FLORIDA COUNTRY BLUES/ Volume 1

 

FLORIDA COUNTRY BLUES Volume 1

               La Floride n'est malheureusement pas une région connue pour son blues. Essentiellement d'ailleurs parce qu'à l'exception du travail de la chercheuse et célèbre écrivain afro-américaine Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) bien peu d'enregistrements de blues ont été faits autant de terrain que commerciaux. Durant deux ans (1935-37) Zora Neale a été le fer de lance de sept expéditions de terrain, certaines en compagnie de John & Alan Lomax qui ont permis de découvrir certains des bluesmen les plus connus de cet Etat dont Gabriel Brown qui enregistrera substantiellement à New York après la guerre.

            En fait, en Floride - comme dans pratiquement tous les Etats du Sud - il y avait une scène du blues assez considérable dans les années 1930-60, certains étant des musiciens professionnels ou semi-professionnels, d'autres qui n'animaient que des soirées privées ou jouaient les week ends pour des pique niques ou des évènements familiaux. Mais ces musiciens ne sont pas connus tout simplement parce qu'aucune compagnie de disques n'est allée les enregistrer durant l'avant et l'immédiate après guerre et que, lors du Blues Revival des années 1960, les producteurs-amateurs de blues se sont essentiellement concentrés sur les régions qu'ils connaissaient par les disques et qu'ils croyaient être les principales (et seules!) régions du blues, en particulier le Delta!

            Mais à partir des années 1960, la State Library &Archives of Florida a fait - sans beaucoup de publicité, aucune revue spécialisée n'en ayant à ma connaissance parlé à l'exception de la parution d'un double album: Drop on down in Florida - un travail considérable de recherches et d'enregistrements de terrain, découvrant de nombreux musiciens folk et blues (et leur permettant de se produire dans des festivals locaux), la plupart étant alors désormais âgés et dont certains avaient fait une très longue carrière dans les juke joints, les medicine shows ou les circuits de Vaudeville. Cela a donné naissance aux considérables archives sonores, photos, interviews rassemblés dans la Florida Memory, à partir de quoi quasiment tous les morceaux ici rassemblés sont issus.

           

Odell Maxwell est un des rares artistes ici présents qui a enregistré deux albums dont nous ne pouvons que recommander l'achat. Né en Floride et fils d'un propriétaire de juke joint Gus Maxwell chez qui ont joué les plus grands bluesmen de passage, Odell partage son temps entre son métier de garde forestier à Orlando et son orchestre, les Maxwells, avec lequel il joue les week ends.

            Richard Williams (1887-1991), un musicien des circuits itinérants qui n'a appris que très tard le blues (avec des ouvriers de passage) a été substantiellement enregistré - blues et Gospel - à la fin de sa vie et en compagnie de sa fille Ella Mae Wilson par les chercheurs de l'Université de Floride qui ont même mis en ligne une excellente sélection de ses meilleurs titres.

           

Albert "Buck" Thompson a longtemps joué dans les juke joints de Floride et Alabama tout en louant ses bras aux différentes fermes et plantations de ces Etats durant les années 1950-60 et son répertoire est extrêmement vaste.

            Blind Johnny Brown (1910-86) et Moses Williams (1919-88) étaient d'excellents musiciens traditionnels, le premier très ancré dans le style Appalachien traditionnel, le second ayant développé une technique particulière au diddley-bow, cet instrument maison primitif, dont il arrivait à tirer des sons très excitants.

            Emmett Murray est né en 1911 à Moultrie (Georgie) et est venu en Floride durant les années 1930 afin de travailler dans les plantations de canne à sucre tout en jouant dans des hôtels et des réunions privées autant pour les Noirs que pour les Blancs.

            L'anthologie est complétée par le pianiste et chanteur Alex Mc Bride (1913-99), un musicien de barrelhouse et la chanteuse Mary Mc Clain (1902-2000) qui a enregistré par ailleurs sous le nom de Diamond Teeth Mary. Ainsi que par l'harmoniciste Samuel Young.

