PEETIE WHEATSTRAW — The Devil's Son~In~Law : Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 1 · 1930- 1932 | DOCD-5241 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

In 1994, more than 160 of Peetie Wheatstraw's recordings were rounded up, placed in chronological sequence, and reissued by the Document label in an unprecedented effort that filled seven compact discs. The contents of volume one stand as a fascinating prologue to Wheatstraw's main body of work, providing valuable insights as a composite portrait of this legendary and influential bluesman continues to emerge from the shadows. Born in Ripley, TN in 1902 and raised in Cotton Plant, AK, William Bunch was already operating under his colorful new name when, in 1929, he landed in East St. Louis and quickly earned a reputation as a blues guitarist and barrelhouse piano player. According to his biographer Paul Garon, when Bunch drew upon African American folklore to reinvent himself as Peetie Wheatstraw, the Devil's Son in Law, he was transcending his racially imposed second-class citizenship by initiating "a poetic motive force in the direction of freedom and liberation." This uncompromising and individualistic power is especially evident in the recordings that Wheatstraw made during his first 19 months as a recording artist. His earliest 78 rpm platter was cut for the Vocalion record company on August 13 1930, in the company of a musician whose name may have been J.D. Short or Willie Fields, but is listed only as "Neckbones." The two men shared the vocals, with Neckbones coming across as the comparative lightweight while Wheatstraw expressed himself through gritty, passionate moaning and groaning, pushing his voice to the limit and sounding at times almost like Charley Patton. This is quite different from the way he would sound beginning in 1934, and even those who are accustomed to Southern African American dialect will probably find much of his singing on this album to be difficult to comprehend. The listener is forced instead to focus upon the singer's emotive texture and intonation, and that's a good way to listen. In September and October of 1930, Wheatstraw recorded eight sides with his close friend Charley Jordan, a well-known bootlegger who was responsible for hooking Peetie up with Vocalion to begin with. These were the first records to appear with the words "The Devil's Son-in-Law" right on the label. In September, 1931, Wheatstraw went to Chicago and cut four sides for Bluebird with a guitarist who is believed to have been Charlie McCoy. Although for a change he was not identified on the label as such, the first song of the session was titled "Devil's Son-In-Law," and the song on the flipside was "Pete Wheatstraw." Distributed by Victor, these Bluebird recordings provided him with terrific publicity, spreading his colorful name and distinctive sound throughout the land. Wheatstraw's next opportunity to record was in March 1932 at a studio in New York City, playing piano behind vocalist Pretty Boy Walker, and this marks the first appearance of what would become Wheatstraw's signature introduction. Every recording up until this point had opened with a rhythmic pulse that made it feel like part of a continuum. Without the signature intro, those sides fit together like segments of a longer ritual, and that is the best way to appreciate them, as the three-minute duration was an invention of the recording industry. While the only extant photograph of Peetie Wheatstraw shows him playing a National brand Style 3 Tricone guitar, he recorded almost exclusively as a pianist. The last four titles on this collection feature him singing and playing guitar, and the picture in question was probably taken during that week in 1932. These records should be savored as definitive proof of Wheatstraw's influence on Robert Johnson, Johnny Shines, Big Joe Williams, Muddy Waters, and Bukka White. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1.    Peetie Wheatstraw, Neckbones–    Tennessee Peaches Blues 2:59
Bass – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Vocals – "Neckbones" (prob. J. D. Short)
Vocals, Piano [Poss.] – Peetie Wheatstraw
2.    Peetie Wheatstraw, Neckbones–    Four O' Clock In The Morning 2:42
Bass – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Vocals – "Neckbones" (prob. J. D. Short)
Vocals, Piano [Poss.] – Peetie Wheatstraw
3.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Don't Feel Welcome Blues 3:08
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
4.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Strange Man Blues 3:09
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
5.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    School Days 3:24
Guitar [Prob.] – Charlie Jordan
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
6.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    So Soon 3:23
Guitar [Prob.] – Charlie Jordan
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
7.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    So Long Blues 3:16
Guitar – Charlie Jordan
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
8.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Mama's Advice 3:16
Bass – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Charlie Jordan
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
9.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Ain't It A Pity And A Shame? 3:13
Guitar – Charlie Jordan
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
10.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Don't Hang My Clothes On No Barb Wire Line 3:03
Guitar – Charlie Jordan
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
11.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    C And A Blues 3:05
Guitar – Charlie Jordan
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
12.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Six Weeks Old Blues 3:16
Guitar – Charlie Jordan
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
13.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Devil's Son-In-Law 3:22
Guitar [Poss.] – Charlie McCoy 
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
14.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Pete Wheatstraw 3:14
Guitar [Poss.] – Charlie McCoy 
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
15.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Creeping Blues 2:58
Guitar [Poss.] – Charlie McCoy (2)
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
16.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Ice And Snow Blues 2:32
Guitar [Poss.] – Charlie McCoy (2)
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
17.    Pretty Boy Walker–    The Break I'm Gettin' 2:52
Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
Vocals – Pretty Boy Walker
18.    Pretty Boy Walker–    Hog-Love Blues 3:12
Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
Vocals – Pretty Boy Walker
19.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Police Station Blues 3:02
Vocals, Guitar – Peetie Wheatstraw
20.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    All Alone Blues 3:06
Vocals, Guitar – Peetie Wheatstraw
21.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Can't See Blues 2:58
Vocals, Guitar – Peetie Wheatstraw
22.    Peetie Wheatstraw–    Sleepless Nights Blues 2:49
Vocals, Guitar – Peetie Wheatstraw
Credits : 
Compilation Producer – Johnny Parth
Liner Notes – Paul Garon
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely 

PEETIE WHEATSTRAW — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 2 · 1934- 1935 | DOCD-5242 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

