BILL GAITHER — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 4 · 1939 | DOCD-5254 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Volume four in Document's five-fold set of Bill Gaither's complete recorded works contains his last 23 Decca recordings which date from September and October of 1939. Having cut his only records without Indianapolis pianist Honey Hill in New York City (where an alto saxophonist also sat in on one date), Gaither returned to Chicago where he and Hill joined forces with a string bassist and ground out a definitive series of Midwestern blues with poignant lyrics that are typical of Gaither's psychological profile. All of his emotional elements are in evidence here: embittered cynicism, moody self-absorption, and self-pity exacerbated by his disappointing relationships with women. The cornerstone of this unhappy obsession appears to have been an abruptly terminated affair with a certain Rose Lee, who met him and left him in Louisville in 1934, then rejoined him there six years later and lived with him until he was conscripted into the army in 1942. Some of these songs were written by Honey Hill, a solid pianist who was Gaither's right-hand man. These are Hill's last known recordings. Gaither's story is played out in the fifth and final volume of his complete works as reissued by Document in the '90s. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1.        Army Bound Blues    2:50
2.        Sing Sing Blues    2:38
3.        Kentland Blues    2:31
4.        Lazy Woman Blues    2:52
5.        See My Grieve Blues    2:46
6.        Wintertime Blues    2:24
7.        Another Big Leg Woman    2:55
8.        Greyhound Blues    2:48
9.        Changing Blues    2:58
10.        Jungle Man Blues    2:55
11.        Hard Way To Go    2:52
12.        New So Much Trouble    2:43
13.        Mean Devil Blues    2:18
14.        Stony Lonesome Graveyard    2:56
15.        Cheatin' Blues    2:55
16.        Bloody Eyed Woman    2:25
17.        Bachelor Man Blues    2:23
18.        Evil Yalla Woman    2:25
19.        It's Too Late Now    2:32
20.        Sweet Woman Blues    3:03
21.        Triflin' Woman Blues    2:20
22.        Rainy Morning    3:04
23.        Fairy Tale Blues    2:44
Credits : 
Bass – Unknown Artist (tracks: 1 to 21, 23)
Compiled By, Producer – Johnny Parth
Liner Notes [Booklet Notes] – Pen Bogert
Piano – Honey Hill
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals, Guitar – Bill Gaither

BILL GAITHER — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 5 · 1940-1941 | DOCD-5255 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

In 1940, blues guitarist Bill Gaither left Indianapolis and took himself back to Louisville, KY where he opened a music shop called Donald Duck Records out of which he ran a radio and jukebox repair service. He also ceased recording for the Decca label (for which he'd waxed about 90 sides beginning in 1935), crossing over to Okeh along with his buddy Big Bill Broonzy. This is the best explanation for why long, lanky Gaither suddenly began identifying himself as Little Bill Gaither -- out of deference to Big Bill. When he switched from Decca to Okeh, Gaither also stopped billing himself as Leroy's Buddy, a reference to his friendship with blues piano legend Leroy Carr. With the exception of an errant alternate take of "Rocky Mountain Blues," which appeared on the blues collection Too Late, Too Late, Vol.13, the fifth and final volume of Gaither's complete works as reissued by Document during the '90s, contains all of his remaining material, consisting of 26 recordings made for Okeh in the months immediately preceding the U.S. entry into WWII. The first eight titles were made on June 12, 1940 with pianist Joshua Altheimer and a string bassist whose name is now forgotten. In addition to several of his customarily bitchy tunes about soured interpersonal relationships (the most poignant example being "Money Kills Love"), Gaither tossed off a rocking boogie-woogie with boisterous lyrics entitled "Georgia Barrel House," a reverent tribute to his late friend Leroy Carr, and "Wandering Rosa Lee," a rare instance of Gaither expressing happiness in a love song. Rose Lee was a woman he'd met briefly in Louisville and had spent six years pining over and singing about. On January 24, 1941 Gaither cut another ten sides for Okeh, this time with pianist Leonard Caston (billed as Baby Doo) and another (or the same) unnamed bassist. Personnel listings for the last eight titles on this collection (which turned out to be Gaither's final recordings) mention pianist Blind John Davis and posit Jesse Ellery as the guitarist