            Tous nos remerciements à Florida Memory pour ce formidable travail.

                                                                                   Gérard HERZHAFT

            Florida is unfortunately not very well known as a blues State for with the exception of the seminal work by famous African American author Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) who did a two year (1935-37) field research work (sometime with the Lomaxes and discovering some future blues artists like Gabriel Brown), no record company never came to this State. But in Florida - like in all Southern States - there were strong local blues scenes during the decades 1930-60 with many bluesmen playing in clubs, juke joints, picnics, medicine shows, who gained a strong local reputation but who never were recorded.

            But from the 1960's the State Library &Archives of Florida has done - without much publicity - a considerable field work, researching blues and folk veterans or younger artists, interviewing them, recording them on hours of tapes and sometimes bringing them to the limelight of local festivals and musical workshops. One box-set of two CD's - Drop down in Florida - was issued commercially and, despite few reviews, is well worth buying.

            This is from those huge archives that most of the following recordings come from.

            Odell Maxwell is one of the very few artists here who has recorded two albums that should be in every country blues fan's collection. Born in Florida and the son of a noted juke joint owner (Gus Maxwell), Odell has learned the blues from all the great names who came to play at his father's place. He shares his time between his day job in Orlando's Park and his band, the Maxwells whose whom he plays the week ends.

            Richard Williams (1887-1991) was a travelling folk musician who learned the blues thanks to itinerant workers coming to the phosphate mines near Richard's place. He has extensively been recorded (often alongside his daughter Ella Mae Wilson) late in his life by Florida Memory which even has put a downloading CD on line.

            Albert "Buck" Thompson has also substantially played in the Florida and Alabama juke joints while being an itinerant field worker during the 1950's-60's and he has a wide repertoire.

           

Blind Johnny Brown (1910-86) and Moses Williams (1919-88) were excellent traditional musicians, the first very rooted in the Piedmont blues tradition, Moses having developed a striking technique at his homemade diddley bow.

            Emmett Murray was born in 1911 at Moultrie (Georgia) and came to Florida during the 1930's to work on the sugarcane fields. He regularly played for parties and picnics for either Black or White folks.

            This homemade comp is rounded by some tracks by barrelhouse pianist Alex McBride (1913-99), singer Mary McClain (1909-2000) who recorded under the name Diamond Teeth Mary and harp player Samuel Young.

            Thanks again to Florida Memory for their huge and so useful work. Go to their websitefor much more material.

  Gérard HERZHAFT

FLORIDA COUNTRY BLUES

ODELL MAXWELL, vcl/g/hca. Orlando, Fl. 2012

01. Black man

02. Whiskey blues

RICHARD WILLIAMS, vcl/g. Newberry, Fl. 27 mai 1978

03. Baby please don't go

04. John Henry

05. Williams' slide blues

ALBERT "BUCK" THOMPSON, vcl/g. Hastings, Fl. 14 février 1985

06. Feel like a bird

07. I am drifting

08. Let's do the Twist

09. Rolling stone

BLIND JOHNNY BROWN, vcl/g. St Petersburg, Fl. 1 octobre 1976

10. Mistreating blues

11. Red Cross store

12. Woke up this morning blues

MOSES WILLIAMS, vcl/g/diddley bow. Waverly, Fl. 27 novembre 1977

13. Catfish blues n°1

14. Catfish blues n°2

15. Highway 13

16. The train

17. Which way did my baby go?

MARY MC CLAIN, vcl; Willie James, pno. White Springs, Fl. 27 mai 1988

18. Backwater blues

ALEX MCBRIDE, vcl/pno. Orange Park, Fl. 16 août 1989

19. In the Evening

EMMETT MURRAY, vcl/g. Pahokee, Fl. 8 avril 1980

20. Dig myself a hole

21. Emmett's blues

22. There is a man taking names

SAMUEL YOUNG, vcl/hca. Homestead, Fl. 14 septembre 1985

23. Decoration day

24. Birdnest on the ground

LAZY BILL LUCAS/ Complete Recordings

 

 

