Jump to content

Spirituals to Swing Box reissue

AllenLowe
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hoppy T. Frog Enthusiast

Hoppy T. Frog

Posted
Posted

everything is intact, CDs in excellent shape -

$14 plus shipping conus -

prefer paypal - my paypal is alowe5@maine.rr.com

Hey Allen--

I saw this today from Roots and Rhythm. Is this really ready to drop? Will you have any copies for direct sale?

VARIOUS ARTISTS Really The Blues? A Blues History, 1893-1959, Vol. 1

West Hill Radio Archives 6028 $99.98

Due next week. This looks like being one of the best and most important blues releases of this year. The first of four nine CD sets tracing the history of the blues from 1893 through 1959 compiled and remastered by Alan Lowe who compiled the superb "Minstrel To Mojo" and "That Devilin' Tune" sets. This first volume features 234 tracks recorded between 1893 and 1929 including some of the earliest recordings of African-American music (Unique Quartet, Cousins And DeMoss, Bert Williams, Fisk University Jubilee Quartet, etc) - not strictly blues but some of the music that laid the foundations, early recordings of W.C. Handy tunes, the earliest blues recordings (Mamie Smith, Ethel Waters, Sylvester Weaver, Bessie Smith, etc), the blues as part of jazz (Kid Ory, Jelly Roll Morton, King Oliver, Benny Moten's K.C. Orchestra, Johnny Dodds, etc.), the blues influence on white urban vocalists (Sophie Tucker, Marion Harris, Annette Hanshaw, Eddie Cantor, Lee Morse, etc), the blues influence on white rural music (Blind Andy, Wade Ward, Sam McGee, Ernest Stoneman, The Allen Brothers, Roan County Ramblers, etc.) and, of course, a broad spectrum of African-American Blues and Gospel from the early through late 20s (Ma Rainey, Sippie Wallace, Leecan & Cooksey, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Arizona Dranes, Henry Thomas, Luther Magby, Sara Martin, Washington Phillips, Gus Cannon, Lonnie Johnson, Tommy Johnson, Barbecue Bob, Julius Daniels, Mississippi John Hurt, Gladys Bentley, Bernice Edwards, Robert Wilkins, Blind Blake, etc.). Recordings are presented approximately chronologically and a full track listing will be found on our web site. The set also comes with a CD-ROM with over 100 pages of notes. We haven't heard this yet but Lowe is noted for the quality of his remastering so we expect it to sound very good. I've long thought it would be great for someone to tackle a project like this and now they have. At first glance I would say that there is not enough emphasis on the many female singers who recorded in the early/ mid 20s but other than that this looks like being an invaluable release.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
AllenLowe Rising Star

AllenLowe

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

at work -

well, this project was murderous, and I just had a sense that I HAD to get it done, as sort of a parting shot after my encounter with W. last year. I think I've told this before, but last summer, as I was trying to finish the notes, I got very disoriented for a few days and my wife sent me to the doctor, thinking I was having some sort of stroke, though it turned out I was just on overload (wrote about 80,000 words between June and August).

that being said, I think it turned out well as a kind of multi-disciplinary approach to the blues, and in a way that proved that W., in certain odd ways, was right but for all the wrong reasons.

Edited by AllenLowe
Link to comment
Share on other sites
brownie Rookie

brownie

Posted
Posted

Has anybody details on this 3-CD set and what exactly it contains beyond the 2-LP set on Vanguard that has been around since the early 60s or so?

The 3CD set had a number of unissued items added. These include:

- Swingin' the Blues, by Count Basie and his orchestra

- I Never Knew, also Lady Be Good then Mortgage Stomp, by the Kansas City Five (the studio recordings)

- Jumpin' Blues, by Meade Lux Lewis, Albert Ammons and Pete Johnson

- Honky Tonk Train Blues, by ML Lewis

- Low Down Dog, by Joe Turner and Pete Johnson

- Boogie Woogie, by A. Ammons

- Rock Me, then That's All, by Sister Tharpe and A. Ammons

- Are You Living Humble, by the Mitchell's Christian Singers

- Milenberg Joys by the New Orleans Fettwarmers (with Ladnier, Bechet)

- It Was Just a Dream, by Big Bill Broonzy and A. Ammons

- Fox Chase, by Sonny Terry

- Every Tub, then Stealin' Blues, by Count Basie and his orchestra

- After You've Gone, by the Kansas City Six

- Noah, by the Golden Gate Quartet

- Blueberry Rhyme, by James P. Johnson

- Lowdown Dirty Shame, by Ida Cox and James P. Johnson

- Old Fashioned Love, then If I Could be With You, by Helen Homes and Janes P. Johnson with the Count Basie orchestra

A wonderful set at a great price!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Christiern Newbie

Christiern

Posted
Posted

I wonder why we don't hear Ruby Walker (Smith) in that set. John had her replace Bessie, who had died the year before and to whom the 1938 evening was dedicated. According to the program, Ruby rehearsed with Basie and Howard Taubman's NYT review has her opening the concert, accompanied by James P. Johnson. So, one may wonder if the recordings leave anything else out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
John L Collaborator

John L

Posted
Posted

I wonder why we don't hear Ruby Walker (Smith) in that set. John had her replace Bessie, who had died the year before and to whom the 1938 evening was dedicated. According to the program, Ruby rehearsed with Basie and Howard Taubman's NYT review has her opening the concert, accompanied by James P. Johnson. So, one may wonder if the recordings leave anything else out.

So this recording exists and you have heard it?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Fer Urbina Rookie

Fer Urbina

Posted
Posted

Has anybody details on this 3-CD set and what exactly it contains beyond the 2-LP set on Vanguard that has been around since the early 60s or so?

The 3CD set had a number of unissued items added. These include:

- Swingin' the Blues, by Count Basie and his orchestra

- I Never Knew, also Lady Be Good then Mortgage Stomp, by the Kansas City Five (the studio recordings)

- Jumpin' Blues, by Meade Lux Lewis, Albert Ammons and Pete Johnson

- Honky Tonk Train Blues, by ML Lewis

- Low Down Dog, by Joe Turner and Pete Johnson

- Boogie Woogie, by A. Ammons

- Rock Me, then That's All, by Sister Tharpe and A. Ammons

- Are You Living Humble, by the Mitchell's Christian Singers

- Milenberg Joys by the New Orleans Fettwarmers (with Ladnier, Bechet)

- It Was Just a Dream, by Big Bill Broonzy and A. Ammons

- Fox Chase, by Sonny Terry

- Every Tub, then Stealin' Blues, by Count Basie and his orchestra

- After You've Gone, by the Kansas City Six

- Noah, by the Golden Gate Quartet

- Blueberry Rhyme, by James P. Johnson

- Lowdown Dirty Shame, by Ida Cox and James P. Johnson

- Old Fashioned Love, then If I Could be With You, by Helen Homes and Janes P. Johnson with the Count Basie orchestra

A wonderful set at a great price!

So, one may wonder if the recordings leave anything else out.

IIRC, I read some time ago a review detailing the "new" material as well as some other things that were missing (and tracks that were actually studio recordings made by Hammond?).

I honestly can't remember where. Anyone?

Fernando

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...