents d'harmoniciste et de chanteur. L'influence de John Lee Williamson est alors écrasante autant dans les trois morceaux qu'il lui emprunte que dans le reste.

           Cette escapade anglaise a permis à Cotton de s'aviser qu'un public blanc et international s'intéressait de plus en plus au blues et qu'il y avait là une opportunité à saisir. De retour à Chicago, Cotton se rapproche de la petite fraternité de jeunes fans de blues qui gravitent autour de Paul Butterfield et Mike Bloomfield et il se produit avec eux dans plusieurs campus universitaires et clubs du North Side, montrant au passage pas mal de "plans" à Butterfield. Quelques titres enregistrés au cours de ces prestations nous sont parvenus avec un Cotton particulièrement en verve. Sa voix chaude, grasseyante se marie merveilleusement à son harmonica et autant Butterfield en second harmonica que Mike Bloomfield (ou Elvin Bishop?) à la guitare montrent leur réelle empathie avec le vrai blues.

           En 1964, Cotton partage un microsillon produit par Sam Charters avec les autres membres du Muddy Waters blues band mais le LP est uniquement attribué à Otis Spann. Après un 45t pour Cadillac Baby dans lequel c'est Little Mack qui joue de l'harmonica (!), Cotton retrouve Charters et les autres musiciens de Muddy Waters pour cinq magnifiques titres qui paraissent dans la célèbre anthologie Chicago/ The blues today.

           Finalement, James se décide à tenter une carrière personnelle, forme son propre blues band avec Sammy Lawhorn à la guitare, le temps d'enregistrer un nouveau (et excellent) 45t pour le label Loma en 1966.

           Il lui faudra attendre l'année suivante (1967) pour enfin graver son premier album sous son nom sur le label Verve. Débute alors une autre et longue histoire.

                                                                 Gérard HERZHAFT

 

              If today James Cotton stands rightfully as a legend and as one of the leading stalwarts of the Chicago blues harmonica style, it has not always been the case. In the early 60's for instance when Europe discovered the blues, Cotton was chiefly considered as a so so substitute to Little Walter in the Muddy Waters' blues band. And he will have to fight hard to stand out as his own.

              Born on a plantation near Tunica, Ms. July 1st, 1935, James learned at a very early age to play the harmonica while listening to his uncle's huge record collection, particularly the 78s of John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson and the King Biscuit Time's radio programme from Helena (Arkansas) that was led by the "other" Sonny Boy Williamson, Rice Miller.

              The uncle like the nephew, persuaded - like many others - that there was only one Sonny Boy, went to see his show, chatted and playing with him. Some time after, the young James was taken under the not so protective wing of Rice Miller who used him as a valet as well as a replacement on stage (or behind a curtain, Cotton being still too young to play in most of the joints) when he was too whiskey-soaked to stand up. When Sonny Boy dropped everything suddenly to go North with his new wife, Cotton tried to maintain the band for awhile but it was a too hard task for such a young man and he instead settled in Memphis, playing in several blues bands, particularly Howlin Wolf's. As almost every blues act around Memphis, Phillips recorded twice James Cotton, four nice R&B tracks with stunning Pat Hare's guitar parts but no trace of harp blowing.

James went to Chicago in the mid-50's, playing with almost everybody. At that time, Muddy was looking for a new harp player, Little Walter being already a star on his own and Big Walter proving he had a not reliable enough behaviour to play regularly with a busy touring band. And James was very reliable, so he took the place, a role that he would keep for more than a decade. And Cotton recorded widely with Muddy in a very different style than the Walters, more down-home, almost "Country", always Sonnyboyesque and more and more swinging, forceful and effective.

              When Muddy brought James with him for a tour of Great Britain, the indefatigable British jazz band leader Chris Barber took the opportunity to record him as a leader. Despite a very uninspired and pedestrian backing band, this 1961 session is very rewarding. Cotton proves his talents with his harmonica during eight titles with a very strong John Lee Williamson's influence.

              During this British adventure, Cotton realized that there was a new public outside the black ghettos for the blues. Back to Chicago, Cotton was more and more involved in the Blues Revival fledgling movement, beginning a friendship with the young white bluesmen like Paul Butterfield and Mike Bloomfield and playing with them on college campuses and North Side clubs. Some tracks recorded during those kind of venues had reached us, featuring a very masterful Cotton in this acoustic setting.

              In 1964, Sam Charters recorded five tracks by Cotton as a leader with the current Muddy Waters' band but the album was attributed only to Otis Spann. After a 45 for Cadillac Baby (in which Little Mack plays the harp, not James!), Cotton recorded another session for Charters with Spann and others, a stunning session that would be issued on the famed Chicago/ The blues today series, doing a lot to establish Cotton's reputation.

              At that time, Cotton finally tried to lead his own band enrolling the great Sammy Lawhorn on lead guitar. They recorded a masterful 45 for the Loma label in 1966.

              Cotton will have to wait 1967 to sign a contract with the Verve label and at last record his first album under his name. Then starts another new and long story.

                                                                    Gérard HERZHAFT

 

JAMES COTTON Complete Early Recordings/ 1953-66

James Cotton, vcl; Harvey Simmons, t-sax; Tom Roane, b-sax; Billy Love, pno; Pat Hare, g; Kenneth Banks, bs; Houston Stokes, dms. Memphis, Tn. 7 december 1953

01. My baby

02. Straighten up baby

James Cotton, vcl; Pat Hare, g; Mose Vinson, pno; John Bowers, dms. Memphis, Tn. 14 may 1954

03. Cotton crop blues

04. Hold me in your arms

James Cotton, vcl/hca; Chris Barber, tb/g/bs; Alexis Korner, g; Keith Scott, pno. Londres, GB. 10 august 1961

05. Dealing with the Devil

06. Standing around crying

07. Slow and easy

08. Rock me mama

09. Jimmy's jump

10. Decoration day blues

11. Polly put the kettle on

12. Going down slow

James Cotton, vcl/hca. Chicago, Ill. 14 january 1962

13. Decoration day

14. Dealing with the Devil

James Cotton, vcl/hca; Paul Butterfield, hca; Elvin Bishop, g or Mike Bloomfield, g. Chicago, Ill. june 1962

15. So glad I'm leaving

16. V-8 Ford blues

17. Polly put the kettle on

18. Digging my potatoes

James Cotton, vcl/hca; Paul Butterfield, hca; Billy Boy Arnold, hca; Elvin Bishop, g or Mike Bloomfield, g. Chicago, Ill. june 1962

19. Three harp boogie

James Cotton, vcl/hca; Otis Spann, pno/vcls; James Madison, g; Muddy Waters, g; Milton Rector, bs; S.P. Leary, dms. Chicago, Ill. 21 november 1964

20. One more mile to go

21. Feelin' good

22. Dust my broom

23. Straighten up baby

24. I'm ready

James Cotton, vcl; Little Mac Simmons, hca; John Jackson, t-sax; Willie Henderson, b-sax; Detroit Jr, pno; Eddie King, g; Bob Anderson, bs; Billy Davenport, dms. Chicago, Ill. 19 september 1963

25. One more mile

26. There must be a panic on

James Cotton, vcl/hca; Otis Spann, pno; Pee Wee Madison, g; S.P. Leary, dms. Chicago, Ill. december 1965

27. Cotton crop blues

28. The blues keep falling

29. Love me or leave me

30. Rocket 88

31. West Helena blues

James Cotton, vcl/hca; Sammy Lawhorn, g; James Madison, bs; Sam Lay, dms. Chicago, Ill. 11 may 1966

32. Complete this order

33. Laying in the weeds