JSP, one of the U.K.'s most active historical reissue labels, presents an outstanding postwar Chicago blues anthology packed with essential recordings made between 1947 and 1955 by Sunnyland Slim & His Pals. Out of the 104 tracks (not 97 as stated on the front of the packaging), 60 are "by" Sunnyland Slim; the other 44 were released under the names of Johnny Shines, Robert Lockwood, Floyd Jones, Leroy Foster, J.B. Lenoir, Jimmy Rogers, and St. Louis Jimmy. Sunnyland sat in on each of these dates; the enclosed discography denies his presence on the Johnny Shines date, although his piano is clearly audible. Born Albert Luandrew (or Loeandrew) in Vance, MS, on September 5, 1906, he sang with Little Brother Montgomery in 1923 and accompanied Ma Rainey on the piano in Portageville, MO, at a time when he only knew how to play in three keys. Luandrew's stage name was derived from a blues he wrote about the Sunnyland, an express locomotive that ran between St. Louis and Memphis. Sunnyland Slim first played Chicago in 1939 and settled there in 1942, making his initial appearance on records with Jump Jackson in September 1946; JSP did not include material from that session and has provided only three of the seven titles cut by Sunnyland Slim and Muddy Waters between 1947 and 1949. What you do get is a core sample of classic sides that Sunnyland cut for 15 different record labels during the Truman and Eisenhower eras. (Note that Johnny Shines actually references both presidents in the words to "Living in the White House.") These pungent performances involved some of Chicago's toughest bluesmen; the roster includes, in addition to the names already mentioned: guitarists Big Bill Broonzy and Lefty Bates; pianist Blind John Davis; legendary Windy City bassists Ransom Knowling and Big Crawford; harmonica ace Snooky Pryor; trumpeter Billy Howell; and saxophonists Alex Atkins, J.T. Brown, Oliver Alcorn, Ernest Cotton, and Red Holloway. Sunnyland Slim outlived almost every single one of his contemporaries. He was well loved and widely respected throughout the Great Lakes Afro-American community as a generous individual who helped others to survive during his long and productive career as one of Chicago's fundamental bluesmen.
CD1
1. Farewell Little Girl
2. Broke And Hungry
3. Illinois Central
4. Nappy Head Woman
5. Across The Hall Blues
6. Walking With The Blues
7. Sweet Lucy Blues
8. No Whiskey Blues
9. Jivin' Boogie
10. Brown Skin Woman
11. My Heavy Load
12. Keep Your Hands Out Of My Money
13. 5 Foot 4 Gal
14. I've Done You Wrong
15. Roll Tumble And Slip (I Cried)
16. Train Time (4 O'Clock Blues)
17. Hard Times
18. School Days
19. Blue Baby
20. I Want My Baby
21. Mud Kicking Woman
22. Every Time I Get To Drinking
23. Bad Times (Cost Of Living)
24. Hard Time (When Mother's Gone)
25. Brown Skin Woman
26. I'm Just A Lonesome Man
CD2
1. Back To Korea Blues
2. It's All Over Now
3. You've Got To Stop This Mess - Fat Man
4. Glad I Don't Worry No More - Fat Man
5. Down Home Child
6. Sunnyland Special
7. Leaving Your Town (No Name Blues)
8. Mary Lee
9. I Done You Wrong
10. Orphan Boy Blues
11. When I Was Young (Shake It Baby)
12. Low Down Sunnyland Train
13. Ain't Nothing But A Child
14. Brown Skinned Woman
15. Hit The Road Again
16. Gin Drinkin' Baby
17. Shake It Baby
18. Woman Trouble (Overnite)
19. City Of New Orleans
20. When I Was Young
21. Bassology
22. Worried About My Baby
23. Troubles Of My Own
24. Worried About My Baby
25. I Done You Wrong
26. Be My Baby
CD3
1. Going Back To Memphis
2. Devil Is A Busy Man
3. Shake It Baby
4. Bassology
5. Four Day Bounce
6. That Woman
7. Be Mine Alone
8. Sad And Lonesome
9. Living In The White House - Shines, Johnny
10. Please Don't - Shines, Johnny
11. Dust My Broom - Lockwood, Robert Jr.
12. Pearly B - Lockwood, Robert Jr.
13. I'm Gonna Dig Myself A Hole - Lockwood, Robert Jr.
14. Dust My Broom - Lockwood, Robert Jr.
15. Glory For Man - Lockwood, Robert Jr.
16. My Daily Wish - Lockwood, Robert Jr.
17. Big World - Jones, Floyd
18. Dark Road - Jones, Floyd
19. Schooldays On My Mind - Jones, Floyd
20. Ain't Times Hard - Jones, Floyd
21. Floyd's Blues - Jones, Floyd
22. Any Old Lonesome Day - Jones, Floyd
23. Pet Rabbit - Foster, Leroy
24. Louella - Foster, Leroy
25. Late Hours At Midnight - Foster, Leroy
26. Blues Is Killin' Me - Foster, Leroy
CD4
1. I Wanna Play A Little While - Lenoir, JB
2. Louise - Lenoir, JB
3. Let's Roll - Lenoir, JB
4. People Are Meddlin' In Our Affairs - Lenoir, JB
5. I Have Married - Lenoir, JB
6. Mountain - Lenoir, JB
7. I'll Die Tryin' - Lenoir, JB
8. How Much More - Lenoir, JB
9. Mojo - Lenoir, JB
10. Slow Down Woman - Lenoir, JB
11. I Want My Baby - Lenoir, JB
12. How Can I Leave - Lenoir, JB
13. Ludella - Rogers, Jimmy
14. I'm In Love - Rogers, Jimmy
15. That's All Right - Rogers, Jimmy
16. Shame On You Baby - St. Louis Jimmy
17. I'm Not Satisfied - St. Louis Jimmy
18. Trying To Change My Ways - St. Louis Jimmy
19. Hard Work Boogie - St. Louis Jimmy
20. Your Evil Ways - St. Louis Jimmy
21. I Sit Up All Night - St. Louis Jimmy
22. State Street Blues - St. Louis Jimmy
23. Mother's Day - St. Louis Jimmy
24. Chicago Woman Blues - St. Louis Jimmy
25. Nervous Breakdown - St. Louis Jimmy
26. Old Age Has Got Me - St. Louis Jimmy
