New York Blues

A powerful vocalist and a wickedly expressive alto saxophonist, Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson is celebrated with this JSP reissue compilation containing 15 choice cuts recorded in London, England, in May 1980 and March 1982. The earlier of the two dates yielded an album with the title Fun...

The belter moved over to Newark, NJ-based Savoy midway through the decade and continued to prosper: "Candy,"

The lues had never been absent in Lucky Millinder's brand of jazz, but toward the end of his recording career, the R&B flavor of his records became much more pronounced. This compilation -- mostly of vocal numbers, with a few instrumentals thrown in -- assembles 29 such tracks from the...

Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson plays and sings his usual material in this meeting with Ted Easton's five-piece Dutch jazz band. The group is enthusiastic and Vinson, even though he had performed such material as "Kidney Stew," "Just a Dream" and "Somebody Sure...

Cleanhead Vinson recorded a dozen sides for Mercury during the second half of 1947, using a significantly smaller ensemble than the ig band he'd assembled in 1945. His scaled-down group was composed of trumpeter John Hunt, tenor saxophonist Lee Pope, baritone saxophonist Greely Walton, and...

Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson was one of the most enduring artists who straddled both jazz and lues during his long career. The 2003 release of this previously unreleased live set from a 1979 gig at the Keystone Korner is a great addition to his discography. Playing with what is likely a...

Arnett Cobb's debut for Prestige and his first recording as a leader in three years (due to a serious car accident in 1956) is an explosive affair. Cobb is matched up with fellow tough tenor Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, and there are plenty of sparks set off by their encounter. With...

This excellent double CD of jazz and lues vocals recorded between 1923 and 1945 has been presented in English as The Prewar Vocal Jazz Story. This phrase was derived from the secondary title printed in French across the cover. The main title, which could be translated as "The Golden Era of...

Ruth Brown is a revered soul and R&B singer who deserves not only every bit of acclaim she's received, but more. This late period recording, issued on Passport Audio from a 2006 session, proves that Brown still has not only the chops but the credibility to deserve a top-notch backing...

Big Maybelle was a powerful singer who made an impact in the R&B world during the 1950s and '60s and had a giant hit with "Candy" during the 1950s and '60s before her early death. Born as Mabel Louise Smith in 1924, she was a prodigy, winning an amateur contest in...

This two-CD set is an unusually successful sampler. Although there are a few hits among the 40 selections, many obscurities are also included, and not all of the big bands represented are major names, such as Tiny Bradshaw, Noble Sissle, Spud Murphy, Teddy Powell and Jan Savitt. The emphasis is...

A fine 24-track distillation of Johnson's lengthy career for Decca, during which he and his musicians served as a key link between Harlem big bands, jump blues, and R&B. Spanning 1941 to 1952, the focus is on the bluesier and/or more uptempo sides credited to either Buddy or sister...

This CD features jazz as played by local Los Angeles bands from the 1923-1930 period. Featured are Sonny Clay's Plantation Orchestra, Vic Meyers, Henry Halstead, Reb Spikes' Majors & Minors, and Tom Gerunovich's Roof Garden Orchestra, five fine no-name ensembles. The only...

Hindsight Records has put out more than its share of superior, even excellent CDs of 1940s radio transcription performances, but this three-disc set is special even in that company. The Jubilee radio show was an Armed Forces broadcast aimed at black military personnel around the world, and was...

While hythm & blues has a pedigree stretching back to the dawn of the 20th century, it was only in the late '30s that smaller groups began jumping with the energy of swing and the spirit of the lues. The Birth of Rhythm & Blues, a three-disc box from Golden Stars, trawls through...

Here is the 12th volume in the complete chronological recordings of Lionel Hampton as reissued by the Classics label. It opens with Hamp's final five recordings for the MGM label, waxed in Los Angeles on October 17, 1951. This was a 20-piece big band using charts written by Quincy Jones,...

This CD is just what its subtitle says it is, gathering 27 tracks Big Maybelle released on the OKeh and Savoy labels between 1952 and 1956, as well as a live version of "Ring Dang Dilly/Candy" (though it's not specified whether that's previously unreleased). Big Maybelle...

Collectables' The Very Best of Big Maybelle: That's All features 12 songs that she recorded for Sceptor Records in the '60s. This wasn't the most particularly distinguished period of Big Maybelle's career, and this collection doesn't put it in perspective, leaving...