Desperately Seeking King Records Discography

[Dan Gould]

Specifically, does anyone have

The King labels : a discography / compiled by Michel Ruppli, with assistance from Bill Daniels

Two volumes, published 1985 ... I seek information on sessions with Percy France and actually found an online search page so if anyone actually owns these two I can direct you to specific pages to collate the information I seek. Assuming Ruppli got it right, and the search function works.

Please PM.

[mikeweil]

The Frankfurt library has a copy - but it will be mid April until I get there to pick them up. If nobody here is any faster ....

[Dan Gould]

13 hours ago, mikeweil said:

The Frankfurt library has a copy - but it will be mid April until I get there to pick them up. If nobody here is any faster ....

Thanks Mike I may have to take you up on that as I learned that the nearest college that has it won't let a non-student look at reference materials.  I'll be in touch in the next couple of weeks if necessary.

[Big Beat Steve]

I think our local city library may have one too. I borrowed the Savoy and Chess discographies by Ruppli in the late 80s/early 90s (and they had others from that series, though I cannot recal which ones) and photocopied everything that was of interest (e.g. Savoy everything except the gospel section, for example) but I have not set foot in this library for close to 20 years.
So I do not even know to what extent the whole book searching/borrowing system has been reorganized since and if anything at all in their setup remains the way it was then (or if maybe - horror - any scaling down of what they have in their archives has occurred as part of the library has moved to another building in another part downtown about 10 years ago).

[Dan Gould]

Well I am down to my German friends, imposing on my nephew who goes to the University of South Florida (they won't allow access to Reference Desk books by non-students or I'd go myself) and he is probably too busy with school and his girlfriend, or perhaps just going for Volume 1 from Amazon which isn't impossibly expensive, and would allow me to also peruse the sessions for Bubba Brooks too. 

Decisions, decisions. As Jim told me in an email, "you can't unknow this shit so choose wisely!" 

[Big Beat Steve]

On 25.3.2019 at 11:59 AM, Dan Gould said:

 Assuming Ruppli got it right, and the search function works.

 

As for the search function, these books do have an index that looks fairly comprehensive (at least the Savoy, Chess and Verve books that I am familiar with do) and should allow everyone to locate the artists fairly easily throughout the book.

Edited March 26, 2019 by Big Beat Steve

[chewy-chew-chew-bean-benitez]

oh comeon my guy- you got this!!

 

[Dan Gould]

Thanks to all; I ultimately purchased Volume 1 and StereoJack has helped out on material in the other volume so I am pretty much covered.  

(How long before I spring for Volume 2? I don't know but I don't think I'll mention it to my wife ... )

[AllenLowe]

Dan: was Percy on anything besides the Bill Doggett sessions for King?

Edited March 29, 2019 by AllenLowe

[Dan Gould]

45 minutes ago, AllenLowe said:

Dan: was Percy on anything besides the Bill Doggett sessions for King?

All involved Doggett but there was a date with singer Mildred Anderson joining Doggett's group, and the Royals, pre-cursor to Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, had Doggett w. Percy back them up on four sides.  I counted 34 Percy tracks total (including two he did with Clifford Scott, had no idea that had happened).

The Mildred Anderson cuts are on the 1952-53 Doggett Chronological Classics, which is scheduled to be in my mailbox today, and the Royals tracks are on an Ace comp, with an alternate take of one tune, that is about to ship.  The rest I have to figure out between an LP I purchased of ballads, and various Doggett downloads that are available on Amazon. Not sure yet if I have any 45s to seek out.

[Dan Gould]

OK not King anymore but still on the hunt for Percy France material.  Grove tells me that he started with a gal singer and then worked with Frank Humphries before going with Doggett.  This would have been 1950 to early 1952, give or take. And Humphries had some recordings in that era (with a pianist name of Herbie Nichols!).

So what say you, either of these sound like Percy on tenor?

 

 

[Dan Gould]

19 hours ago, Dan Gould said:

OK not King anymore but still on the hunt for Percy France material.  Grove tells me that he started with a gal singer and then worked with Frank Humphries before going with Doggett.  This would have been 1950 to early 1952, give or take. And Humphries had some recordings in that era (with a pianist name of Herbie Nichols!).

So what say you, either of these sound like Percy on tenor?

 

 

 

19 hours ago, Dan Gould said:

OK not King anymore but still on the hunt for Percy France material.  Grove tells me that he started with a gal singer and then worked with Frank Humphries before going with Doggett.  This would have been 1950 to early 1952, give or take. And Humphries had some recordings in that era (with a pianist name of Herbie Nichols!).

So what say you, either of these sound like Percy on tenor?

 

 

No one wants to hazard an opinion?

On 3/29/2019 at 8:40 AM, AllenLowe said:

Dan: was Percy on anything besides the Bill Doggett sessions for King?

I have found out about a 1949 recording:

Mays Haze / Slow Rock (instrumental)

• Baritone Saxophone [Uncredited] – Cecil Payne
• Bass [Uncredited] – Art Phipps
• Drums [Uncredited] – George James (10)
• Piano [Uncredited] – Gil Coggins
• Reeds [Uncredited] – Percy France
• Trombone [Uncredited] – J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding
• Trumpet [Uncredited] – Bernie Glow
• Vocals – Betty Mays (tracks: A)

A slow blues with a Percy solo would be a nice way to kick off my Percy France compilation.

[AllenLowe]

Dan - those two solos don't sound to me like Percy but - and it's a big but - I don't know his sound from back then. So it's possible. 

[Dan Gould]

1 hour ago, Captain Howdy said:

That doesn't sound right. Isn't USF a public university? i.e. taxpayer-funded? If so, they have no right to deny you access. And it makes no sense: they offer a Special Borrower’s Card https://www.lib.usf.edu/services/special-borrowers-card/ that allows non-students to take books out of the library, so why wouldn't they allow you to just look at a book in the library? Anyway, if you just walk into the library and ask for the book no one is going to know if you're a student or not. 

 

I was told directly via email that I would not have access without a student ID, period.  Only students can ask for reference materials and apparently they card them. It hardly matters I purchased volume 1 anyway.