LAZY BILL LUCAS/ Complete Recordings

 

           

Lazy Bill Lucas is one of the too many unsung pioneers of the post-war Chicago blues. He recorded a handful of tracks in 1953 backed by the great Louis Myers that stand as Chicago blues classics, several times reissued on numerous anthologies since the Blues revival years. At that time, Lucas seemed to have disappeared for good and was only a name for blues buffs around the world. But the researcher, guitarist, teacher and future author of several important books and studies, Jeff Todd Titon who lived in Minneapolis (certainly not considered at that time as an important blues city) found there Lazy Bill Lucas, interviewed him in depth (published in Blues Unlimited n°s 6à to 63) and moreover pushed him to record once again for several albums that enabled the bluesman to show the width of his skills and repertoire.

           

Bill Lucas was born in Wynne, Ark on May 29 1918. His father, a poor farmer, was a blues guitarist and, seeing the interest of his young son to the music, he bought him a guitar in exchange of one of his pigs! Bill learned a lot from his father and from Big Bill Broonzy's records, Big Bill staying always his main musical influence. Bill learned also the piano at his local church, becoming a very skilled pianist in demand a little bit everywhere. He moved to Saint Louis, Mo. in 1940 playing during a short time with Big Joe Williams who urged him to try his luck in Chicago. In 1941, Bill moved to the Windy City, playing in Maxwell Street and many Chicago clubs with Little Walter (who gave him his nickname "Lazy Bill" probably due to the nervous eye disorder that gave him some physical limitations), Johnny Young, John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson, Homesick James etc...

Lazy Bill mainly playing piano by now formed his blues band during the early 50's with his niece Miss Hi-Fi on vocals, Jo Jo Williams on guitar and Johnny Swanns on drums. Bill recorded as a pianist with Homesick James, Snooky Pryor, Little Willie Foster, Eddy Clearwater and with Earl Dranes' group The Blues Rockers. Lazy Bill Lucas recorded only four tracks as a vocalist in October 1953, waxing the classics She got me walkin' and I had a dream. For several reasons, Bill moved to Minneapolis at the end of the 50's, making a living mostly outside music but still playing regularly locally with other Chicago blues expatriates like Mojo Buford and his old friend Jo Jo Williams. He was a regular at the Key Club, playing by himself or with his pals and he almost always was picked to back Chicago bluesmen when they came to town like Big Walter Horton, Smokey Smothers, even Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters. This is (during the late 60's) when Jeff Titon interviewed him, documenting this bluesman in depth. Lazy Bill Lucas appeared on several blues festivals during the 1970's, playing also in a musical revue "Dat Feeling" and even hosting his own radio show The Lazy Bill Lucas Show on KFAI in Minneapolis. He recorded several albums from 1969 to 1973 for small independent labels that unfortunately were poorly distributed and sold.

            He recorded a last album in May 1982 before dying in his sleep at his Minneapolis' home on December 11 of the same year.

            This post gathers all his studio recordings and tries to be a well deserved tribute to an important but too neglected bluesman.

            Thanks a lot to Xyros who provided any of the rare recordings herein.

            Most of this article comes from Jeff Titon and Jim O'Neal writings about Lazy Bill on Blues Unlimited and Living Blues.

                                                                       Gérard HERZHAFT

 

 

 

Lazy Bill Lucas 1950's band with Johnny Swanns, Miss Hi-Fi and Jo Jo Williams.

 

T-BONE WALKER/ The 60's

 T-BONE WALKER/ The 1960's Studio Sessions

           

On ne présente certainement pas aux lecteurs de Blue Eye, l'immense T-Bone Walker (né en 1910 à Linden, Tx), l'un des grands pionniers de la guitare blues électrique et peut-être le principal créateur de ce qu'on appelle aujourd'hui le "West Coast blues".

