Add to EJ Playlist  The Weal And Woe playing - "They Think We Don't Know," written by Barbara Endes. The Weal And Woe are: Barbara Ann Endes -- vocals, bass; Russell Scholl - vocals, guitar; Jason Cade - fiddle, banjo; Mark "Mad Dog" Deffenbaugh -- lap steel, resonator guitar. This track includes Stefan Amidon on percussion. Contact at: thewealandwoe.c om New York Music Daily-2012..."T he Weal and Woe write great original old-time style country songs, and play them with soulful expertise. The guy/girl close harmonies of guitarist Russell Scholl and bassist Barbara Ann have an unaffected southern charm, soaring over an early 1950s style backdrop with fiddle, lap-steel and occasional resonator guitar. Ex-Moonlighter Mark Deffenbaugh's lap-steel steel playing is absolutely off the hook, whether adding smartly spaced accents or sly Leon McAuliffe-style swoops and dives -- just his parts alone make their debut album The One to Blame one of the most enjoyable recent releases in Americana roots music."

Add to EJ Playlist  Lazy Lester doing "I'm a Lover, Not A Fighter," backed by "Sugar Coated Love," released in 1958 on Excello Records. Sugar Coasted love is a really great tune. Unlike most of the "Pop" junk being released at this time, these R&B recordings often have B-sides that are as good, if not better than the 'hits.' As of this posting, Lester is still performing and can be seen in New Orleans at the gala event, the "Ponderosa Stomp" just about every year.

Add to EJ Playlist  HOWLIN WOLF playing "Three Hundred Pounds Of Joy," backed by "Built For Comfort," both written by Willie Dixon and released in 1963 on Chess Records. These are some of my favorite, later Wolf releases. Great tunes.

Add to EJ Playlist  Little Richard doing "True Fine Mama" backed by "Ooh, My Soul," released in 1957 on Specialty Records. "True Fine Mama" hit number 15 on the Billboard R&B Chart and number 68 on the Billboard Pop Chart. "True Fine Mama" is a great R&B tune with background vocals that just drive the tune.

Add to EJ Playlist  Bo Diddley doing "You Can't Judge A Book By The Cover" backed by the great song "I Can Tell," released in 1962 on Checker Records.

Add to EJ Playlist  This record is a "pride of the collection" piece of shellac. It's a real rarity, being an almost unplayed early Paramount blues 78. The great Blind Blake doing "Fightin' the Jug" backed by "Hastings Street," a 1929 Paramount Records release. Paramount was the preeminent blues label of the 20s and was located in Port Washington/Graf ton, Wisconsin. Blind Blake was called "The King Of Ragtime Guitar" due to his distinctive playing style, which influences players to this day. This 78 is basically un-played, store stock. There's some surface noise at the very beginning due to the outer portion of the disc having had more contact with incidental contact with the atmosphere that the rest of the record as it's spent the last 80+ years in its sleeve. Sorry for talking more about the record than Blind Blake...

Add to EJ Playlist  Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm doing "Walking Down the Aisle" backed by "Box Top," a 1959 Cobra Records release. "Walking Down the Aisle" features Ike and Billy on vocals. "Box Top" features Ike and Carl. Both these tune are great, but I get a kick out of the lyrics of "Walking." Somehow it's hard for me to picture a 'high school' Ike carrying some gal's book, singing about how he'll be 21 soon and they can get married and have some fun...especiall y since Ike was already 28 in 1959 and an 'old' 28 at that.

Add to EJ Playlist  J. B. Lenoir doing his biggest hit, "Mama Talk To Your Daughter" backed by "Man Watch Your Woman," release on Parrot Records in 1954and reaching Number 11 on the Billboard R&B charts. To the best of my knowledge the "J. B." stood for nothing. J. B. was a Chicago Blues artist in the 50s and 60s.

Add to EJ Playlist  One of the best regional rock bands I saw in the late 60s and early 70s. Soup was from Appleton, Wisconsin, and consisted of Doug Yankus (vocals and guitar), Dave Faas (vocals and bass), and Rob Griffith (vocals, drums,harmonica ) and ex The Steve Miller Band's Jim Peterman (piano). I picked up this album in 1969/70. Obviously it's privately pressed.

Add to EJ Playlist  One of the best regional rock bands I saw in the late 60s and early 70s. Soup was from Appleton, Wisconsin, and consisted of Doug Yankus (vocals and guitar), Dave Faas (vocals and bass), and Rob Griffith (vocals, drums,harmonica ) and ex The Steve Miller Band's Jim Peterman (piano). I picked up this album in 1969/70. Obviously it's privately pressed.