With the second of seven volumes comprising Document's complete works of Peetie Wheatstraw, we arrive at the threshold of his fully formed style, perfected over many months of steady gigging while the Great Depression prevented him from making any records. Tracks 1-9 were cut in March and August 1934 with guitarist Charley Jordan, and when compared with Peetie's earlier achievements the difference is apparent from the get-go. Until 1938, when he began to vary the structure of his tunes, nearly every Peetie Wheatstraw record would begin with an instrumental introduction he had initiated, while backing vocalist Pretty Boy Walker back in 1932. This patented intro would become Wheatstraw's signature, as instantly recognizable and ubiquitous as those of inner-city graffiti artists during the final decades of the 20th century. The other audible innovation is Peetie's singing style, which by 1934 had undergone a dramatic transformation involving what would swiftly become his other trademark: the soon-to-be-widely-imitated use of the phrase "ooh, well, well" to punctuate and accentuate his delivery. During this period, Wheatstraw recorded for Decca (the label on which his music would appear exclusively beginning in October 1936) and Vocalion, the company responsible for peddling some of his titles to the Sears & Roebuck Co., who released them on their Conqueror label. Originally backed with a title by Tee McDonald, the jazzy "Throw Me in the Alley" is a rare treat in the form of an upbeat Wheatstraw record involving extra instrumentalists. Billed as Peetie Wheatstraw & His Blue Blowers, this hot little group included trombonist Ike Rodgers and pianist Henry Brown, as well as two unidentified individuals playing clarinet and violin. Other participants on this satisfying collection which covers Wheatstraw's progress through July 1935 are guitarists Teddy Darby and Charlie McCoy, as well as steel guitarist Casey Bill Weldon, whose handle derived from K.C., an abbreviation of his old stomping ground, Kansas City. "Keyhole Blues" and "Long Time Ago Blues" pare the instrumentation down once again to Wheatstraw and his guitar, sounding more lonesome and personal than he generally did at the piano. Issued as the flipside of a Jimmie Gordon record, "Doin' the Best I Can" borrows its melody from "Sittin' on Top of the World" which was first introduced by the Mississippi Sheiks. "Good Whiskey Blues" and its sequel "More Good Whiskey Blues" are straightforward appreciations of legalized liquor (including imported Holland gin!) as opposed to the perils of unregulated, often poisonous prohibition booze. "C & A Train Blues," which refers to the Chicago and Alton railroad, is the first recording on which Wheatstraw amends his nickname by calling himself the High Sheriff from Hell. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1.    Back Door Blues    3:09
2.    Packin' Up Blues    3:09
3.    Long Lonesome Drive    3:19
4.    Midnight Blues    3:18
5.    The Last Time    3:21
6.    All Night Long Blues    3:14
7.    Numbers Blues    3:18
8.    Good Home Blues    3:18
9.    These Times    2:57
10.    Throw Me In The Alley    2:50
11.    C & A Train Blues    3:18
12.    Last Week Blues    3:08
13.    Keyhole Blues    3:13
14.    Long Time Ago Blues    3:15
15.    Doin' The Best I Can    2:53
16.    The Rising Sun Blues    3:00
17.    Blues At My Door    3:03
18.    Truthful Blues    3:07
19.    Good Whiskey Blues    3:14
20.    More Good Whiskey Blues    3:02
21.    Letter Writing Blues    3:01
22.    Whiskey Head Blues    2:46
23.    Slave Man Blues    2:50
24.    C And A Train Blues    2:46
Credits : 
Clarinet – Unknown Artist (tracks: 10)
Compilation Producer – Johnny Parth
Guitar – Peetie Wheatstraw (tracks: 10, 13, 14)
Guitar [Poss.] – Charlie McCoy (tracks: 15), Teddy Darby (tracks: 21)
Guitar [Prob.] – Charlie Jordan (tracks: 1 to 6, 8, 9)
Liner Notes – Paul Garon
Piano – Henry Brown (tracks: 10), Peetie Wheatstraw (tracks: 1 to 9, 11, 12, 15 to 24)
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Steel Guitar – Casey Bill Weldon (tracks: 16 to 21)
Trombone [Prob.] – Ike Rodgers (tracks: 10)
Violin – Unknown Artist (tracks: 10)
Vocals – Peetie Wheatstraw 

PEETIE WHEATSTRAW — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 3 · 1935- 1936 | DOCD-5243 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The third installment in Document's seven-volume Peetie Wheatstraw edition opens with songs about pimping and hustling, mixing cocktails, and making love like a spider. Tracks 1-11 were recorded in Chicago, alone at the piano and with guitarists Charley Jordan or Charlie McCoy. Peetie and Charley Jordan were the best of friends, and many of the songs in the Wheatstraw discography have Jordan listed as composer. The two men maintained a musicians' club and rehearsal space adjacent to Jordan's pad at 17th and O'Fallon where people like Roosevelt Sykes, Walter Davis, and Big Joe Williams would pay their 35-cent dues in order to be able to practice, jam, and prepare for their own recording sessions. Peetie gigged all over the Midwest during this period, and listening to his records, one can imagine him performing at length in all kinds of settings without ever running out of stories to tell. "Up the Road Blues" and "Last Dime Blues" are noteworthy for the absence of the famous Wheatstraw introduction, a musical fingerprint that instantly stamped dozens of other records with his unmistakable presence because he used the same structural template as a reusable canvas for his many improvised lyrics. "Johnnie Blues" kicks up the tempo a bit, and is considered one of this artist's stronger offerings. Peetie's first recording of 1936 was "No Good Woman (Fighting Blues)," a duet with Amos Easton, popularly known as Bumble Bee Slim. During the spoken introduction, Slim tries to pick a fight over a disputed female companion, to which Peetie replies "...don't fight, just play the blues and sing a little while, forget it." In his well-researched biography of Wheatstraw, Paul Garon marvels over the words to the "Kidnapper's Blues," noting the unlikelihood of a Depression-era bluesman being able to pay $10,000 ransom for a kidnapped black woman, or that a Chief Detective of that time period would even bother with such a case. He also points out that low-profile abductions were not unknown in the high-crime neighborhoods where Peetie and his primary audience lived and worked. Five days after this Vocalion record was cut in Chicago, Wheatstraw was in New York City making records for Decca with guitarist Kokomo Arnold, forging a working friendship that would bear fruit while strengthening Wheatstraw's relations with Decca. In October of 1936, he would become an exclusive Decca artist and would remain so until his sudden death in 1941. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1.    Good Hustler Blues    2:58
2.    Cocktail Man Blues    2:43
3.    King Spider Blues    2:58
4.    Hi-De-Ho Woman Blues 3:11
Guitar [Possibly/Or] – Charlie Jordan
Guitar [Probably/Or] – Charlie McCoy 
5.    Sorrow Hearted Blues 3:13
Guitar [Possibly/Or] – Charlie Jordan
Guitar [Probably/Or] – Charlie McCoy 
6.    Up The Road Blues 3:05
Guitar [Possibly/Or] – Charlie Jordan
Guitar [Probably/Or] – Charlie McCoy 
7.    Last Dime Blues 3:10
Guitar [Possibly/Or] – Charlie Jordan
Guitar [Probably/Or] – Charlie McCoy 
8.    King Of Spades 3:00
Guitar [Possibly/Or] – Charlie Jordan
Guitar [Probably/Or] – Charlie McCoy 
9.    Johnnie Blues 2:42
Guitar [Possibly/Or] – Charlie Jordan
Guitar [Probably/Or] – Charlie McCoy 
10.    Santa Claus Blues 3:12
Guitar [Possibly] – Charlie Jordan
11.    Lonesome Lonesome Blues 3:00
Guitar [Possibly] – Charlie Jordan
12.    No Good Woman (Fighting Blues) 2:49
Vocals – Bumble Bee Slim
13.    First And Last Blues 2:46
Guitar – Unknown Artist
14.    True Blue Woman 2:35
Guitar – Unknown Artist
15.    Kidnapper's Blues (C-1259) 2:40
Guitar – Unknown Artist
16.    Sweet Home Blues (Take 1) 2:44
Guitar – Unknown Artist
17.    Sweet Home Blues (Take 2) 2:44
Guitar – Unknown Artist
18.    Good Woman Blues 2:41
Guitar – Unknown Artist
19.    Working Man (Doing The Best I Can) 2:31
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
20.    Low Down Rascal 2:51
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
21.    When I Get My Bonus (Things Will Be Coming My Way) 2:32
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
22.    Coon Can Shorty 2:52
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
23.    Meat Cutter Blues 3:00
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
24.    The First Shall Be Last And The Last Shall Be First 2:46
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
25.    Kidnapper's Blues (60527) 3:04
Credits : 
Compiled By, Producer – Johnny Parth
Liner Notes – Paul Garon
Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals – Peetie Wheatstraw (tracks: 1 to 11, 13 to 25) 