            Après près de dix ans de succès du disque et de tournées incessantes et harassantes, les années 1950 sont une décennie difficile pour T-Bone. Malgré l'excellence toujours affirmée de sa musique, les succès commerciaux s'espacent. La formule gagnante (arrangements jazzy, tempos alanguis, compositions sentimentales et atmosphère éthérée), sans doute utilisée jusqu'à plus soif, ne fait plus autant mouche. Les goûts du public noir changent vers une musique plus musclée, vers le Rock'n'roll et de plus en plus vers la Soul naissante.

            La vie de T-Bone est essentiellement un tourbillon incessant de femmes, de jeu (il perd des sommes colossales en une nuit), de mauvais placements financiers et peut-être surtout, de whiskey. Il souffre de graves troubles digestifs et en 1955, les chirurgiens lui retirent les 2/3 de l'estomac. Cela ne l'empêche pas de continuer à boire autant mais le force à ralentir ses activités. La mort dans l'âme, T-Bone Walker dissout son orchestre et jouera désormais avec des musiciens locaux, au fur et à mesure des engagements et des apparitions en studio, de plus en plus rares.

            Les années 1960 sont encore plus difficiles. Comme toutes les gloires du Rhythm & Blues des années 40, T-Bone est un has been pour les jeunes Noirs. Et le Blues Revival américain ne recherche guère des musiciens de blues jazzy à l'apparence tirée à quatre épingles comme T-Bone. Mais le showman a de la ressource. Texan pur jus, cavalier émérite, il a toujours réussi à se maintenir en selle. Seul de son genre parmi des bluesmen bien plus rugueux, il va faire partie de la première tournée européenne de l'American Folk Blues Festival 1962. Son jeu de scène spectaculaire - il fait le grand écart, joue de la guitare dans le dos, roule des yeux langoureux - tout autant que le superbe son de sa guitare lui valent encore une fois un grand succès auprès de ce public européen qui ne le connaissait pas beaucoup, hormis les amateurs de jazz.

Il enregistre quelques beaux titres à l'occasion de cette tournée, parraine un groupe britannique de rock blues, les T-Bones qui comprend Stan Webb, le futur fondateur des Chicken Shack. Il reviendra dès lors souvent en Europe où il enregistrera plusieurs microsillons. Aux Etats Unis, grâce au producteur Bob Thiele, T-Bone refait surface en adaptant sa musique aux sonorités funky et boogaloo à la mode durant la fin des 60's. Avec le soutien d'un bel orchestre (le pianiste Lloyd Glenn, le guitariste Mel Brown et une forte ligne de cuivres), Walker enregistre encore deux albums magistraux.

Mais la fatigue, l'abus d'alcool (il vidait un litre de whiskey ou de gin par jour) finissent par miner sa santé. Son jeu s'en ressent, ses concerts aussi où il n'est parfois même plus capable de se tenir sur scène. Toute sa vie, femmes, voitures, guitares et amis, il a dépensé sans compter et n'a pas les moyens de payer ses notes d'hôpital. Pour l'aider et en hommage à sa gigantesque personnalité musicale, les plus grands jazzmen (Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Mann, David Newman, Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, Gerry Mulligan) vont l'aider et l'entourer pour un double microsillon, appelé "Very Rare" dans lequel T-Bone lui-même n'apparaît que comme l'ombre de lui-même.

T-Bone décède dans un hôpital de Los Angeles le 16 mars 1975, à peine âgé de 65 ans. Il laisse une œuvre exceptionnelle dont on ne saurait sous-estimer l'impact constant, dès l'origine.

            Nous proposons ici tous les titres enregistrés en studio (et pas ceux en concert) par T-Bone Walker durant les années 1960 dans un ordre chronologique.

            Merci à ceux qui m'ont aidé à compléter cette collection, en particulier Marc Claes et Blues Dude.

                                                           Gérard HERZHAFT

            Everybody reading this blog would certainly know about T-Bone Walker (born in 1910 at Linden, Tx), one of the true originator of the electric blues guitar and of the so-called West Coast blues as well. His influence has been far and wide and can be still strongly heard today.

