Topic: CDs/Sets You're Listening To

[Richard]

dj, Clarence Williams, You Rascal You is on Quadromania Jazz Edition 222495-444 which is a cheap label.

Listening wise I have now moved onto a (shock, horror, probe) copy I was given of Champion Jack Dupree, which is about all I can tell you really, other than it sounds about the same vintage as his Training Camp Blues.

[dave stott]

The Cannonball Adderley Quintet, Paris 1960
Pablo Records

Cannonball Adderley - alto sax
Nat Adderley- Cornet
Victor Feldman-Piano
Sam Jones- Bass
Lois Hayes - Drums

[Bunker Hill]

Listening wise I have now moved onto a (shock, horror, probe) copy I was given of Champion Jack Dupree, which is about all I can tell you really, other than it sounds about the same vintage as his Training Camp Blues.

Can you spot it listed here? http://www.wirz.de/music/duprefrm.htm

The only Training Camp Blues I can put my mind to is a song of that name from the 40s by Roosevelt Sykes...but I ain't played any Dupree for eons.

[Richard]

Whoops, thought I had answered this, but maybe only in my dreams.

However, my mistake as ever BH you are right, I was confusing Junker Blues with Sykes' Training Camp. Anyway this is the  cd sleeve, or at least what I was given.

And, just to confuse listening wise I am now onto another Quadromania 4 cd set, by the very underrated Earl Hines and Orch.

Orch... sounds like a disease!

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[Bunker Hill]

Whoops, thought I had answered this, but maybe only in my dreams. Anyway this is the  cd sleeve, or at least what I was given.

Oh yes, it came free with the Orbis Blues Collection magazine series. His superb Okeh recordings. See Stefan's CJD discography.

[uncle bud]

Another "program" I enjoyed listening to last week was Document's "Male Blues Of The Twenties", Volumes 1 and 2 (DOCD-5482 and 5532).  These songs were mostly recorded fairly early in the decade, with John P. Vigal's "Fowler Twist" going back to 1922.  The "Blues" in the title doesn't refer to what most people would recognize as blues today, as these are primarily pop, vaudeville, and novelty songs in the "Memphis Blues" or "St Louis Blues" vein, i.e. with blue notes but not, for the most part, 8, 12, or 16 bar blues.  The singers sound like they come out of the vaudeville tradition, not out of the cotton fields, and are, if anything, even more obscure than those on the "Piano Blues" series.  "Sloppy" Henry might be known to some, as he appears on one of the Document Peg Leg Howell disks and has been discussed previously in the Weenie forum. 

The "Male Blues of the Twenties" Vol 1 collection was added to the Juke recently. It seems to me that the melody of Sloppy Henry's "Hobo Blues" bears a fairly striking resemblance to Peg Leg Howell's "Coal Man Blues" with a completely different accompaniment (and lyric) that's more along the lines of Classic Blues. The Sloppy Henry song was recorded late in the twenties, a few years after Coal Man. I wonder if Henry remembered this melody from Howell, or was this a common Atlanta theme or what. Some possibly useless information!

[Richard]

Listening to a strange mix, the powerhouse 1940ish Basie Band played, volume wise as a friend put it, at "human strength" and as total contrast two CDs of Josh white.

I have to say the Josh White stuff is something of wake up call as regards racial injustice and the like - he certainly seems to mean what he says! All told I was, to be honest, a little disappointed with the overall content but not his playing per se. It that doesn't confuse you then I don't know what will!

[dj]

Richard, I'm assuming you were listening to some of Josh White's material recorded after he moved to New York city and started recording for a white audience.  If so, I know exactly what you mean.  While White's performance on his post-1940 recordings is generally excellent, I often don't find the songs themselves all that exciting.

[Parlor Picker]

Having heard Josh White's later material which was, as mentioned, probably recorded for a "tame", middle-class, white audience, when you then listen to some of the dazzlilng fingerpicking on his early recordings, the constrast is stunning.  To my mind he went from being a great ragtime blues guitarist to become a cabaret act.  I once mentioned this to the great English folk artist, Martin Carthy, who knew White, and he disagreed vehemently with me. Each to his own!

[Richard]

Hold on I'll look at the CDs... one is entitled Best of Blues 1933 - 41 which is probably the one that appeals the least since I don't consider some of it is blues more bounding religion eek! The other is Josh White blues singer 1932-36.

I am not knocking his playing at all, that's great ... it's ummm more that some of the material itself is ...well, I don't know!! Things like Paul& Silas, Low Cotton and say Silcosis are good. But to me there are the odd turkey's like I want to Die easy or Did you read that Letter which frankly even though well played don't do a lot for me!

[dj]

Oh!  Well, we'll have to agree to differ there.  As much as I can appreciate Josh White's blues from the 1930s, I think his religious music from that period is the best work he ever did.  I sing that stuff to myself all the time.  maybe I should figure out the guitar one of these days!

[daddystovepipe]

In Josh White's defence you should know he injured his right hand in 1936 and had to give up his fingerpicking style, hence the new style based on strumming and single string runs.
I think his 'Free and Equal Blues', recorded during his 'cabaret-years' is a stunning example, guitar- and lyricwise, of what he was capable of.

[Parlor Picker]

Surely Josh White's subject matter reflected the times in which he lived.

On a completely different subject and as there seemed to be a load of weird jazz stuff earlier in this thread:

Far from country blues, but a (very) distant cousin, the new CD (out in a few weeks' time on the RealWorld label) by Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara absolutely rocks.  It's the best new thing I've heard for ages. It's a "fusion" (sorry if that offends) record mixing blues with West African music and other influences.  One snappy title is "Fulani Coochie Man"!  Check out Justin's MySpace site.  I'm currently in the throes of booking them for our little festival down here next September.

[Richard]

I think his guitarwork is excellent no matter what, it's just some of the songs themselves don't appeal to me.

Fusion...  errrr

[git-fiddle]

 Hey Guys, I am new here but;

If haven't already check out Clifford Gibson ( Document BDCD-6015 )..Track 8 ''Don't put that thing on me " is the  smoothest blues tune I have heard in a while. The whole CD is worth a listen.