Late January 2020 bopping fortnight’s favorites (10 records)
Hello everybody ! Here are ten more selections for this late January 2020 fortnight’s favorites. Very different ones, and they date from 1950 to early ’60s.
Texas Slim
Look What You Gone And Done To Me
TEXAS SLIM – I dare say we’ll never know who he actually was – cut in 1964 two superior sides for the Ark label (# 309) in Cincinnati. They do present a surprising and good combination of banjo and steel guitar : « Look What You Gone And Done To Me » and « When I’m Old And Gray » . This man has nothing to do with one Texas Guitar Slim (early ’60s La. blues) on Jin Records.
When I'm Old And Gray
Chuck Manning and the Rhythm Ranch Boys
Let's Go
Now a late ’50’s (stylistically) Rockabilly out of Arcadia, California on the small Corby label (# 103 or 232) by CHUCK MANNING and the Rhythm Ranch Boys. « Let’s go », a train song, has a strong rhythm guitar, a cool vocal ; a good steel guitar all the track along, and a fabulous lead guitar : no less than 4 solos ! Excuse the somewhat ‘muddy’ sound, which was on original record. Value $ 200-250 for Tom Lincoln, $ 100-150 for Barry K. John.
CECIL CAMPBELL’s Tennessee Ramblers
Spookie Boogie
The veteran CECIL CAMPBELL (backed by his Tennessee Ramblers), today unjustly neglected, cut his first records as vocalist, and most of all, as steel player, in 1934. Here is from December 1950 the « Spookie Boogie », as expected a ghost song. The story goes as to make rattling bones sounding, Cecil was looking for an “…unusual hollow type of rattling sound designed to send cold chills rushing down the spine.” He couldn’t find that sound on the musical instruments. But as fate would have it, one of the members of the Tennessee Ramblers had false teeth and that mysterious sound that appears on the tune “Spookie Boogie” was made by a pair of chattering false teeth. The tune has a nice steel, a loping bass and fiddle and a good piano (RCA-Victor 48-0409).
Later on, Campbell adapted well on new trends. He offered the instrumental « Go Man Go » in 1955, to be found on the Cactus comp’ « M-G-M Hillbilly » vol. 4 (not listed here, neither « Beaty Steel Boogie », issued on Super Disc 1004, reissued on YouTube). Here however I release his « Rock And Roll Fever » from 1957 issued on M-G-M 12482, a fine Rockabilly on its own.
Rock And Roll Fever
I Dare You Too Love Me
DESSIE FAULKNER (1903-1993) cut at the tail end of the ’50s and early ’60s a nice string of Honky-tonk bopping songs, among them I chose her offering of « I Dare You Yo Love Me » on D 1159 (issued August 1960) : an assured vocal for a fast bopper with fiddle all along and a steel solo. The song was first reissued on U.K Cascade (1983) « 20 Country Great Recordings » that included George Jones and Joe Carson among others.
Second Dessie Faulkner selection is a good weeper on a stroller rhythm issued on Big 6 138 : « I Cried Again » is mid-paced and has a crying steel. Faulkner also had « You Can’t Stop A Heart From Lovin’ », a good Honky tonker from 1967 issued by Cincinnati’s Arvis (# 1) label (not selected.
Stick-A-By-You
The Bridge Brothers
More of late ’50s wih the BRIDGE BROTHERS and « Stick-A-By-You » on A-B-S 119 (which stands for « America’s Best Sellers ») : a good duet, nice bass chords played guitar, the whole is refreshing and ernergetic. Thanks CheeseBrew Wax Archive YouTube chain to unearth such fine songs.
Out of Shreveport, La. on the Ram label (# 101) and released in 1956, here’s CAROL WILLIAMS an her great, fast « Just For A While ». Has a fresh vocal, and a good guitar (solo).
You May Be Someone
Luke Gordon
Finally the superlative, and him also unjustly neglected (although he never did a bad record) LUKE GORDON on Blue Ridge 502. His usual style for « You May Be Someone (where You Come From) » – a great, great dobro (solo), fiddle and discreet mandolin + a good bass.
That’s all folks for this time. Research goes on many artists, such as Fairley Holden, Iry LeJeune, Johnny Foster, Bill Hutto, Jerry Irby, Cowboy Sam Nichols among others. Let’s keep plugged to bopping.org !
Sources : YouTube (Hillbilly Boogie1 for Carol Williams pic), 45cat and 78-worlds ; hillbilly-music.com for pic of Cecil Campbell and the story of the rattling bones ; an old Tom Sims’ cassette for Texas Slim Ark release (label scan from 45cat) ; my own archives.
arkansas 45s