PEETIE WHEATSTRAW — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 4 · 1936- 1937 | DOCD-5244 (1994) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The recordings compiled onto the fourth of Document's sevenfold Peetie Wheatstraw retrospective were made in 1936 and 1937 when the East St. Louis-based bluesman was experiencing his greatest surge of popularity. Singing while kneading the piano, he was accompanied by guitarists Charlie McCoy and (on eight out of 23 titles) Kokomo Arnold, whose wonderful technique added an extra dimension to Peetie's musical landscape. Interestingly, "Deep Sea Love" appears to have been the only record ever to be released with "The High Sheriff from Hell" printed right on the label. Like "Beggar Man Blues," his "Jungle Man Blues" describes the plight of the homeless during the Great Depression. Wheatstraw didn't have to look very far to find a "hobo jungle" in St. Louis, as most cities of that size contained sizeable homeless encampments. On October 26, 1936, Wheatstraw became an exclusive Decca recording artist and cut half-a-dozen sides including the animated "Little House (I'm Gonna Chase These Peppers)," which has references to feline measles, a canine cough, and Peetie's pressing need to get his hambone boiled. The participation of a string bassist added rhythmic ballast to this session as well as the next, with the two takes of the "Peetie Wheatstraw Stomp" standing out among the liveliest, most entertaining performances in his entire discography. Here more than anywhere else, the Devil's Son-In-Law presents his definitive self portrait. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1.    Old Good Whiskey Blues 2:56
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
2.    When A Man Gets Down 2:50
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
3.    Deep Sea Love 2:53
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
4.    Drinking Man Blues 3:09
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
5.    Country Fool Blues 3:10
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
6.    Jungle Man Blues 3:05
Guitar – Unknown Artist
7.    Santa Fe Blues 3:07
Guitar – Unknown Artist
8.    Mistreated Love Blues 3:07
Guitar – Unknown Artist
9.    Remember And Forget Blues 3:09
Guitar – Unknown Artist
10.    Don't Take A Chance 3:05
Guitar – Unknown Artist
11.    Froggie Blues 3:02
Guitar – Unknown Artist
12.    Block And Tackle 3:16
Guitar – Unknown Artist
13.    Cut Out Blues 3:18
Guitar – Unknown Artist
14.    When A Man Gets Down 2:50
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
15.    I Don't Want No Pretty Faced Woman
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
16.    False Hearted Woman 2:46
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
17.    Little House (I'm Gonna Chase These Peppers) 2:42
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
18.    Fairasee Woman (Memphis Woman) 2:43
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
19.    Beggar Man Blues 2:41
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Kokomo Arnold
20.    Crazy With The Blues 3:06
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
21.    Ramblin' Man 3:03
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
22.    Peetie Wheatstraw Stomp 2:27
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
23.    Peetie Wheatstraw Stomp No. 2 2:37
Bass [String Bass] – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Credits : 
Compiled By, Producer – Johnny Parth
Liner Notes – Paul Garon
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals, Piano – Peetie Wheatstraw
Notes :
Mispress: Track 2 listed as "Poor Millionaire's Blues," but "When A Man Gets Down," identical to track 14, plays instead. This error was corrected by Document Records when they issued "Poor Millionaire's Blues" on "Too Late, Too Late": More Newly Discovered Titles And Alternate Takes, Volume 6 (1924-1946) (DOCD-5461). 

GEORGIA WHITE — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 2 · 1936-1937 (1994) DOCD-5302 | RM | FLAC (tracks), lossless

Georgia White was one of Chicago's very best barrelhouse blues singers during the 1930s and early '40s. The second volume of her complete recorded works as compiled by Document in the '90s contains 23 sides recorded in 1936 and 1937 with rhythm accompaniment by pianist Richard M. Jones, guitarist Ikey Robinson, and bassist John Lindsay. Hopefully the second edition of this disc, which came out in 2005, opens with a cleaner sounding copy of "I Just Want Your Stingaree." The 78 rpm platter used for this 1996 edition is slightly marred by a rough start, with the needle sounding like it had trouble getting squarely settled in the groove. This is a pity, as "Stingaree" is one of White's charmingly smutty originals. Other delights in this category are "I'll Keep Sittin' on It" (which was successfully revived years later by Ruth Brown) and a cheerful, naughty bounce with the refrain: "Was I drunk? Was he handsome? Did my mama give me hell?" Cutting loose and partying down were staple themes in White's working repertoire. She clearly enjoyed handling material like Ma Rainey's "Moonshine Blues" and the rocking "Little Red Wagon," which was popularized by Count Basie as "Your Red Wagon." Richard M. Jones was an excellent accompanist, and several of his compositions appear on this collection. They are "Black Rider," "Walking the Street," "When My Love Comes Down," and "Trouble in Mind" which appears thrice as "Trouble in Mind," "New Trouble in Mind," and the upbeat "Trouble in Mind Swing." arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1.        I Just Want Your Stingaree    2:34
2.        Black Rider    2:24
3.        I'll Keep Sittin' On It    2:54
4.        Pigmeat Blues    2:37
5.        Trouble In Mind    2:31
6.        Was I Drunk?    2:48
7.        No Second Hand Woman    2:41
8.        Sinking Sun Blues    2:33
9.        Little Red Wagon    2:37
10.        Dan The Back Door Man    2:48
11.        Your Hellish Ways    2:29
12.        Marble Stone Blues    2:32
13.        You Don't Know My Mind    2:50
14.        When My Love Comes Down    2:53
15.        Walking The Street    2:30
16.        Grandpa And Grandma    2:27
17.        I'm So Glad I'm 21 Today    2:30
18.        Toothache Blues    2:42
19.        Mistreated Blues    3:08
20.        New Trouble In Mind    2:58
21.        Trouble In Mind Swing    2:35
22.        Moonshine Blues    2:49
23.        Biscuit Roller    2:41
Credits : 
Compiled By, Producer – Johnny Parth
Double Bass – John Lindsay
Guitar [Prob.] – Charlie McCoy (tracks: 6 to 8), Ikey Robinson (tracks: 1 to 5, 9 to 23)
Liner Notes – Colin J. Bray
Piano – Richard M. Jones
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals – Georgia White

