Various – Rockin’ This House – Chicago Blues Piano 1946-1953 – 4 CD

24,20

SKU: JSP 7762 - 4CD Categories: , Tag:

Description

There was a time when Chicago blues pianists ruled the roost in the taverns where blues was played. Many homes had pianos, too, and when rent parties were thrown an 88-er could work all night for food and drink, showing off his latest licks to his peers who waited their turn to shine. It was a hand-to-mouth existence but if those hands could stretch an octave or more then the mouth would be provided for. 

Over half of this 4CD set is devoted to arguably the most internationally famous and successful of these pianists, Memphis Slim (so nicknamed because he was born and raised in Memphis before settling in Chicago). There are also a dozen sides by Slim's mentor, Roosevelt Sykes, and one entire disc of recordings by Eddie Boyd, who found his form later than the other two but eventually had a hugely influential hit with "Five Long Years", included here. Accompanists include guitarists Matt Murphy, Henry Townsend and Lonnie Graham, and the famous bassist Willie Dixon.

Track Listing:

CD1: Memphis Slim 1946-1948
Memphis Slim: 1. Now I Got the Blues - 2:40   2. Don't Ration My Love - 2:46   3. Mistake in Life - 2:48   4. Grinder Man Blues - 3:08   5. Slim's Boogie - 2:43   6. Little Mary - 3:11   7. Cheatin' Around - 2:53   8. A Letter Home - 2:36   9. Kilroy Has Been Here - 2:48   10. Rockin' This House - 2:47   11. Lend Me Your Love - 2:58   12. Darling I Miss You - 3:07   13. Pacemaker Boogie - 2:47   14. (Sometimes I Feel Like A) Motherless Child - 2:54   15. Harlem Bound - 2:43   16. Life Is Like That - 2:55   17. Nobody Loves Me - 2:49   18. Believe I'll Settle Down - 2:46   19. Throw This Poor Dog a Bone - 2:55   20. Help Me Some - 2:24   21. Country Girl - 2:50   22. Blue and Lonesome - 2:39   23. Angel Child - 2:55   24. Midnight Jump - 2:50   25. Messin' Around - 2:52

CD2: Memphis Slim 1948-1953
Memphis Slim: 1. You and I - 2:14   2. Timsy's Whimsy - 3:01   3. Frisco Bay - 2:52   4. Restless Nights - 2:51   5. If You Live That Life - 2:05   6. Love at First Sight - 3:03   7. Jumping Bean - 2:53   8. A Letter Home - 2:52   9. Grinder Man Blues - 2:55   10. Slim's Boogie - 2:46   11. Mistake in Life - 2:49   12. The Girl I Love - 2:44   13. Mean Little Woman - 2:50   14. Train Is Comin' - 2:48   15. The Question - 2:56   16. Drivin' Me Mad - 2:46   17. Never Let Me Love - 2:53   18. Train Time - 2:51   19. Blue Evening - 2:30   20. No Mail - 2:46   21. Gonna Need My Help Someday - 2:51   22. Back Alley - 3:03   23. Living the Life I Love - 2:47   24. The Come Back - 2:46   25. 5 O'Clock Blues - 2:53   26. Call Me Before You Go Home - 3:08

CD3: Memphis Slim – Roosevelt Sykes – 1947-1954
Memphis Slim: 1. This Is My Lucky Day - 2:42   2. I Love My Baby - 3:07   3. Wish Me Well - 3:01   4. Four Years of Torment - 2:57   5. Sassy Mae - 2:48   6. Blue and Lonesome - 2:56   7. Memphis Slim U.S.A. - 2:56   8. She's Alright - 2:39   9. Two of a Kind - 2:37   10. Got to Find My Baby - 2:39   11. Blues All Around My Head - 2:51   12. Treat Me Like I Treat You - 2:42   13. My Country Gal - 2:41   Roosevelt Sykes: 14. Lowland Blues - 2:25   15. Savoy Boogie - 2:31   16. Candy Man Blues - 2:33   17. Why Should I Cry - 2:26   18. Drivin' Wheel - 2:52   19. Rock It - 2:59   20. West Helena Blues - 2:52   21. Mail Box Bloues - 2:59   22. Winter Time Blues - 2:49   23. Blues 'n' Boogie - 2:33   24. Green Onion Top - 2:38   25. Wonderin' Blues - 2:18

CD4: Eddie Boyd 1947-1952
Eddie Boyd: 1. I Had to Let Her Go - 2:47   2. Kilroy Won't Be Back - 3:02   3. You Got to Leave That Gal - 3:04   4. Rosa Lee Swing - 2:54   5. Unfair Lovers - 3:03   6. Blue Monday Blues - 2:54   7. Why Did She Leave Me - 2:56   8. Playmate Shuffle - 2:49   9.. Mr. Highway Man - 3:08   10.. Getting My Divorce - 3:03   11. What Makes These Things Happen to Me - 3:03   12. Baby What's Wrong with You - 3:00   13. Chicago Is Just That Way - 2:51   14. Eddie's Blues - 3:07   15. I Can Trust My Baby - 2:56   16. Down Beat Rhythm - 2:59   17. Something Good Will Come to Me - 3:02   18. Why Don't You Be Wise Baby - 2:39   19 I Gotta Find My Baby - 3:08   20 Lonesome for My Baby - 2:53   21 I'm Goin' Downtown - 2:17   22 Hard Headed Woman - 3:36   23 It's Miserable to Be Alone - 3:14   24. Five Long Years - 2:41   25. Blue Coat Man - 2:31

Reviews:

1. AllMusic - arwulf arwulf
Once again the U.K.'s JSP reissue label offers a massive chunk of historical material in a low-priced four-CD compilation, this time culled from the heart of the postwar Chicago blues scene. Memphis Slim, who first blew in from Arkansas and Tennessee in 1937, is heard on 64 tracks recorded between 1946 and 1954. This is the fundamental core of Slim's postwar period. Bolstered by a series of upright bassists (Willie Dixon plays and sings on one of the dates), the occasional drummer, and a regular stable of tenor and alto saxophonists, the pianist sings about interpersonal relationships, working, partying, and hitting the road. This is rough-and-tumble entertainment. Slim's early Chicago background as a tough-as-nails landlord and peddler of bootleg liquor is tangibly present. While his powerful voice is an essential ingredient, the instrumentals are fascinating. "Jumping Bean" taps into New Orleans rhumba territory and even contains a quote from the Xavier Cugat hit "Brazil." One dozen sides by the great Roosevelt Sykes add considerable ballast to an already hefty compliation. The fourth disc features pianist Eddie Boyd, a bittersweet to bitchy pianist and singer who cut his teeth working with Johnny Shines and Sonny Boy Williamson. Boyd's inclusion in this four-CD box makes it one hell of a dose of unfiltered, undiluted Chicago blues.

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