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 

TOO LATE, TOO LATE BLUES — Newly Discovered Titles & Alternate Takes ★ Volume 1 • 1926-1944 | DOCD-5150 (1993) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This CD initiated a logical series for the Document label. The company's goal of reissuing every single prewar recording has resulted in hundreds of valuable CDs being reissued. Inevitably, there were new discoveries of music after the fact, so this series consists of previously unreleased titles, alternate takes, and discoveries. Vol. 1 has selections from Blind Blake ("Early Morning Blues"), Blind Lemon Jefferson ("Lock Step Blues" and "Hangman's Blues"), George "Bullet" Williams, Bessie Tucker, the Memphis Jug Band, Willie Baker, Rev. D.C. Rice, Charlie Spand, Robert Peeples, Charley Patton (an alternate of "I Shall Not Be Moved"), Big Bill Broonzy, Frank Brasswell, Memphis Minnie, the team of Kansas City Kitty & Georgia Tom Dorsey, Bo Carter, Joe McCoy, Kokomo Arnold (a test pressing of his famous "Milk Cow Blues"), Little Buddy Doyle, and Lonnie Johnson. More general blues collectors should explore the more obvious releases first, but specialists will find these 26 performances (and those in later CDs included in this series) to be quite fascinating. Scott Yanow

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes. Document strives to preserve and present each artist’s oeuvre in a concise, logical format that will make it available for further enjoyment and study for many years to come. Inevitably, however, some items do turn up and become available to Document after (or perhaps even because) the major alcum issue is released. It is only then that some collectors realize what rare and unusual items they already have in their collections, and they make them available for Document to share with the larger community. This issue, then, acts as a clearing house to preserve and expand on what has previously been available, and also can serve as a sampler of artists that have been featured. These additional items fall into several main categories. The Rev. D. C. Rice test pressing was one I had a dub of for some ten years, but I realized only in hindsight that it was not generally known to exist. When I sent it to Document, it turned out that technical limitations (absolute album playing time) precluded its earlier use in any case, but this is a case of better late than never. I think it was Bob Dixon who pointed out this fact of life for the compiler; as soon as the work is completed as much and as well as possible, in come the corrections and additions to keep him humble and constantly on the lookout for more. Some of these are items that have only been found in the last year or so. One of these Big Bill’s is a case in point, having been picked up in a lot that was brought in “off the street” for disposal. Richard Hite sold the 78 to Pete Wielan who made it available. Mike Kirsling has made available items that he found in the great Paramount test lot of several years ago, but which he retained. Now they will be available. Several items have been tracked down via the Rarest 78’s column in 78 Quarterly. Those we’ve been able to contact have been most generous and forthcoming to help make this (and, indeed, the whole series in general) as complete and good sounding as it is. As for the question of alternate takes, Document has been including them when they are aurally different. The Charley Patton -2 included here is an exception – not noticeably different to our ears, but a better copy in any case. Some of these alternates come to our attention aurally, as in the case of Memphis Minnie‘s Reachin’ Pete, of which only one take was thought to exist. So we know for sure that some people at least listen to these issues with intense concentration. No doubt there are interesting stories behind each item presented here, but here are included the newly found, newly recognized, and newly offered items and the background of only a few of them. In conclusion, we dedicate this issue to you, the listener, who makes this task of retrieval, preservation and presentation such a labor of love for us all. DOCD-5150
Tracklist :
1    Blind Blake–    Early Morning Blues (3057-2)    2:57
2    Blind Lemon Jefferson–    Lock Step Blues (20750)    3:05
3    Blind Lemon Jefferson–    Hangman's Blues (20751-2)    3:04
4    George "Bullet" Williams–    Frisco Leaving Birmingham (Take 3)    2:52
5    Bessie Tucker–    My Man Has Quit Me (Take 2) 3:08
Piano – K.D. Johnson
6    Memphis Jug Band–    Stealin' Stealin' (Take 3) 3:07