BUMBLE BEE SLIM — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 2 · 1934 | DOCD-5262 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1.    Amos–    Step Child 3:10
Guitar – Carl Martin, Ted Bogan
Piano – Jimmie Gordon
2.    Amos–    Sad And Lonesome 3:19
Guitar – Carl Martin, Ted Bogan
Piano – Jimmie Gordon
3.    Amos–    Bye Bye Baby Blues 3:04
Guitar – Carl Martin, Ted Bogan
Piano – Jimmie Gordon
4.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Cruel Hearted Woman Blues – Part I 2:32
Guitar – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Unknown Artist
5.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Cruel Hearted Woman Blues – Part II 2:33
Guitar – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Unknown Artist
6.    Bumble Bee Slim–    The Longest Day You Live – Part 1 2:58
Guitar – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Unknown Artist
7.    Bumble Bee Slim–    The Longest Day You Live – Part 2 2:43
Guitar – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Unknown Artist
8.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Deep Bass Boogie 2:54
Piano, Speech – Jimmie Gordon
9.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Blue Blues 3:13
Violin [Plucked, Possibly] – Carl Martin
Violin [Plucked, Probably] – Howard Armstrong
10.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Rough Road Blues 2:36
Guitar [Possibly] – Willie B. James
Piano [Possibly] – Jimmie Gordon
11.    Bumble Bee Slim–    New Mean Mistreater Blues 3:24
Guitar [Possibly] – Willie B. James
Piano [Possibly] – Jimmie Gordon
12.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Climbing On Top Of The Hill 2:51
Guitar [Possibly] – Willie B. James
Piano [Possibly] – Jimmie Gordon
13.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Ain't It A Crying Shame? 3:00
Guitar [Possibly] – Willie B. James
Piano [Possibly] – Jimmie Gordon
14.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Bad Gal (Take A) 2:50
Guitar [Possibly] – Charlie Jackson
Guitar [Probably] – Big Bill Broonzy, Willie B. James
Piano – Unknown Artist
15.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Bad Gal (Take B) 2:58
Guitar [Possibly] – Charlie Jackson
Guitar [Probably] – Big Bill Broonzy, Willie B. James
Piano – Unknown Artist
16.    Bumble Bee Slim–    I Tried Everything I Could (Take A) 2:56
Guitar [Possibly] – Charlie Jackson
Guitar [Probably] – Big Bill Broonzy, Willie B. James
Piano – Unknown Artist
17.    Bumble Bee Slim–    Sail On Little Girl No. 2 3:00
Guitar [Possibly] – Charlie Jackson
Guitar [Probably] – Big Bill Broonzy, Willie B. James
Piano – Unknown Artist
18.    Amos Easton–    Aching Pain Blues 2:57
Guitar [Probably] – Big Bill Broonzy
Piano [Possibly] – Black Bob
19.    Amos Easton–    Cold-Blooded Murder 2:56
Guitar [Probably] – Big Bill Broonzy
Piano [Possibly] – Black Bob
20.    Amos Easton–    Burned Down Mill (Take A) 3:05
Guitar [Probably] – Big Bill Broonzy
Piano [Possibly] – Black Bob
Whistling – Amos Easton
21.    Amos Easton–    Burned Down Mill (Take B) 3:04
Guitar [Probably] – Big Bill Broonzy
Piano [Possibly] – Black Bob
Whistling – Amos Easton
22    Amos–    Mean Mistreatin' Woman 2:52
Guitar [Possibly] – Big Bill Broonzy
Guitar [Probably] – Carl Martin
Piano – Unknown Artist
23.    Amos–    Worrisome Woman Blues 3:12
Guitar [Possibly] – Big Bill Broonzy
Guitar [Probably] – Carl Martin
24.    Amos*–    Mean Bad Man Blues 3:06
Guitar [Possibly] – Big Bill Broonzy
Guitar [Probably] – Carl Martin
Piano – Unknown Artist
25.    Amos–    Muddy Water Blues 2:47
Guitar [Possibly] – Big Bill Broonzy
Guitar [Probably] – Carl Martin
Piano – Unknown Artist
Credits : 
Compiled By, Producer – Johnny Parth
Liner Notes – Jerry Zolten
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals – Amos Easton 

BUMBLE BEE SLIM — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 3 · 1934-1935 | DOCD-5263 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The opening six songs on this volume, which covers the period from November 1934 until April 1935, are decidedly different in texture from much of the material that preceded them in Slim's output. With no more than a guitar or two and perhaps a mandolin backing him up, his music leans less toward the kind of urban R&B sound that his early Vocalion tracks did. The playing is superb, with Carl Martin and Ted Bogan showing off a special virtuosity, while Slim's vocals are brilliantly expressive. The sound is rather rough on some of the material here, leading one to believe that there aren't many copies around of several of these songs -- "Way Down In Georgia" and "There You Stand" would not pass muster for release on most labels, being nearly inaudible amid their extreme surface noise. When Slim resumed his piano-based recording in early 1935, he took on a more sophisticated and less rural sound, and his voice became stronger in this mode, far more expressive and involved, alternately playful, sly, or mournful. The guitar accompaniment on some of the late February 1935 tracks, however, are notable as they include Big Bill Broonzy in the session -- one of these, "Milk Cow Blues," will prove a major frustration, a magnificent, classic piece of Chicago blues with great playing all around, but almost unlistenable because of the surface noise on the master source, which, one assumes, was irreplaceable. But "Everybody's Fishin'," which follows, is so clean and delightful that it almost makes up for the sonic sins of the earlier song. Bruce Eder
Tracklist :
1.        I Tried Everything I Could    2:56
2.        My Troubles    3:04
3.        Blues Before Daylight    2:54
4.        Running Bad Luck Blues    3:14
5.        You Can't Take It Baby    2:53
6.        Way Down In georgia    2:49
7.        My Black Gal Blues No. 1    2:54
8.        My Black Gal Blues No. 2    2:52
9.        Bleeding Heart Blues    2:42
10.        Let's Pitch A Boogie Woogie    2:28
11.        Tired Of Your Low Down Nasty Ways    2:48
12.        Good Evening Blues    2:55
13.        Farewell Mistreater Blues    3:08
14.        B And O Line Blues    2:51
15.        Good Woman Blues    2:26
16.        Some Old Rainy Day    3:06
17.        There You Stand    3:01
18.        Tell Me What It's All About    3:03
19.        You Gotta Change Your Way    3:09
20.        Milk Cow Blues    3:03
21.        Everybody's Fishing    3:03
22.        Guilty Woman Blues    3:06
23.        Big 80 Blues    2:38
24.        Bricks In My Pillow    3:05
Credits : 
Compiled By, Producer – Johnny Parth
Guitar – Big Bill Broonzy (tracks: 17 to 22), Bumble Bee Slim (tracks: 10), Carl Martin (tracks: 1 to 6), Charlie McCoy (tracks: 7 to 9, 11 to 16), Ted Bogan (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6)
Liner Notes – Jerry Zolten
Piano – Black Bob (tracks: 18 to 22), Bumble Bee Slim (tracks: 17), Charles Segar (tracks: 10), Jimmie Gordon (tracks: 7 to 16), Myrtle Jenkins (tracks: 23, 24)
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals – Bumble Bee Slim, Ted Bogan (tracks: 6)  

BUMBLE BEE SLIM — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 4 · 1935 | DOCD-5264 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1.        Policy Dream Blues    2:45
2.        If The Blues Was Whiskey    2:47
3.        Right From Wrong    2:57
4.        Feather Bed Blues    2:55
5.        What's Wrong?    3:06
6.        Mean Bloody Murder Blues    3:08
7.        Walking And Drifting Blues    3:18
8.        When The Sun Goes Down    3:13
9.        Can't You Trust Me No More?    3:04
10.        Where Was You Last Night?    3:04
11.        I Done Lost My Baby    3:03
12.        I'm Needing Someone (Exactly Like You)    3:01
13.        The Death Of Leroy Carr (Dedicated To The Memory Of Leroy Carr)    3:08
14.        Smokey Mountain Blues    3:09
15.        Sail On Sail On Blues    3:01
16.        Hey Lawdy Mama    2:49
17.        I Keep On Drinking - Part 1    3:04
18.        I Keep On Drinking - Part 2    3:09
19.        Sometimes Blues    2:50
20.        Steady Roll Mama Blues    3:14
21.        Fattenin' Frogs For Snakes    2:45
22.        Lemon Squeezing Blues    2:53
23.        When The Sun Goes Down    2:45
24.        Sail On Little Girl - No. 3    3:07
25.        Cold Blooded Murder - No. 2    2:52
Credits : 
Compilation Producer – Johnny Parth
Guitar – Big Bill Broonzy (tracks: 9 to 12, 23 to 25), Charlie McCoy (tracks: 1 to 8, 17 to 22), Scrapper Blackwell (tracks: 13 to 15)
Guitar [Prob.] – Bumble Bee Slim (tracks: 16)
Liner Notes – Jerry Zolten
Piano – Black Bob (tracks: 9 to 12), Jimmie Gordon (tracks: 1 to 8, 13 to 22)
Piano [Poss./Or] – Myrtle Jenkins (tracks: 23 to 25)
Piano [Prob./Or] – Black Bob (tracks: 23 to 25)
Remastered By – Gerhard Wessely
Vocals – Bumble Bee Slim, Washboard Sam (tracks: 12)
Washboard – Washboard Sam (tracks: 11, 12)