rather than Gaither. Louisville historian Pen Bogert notes the influence of Peetie Wheatstraw on Gaither during "Moonshine by the Keg," and the visceral immediacy inherent in his cover of Big Maceo's "Worried Life Blues," which was backed with a heartfelt tribute to New Orleans (and its hookers) in "Creole Queen." These selections were the product of a session that took place on November 28, 1941 nine days before Japanese fighter planes attacked Pearl Harbor on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Gaither received his conscription notice in 1942 and became a member of the African American 1st Battalion of the 24th Infantry Regiment, serving at first mainly as an electrician and radio repairman. When the racially segregated United States Army put Gaither's combat-ready unit to work in Guadalcanal, it was as manual laborers who did nothing more complicated or heroic than unloading freight. They were sent to Bougainville in the Solomon Islands in January 1944, first as stevedores and then as the first all-black infantry patrol to see active service in WWII. Pinned behind enemy lines, Gaither's unit battled their way through tropical undergrowth and across a river to relative safety. Soon afterwards, they were assigned to the island of Saipan where they engaged in the unenviable task of seeking out and apprehending Japanese soldiers who had yet to surrender. Although Gaither and the other survivors received the Combat Infantryman Badge, he came home completely transformed by his wartime experiences, encumbered by a nervous condition that caused him to abandon music altogether. His story ends ingloriously with a remarriage, a return to Indianapolis in 1948, and years of innocuous employment as a maintenance worker and cafeteria busboy. Gaither passed away in Indianapolis on October 27, 1970 and is buried in New Crown Cemetery not far from the graves of Yank Rachell, Wes Montgomery, Scrapper Blackwell, and Leroy Carr. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1.        Tired Of Your Trifling Ways    2:42
2.        Life Of Leroy Carr    2:47
3.        Love Crying Blues    2:59
4.        Love Trifling Blues    2:53
5.        Georgia Barrel House    2:27
6.        Wandering Rosa Lee    2:53
7.        Money Kills Love    2:50
8.        It's Just A Woman's Way    2:52
9.        A Short Cut To The Grave    2:46
10.        I'm Behind The 8 Ball Now    2:33
11.        Moonshine By The Keg    2:45
12.        Why Is My Baby So Nice To Me    2:41
13.        Uncle Sam Called The Roll    2:39
14.        I Got So Many Women    2:42
15.        I Can Drink Muddy Water    2:35
16.        You Done Ranked Yourself With Me    2:38
17.        1941 Blues    2:42
18.        Jealous Woman Blues    2:43
19.        That Will Never Do    2:54
20.        Please Baby    2:40
21.        It's A Sad Story    2:53
22.        Old Rainy Day Blues    2:57
23.        Why Do You Tease Me So?    2:52
24.        Worried Life Blues    2:41
25.        Bad Luck Child's Bequest    3:00
26.        Creole Queen    2:51
Credits : 
Bass – Unknown Artist
Compilation Producer – Johnny Parth
Guitar [Poss./Or] – Bill Gaither (tracks: 19 to 26), Jessie Ellery (tracks: 19 to 26)
Guitar [Prob.] – Bill Gaither (tracks: 1 to 18)
Liner Notes – Pen Bogert
Piano – Baby Doo (Leonard Caston) (tracks: 9 to 18), Blind John Davis (tracks: 19 to 26)
Piano [Prob./Or] – Blind John Davis (tracks: 1 to 8), Joshua Altheimer (tracks: 1 to 8)
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals – Bill Gaither

LEDBELLY — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 1 · 1939-1940 | DOCD-5226 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The Austrian Document Records label begins its series of CDs presenting Leadbelly's commercial recordings in chronological order from 1939, although annotator Ken Romanowski acknowledges that the singer "had recorded a combined total of well over two hundred titles" prior to that date, tracks made either for the Library of Congress or ARC Records under the auspices of John Lomax. Still, most of those tracks had not been issued, and, contrarily, most became readily available later on either Elektra or Columbia Records. Two exceptions are 1935 alternate takes of "Daddy I'm Coming Back to You" (take three) and "Shorty George" (take two), which lead this album off as bonus tracks. Otherwise, the remaining 23 tracks comprise two sets of sessions from 1939 and 1940, first a bunch of recordings Leadbelly made as a solo performer for Musicraft Records, which issued them as an album called Negro Sinful Tunes, and second the first group of tracks for RCA Victor, some featuring the Golden Gate Quartet, and issued either on the album The Midnight Special and Other Prison Songs or on singles on the discount-priced Bluebird Records subsidiary. Many of Leadbelly's better-known songs are included in these sessions, among them "The Bourgeois Blues," "The Boll Weevil," "The Gallis Pole," "Pick a Bale of Cotton," "Midnight Special," "Alabama Bound," "Rock Island Line," and "Good Morning Blues." The singer is in prime shape, and his guitar playing is typically forceful. The tracks have been transferred from old vinyl discs, with hiss and crackles audible throughout, but the sound quality is generally good. William Ruhlmann