Vocals [Group Vcl] – Memphis Jug Band
7    Willie Baker–    Weak-Minded Woman (14782 - Test)    3:04
8    Rev. D.C. Rice–    Will They Welcome Me There? (Test) 3:17
Mandolin – Unknown Artist
Piano – Unknown Artist
Tambourine – Unknown Artist
Triangle – Unknown Artist
Trombone – Unknown Artist
Trumpet – Unknown Artist
9    Charlie Spand–    Levee Camp Man (Breakdown) (Take 6 - Test)    1:31
10    Charlie Spand–    Mississippi Blues (Take V6 - Test)    2:49
11    Robert Peeples–    Worry Blues (Test)    2:39
12    Charley Patton–    I Shall Not Be Moved (Take 2)    3:02
13    Big Bill–    Bow Leg Baby 2:38
Piano – Georgia Tom Dorsey
14    Frank Brasswell–    Mountain Jack Blues (16575) 2:26
Piano – Unknown Artist
15    Memphis Minnie–    Memphis Minnie-Jitis Blues (Take B) 3:15
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
16    Kansas City Kitty & Georgia Tom–    Do It Some More    3:11
17    Kansas City Kitty & Georgia Tom–    Knife Man Blues    3:11
18    Bo Carter–    New Auto Blues    3:02
19    Big Bill–    Worried In Mind Blues    3:00
20    Joe McCoy–    Meat Cutter Blues (Alternate Take) 3:08
Guitar [Possibly] – Charlie McCoy
21    Joe McCoy–    What's The Matter With You? 2:55
Piano – Jimmie Gordon
22    Memphis Minnie–    Reachin' Pete (Take B)    3:10
23    Kokomo Arnold–    Milk Cow Blues – No. 5 (Test)    2:44
24    Memphis Minnie–    Running And Dodging Blues (Take 2 - Test) 2:43
Bass [String Bass, Probably] – Ransom Knowling
Clarinet – Arnett Nelson
Piano – Blind John Davis
25    Little Buddy Doyle–    Slick Capers Blues (Test) 2:35
Harmonica [Probably] – Walter Horton
26    Lonnie Johnson–    The Victim Of Love 3:10
Bass [String Bass] – Ransom Knowling
Piano – Blind John Davis

MEMPHIS MINNIE & KANSAS JOE — 1929-1934 Recordings In Chronological Order ★ Volume 1 • 1929-1930 | DOCD-5028 (1991) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This is the first of four Document CDs devoted to the musical partnership that existed from 1929-1935 between Memphis Minnie, who was born Lizzie Douglas in Algiers LA, and Kansas Joe McCoy, a native of Raymond, MS. These records were cut between June 1929 and May 1930 for the Columbia, Vocalion, and Victor labels in New York, Memphis, and Chicago, where their brand of entertainment was well-received by the expanding African-American community. Joe McCoy is believed to have been Minnie's second husband, and musically speaking at least, the two were well-matched during their six-year partnership, during which their vocals, verbal exchanges, and combined guitar work enlivened dozens of very enjoyable recordings that still convey the immediacy of the African-American experience. Both individuals sang in a straightforward, bracingly honest manner, usually about human relationships, as discussed openly in "What Fault You Find of Me?," "I'm Talking About You," "Can I Do It for You?," and "She Wouldn't Give Me None." There are three distinctly different treatments of Minnie's "Bumble Bee Blues" (a conflation of human sexuality with the behavior of a member of the Order Hymenoptera later popularized by guitarist Muddy Waters); a sobering original version of "When the Levee Breaks"; a song about the card game known as "Georgia Skin" (described in detail for the Library of Congress a few years later by Jelly Roll Morton), and a dead-serious account of Minnie's personal run-in with spinal meningitis, accompanied by the Memphis Jug Band, a group which included guitarist Charlie Burse and jug-blowing specialist Hambone Lewis. Document's four volumes of Minnie's collaborations with Joe McCoy were released alongside another five volumes devoted exclusively to her own recordings; the rest of Joe's recorded output with his brother Charlie McCoy, various jug and skiffle bands, and the swinging Harlem Hamfats was also compiled by Document during the '90s and reissued the following decade. arwulf arwulf