FRANKIE "Half-Pint" JAXON — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 2 1929-1937 | RM | DOCD-5259 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Volume two in the complete recordings of Frankie "Half Pint" Jaxon contains all of the titles he is known to have cut between July 1929 and July 1937. During this period, Jaxon crossed over from the Vocalion label to Decca, working with a diverse range of musicians that included the Cotton Top Mountain Sanctified Singers, (a traditional-sounding choir who backed him on several spirituals) and cornetist Punch Miller & His Delegates of Pleasure. Most of these records were issued under the headings of Frankie "Half Pint" Jaxon and either his Hot Shots or his Quarts of Joy. Half Pint's jumpin' little bands included trumpeters Bob Schoffner and George Mitchell; trombonist Preston Jackson, and Cassino Simpson, a skilled pianist who made his best recordings with Jabbo Smith and ultimately ended up in a mental institution after trying to murder Half Pint, whose androgyny and well-known theatrical knack for female impersonation might well have driven Simpson over the edge. For awhile, Jaxon was accompanied by one of Chicago's hottest little bands, misleadingly billed as the Harlem Hamfats. With "No Need Knockin' on the Blind," the focus of the Half Pint Jaxon story has moved from his longtime stomping grounds in Chicago to the swinging environment in New York, where he was accompanied by a band that included clarinetist Buster Bailey, a mainstay in the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra who was on the verge of leading his own Rhythm Busters and would soon be prominently featured in the John Kirby Sextet. Maximum enjoyment is to be found in rambunctious performances like "Down Home in Kentucky," the spunky "Fifteen Cents," Half Pint's theme song "Fan It," and a very theatrical "Mortgage Blues" which begins with a brusque and spirited reference to Marcus Garvey, founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and spokesman for the Back to Africa Movement. Frankie Jaxon's gleefully outspoken pride in being a person of color was chiseled in high relief with the title "Chocolate to the Bone (I'm So Glad I'm Brownskin)," and he was fond of injecting little Black Nationalist references that probably got by any Caucasians but without a doubt resonated among his predominately African-American audience. His introduction to "Down Home in Kentucky," for example, describes a segregated social environment where "Mr. Charlie is still in the lead." arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1.    Cotton Top Mountain Sanctified Singers–    I Want Two Wings To Veil My Face 2:40
Banjo – Unknown Artist
Cornet – Punch Miller
Piano – Unknown Artist
Trombone – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Vocals [Vcl Group] – Unknown Artist
2.    Cotton Top Mountain Sanctified Singers–    Give Me That Old Time Religion 2:55
Banjo – Unknown Artist
Cornet – Punch Miller
Piano – Unknown Artist
Trombone – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Vocals [Vcl Group] – Unknown Artist
3.    Cotton Top Mountain Sanctified Singers–    Christ Was Born On Christmas Morn 3:25
Banjo – Unknown Artist
Brass Bass – Unknown Artist
Cornet – Punch Miller
Piano – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Vocals [Vcl Group] – Unknown Artist
4.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon*–    Take It Easy 3:11
Cornet – Punch Miller
Drums – Unknown Artist
Piano – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
5.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon With Punches Delegates Of Pleasure–    You Got To Wet It 3:01
Clarinet [possibly] – Lem Johnson
Cornet – Punch Miller
Guitar – Charles Ducastaign
Piano – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
6.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon With Punches Delegates Of Pleasure–    Down Home In Kentuck 3:12
Clarinet [possibly] – Lem Johnson
Cornet – Punch Miller
Guitar – Charles Ducastaign
Piano – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
7.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon–    Scuddlin' 2:47
Drums – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Piano [probably] – Charlie Johnson
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
8.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon–    Chocolate To The Bone 3:04
Drums – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Piano [probably] – Charlie Johnson
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
9.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And His Hot Shots–    Mama Don't Allow It  3:12
Acoustic Bass [probably] – Johnny Frazier
Alto Saxophone [probably] – Kenneth Anderson 
Clarinet [probably] – Dalbert Bright
Drums [probably] – Tubby Hall
Piano [probably] – Jerome Carrington
Tenor Saxophone [probably] – David Young
Trombone [probably] – Preston Jackson
Trumpet [probably] – Bob Shoffner, George Mitchell, Guy Kelly
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Vocals [2nd v.] – Unknown Artist
10.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And His Hot Shots*–    Spank It 2:37
Acoustic Bass [probably] – Johnny Frazier
Alto Saxophone [probably] – Kenneth Anderson 
Clarinet [probably] – Dalbert Bright
Drums [probably] – Tubby Hall
Piano [probably] – Jerome Carrington
Tenor Saxophone [probably] – David Young
Trombone [probably] – Preston Jackson
Trumpet [probably] – Bob Shoffner, George Mitchell, Guy Kelly
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
11.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And His Hot Shots*–    The Mortgage Blues - Part 1 3:00
Drums [probably] – Tubby Hall
Piano [probably] – Jerome Carrington
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Vocals [2nd v.], Vocals [group] – Unknown Artist
12.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And His Hot Shots*–    The Mortgage Blues - Part 2 2:53
Drums [probably] – Tubby Hall
Piano [probably] – Jerome Carrington
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Vocals [2nd v.] – Unknown Artist
Vocals [Group Vcl] – Unknown Artist
13.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And His Hot Shots*–    Mama Don't Allow It 2:57
Acoustic Bass – Johnny Frazier
Alto Saxophone – Kenneth Anderson 
Clarinet – Dalbert Bright
Drums – Tubby Hall
Piano – Jerome Carrington
Tenor Saxophone – David Young
Trombone – Preston Jackson
Trumpet – Bob Shoffner, George Mitchell, Guy Kelly
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Vocals [2nd v.] – Unknown Artist
14.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And His Hot Shots–    My Baby's Hot (Can't You Understand) 2:54
Acoustic Bass – Johnny Frazier
Alto Saxophone – Kenneth Anderson 
Clarinet – Dalbert Bright
Drums – Tubby Hall
Piano – Jerome Carrington
Tenor Saxophone – David Young
Trombone – Preston Jackson
Trumpet – Bob Shoffner, George Mitchell, Guy Kelly
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
15.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And His Hot Shots–    Fifteen Cents 3:07
Acoustic Bass – Johnny Frazier
Alto Saxophone – Kenneth Anderson
Clarinet – Dalbert Bright
Drums – Tubby Hall
Piano – Jerome Carrington
Tenor Saxophone – David Young
Trombone – Preston Jackson
Trumpet – Bob Shoffner, George Mitchell, Guy Kelly
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
16.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And His Hot Shots–    Fan It
Acoustic Bass – Johnny Frazier
Alto Saxophone – Kenneth Anderson 
Clarinet – Dalbert Bright
Drums – Tubby Hall
Piano – Jerome Carrington
Tenor Saxophone – David Young
Trombone – Preston Jackson
Trumpet – Bob Shoffner, George Mitchell, Guy Kelly
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
17.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon* And The Harlem Hamfats–    The Dirty Dozen 2:56
Acoustic Bass – Ransom Knowling
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Pearlis Williams
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
18.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon* And The Harlem Hamfats–    She Brings Me Down 2:45
Acoustic Bass – Ransom Knowling
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Pearlis Williams
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
19.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And The Harlem Hamfats–    Take It Easy, Greasy 2:53
Acoustic Bass – Ransom Knowling
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Pearlis Williams
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
20.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And The Harlem Hamfats–    Wet It (Let The Good Work Go On) 2:43
Acoustic Bass – Ransom Knowling
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Pearlis Williams
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
21.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And The Harlem Hamfats–    No Need Knockin' On The Blind 3:07
Acoustic Bass – Unknown Artist
Clarinet – Buster Bailey
Drums – Pearlis Williams
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
22.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And The Harlem Hamfats–    You Certainly Look Good To Me 2:28
Acoustic Bass – Unknown Artist
Clarinet – Buster Bailey
Drums – Pearlis Williams
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
23.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And The Harlem Hamfats–    She Sends Me 2:33
Acoustic Bass – Unknown Artist
Clarinet – Buster Bailey
Drums – Pearlis Williams
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
24.    Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon And The Harlem Hamfats–    Chocolate To The Bone (I'm So Glad I'm Brownskin) 2:59
Acoustic Bass – Unknown Artist
Clarinet – Buster Bailey
Drums – Pearlis Williams
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Unknown Artist
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon 

