New Orleans of a hundred years ago teemed with a host of pianists playing blues and boogie in establishments both legal and recreational. Then came the guitarists. Here’s one: ‘You ought to have heard Smiley Lewis in person – he made the walls rattle!’ said drummer Earl Palmer.
Lewis was born in July 1913 in DeQuincy, LA. His mother may have died while he was young – a sister-in-law recalled the family moving to West Lake, LA, where he was raised by a stepmother. Somewhere in his teens, he took up the guitar. Then he ran across trumpeter Thomas Jefferson’s band which he joined. ‘(He) always was a good entertainer,’ Tuts Washington remembered. ‘He sang the blues and all of them sentimental numbers. He would walk off the bandstand and sing to the people in the audience. See, Lewis had a voice so strong he could sing over the band, and that was before we had microphones.’ During WW2, Lewis found work where he could – ending up in a band with Tuts. At the end of the war, the band split up but Smiley and Tuts recruited drummer Herman Seale to form a blues trio. ‘We had the hottest trio in town,’ Washington boasted. They also hung around J&M Records. The following year, the New York label DeLuxe came to record local talent, using J&M as a source. When DeLuxe returned in September 1947, Lewis’ trio was one of the acts he decided to record. No copy has ever turned up. Although popular around New Orleans, Smiley’s record failed on the national market. He was dropped by DeLuxe. Nevertheless, his status as a recording artist ensured that Smiley’s trio was in demand around Louisiana and for some months they had a residency at the Cinq Sou Hall, next door to the Dew Drop Inn. Occasionally, he would drop into the Dew Drop to make guest appearances with Dave Bartholomew’s orchestra, billing himself as ‘the drifting blues singer’. As with most of the other artists here, Lewis had a life of ups and downs (his ‘One Night’ was cut by Presley). He died in 1966.
Disc: 1
1. Turn On Your Volume Baby – Smiley Lewis
2. Here Comes Smiley – Smiley Lewis
3. Tee Nah Nah – Smiley Lewis
4. Lowdown – Smiley Lewis
5. Slide Me Down – Smiley Lewis
6. Growing Old – Smiley Lewis
7. If You Ever Loved A Women – Smiley Lewis
8. Dirty People – Smiley Lewis
9. Where Were You – Smiley Lewis
10. My Baby – Smiley Lewis
11. Sad Life – Smiley Lewis
12. Bee’s Boogie – Smiley Lewis
13. Don’t Jive Me – Smiley Lewis
14. My Baby Was Right – Smiley Lewis
15. The Bells Are Ringing – Smiley Lewis
16. Lillie Mae – Smiley Lewis
17. You’re Gonna Miss Me – Smiley Lewis
18. Gypsy Blues – Smiley Lewis
19. You’re Not The One – Smiley Lewis
20. Gumbo Blues – Smiley Lewis
21. Ain’t Gonna Do It – Smiley Lewis
22. It’s So Peaceful – Smiley Lewis
23. Caldonia’s Party – Smiley Lewis
24. Lonesome Highway – Smiley Lewis
25. Standing On The Corner – Smiley Lewis
26. Oh Baby – Smiley Lewis
Disc: 2
1. Big Mamou – Smiley Lewis
2. Play Girl – Smiley Lewis
3. I Love You For Sentimental Reasons – Smiley Lewis
4. Lying Woman – Smiley Lewis
5. Little Fernandez – Smiley Lewis
6. It’s Music – Smiley Lewis
7. Show Me The Way – Smiley Lewis
8. Down The Road – Smiley Lewis
9. Blue Monday – Smiley Lewis
10. The Rocks – Smiley Lewis
11. That Certain Door – Smiley Lewis
12. Nobody Knows – Smiley Lewis
13. Can’t Stop Loving You – Smiley Lewis
14. Ooh La La – Smiley Lewis
15. Too Many Drivers – Smiley Lewis
16. Lost Weekend – Smiley Lewis
17. Jailbird – Smiley Lewis
18. Farewell – Smiley Lewis
19. Real Gone Lover – Smiley Lewis
20. Bumpity Bump – Smiley Lewis
21. I Hear You Knocking – Smiley Lewis
22. I Can’t Fly (Date With An Angel) – Boo Breeding
23. My Love (She’s Gone) – Boo Breeding
24. Low And Lowsome – Boo Breeding
25. Country Women – Boo Breeding
Disc: 3
1. Bad Luck Is On Me – Guitar Slim
2. New Arrival – Guitar Slim
3. Standin’ At The Station – Guitar Slim
4. Cryin’ In The Mornin’ – Guitar Slim
5. The Things I Used To Do – Guitar Slim
6. Well I Done Got Over It – Guitar Slim
7. The Story Of My Life – Guitar Slim
8. Letter To My Girlfriend – Guitar Slim
9. Trouble Don’t Last – Guitar Slim
10. Later For You Baby – Guitar Slim
11. Bad Luck Blues – Guitar Slim
12. Twenty-Five Lies – Guitar Slim
13. Sufferin’ Mind – Guitar Slim
14. Stand By Me – Guitar Slim
15. Guitar Slim – Guitar Slim
16. Our Only Child – Guitar Slim
17. Reap What You Sow – Guitar Slim
18. I Want Love-A You – Guitar Slim
19. Think It Over – Guitar Slim
20. Quicksand – Guitar Slim
21. You’re Gonna Miss Me – Guitar Slim
22. I Got Sumpin’ For You – Guitar Slim
23. Certainly All – Guitar Slim
24. Goung Down Slow – Guitar Slim
25. Something To Remember You By – Guitar Slim
Disc: 4
1. Long Distance Blues – T-Bone Walker
2. Got No Use For You – T-Bone Walker
3. I’m Still In Love With You – T-Bone Walker
4. Railroad Station Blues – T-Bone Walker
5. When The Sun Goes Down – T-Bone Walker
6. Pony Tail – T-Bone Walker
7. Wanderin’ Heart – T-Bone Walker
8. I’ll Always Be In Love With You – T-Bone Walker
9. Win-O – Pee Wee Crayton
10. Do Unto Others – Pee Wee Crayton
11. Every Dog Has His Day – Pee Wee Crayton
12. Hurry, Hurry – Pee Wee Crayton
13. Eyes Full Of Tears – Pee Wee Crayton
14. I Need Your Love – Pee Wee Crayton
15. You Know – Yeah – Pee Wee Crayton
16. Runnin’ Wild – Pee Wee Crayton
17. My Idea About You – Pee Wee Crayton
18. I Got News For You – Pee Wee Crayton
19. Baby Don’t You Cry – Pee Wee Crayton
20. Don’t Break My Heart – Pee Wee Crayton
21. Wondering Why – Pee Wee Crayton
22. Yours Truly – Pee Wee Crayton
23. I Must Go On – Pee Wee Crayton
24. Be Faithful – Pee Wee Crayton
25. Blues Before Dawn – Pee Wee Crayton
26. Don’t Go – Pee Wee Crayton