Add to EJ Playlist  One of the best regional rock bands I saw in the late 60s and early 70s. Soup was from Appleton, Wisconsin, and consisted of Doug Yankus (vocals and guitar), Dave Faas (vocals and bass), and Rob Griffith (vocals, drums,harmonica ) and ex The Steve Miller Band's Jim Peterman (piano). I picked up this album in 1969/70. Obviously it's privately pressed.

Add to EJ Playlist  One of the best regional rock bands I saw in the late 60s and early 70s. Soup was from Appleton, Wisconsin, and consisted of Doug Yankus (vocals and guitar), Dave Faas (vocals and bass), and Rob Griffith (vocals, drums,harmonica ) and ex The Steve Miller Band's Jim Peterman (piano). I picked up this album in 1969/70. Obviously it's privately pressed.

Add to EJ Playlist  One of the best regional rock bands I saw in the late 60s and early 70s. Soup was from Appleton, Wisconsin, and consisted of Doug Yankus (vocals and guitar), Dave Faas (vocals and bass), and Rob Griffith (vocals, drums,harmonica ) and ex The Steve Miller Band's Jim Peterman (piano). I picked up this album in 1969/70. Obviously it's privately pressed. This tune is Buddy Holly's "Mailman Bring Me No More Blues." Soup - Mailman Bring Me No More Blues

Add to EJ Playlist  King Porter Stomp recorded in the late teens by its composer, Ragtime piano player Jelly Roll Morton. Jelly Roll's original is followed by The Fletcher Henderson Orchestra's 'Hot Jazz' version arranged by Fletcher and recorded in the late 1920s. This is followed by The Benny Goodman Orchestra using Fletcher's arrangement and making it swing, recorded in the mid 30s. Benny's King Porter Stomp is considered by many to be the birth of the modern recorded music industry as well as swing and pop music. Benny's record took the country by storm and I think sold over a million copies. What I think is great is listening to all three of these in order and hearing how music developed in the short 15 years or so between Morton and Goodman.

Add to EJ Playlist  Arthur Gunter doing "Baby Let's Play House" backed by "Blues After Hours" on Excello Records, released in November of 1954. This record was covered by Elvis Presley in 1955 on Sun Records. Gunter got a $6,500 royalty check for "Baby Let's Play House" and commented that he never got to shake Elvis' hand.

Add to EJ Playlist  Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm doing "(I know) You don't Love Me" backed by "Down and Out," a 1959 Artistic Records release. Ike formed the The Kings of Rhythm in the late 40s. In 1951the they recorded "Rocket 88" which was credited to Jackie and His Delta Cats". Rocket 88 is arguably the first Rock tune, but that's pretty difficult to peg down. What's interesting is that Ike initially played piano, learning from Pinetop Perkins. It's his piano on "Rocket 88." He picked up guitar in the early 50s, probably to be able to stand out front. Anyways, I love the horn lines in "(I know) You don't Love Me." Really a great tune.

Add to EJ Playlist  Bo- Diddley doing his classic "Who Do You Love," backed by "I'm Bad," a May of 1956 Checker Records release. Obviously there's a misspelling of "I'm Bad" as "In Bad" on the first release as shown here. What more needs to be said about Bo and "Who Do You Love."

Add to EJ Playlist  H-Bomb Ferguson doing "Good Lovin'" backed by "Slowly Goin' Crazy," a December of 1951 Savoy Records release. Robert "H-Bomb" Ferguson was one of the last survivors of the jump blues era, passing away in 2006. H-Bomb was obviously influenced by Wynonie Harris as these two cuts attest, however he could be a wild man on piano and was one the many R&B artists that Rock N' Roll was inspired by.

Add to EJ Playlist  Jimmy Swan (Cowboy Jim and his Range Riders) doing "I had a Dream" backed by "Juke Joint Mama," an April of 1952 Trumpet Records Release. Jimmy Swan was born November 18, 1912 in Alabama. After his father left the family, his mother moved to Birmingham, where young Jimmy helped support his mother by shining shoes and selling newspapers. His most famous shoeshine customer was Jimmie Rodgers, known as the Singing Brakeman, and the Father of Country Music. He won a talent contest sponsored by a local radio station at the age of 15, and decided he might have a career in music. At 17 he married Alabama beauty queen Grace Armour, and they had three children, Charles, Wanda, and Randy. Jimmy ended up riding the rails to Mississippi and working for awhile to support his family during the Great Depression. The 1940's found Jimmy in Mobile, Alabama, where he formed the only live Country nightclub band playing in the area. Jimmy's first lead guitar player was Hank Locklin, who would become famous in his own right with such hits as Send Me the Pillow that You Dream On, Please Help Me I'm Falling, and Country Hall of Fame. Another alumni of Jimmy Swan and the Blue Sky Boys from their days in Mobile was Hank Williams. They remained friends after Hank left to seek his fortune in Nashville until his tragic passing on January 1, 1953. Listening to Hank's old recordings and Jimmy's records from that time, it is very hard to tell whose singing style influenced whom. The above is taken from: http://www.hill billy-music.com /artists/story/ index.php?id=11 113. Check it out. There's a ton more on Jimmy.