FRANKIE "Half-Pint" JAXON — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order Volume 3 · 1937-1940 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

After cutting records with the Harlem Hamfats in Chicago during the years 1937 and 1938, Frankie "Half Pint" Jaxon made his final recordings in New York City in 1939 and 1940 with bands that included trumpeters Jonah Jones and Henry "Red" Allen, Ellingtonians Barney Bigard and Wellman Braud, and veteran pianist Lil Hardin Armstrong. Although Half Pint's old-time sense of humor is fully present with songs like "They Put the Big Britches on Me," "Take Off Them Hips," "Turn Over," "Let Me Ride Your Train," "You Know Jam Don't Shake," and "You Can't Put That Monkey on My Back," he came across more smoothly backed by some of the Apple's best instrumentalists playing Harlem-styled swing. The highly sexualized "She Loves So Good" is an update of a profoundly lewd and libidinous original that Half Pint recorded a few years earlier with Tampa Red's Hokum Jug Band, along with a steamily erotic version of Leroy Carr's "How Long, How Long Blues." The third and last volume in Document's chronological history of Frankie Jaxon also contains a boogie-woogie adaptation of Half Pint's theme song, "Fan It," which was fast becoming a hit for artists as diverse as Woody Herman and Bill Boyd's Cowboy Ramblers. Jaxon is said to have quit performing in 1941, whereupon he secured a steady job as a United States government worker in the Pentagon. Transferred to Los Angeles in 1944, he either died there shortly afterwards or survived all the way into 1970, depending upon which biographical sources you wish to believe. When in 1994 Document reissued no less than 69 recordings by this amazing entertainer, few people realized what a precious gift had been bestowed upon an unsuspecting public. Watch out for Half Pint, this little guy is dynamite. His sense of humor and passionate delivery is likely to grow on you. arwulf arwulf

Tracklist :
1.    Prince Budda And His Boys–    When A Woman Gets The Blues 3:00
Acoustic Bass – Unknown Artist
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Piano – Unknown Artist
Vibraphone – Prince Budda
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
2.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon* And The Harlem Hamfats–    She Loves So Good 2:44
Acoustic Bass – John Lindsay
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Fred Flynn
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
3.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon* And The Harlem Hamfats–    Riff It 2:37
Acoustic Bass – John Lindsay
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Fred Flynn
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
4.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon* And The Harlem Hamfats–    Some Sweet Day 2:46
Acoustic Bass – John Lindsay
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Fred Flynn
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
5.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon* And The Harlem Hamfats–    I'm Gonna Steal You 2:31
Acoustic Bass – John Lindsay
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Fred Flynn
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
6.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon And The Harlem Hamfats–    I Knocks Myself Out 2:54
Acoustic Bass – John Lindsay
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Fred Flynn
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
7.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon* And The Harlem Hamfats–    They Put The Big Britches On Me 2:34
Acoustic Bass – John Lindsay
Clarinet – Odell Rand
Drums – Fred Flynn
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy 
Piano – Horace Malcolm
Trumpet – Herb Morand
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
8.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon–    Don't Pan Me (Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone) 2:44
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet – Barney Bigard
Drums – Sid Catlett
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
9.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    Callin' Corrine 2:50
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet – Barney Bigard
Drums – Sid Catlett
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
10.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon–    You Can't Put That Monkey On My Back 2:40
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet – Barney Bigard
Drums – Sid Catlett
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
11.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    Fan It Boogie Woogie 2:26
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet – Barney Bigard
Drums – Sid Catlett
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
12.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon–    When They Play Them Blues 2:43
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Henry "Red" Allen
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin 
13.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    Something's Goin' On Wrong 2:36
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Henry "Red" Allen
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin 
14.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon–    Wasn't It Nice 3:03
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Henry "Red" Allen
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin
15.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    You Know Jam Don't Shake 2:40
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Henry "Red" Allen
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin 
16.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    Let Me Ride Your Train 2:27
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet [possibly] – Fess Williams
Clarinet [probably] – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Jonah Jones
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin 
17.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    Be Your Natural Self 2:22
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet [possibly] – Fess Williams
Clarinet [probably] – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Jonah Jones
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin 
18.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    Turn Over 2:42
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet [possibly] – Fess Williams
Clarinet [probably] – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Jonah Jones
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin 
19.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    Take Off Them Hips 2:33
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet [possibly] – Fess Williams
Clarinet [probably] – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Jonah Jones
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon*
Washboard – Walter Martin 
20.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon*–    Gimme A Pig's Foot And A Bottle Of Beer 2:28
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet [possibly] – Fess Williams
Clarinet [probably] – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Jonah Jones
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin 
21.    Frankie (Half Pint) Jaxon–    You Can't Tell 2:52
Acoustic Bass – Wellman Braud
Clarinet [possibly] – Fess Williams
Clarinet [probably] – Rupert Cole
Piano – Lil Armstrong
Trumpet – Jonah Jones
Vocals – Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon
Washboard – Walter Martin 

ISHMAN BRACEY & CHARLEY TAYLOR — 1928-1929 Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order | DOCD-5049 (1991) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Bracey's complete recorded works (1928-1929) are presented in chronological order on this single disc, with the bonus of four tracks by the elusive Charley Taylor. Since Bracey only recorded a handful of sides, this compilation is far more accessible than most of Document's Complete Recorded Works discs. Furthermore, Bracey was one of the best Delta blues artists of the '20s and his work is consistently engaging. Complete Recorded Works (1928-1929) is the best compilation available on Bracey -- not only does it work as a concise introduction, it has everything completists will need. Cub Koda