            After merely 10 years of successful hits and perpetual touring, the mid-50's are lean years for T-Bone. He has left Capitol for Imperial with great expectations but despite the constant excellence of his music, hits are few. His former successful formula (languid tempos, sentimental songs, ethereal jazzy atmosphere) sounds a bit old-fashioned for an African-American record market listening more and more to muscular R'n'R and burgeoning Soul. Like so many 1940's R&B stars T-Bone seems to be a has been for the new generations.

            T-Bone's life is also hectic: a whirl of whiskey, gambling and women that leaves him financially ruined and in a bad health shape altogether. He faces a severe stomach surgery that certainly won't prevent him for hard drinking but that forces him to strongly slow down his activities. In 1955, he must disband his orchestra and has to hire local musicians for gigs and less and less frequent studio sessions.

            While the 1960's begin, his situation seems hopeless. But a true Texan, a skilled horse rider, he will nonetheless be able to saddle again! While the blues revival is more into Delta or Chicago deep bluesmen, T-Bone will be one of the very few jazzy West Coast bluesmen to catch on this new train. He is from the first European AFBF in 1962. A spectacular showman and a great entertainer, he succeeds to win the European audiences. He becomes even the godfather of a British blues-rock group simply called ... The T-Bones (with a young Stan Webb on guitar). He will tour regularly Europe during the 1960's and early 1970's, drawing a faithful audience, recording many sessions as a leader or even as a lead guitarist (for Jay Mc Shann for instance). In the USA, thanks to producer Bob Thiele, he manages to resurface with several excellent records that mix his cool jazzy sound with funk and boogaloo arrangements provided by top-notch backing musicians like Lloyd Glenn or Mel Brown.

            But his hectic life and alcohol abuse take their toll and his last European concerts are painful experiences for even his most staunch fans. All his life he has never been able to keep his dollars in his pocket and to pay his hospital bills an array of great jazzmen (Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Mann, David Newman, Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, Gerry Mulligan) help him for his difficult last record, a double-album (Very Rare) in which T-Bone appears to be only the shadow of himself. Aaron Walker dies in a Los Angeles hospital on 16 March 1975, at the early age of 65, leaving a huge musical legacy.

            We have here gathered all his 1960's studio recordings (not those live in concert).  Thanks to all who helped me to gather those scattered tracks, particularly Marc Claes and Blues Dude.

                                                           Gérard HERZHAFT

T-BONE WALKER/ The 60's: Discography

Mr BO / DETROIT BLUES MASTERS Volume 15

 

Mr BO/ Complete Recordings

DETROIT BLUES MASTERS/ Volume 15

 

           

Mr Bo was a true blues master from Detroit, much more than the B.B. King impersonator as he was too often described. And his too short recording works are generally excellent and should have been gathered way before this post. Unfortunately, Mr Bo – as so many Detroit artists – recorded often for tiny ill-distributed companies and, although he was a smash hit when appearing at Ann Arbor's blues & jazz festival, he never got enough attention except for the hardcore blues buffs around the world. And he had to wait his very last year to be finally able to record a whole album!

           

Mr Bo (Louis Collins) was born 7^th April 1932 in Indianola, Ms from a poor sharecroppers family. They – like so many – moved to Chicago just after WWII, then Detroit where the young Collins get his first guitar and was hooked to the blues through listening blues records and watching T-Bone Walker and moreover B.B. King, of course the main influence, caught live during local appearances. After a stay with Washboard Willie's band, soon, Mr Bo formed a band (Mr Bo and His Blues Boys) and played at venues and clubs around Detroit, recording for local labels with few airplays and distribution. In 1966, the great 45 I ain't gonna suffer/ If trouble was money enjoyed some local success and was reissued (bootlegged) in UK, drawing at last attention on this first rate singer and guitarist. His appearance at Ann Arbor's Festival in 1973 as well as several other festivals in Detroit and Chicago gave him more exposure. But the 1970's and 80's were very hard times for bluesmen like Mr Bo and he mainly made a living outside music, playing only sporadically.

            At last, he managed to make an European tour in 1993, playing in Utrecht, being interviewed for the Juke Blues Magazine. In 1995, he made a whole album, his only one! And he probably might have toured again overseas and recording more when he died suddenly from a pneumonia on 19^th September 1995 at Detroit's Hospital.