Tracklist :
– BONUS TRACKS – Alternate Takes (1935)    
1. Daddy I'm Coming Back To You (Take 3)    2:56
2. Shorty George (Take 2)    3:02
        -    
3. Fannin Street    2:36
4. Frankie And Albert - First Half    2:49
5. Frankie And Albert - Completion    3:04
6. De Kalb Blues    2:49
7. Looky Looky Yonder / Black Betty / Yellow Women's Door Bells (On A Monday)    2:57
8. The Bourgeois Blues    3:12
9. Poor Howard / Green Corn    3:09
10. The Boll Weevil    3:04
11. The Gallis Pole    2:59
12. Ain't Goin' Down To The Well No Mo' / Go Down Old Hannah    3:13
13. Pick A Bale Of Cotton    3:00
14. Whoa Back, Buck    3:05
15. Midnight Special    3:03
16. Alabama Bound    3:03
17. Rock Island Line    2:35
18. Good Morning Blues    2:51
19. Leaving Blues    3:02
20. T. B. Blues    3:07
21.  Red Cross Store Blues    3:05
22.  Sail On, Little Girl, Sail On    3:14
23.  Roberta    2:59
24.  Alberta    3:08
25.   I'm On My Last Go Round    3:09
Credits : 
Compiled By, Producer – Johnny Parth
Guitar – Leadbelly (tracks: 1 to 6, 8 to 11, 13 to 16, 18 to 25)
Liner Notes – Ken Romanowski
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Tap Dance – Leadbelly (tracks: 9)
Vocals – Henry Owens (tracks: 13 to 17), Leadbelly, Arlandus Wilson (tracks: 13 to 17), William Langford (tracks: 13 to 17), Willis Johnson (tracks: 13 to 17)
Vocals [Vocal Quartet] – The Golden Gate Quartet (tracks: 13 to 17)

LEDBELLY — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 2 · 1940-1943 | DOCD-5227 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The Austrian Document Records label continues its series of CDs presenting Leadbelly's commercial recordings in chronological order from 1939 with this second volume, which picks up with the second day of the singer's two days of sessions for RCA Victor Records in June 1940, some of the tracks featuring the Golden Gate Quartet, material issued either on the album The Midnight Special and Other Prison Songs or on singles on the discount-priced Bluebird Records subsidiary. These recordings (tracks one through ten) marked the end of Leadbelly's work for major record labels for the time being. His next, far more informal, commercial sessions were made for the tiny Asch Records label run by Moses Asch (later the founder of Folkways Records) and initially issued on the Asch albums Play Parties in Song and Dance as Sung by Lead Belly; Work Songs of the U.S.A. Sung by Leadbelly; Leadbelly & His Guitar; and Songs by Lead Belly. (Leadbelly also made many recordings for the Library of Congress [issued separately by Document] and airchecks during this period that do not fit into the series' concept of commercial recordings and thus are not included.) Many of Leadbelly's better-known songs are included in these sessions, among them "Easy Rider," "Grey Goose," "Stew Ball," "Skip to My Lou," "Rock Island Line," and "John Henry" (the last featuring Sonny Terry on harmonica). Particularly notable are two 1943 takes of "(Good Night) Irene," a song that would be popularized by the Weavers shortly after Leadbelly's death in 1949. The singer is in prime shape; his guitar playing is typically forceful, and he even plays concertina on some songs. The tracks have been transferred from old vinyl discs, with hiss and crackles audible throughout (and even, in the case of some of the Asch tracks, skips), but the sound quality is generally fair. William Ruhlmann
Tracklist :
1.        Easy Rider    3:10
2.        New York City    3:00
3.        Worried Blues    3:08
4.        Don't You Love Your Daddy No More?    3:03
5.        You Can't Lose-A Me Cholly    3:03
6.        Grey Goose    3:01
7.        Stew Ball    2:58
8.        Take This Hammer    2:59
9.        Can't You Line 'Em    2:55
10.        Ham An' Eggs    2:55
11.        Ha Ha Thisaway    2:38
12.        Little Sally Walker    2:41
13.        Redbird    2:41
14.        Christmas Song    2:41
15.        Skip To My Lou    2:21
16.        You Can't Lose Me Cholly    2:32
17.        Take This Hammer    2:13
