The blues recording industry began in New York City and for most of the 1920s, musicians travelled from all parts of the country to make their mark in the recording studio. Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey were amongst the most popular female singers but they were soon rivaled by the likes of Lonnie Johnson, Robert ‘Barbecue Bob’ Hicks, Texas Alexander and Mississippi John Hurt. Kansas Joe McCoy cut ‘When The Levee Breaks’, justly famous in its Led Zeppelin incarnation, in the city.
Other blues masters who came to New York during the 1930s and early 1940s included Big Bill Broonzy, Amos ‘Bumble Bee Slim’ Easton, Blind Willie McTell, Charley Patton, Leroy Carr, Leadbelly, Roosevelt Sykes, Sleepy John Estes, Blind Boy Fuller. Should we go on? A strong brand of country blues, mostly by artists from the Eastern states, carried on throughout the 1940s, some, like Boy Green, Hank Kilroy, Little Boy Fuller and Leroy Dallas made a handful of striking recordings. Gabriel Brown, Guitar Slim & Jelly Belly and Ralph Willis were more successful, although their music was about to be superseded by the arrival of rhythm and blues. Brownie McGhee and his brother, Stick, began as country artists before moving successfully into R&B. New artists like H-Bomb Ferguson, Bob Gaddy and Danny ‘Run Joe’ Taylor revelled in the freedom R&B gave them, while Little Esther, Margie Day and Big Maybelle were more than the equal of their male counterparts.
The new music created a new set of stars, prominent among them Chuck Willis, Larry Dale, Tiny Kennedy, Teddy ‘Mr Bear’ McRae, Hurricane Harry and the inimitable Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. Even so, country blues still had a way to go, as Champion Jack Dupree, Sonny Terry and Cousin Leroy were willing to prove. By the mid-1950s, New York City provided a microcosm of the many forms of blues in which the public were engaged. The times were changing and rock ‘n’ roll would deal a death blow to the blues as a major influence on popular music. But, as we know, that wasn’t the end of it.
Disc 1
01. Bessie Smith / Beale Street Mama [00:03:29]
02. Sylvester Weaver / Guitar Blues [00:03:08]
03. Ma Rainey / Countin' the Blues [00:03:08]
04. Lonnie Johnson / To Do This You Got To Know How [00:03:09]
05. Sam Butler / Jefferson County Blues [00:02:44]
06. Bobby Leecan / Need More Blues [00:03:15]
07. Robert Hicks / Mississippi Heavy Water Blues [00:03:09]
08. Victoria Spivey / Dope Head Blues [00:03:20]
09. Helen Humes / Cross-Eyed Blues [00:03:10]
10. Texas Alexander / Work Ox Blues [00:03:20]
11. Mississippi John Hurt / Candy Man Blues [00:02:49]
12. Kansas Joe McCoy / When The Levee Breaks [00:03:12]
13. Famous Hokum Boys / Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat [00:02:46]
14. Bo Chatman / My Pencil Won't Write No More [00:02:57]
15. Sam Collins / Slow Mama Slow [00:03:07]
16. Tampa Red & Georgia Tom / Dead Cats On The Line [00:02:50]
17. Jelly Jaw Short / Snake Doctor Blues [00:03:35]
18. Amos Easton / B & O Blues [00:03:05]
19. Big Bill / How You Want It Done [00:02:53]
20. Curley Weaver / No No Blues [00:03:11]
21. Buddy Moss / Hard Road Blues [00:03:16]
22. Lucille Bogan / Groceries On The Shelf [00:03:00]
23. Jack Kelly / President Blues [00:03:00]
24. Blind Willie McTell / Warm It Up To Me [00:02:58]
25. Charley Patton / High Sheriff Blues [00:03:11]
Disc 2
01. Leroy Carr / Barrel House Woman [00:02:56]
02. Hattie Hart / I Let My Daddy Do That [00:03:01]
03. Bob Campbell / Starvation Farm Blues [00:02:51]
04. Leadbelly / Packin' Trunk Blues [00:02:58]
05. Josh White / Black Man [00:03:07]
06. Walter Roland / Penniless Blues [00:02:59]
07. Bull City Red / I Saw The Light [00:03:05]
08. Roosevelt Sykes / Driving Wheel [00:03:06]
09. Peetie Wheatstraw / Coon Can Shorty [00:02:56]
10. Sam Montgomery / Mercy Mercy Blues [00:02:38]
11. Sleep John Estes / Hobo Jungle Blues [00:02:58]
12. Charlie Pickett / Let Me Squeeze Your Lemon [00:02:52]
13. Rosetta Howard / If You're A Viper [00:03:13]
14. Pete Johnson / Roll 'Em Pete [00:02:51]
15. Blind Boy Fuller / Shake It, Baby [00:02:51]
16. Ollie Shepard / Throw This Dog A Bone [00:02:39]
17. Brownie McGhee / I'm A Black Woman's Man [00:02:53]
18. Gabriel Brown / You Ain't No Good [00:03:05]
19. Boy Green / Play My Jukebox [00:02:56]
20. Guitar Slim & Jelly Belly / No More Hard Times [00:02:19]
21. Little Boy Fuller (Rich Trice) / Bed Springs Blues [00:02:47]
22. Sonny Terry / Custard Pie Blues [00:03:00]
23. Hank Kilroy / Harlem Women [00:02:52]
24. Ralph Willis / Christmas Blues [00:02:41]
25. Johnny Moore's Three Blazers / How Blue Can You Get [00:03:03]
Disc 3
01. Stick McGhee / Drank Up All The Wine Last Night [00:02:57]
02. Leroy Dallas / Your Sweet Man's Blues [00:02:25]
03. Grant Jones / They Call Me Mr Blues [00:03:01]
04. Duke Bayou & His Mystic Six / Rub A Little Boogie [00:02:19]
05. Curley Weaver / Some Rainy Day [00:02:31]
06. Brownie McGhee / I'm Gonna Move Cross The River [00:02:47]
07. H-Bomb Ferguson / Preachin' The Blues [00:02:15]
08. Danny ''Run Joe'' Taylor / Coffee Daddy Blues [00:02:41]
09. Country Paul / Side Walk Boogie [00:02:59]
10. Bob Gaddy / I (Believe You Got A Sidekick) [00:02:14]
11. Little Bobby Harris / Love, Love, Love [00:02:44]
12. Little Esther / Sit Back Down [00:02:23]
13. Square Walton / Pepper Head Woman [00:02:24]
14. Chuck Willis / I Feel So Bad [00:02:55]
15. Margie Day / Take Out Your False Teeth Daddy [00:02:23]
16. Larry Dale / Midnight Hours [00:03:00]
17. Big Maybelle / One Monkey Don't Stop No Show [00:02:55]
18. Tiny Kennedy / Country Boy [00:02:22]
19. Mr Bear and the Bearcats / I'm Gonna Keep My Good Eye On You [00:02:40]
20. Sonny Terry / Ride and Roll [00:02:37]
21. Big Connie / Mumbles Blues [00:02:24]
22. Screamin' Jay Hawkins / I Put A Spell On You [00:02:30]
23. Hurricane Harry / The Last Meal [00:02:19]
24. Champion Jack Dupree / Just Like A Woman [00:03:05]
25. Cousin Leroy / Waitin' At The Station [00:02:47]
Wet Willie
is an American band from Mobile, Alabama, U.S. They were best known
for their hit "Keep On Smilin'," but had a number of charted songs in
the 1970s utilizing their soulful brand of Southern rock.