            I feel this post is a longtime well deserved tribute to a great underrated artist. It was very hard to gather some of his least known tracks and it couldn't have been done without the great help from Blessup, a true bluesfan and an excellent first rate blues guitarist on his own.

            Most of the details of this article come from the interview of Mr Bo by Jonhatan Varjabadian (published on Juke Blues 30) and article by Jim O'Neal on Living Blues n°15.

            I will add that several tracks doesn't even appear in the standard Blues Discography. So it is a tentative discography with possibly several mistakes. Anyway, enjoy this post and the music.

                                                           Gérard HERZHAFT

 

 

Mr Bo (Louis Collins), vcl/g; Mac Collins, bs; Duke Dawson, dms; band. Detroit, Mi. 1959

01. Times hard

02. Hard times once more

03. Live my life all over

04. Until the day I die

05. I'm leaving this town

Mr Bo, vcl/g; band. Detroit, Mi. 1961

06. Heartache and troubles

07. Calypso blues

Mr Bo, vcl/g; Mac Collins, bs; Duke Dawson, dms; band. Detroit, Mi. 1966

08. I ain't gonna suffer

09. If trouble was money

Mr Bo, vcl/g; band. Detroit, Mi. c. 1967

10. A lost love affair I (II)

Thanks to Ballas: A lost love affair Parts I & II are HERE

Mr Bo, vcl/g; band. Detroit, Mi. 1967

11. Santa's on his way

12. Let's go to the party

13. Cha Bo Cha

14. Thinking about my baby

Mr Bo, vcl/g; band. Detroit, Mi. 1968

15. Baby your hair looks bad

16. Night walkers

17. Early in the morning

18. Never love again

Mr Bo, vcl/g; band. Detroit, Mi. 1972

19. Plenty fire below I & II

Mr Bo, vcl/g; Dave Leonard, hca; Sonny Allen, og; Little Mack Collins, g; Bob Kimball, g; Earl Jones, dms. Ann Arbor, Mi. 8 septembre 1973

20. The train

In fact, "The train" is an alternate take to "I'm leaving this town" and was recorded in 1959. Thanks to Ballas for pointing this mistake.

21. Don't want no woman

Mr Bo, vcl/g; Claude Black, pno; Sabrina La Mar, t-sax; Champ Dogg, bs; Ricky Bones, dms. Napoleon, Oh. février 1995

22. If trouble was money 1995

23. Fire down below

24. I've got the blues

25. The train

26. Detroit, Michigan

27. Lost love affair

28. Born in the country

29. B.B. King Medley

30. Buzz me

31. I'm gonna get even

32. Bo's groove

 

Juke Blues Magazine n°34

 

NEW ORLEANS BLUES/ Volume 3

 

NEW ORLEANS BLUES/ Volume 03

And now this is New Orleans time again, folks!

            Let's start with the very first recordings by Robert Parker (1930-2020), certainly the most well known artist of this batch. A saxophonist at first, Robert Parker gained fame thanks to his sole smash hit Barefootin' in 1966 that led to a favorite dance throughout the world and particularly in New Orleans. Parker recorded a lot after that but never got a real success again. Parker started as a saxophonist playing live and on many records in New Orleans by Huey Smith, Earl King, James Booker, Ernie K. Doe, Fats Domino et al...We have gathered his first recordings under his name whether instrumentals or early vocals.

 

            I know nothing about singer/guitarist George Stevenson who recorded a handful of fine tracks under the moniker Blazer Boy. If anyone knows better, it would be nice to share.

 

            Lil Millett (McKinley James Millett) (1935-97) was a singer, pianist and bassist who was strongly in demand in and around New Orleans during the 1950's. He led a very fine band with which he recorded very good singles, mainly Rich woman/ Hopeless love. He performed until the 1980's when his kind of R&B wasn't in favour anymore. He so made a living as a bus driver until his death by cancer.