Add to EJ Playlist  Marvin And Johnny doing their biggest hit, "Cherry Pie" backed by "Tick Tock," a 1954 Modern Records release. Marvin and Johnny were a Los Angeles based Doo-wop duo. "Cherry Pie" was a big seller, due in part to its 'double-entendr e' lyrics. I think Marvin and Johnny's vocal sound and style really sums up 50s L.A. Doo-wop and R&B.

Add to EJ Playlist  Nappy Brown doing "Don't Be Angry" backed by "It's Really You," a February of 1955 Savoy Records release. Nappy Brown (Napoleon Brown Goodson Culp) began his career singing gospel before switching to R&B. 1954 he won a recording contract with Savoy Records which yielded a series of hits. Brown was among the biggest stars in R&B, frequently touring with the revues of Alan freed. His songs, along with those of his peers and contemporaries were among the first wave of African-America n pop music to become noticed and popular with white audiences. Elvis Presley reportedly used to see Brown perform whenever he appeared in Memphis. As always, thank to the web and Wiki for all this info.

Add to EJ Playlist  Charles Brown doing "One Minute to One" backed by " Please Don't Drive Me Away," released on the Los Angeles Aladdin Records label in May of 1955. Charles Brown is backed by Ernie Freeman's Combo on both these cuts. Brown played piano and was known for his slow smooth delivery. There was a real L.A. R&B sound back then on Aladdin and Modern Records, delivered by Brown, Amos Millburn and others.

Add to EJ Playlist  Arthur Gunter doing "Honey Babe" backed by "No Happy Home" on Excello Records, released in May of 1955. Gunter is best known for his 1954 Excello release, "Baby Let's Play House," covered by Elvis Presley in 1955 on Sun Records. Gunter got a $6,500 royalty check for "Baby" and commented that he never got to shake Elvis' hand.

Add to EJ Playlist  Arthur 'Big Boy' Crudup - "That's All Right" backed by "Crudup's After Hours," a March 1949 RCA Records release. This record is special for a couple of reasons. It can be considered the first 45 rpm record released. In addition, "That's All right" was later covered by Elvis Presley in 1954 on Sun Records and was Elvis' first single. RCA released seven 45s on March 31, 1949 introducing the new 45 rpm format. They pressed a record for each major genre they used to categorized their catalog, with each genre having it's own color vinyl. 'Cerise' (not called orange) was the color used for "Rhythm & Blues." "That's All Right" has a serial number of RCA 50-0000. Crudup had some major battles over royalties and eventually stopped recording altogether in the 1950s. Since "That's Alright" was Elvis' first record, Crudup was often referred to as "The Father of Rock and Roll," a label that he found both amusing and irritating. Pissed off by his lack of royalties for "That's All Right," and Elvis' success spawned by it, Crudup dismissively called Elvis Presley, "Elvin Preston."

Add to EJ Playlist  Marvin And Johnny doing "Butter Ball," backed by "Sugar Mama," a 1955 Modern Records release. Marvin and Johhny were a Los Angeles based Doo-wop duo, best kn...

Add to EJ Playlist  Arthur Gunter doing "She's Mine All Mine" backed by "You Doin' Me Wrong" on Excello Records, released in November of 1954. This record was released shortly a...

Add to EJ Playlist  Bo Carter Doing "Border of New Mexico Blues" backed by "Lock the Lock," recorded February, 2 1940 in Atlanta, GA and released on RCA's "Bluebird" label. Arme...

Add to EJ Playlist  Eddie Johnson doing "Corn Licker Blues" backed by "Plowboy Blues" on the Imperial label. This record was recorded in January of 1951. I don't have much infor...

Add to EJ Playlist  "Kid King's Combo" doing "Chocolate Sundae" back by "Greasy Feet" on the Excello label. These cuts were recorded in December of 1953. Earlier in the year Kid...

Add to EJ Playlist  "Big Bill Broonzy" recording as "Big Bill" doing "What's Wrong With Me" backed by "Night Watchman Blues" on the "Okeh" label. This record was recorded in Chi...