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes: Recording as Kansas Joe and Memphis Minnie at their 1929 debut recording session the couple cut six numbers, three featuring Kansas Joe as a vocalist, two with Minnie taking the vocals and the third found them duetting. These recordings weren’t afforded immediate issue but were released over a period of time. For example, the coupling Bumble Bee / I Want That was not on sale until some fifteen months later. It was to be the suggestive Bumble Bee (“Got the best stinger I’ve ever seen”) that was to make Memphis Minnie. So successful was the song that Victor “borrowed” Minnie to record a version fronting a caucus of the Memphis Jug Band. Vocalion then responded with Bumble Bee No. 2 and New Bumble Bee. The song was such hot property on the race market that in the last six months of 1930, unreleased recordings apart, there were no fewer than five versions, on three different labels, of Bumble Bee — three of which are present on this compilation. The sheer drive of the two guitars, the strength of imagery and intuitive awareness of one another’s musical needs made for a perfect team. Take a song like, When The Levee Breaks, that lyrically mirrors the harsh realities of living near the artificial river banks with lines like, “If it keep on raining, levee’s gonna break an’ all these people have no place to stay” whilst the twin guitar rhythms help create a complete fusion of feeling. On less intense, more hokum based numbers like She Wouldn’t Give Me None or Can I Do It For You a variant on the “Mama Let Me Lay It On You” theme) the duo display astonishing empathy in their guitar playing, most notably by Minnie. To quote guitarist Woody Mann on her technique “she seemed to be able to pick sounds from all around Memphis and integrate them into her playing”. As main vocalist Memphis Minnie can be heard on Mister Tango Blues and I’m Talking About You and give good insight into her ability to modulate her voice to suit the mood of the lyric. Whether it be slow meaningful blues or up-tempo lighter material she judiciously croaks, moans, twists and cracks her voice to achieve a fine sense of the dramatic. DOCD-5028
Tracklist :
1    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    I Want That 3:06
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Guitar, Vocals – Joe McCoy
2    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    That Will Be Alright 3:05
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Guitar, Vocals – Joe McCoy
3    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    Goin' Back To Texas 2:59
Guitar, Vocals – Joe McCoy, Memphis Minnie
4    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    'Frisco Town 2:50
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Memphis Minnie
5    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    When The Levee Breaks 3:08
Guitar, Vocals – Joe McCoy, Memphis Minnie
6    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    Bumble Bee 2:45
Guitar – Joe McCoy, Memphis Minnie
7    Memphis Minnie–    I'm Gonna Bake My Biscuits 2:50
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Memphis Minnie
8    Memphis Minnie–    Mister Tango Blues 3:34
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Guitar, Vocals – Memphis Minnie
9    Memphis Minnie–    She Wouldn't Give Me None 2:57
Guitar, Vocals – Kansas Joe McCoy, Memphis Minnie
10    Memphis Minnie And Kansas Joe–    What Fault You Find Of Me? - Part 1 2:41
Guitar [duet], Vocals [duet] – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
11    Memphis Minnie And Kansas Joe–    What Fault You Find Of Me? - Part 2 2:48
Guitar [duet], Vocals [duet] – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
12    Memphis Minnie–    I'm Talking About You 2:38
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
13    Memphis Minnie–    Bumble Bee (MEM-773) 2:49
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
14    Memphis Minnie And Kansas Joe–    Can I Do It For You? - Part 1 3:07
Guitar [duet], Vocals [duet] – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
15    Memphis Minnie And Kansas Joe–    Can I Do It For You? - Part 2 3:09
Guitar [duet], Vocals [duet] – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
16    Minnie McCoy And Joe Johnson (12)–    I'm Going Back Home 2:44
Guitar [duet], Vocals [duet] – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
17    Memphis Jug Band Vocal By Memphis Minnie–    Bumble Bee Blues (59993) 2:49
Guitar – Charlie Burse
Harmonica – Will Shade
Jug – Hambone Lewis
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
18    Memphis Jug Band Vocal By Memphis Minnie–    Meningitis Blues 3:14
Guitar – Charlie Burse
Harmonica – Will Shade
Jug – Hambone Lewis
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
19    McCoy And Johnson–    I Never Told A Lie 2:38
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
20    McCoy And Johnson–    Don't Want No Woman 3:11
Vocals [duet], Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
21    Memphis Minnie–    Georgia Skin 2:59
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
22    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    Don't Want No Woman I Have To Give My Money To (C-5817) 3:22