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes. There is something hard and uncompromising about the personality of Ishmon Bracey, something challenging and direct. It is evident in the known photographs of him when he was in his late twenties, staring fixedly at the photographer. In one shot his expression is steady, even sullen; in the more familiar cut from an old Victor catalogue he struggled a mirthless and unfriendly smile. Dressed in a suit, with collar and tie, in each case he was carefully up-to-date. “A rare combination of braggart, entertainer, musician, showman and eventually an ordained minister” is how Gayle Dean Wardlow, who interviewed him many times, chose to describe him in Blues Unlimited (No. 142). By Ishmon Bracey‘s own account to Dave Evans, he was a fighter too, “mixing it” with Saturday night drunks and the jealous lovers who came after his friend Tommy Johnson. Bracey’s blues are an extension of the man but they come it seems, from two basic sources. “Rock, church, rock…” comments Charlie McCoy at one point, and the moaning of the elders on the “mourner’s” bench at the Baptist church of his childhood can be heard coming through his blues stanzas. His delivery is powerful, the singing of a field hand; the holler is never far away. Ishmon synthesised these two contemporary currents in his youthful experience as a singer in a convincing and personal style. With him on the 1928 sessions was Charlie McCoy: “Charlie couldn’t lead. He just seconded” as Bracey explained. But he was a remarkably sensitive “seconder” and the matching of the two guitars is impeccable. On Leavin’ Town Blues the manner in which one guitar echoes the phrase of the other, and then moves into integrated phrasing is a joy to hear. “44 Charley” Taylor a pianist on the session, worked with Bracey in Mississippi. At this last session we hear Bracey unaccompanied and on Woman Woman Blues introducing a hint of Tommy Johnson‘s falsetto. They worked together intermittently for another ten years or so and must have made a formidable team. DOCD-5049
1    Rosie Mae Moore–    Stranger Blues
Guitar – Ishman Bracey
Vocals – Rosie Mae Moore
2    Ishman Bracey–    Saturday Blues
Guitar – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
3    Ishman Bracey–    Left Alone Blues
Guitar – Charlie McCoy (
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
4    Ishman Bracey–    Leavin' Town Blues (Take 1)
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
5    Ishman Bracey–    Leavin' Town Blues (Take 2)
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
6    Ishman Bracey–    Brown Mamma Blues (Take 1)
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
7    Ishman Bracey–    Brown Mamma Blues (Take 2)
Guitar, Mandolin – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
8    Ishman Bracey–    Trouble Hearted Blues (Take 1)
Guitar – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
9    Ishman Bracey–    Trouble Hearted Blues (Take 2)
Guitar – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
10    Ishman Bracey–    The Four Day Blues (Take 1)
Guitar – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
11    Ishman Bracey–    The Four Day Blues (Take 2)
Guitar – Charlie McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
12    Ishman Bracey And New Orleans Nehi Boys–    Jake Liquor Blues
Clarinet – Kid Ernest Michall
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
Piano – Charley Taylor
13    Ishman Bracey And New Orleans Nehi Boys–    Family Stirving
Clarinet – Kid Ernest Michall
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
Piano, Speech – Charley Taylor
14    New Orleans Nehi Boys–    Moblie Stomp
Clarinet – Kid Ernest Michall
Guitar, Speech – Ishman Bracey
Piano – Charley Taylor
15    New Orleans Nehi Boys–    Farish St. Rag
Clarinet – Kid Ernest Michall
Guitar, Speech – Ishman Bracey
Piano – Charley Taylor
16    Ishman Bracey–    Woman Woman Blues
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
17    Ishman Bracey–    Suitcase Full Of Blues
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
18    Ishman Bracey And New Orleans Nehi Boys–    Bust Up Blues
Clarinet – Kid Ernest Michall
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
Piano – Charley Taylor
19    Ishman Bracey And New Orleans Nehi Boys–    Pay Me No Mind
Clarinet – Kid Ernest Michall
Guitar, Vocals – Ishman Bracey
Piano – Charley Taylor
20    Charley Taylor–    Heavy Suitcase Blues
Vocals, Piano – Charley Taylor
21    Charley Taylor–    Louisiana Bound
Vocals, Piano – Charley Taylor
22    Charley Taylor–    Too Damp To Be Wet
Piano – Charley Taylor
Vocals – Ishman Bracey
23    Charley Taylor–    Where My Shoes At?
Piano, Speech – Charley Taylor
Speech – Ishman Bracey

BO CARTER — The Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order ★ Volume 1 • 1928-1931 | DOCD-5078 (1991) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes. Bo’s first appearance on record seems to be a Columbia session held in Atlanta, Georgia on November 2, 1928, where he, Charlie and Joe McCoy, and an unknown pianist, backed a singer named Alec Johnson. A Columbia session did take place on December 17, 1928 in New Orleans, with Bo Carter, Charlie McCoy and Walter Vincson, where two titles were cut as the Jackson Blue Boys. But before that session, the group ran into the Brunswick mobile unit and recorded as Charlie McCoy and Bo Chatman, as well as backing Mary Butler on four titles. After Good Old Turnip Greens the vocal chores were turned over to Mary Butler for four blues titles. Bungalow Blues was handled smoothly, although a bit stiffly, with its occasional II and VI chords lending it a vaudeville flavour. On Mary Blues the blues style in the vocal was harder and the guitarist (probably Vincson) begins the instrumental introduction with a few bluesy slurs. On Electric Chair Blues the mandolinist had the same difficulty as on Mary Blues, and Butler cut Mad Dog Blues to better effect with only Vincson on guitar (including some mandolin imitation on the breaks). Chatman and McCoy returned with Bo’s standard Corrine Corrina a lilting vocal duet, but closer to Hillbilly blues than to the tracks just laid down by Mary Butler. Finally, Bo appeared to give in and sang East Jackson Blues, although he didn’t seem quite comfortable with the style. At his first session using the name Bo Carter in Jackson, Mississippi on December 15, 1930, the guitarist had the benefit of two years of varying recording experiences. He neatly divided the songs into three categories. The two finger picked blues numbers were the standouts (I’m An Old Bumble Bee and Mean Feeling Blues); with the next two (I’ve Got The Whole World In My Hands – a version of the Sheiks’ “Sitting On Top Of The World” – and She’s Your Cook) sounding like the Hillbilly approximations of the blues so often favoured by Bo and his brothers. The last two tracks on this date were hokum blues in deference to the popularity of Tampa Red, Georgia Tom, Big Bill and numerous others who rode the wave of the hokum fad into lengthy careers. Clearly, Bo Carter was doing his homework. DOCD-5078
Tracklist :
1    Bo Chatman–    Good Old Turnip Greens    3:06
2    Mary Butler–    Bungalow Blues    2:48
3    Mary Butler–    Mary Blues    2:40
4    Mary Butler–    Electrocuted Blues    2:45
5    Bo Chatman–    Corrine Corrina    3:17
6    Bo Chatman–    East Jackson Blues    2:55
7    Bo Carter–    I’m An Old Bumble Bee    2:53
8    Bo Carter–    Mean Feeling Blues    3:10
9    Bo Carter–    I’ve Got The Whole World In My Hand    2:46
10    Bo Carter–    She’s Your Cook But She Burns My Bread Sometimes    2:58
11    Bo Carter–    Same Thing The Cats Fight About    3:20
12    Bo Carter–    Times Is Tight Like That    3:08
13    Bo Carter–    My Pencil Won’t Write No More    2:55
14    Bo Carter–    Banana In Your Fruit Basket    3:06
15    Bo Carter–    Pin In Your Cushion    3:04
16    Bo Carter–    Pussy Cat Blues    2:52
17    Bo Carter–    Ram Rod Daddy    2:58
18    Bo Carter–    Loveless Love    2:55
19    Bo Carter–    I Love That Thing    2:44
20    Bo Carter–    Backache Blues    2:59
21    Bo Carter–    Sorry Feeling Blues    3:07
22    Bo Carter–    Baby, When You Marry    2:55
23    Bo Carter–    Boot It    3:04
24    Bo Carter–    Twist It, Baby    3:17