 

            Al Johnson (born in 1939) is a singer and piano player and a very well known character in New Orleans for his song Carnival Time that even gave him a moniker. He appeared in many events, festivals, TV shows and even films. Here are his two early singles.

 

            Ramp Davis (George Davis) was a bass player who recorded four nice sides under his name in 1951.

 

            And Little Leo who closes this set (born 1935) is Lloyd Price's brother. He also recorded four good tracks in 1954.

 

            A lot of thanks to all who helped to make this post, particularly Gerard Cerdan (Mr Mightygroove) whose  websites  are a goldmine for Soul and R&B fans.

https://soul-in-groove.eklablog.com

                                       Gérard HERZHAFT

 

 

ROBERT PARKER, t-sax; Edgar Blanchard, g; Roy Montrell, g; bs; dms. New Orleans, La. 1958

01. June teen

02. Lawdy Miss Clawdy

Robert Parker, vcl/t-sax; Auguste Dupont, t-sax; Eddie Bo, pno; Edgar Blanchard, g; Frank Fields, bs; Charles Hungry Williams, dms. New Orleans, La. 1959

03. All nite long I & II

Robert Parker, vcl/t-sax; Auguste Dupont, t-sax; Eddie Bo, pno; Edgar Blanchard, g; Frank Fields, bs; Charles Hungry Williams, dms. New Orleans, La. 1960

04. Walkin'

05. Across the track

Robert Parker, vcl/t-sax; Auguste Dupont, t-sax; b-sax; Edward Frank,pno; Justin Adams, g; Frank Fields, bs; Smokey Johnson, dms. New Orleans, La. 4 april 1962

06. Mash potatoes all nite long

07. Twistin' out in space

GEORGE STEVENSON (as Blazer Boy), vcl; Clarence Ford, t-sax; Herb Hardesty, a-sax; Salvador Doucette, pno; Ernest Mc Lean, g; Frank Fields, bs; Earl Palmer, dms. New Orleans, La. june 1952

08. Surprise blues

09. Mornin' train

10. Waiting for my baby

11. Joe's kid sister

George Stevenson, vcl; a-sax; Lee Allen, t-sax; Huey Smith, pno; band. New Orleans, La. 19 january 1954

12. Meet me at Grandma's joint

13. Teasin' tan

George Stevenson, vcl; band. New Orleans, La. 19 november 1961

14. New Orleans twist

15. That's where it's at

LIL MILLET (Mc Kinley J. Miller), vcl/pno; Big Boy Myles, tb; Lee Allen, t-sax; Alvin "Red" Tyler, b-sax; Ernest Meyer, g; Frank Fields, bs; Earl Palmer, dms. New Orleans, La. 25 september 1955

16. Rich woman

17. Hopeless love

Lil Millet, vcl/pno; band. New Orleans, La. 1956

18. Rock around the clock

19. I can't stop cryin'

Someday mother

All around the world

Thanks to an anonymous friend, both of those titles are available when clicking here (see comments)

RAMP DAVIS (George Davis), vcl/bs; Leroy Rankin, t-sax; Alex Burrell, pno; Lester Alexis, dms. New Orleans, La. 23 may 1951

20. The blues has got me

21. Bayou Bounce

22. Rampart Street blues

23. Mary Sue

ALVIN JOHNSON, vcl/pno; Robert Palmer, t-sax; James Rivers, t-sax; Red Tyler, b-sax; Edgar Blanchard, g; Placide Adams, bs; Walter Lastie, dms. New Orleans, La. june 1958

24. You done me wrong

25. Lena

Alvin Johnson, vcl; Dr John, pno; Robert Palmer, t-sax; James Rivers, t-sax; Red Tyler, b-sax; Edgar Blanchard, g; Placide Adams, bs; Walter Lastie, dms. New Orleans, La. february 1960

26. Carnival time

27. Who dat say?

LITTLE LEO (Leo Price), vcl; band. New Orleans, La. 1954

28. Handwriting on the wall

29. What's it all about?

30. I cried

31. Teenie weenie bee