Vocals [duet], Guitar [duet] – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
23    Kansas Joe–    I'm Wild About My Stuff 2:55
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Guitar, Vocals – Kansas Joe

MEMPHIS MINNIE & KANSAS JOE — 1929-1934 Recordings In Chronological Order ★ Volume 2 • 1930-1931 | DOCD-5029 (1991) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Memphis Minnie made an enormous number of recordings during the years 1929-1941, under her own name and in collaboration with her husband Kansas Joe McCoy. When in the '90s Document set out to reissue every known recording by these two artists, Minnie's primary work occupied one series of five chronologically arranged albums, her work with McCoy was presented in another sequence of four CDs under both of their names, and the rest of McCoy's output was trundled out in tandem on multiple discs with his brother Charlie and the Harlem Hamfats. Additionally, Minnie recorded with the Memphis Jug Band, Frank Stokes, Little Son Joe, Bumble Bee Slim, Washington "Bukka" White, Casey Bill Weldon, and Sunnyland Slim. Few blues musicians of their generation left such a large number of recordings fitting into so many different discographies. Volume two in Document's painstaking survey of the Memphis Minnie-Joe McCoy collaborations presents 23 Vocalion records dating from their arrival in Chicago in June 1930 to the end of January 1931. Never one to avoid singing about life's challenges, pains, and pleasures, Minnie deliberately devoted a nearly three-and-one-half-minute record to her experiences as a survivor of spinal meningitis. The "Memphis Minnie-Jitis Blues" was a remake of the "Meningitis Blues" which she recorded only days earlier on May 26 back home in Memphis with accompaniment by the Memphis Jug Band. On September 9, Minnie assembled her own Jug Band including players borrowed from the Jed Davenport Jug Band for the "Grandpa and Grandma Blues" and the "Garage Fire Blues." Everything else on this collection features the Lizzie Douglas (Memphis Minnie) and Joe McCoy (Kansas Joe) duo. These are some of the first records they made after arriving in Chicago fresh from southwestern Tennessee. They strum their guitars, take turns singing, or toss off duets ("She Put Me Outdoors," "What's the Matter with the Mill?"), with Minnie's "New Dirty Dozen" standing out as a strong female interpretation of a tune usually knocked off by salty male pianists. "Bumble Bee No. 2" was actually the fourth version of Minnie's song to be recorded during a fairly short time period. The equestrian "Frankie Jean (That Trottin' Fool)" is packed with inspiring guitar work and a nice bit of whistling by Minnie, while "She Put Me Outdoors" is reminiscent of instrumental duets by Lonnie Johnson and Eddie Lang (who, when paired with Johnson was billed as "Blind Willie Dunn"). Some listeners may also detect a probable taproot of John Lee Hooker's early technique. arwulf arwulf

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes. This compilation represents Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe’s first encounter with the Chicago. Between June 1930 and January l931 the pair recorded on several occasions and cut several dozen titles. However, as a result of America’s slide into depression, most songs took many months to release and with the exception of the coupling, I Don’t Want No Woman I Have To Give My Money To / Cherry Ball Blues, nearly all songs recorded during June were left on the shelf. Subsequently they were issued with items from later sessions. Vocalion’s follow-up release, What’s The Matter With The Mill / North Memphis Blues, didn’t appear until November featuring titles recorded in October, the former ostensibly about a broken down corn mill but in reality sexual innuendo and the latter, apparently in praise of the culinary delights to be found at a Memphis cafe, is thought by some commentators to concern a house of ill repute! For their third offering the company coupled remakes of previous successes, Bumble Bee No. 2 / I’m Talkin’ About You No. 2 from June and July sessions – release date, January 1931! Despite the apparently arbitrary nature of the releases the period witnessed many accomplished recordings most notably, Memphis Minnie-Jitis Blues, which she sings with great passion about meningitis, The fact that she twice recorded this number, once with the Memphis Jug Band (DOCD 5028) and again with Kansas Joe, would tend to suggest personal experience of the illness. In general, however, this phase of their career tended to