BIG BILL BROONZY — Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order ★ Volume 5 • 1936-1937 | DOCD-5127 (1992) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Big Bill Broonzy recorded a great deal in Chicago during the 1930s, and fortunately, every one of the selections (except for a few that cannot be located) have been reissued on CD by the Austrian Document label in this "complete" series. In addition to selections with a trio (which includes pianist Black Bob and bassist Bill Settles), Broonzy is heard on this fifth volume with the Hokum Boys (on "Nancy Jane"), the Midnight Ramblers (which include Washboard Sam) and the Chicago Black Swans, a band similar to the Harlem Hamfats that adds guitarist Tampa Red). The final four numbers return to the trio format but add trumpeter Punch Miller to two of the songs. Throughout, Broonzy is heard in prime form. Among the selections are "Big Bill's Milk Cow No. 2," "Nancy Jane," "Detroit Special," "Out With the Wrong Woman," "Southern Flood Blues" and "Let's Reel and Rock." Scott Yanow

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes. In 1934 Big Bill Broonzy had recorded Milk Cow Blues for Bluebird (see volume two of this series) and it had been a sufficient hit for him to assay a Milk Cow Blues No. 2 for ARC, this time filling out the sound by utilising Black Bob‘s piano for support. This basic line-up of guitar, piano, string bass and woodblocks was given an extra dimension when Charlie McCoy was added playing the mandolin. Charlie, like Big Bill, was a jobbing musician about Chicago. He had found his niche when, along with his brother ‘Hallelujah’ Joe McCoy he became part of the basic line-up of the Harlem Hamfats. This group used a ‘New Orleans’ front line of trumpet and clarinet backed-up by a piano and a guitar/mandolin/drums rhythm section. The session with Charlie produced Bill’s complaint about his addiction to playing craps in Seven-Eleven (“My point was a nine, I stopped at six – and that trey came flyin”‘) and about his girl-friend’s bad actin’ in You Know I Got A Reason. (Is there an accusation of lesbianism in the line “You say that woman you run with is your lady friend, it don’t look much like it for the shape I caught y’all in”?) During the same period, May / June 1936, Bill was still performing as part of The Hokum Boys, singing and playing the guitar on Nancy Jane a number they had recorded before, without it being released, as far back as 1930. A further Big Bill / Black Bob session took place in the September of 1936. It included Black Widow Spider in which Bill may have mixed his genders by representing himself as a spider with “red stripes under my belly” after making it sore by “crawlin’ down your wall”. The same combination also recorded in November of that year, one track, Out With The Wrong Woman being issued as by The Midnight Ramblers. Several songs and alternative takes of material recorded around this time, i. e. Cherry Hill Take 2, were not issued until they appeared on LP in the late 60s / early 70s. On the 26th January 1937 Big Bill Broonzy took the vocal and guitar part for a group called the Chicago Black Swans. This was a loose collection of musicians including Herb Morand and Arnett Nelson, the front line of the Hamfats. The same group recorded the same two titles on the same day with vocals by Mary Mack for release as by The State Street Swingers. Further confusion is added by the fact that Bill had already recorded Don’t Tear My Clothes (presumably implicitly “No. 1”, see volume three of this series) with a group known as The State Street Boys whose more rural sound had been built around the violin of Zeb Wright. Never slow to adapt to trends Bill featured a trumpet and drums on his next session (although he refers to a cornet on Come Up To My House). After cutting his commentary on the recent flooding of the Ohio River in his magnificent Southern Flood he brought forward “Mr Sheiks” and Fred Williams to up-date his sound to that of Big Bill’s Orchestra (?). “Mr Sheiks“, whose identity has been the subject of much speculation, was no Herb Morand and two days later Big Bill Broonzy was back in the studio to try again – this time in the company of Ernest ‘Kid Punch’ Miller, who came, like Morand, from a New Orleans background and was one of the foremost jazzmen of his generation. Hedging, Bill also cut for his older audience on this session producing the delicately picked Horny FIog which included references to the south, north migration along with the wonderful line dismissing his troublesome girlfriend: “I’m tired of poppin’ my belly for you”. DOCD-5127
Tracklist :
1        Big Bill's Milk Cow No. 2 (A) 3:07
2        W.P.A. Blues (B) 3:01
3        I'm A Southern Man (B) 2:47
4        Nancy Jane (C) 3:00
5        Lowland Blues (D)    3:02
6        Seven-Eleven     (D)    2:57
7        You Know I Got A Reason (D) 2:49
8        Oh, Babe (D)    3:08
9        Detroit Special  (E) 2:50
10        Falling Rain  (E) 3:17
11        Black Widow Spider (F) 2:52
12        Cherry Hill  (G) 3:12
13        Out With The Wrong Woman (H) 2:57
14        Don't Tear My Clothes No. 2 (I)    2:42
15        You Drink Too Much (I) 3:08
16        Southern Flood Blues (J) 3:13
17        My Big Money     (J) 3:12
18        My Woman Mistreats Me (J) 3:00
19        Let's Reel And Rock (J) 3:15
20        Come Up To My House (J) 3:11
21        Get Away (K) 2:57
22        Terrible Flood Blues (K) 3:04
23        Little Bug (K) 3:05
24        Horny Frog [Take 1] (K) 3:08
Credits :
(A) Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; Black Bob, piano; “Heebie Jeebies”, wood blocks  01/05/1936
(B) Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; Black Bob, piano; Bill Settles, stand-up bass “Heebie Jeebies” woodblocks on 3. 27/05/1936
(C) The Hokum Boys: Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; Casey Bill Weldon, guitar, vocal / chorus; Black Bob, piano: Bill Settles, stand-up bass.   11/06/1936
(D)  Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; accompanied by Punch Miller, trumpet on 15, 16, 17; Leeford or Aletha Robinson, piano; own guitar on 15, 16, 17; Fred Williams, drums. 03/09/1936
(E) Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; Probably Horace Malcolm, piano; Charlie McCoy, mandolin. Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; Black Bob, piano; Bill Settles, stand-up bass.  16/09/1936
(F)  Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; probably Myrtle Jenkins, piano; Bill Settles, stand-up bass.  28/10/1936
(G) Chicago Black Swans: Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; accompanied probably by Herb Morand or possibly Alfred Bell, trumpet; Arnett Nelson, clarinet; Black Bob, piano; possibly Tampa Red, guitar; unknown, percussion. 19/11/1936
(H) Midnight Ramblers: Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; Black Bob, piano; unknown, stand-up bass; possibly Washboard Sam, scat vocal. 19/11/1936
(I) Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; probably Myrtle Jenkins, piano; Bill Settles, stand-up bass. 26/01/1937
(J) Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; accompanied by “Mr. Sheiks (Alfred Bell), trumpet, on 16, 17, 19, 20; possibly . Fred Williams. drums on 19 and 20. Bill Settles, stand-up bass; possibly Fred Williams, drums on 19, 20. 29/01/1937
(K) Big Bill Broonzy, vocal, guitar; accompanied by Punch Miller, trumpet on 21, 23; Black Bob, piano; Bill Settles, stand-up bass; Fred Williams, drums on 23 / woodblocks on 22, 24. 31/01/1937