18.        Haul Away, Joe    2:12
19.        Rock Island Line    2:04
20.        Ol' Riley    2:31
21.        Corn Bread Rough    2:04
22.        Old Man    2:30
23.        On A Monday    1:46
24.        John Henry    2:14
25.        How Long    2:10
26.        (Good Night) Irene (Tk. 1)    2:21
27.        (Good Night) Irene    2:36
28.        Ain't You Glad    2:01
29.        Good Morning Blues    2:23
Credits : 
Accordion [Button Accordion] – Leadbelly (tracks: 21)
Compiled By, Producer – Johnny Parth
Guitar – Leadbelly (tracks: 1 to 5, 7, 11 to 20, 22 to 29)
Harmonica – Sonny Terry (tracks: 23 to 26, 28, 29)
Liner Notes – Ken Romanowski
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals – Leadbelly, The Golden Gate Quartet (tracks: 6 to 10)

LEDBELLY — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 3 · 1943-1944 | DOCD-5228 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The Austrian Document Records label continues its series of CDs presenting Leadbelly's commercial recordings in chronological order from 1939 with this third volume, which picks up with a session for record company owner Moses Asch (whose label was now called Disc, but who would later found Folkways) probably held in October 1943, material issued on the album Negro Folk Songs as Sung by Leadbelly (tracks one through six). The singer's contract with Asch was nonexclusive, and in February 1944 he returned to Musicraft Records (for which he had recorded in 1939) for sessions that resulted in the album Leadbelly Sings Ballads of Beautiful Women and Bad Men/With the Satin Strings (tracks seven through 14). Asch was back to calling his label Asch Records by April 1944, when Leadbelly cut a series of sessions (tracks 15-26) that appeared on different Asch collections and, after the company's bankruptcy, on Stinson, the company controlled by Asch's partner, who took away some of the masters. Some of Leadbelly's better-known songs are included in these sessions, among them "Bring Me Lil Water Silvy," "In the Pines," and "In New Orleans" (aka "House of the Rising Sun"), and two versions of "John Hardy," and the recordings also are notable for featuring his piano and concertina playing on some tracks and for the presence of Josh White (who duets on "I've a Pretty Flower" and takes lead vocals on "Don't Lie Buddy") and Sonny Terry here and there. On "Blind Lemon (Memorial Record)," Leadbelly demonstrates the style of Blind Lemon Jefferson, whom he used to accompany. The singer is in prime shape, and his guitar playing is typically forceful. The tracks have been transferred from old vinyl discs, with hiss and crackles audible, but the sound quality is generally good. William Ruhlmann
Tracklist :
1.        Cow Cow Yicky Yea / Out On The Western Plains    3:07
2.        Noted Rider / Big Fat Woman / Borrow Love And Go    4:02
3.        John Hardy    4:15
4.        Meeting At The Building / Talking Preaching / We Shall Walk Through The Valley    3:19
5.        Fiddler's Dream / Yallow Gal / Green Corn    3:08
6.        Bring Me Lil Water Silvy / Julia Ann Johnson / Line 'Em / Whoa Back Buck    3:52
7.        Roberta    3:04
8.        Bill Brady    3:03
9.        Where Did You Sleep Last Night?    2:59
10.        Yellow Gal    3:03
11.        When The Boys Were Out On The Western Plains    2:54
12.        Pretty Flowers In Your Backyard    2:43
13.        In New Orleans    3:13
14.        John Hardy    3:10
15.        I've A Pretty Flowers    2:23
16.        Don't Lie Buddy    2:19
17.        How Do You Know / Don't Mind The Weather    2:14
18.        (What Are) Little Boys (Made Of) / Let Me Hold Your Hand (All For You) / Polly Wolly (Polly) Wee    2:16
19.        Skip To My Lou / Christmas Day (It's Almost Over)    1:59
20.        Little Sally Walker / Ha Ha Thisaway / Red Bird    2:34
21.        Outskirts Of Town    2:38
22.        Red River / Black Girl (In The Pines) / Don't Miss Your Water Blues    4:12
23.        Blind Lemon (Memorial Record)    1:23
24.        Leadbelly's Dance    0:50
25.        Mother's Blues (Little Children Blues)    2:30
26.        Mo' Yet / (Little Boy) How Old Are You / There's A Limb On The Tree (Green Grass Grows All Around)    2:51
Credits : 
Accordion [Button Accordion] – Leadbelly (tracks: 3)
Compilation Producer – Johnny Parth
Guitar – Josh White (tracks: 15, 16, 25), Leadbelly (tracks: 1, 2, 4 to 26)
Harmonica – Sonny Terry (tracks: 21, 22)
Liner Notes – Ken Romanowski
Piano – Leadbelly (tracks: 2)
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Speech – Leadbelly (tracks: 23, 24)
Tap Dance – Leadbelly (tracks: 24)
Vocals – Josh White (tracks: 15, 16), Leadbelly