produce more traditionally based material serving to show the duo’s range of experience and versatility. Songs like the horse-calling Frankie Jean (That Trottin’ Fool) concerning a racehorse that wouldn’t come unless whistled to, whose running motions are mimicked by their guitar interplay, or the old vaudeville number, I Called You This Morning, which employs the same melody as that used for “‘Frisco Town” (DOCD 5028). The time-honoured theme, Preacher’s Blues, about the sexual antics of a woman stealing pastor perhaps harks back to their acquaintance with Frank Stokes while their version of the black toast, New Dirty Dozen, usually the province of male pianists, is sung by Minnie from a female perspective (“I’m pigmeat happy, now who wants me”), the standard piano accompaniment being recreated by the two guitars. With recordings like these Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe established themselves as an integral part of the Chicago blues scene; a scene that was growing with each black relocation from the south. DOCD-5029
Tracklist :
1    Memphis Minnie–    Memphis Minnie-Jitis Blues 3:20
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
2    Memphis Minnie–    Good Girl Blues 2:55
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
3    Kansas Joe McCoy–    My Mary Blues 3:10
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
4    Memphis Minnie–    Plymouth Rock Blues 2:49
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
5    Kansas Joe–    Cherry Ball Blues 3:09
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe
6    Kansas Joe–    Botherin' That Thing 3:14
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals – Kansas Joe
7    Memphis Minnie–    Bumble Bee -- No. 2 2:50
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
8    Memphis Minnie–    Georgia Skin Blues 3:24
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
9    Memphis Minnie–    New Dirty Dozen 2:58
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
10    Memphis Minnie–    New Bumble Bee 2:49
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
11    Memphis Minnie–    Frankie Jean (That Trottin' Fool) 2:49
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
12    Memphis Minnie–    I'm Talking 'Bout You -- No. 2 3:13
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
13    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    She Put Me Outdoors 2:46
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
14    Kansas Joe–    Pile Drivin' Blues 2:44
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe
15    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    I Called You This Morning 2:57
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
16    Memphis Minnie And Her Jug Band–    Grandpa And Grandma Blues 3:22
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
17    Memphis Minnie And Her Jug Band–    Garage Fire Blues 3:04
Guitar – Unknown Artist
Harmonica – Unknown Artist
Jug – Unknown Artist
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
18    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    What's The Matter With The Mill? 2:48
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
19    Memphis Minnie–    North Memphis Blues 2:32
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
20    Kansas Joe–    Beat It Right 3:24
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe
21    Kansas Joe–    Preachers Blues 3:11
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe
22    Kansas Joe–    Shake Mattie 2:36
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe
23    Kansas Joe–    My Wash Woman's Gone 2:24
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe

MEMPHIS MINNIE & KANSAS JOE — 1929-1934 Recordings In Chronological Order ★ Volume 3 • 1931-1932 | DOCD-5030 (1991) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The third volume in Document's series picks up in early 1931, with the Depression era in full swing; although Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe were still actively recording, very little of their material was actually seeing release. Ironically, these were some of the duo's finest sides to date, with Minnie's vocals and guitar work achieving new peaks of poignancy and intensity; with "Shake Mattie" and "My Wash Woman's Gone," she introduces her bottleneck style, while on "Let's Go to Town" she and Joe face off in a fiery instrumental duel. The latter half of the collection, recorded in New York, focuses on more traditional material; their rendition of the minstrel song "Fishin' Blues" is widely assumed to be the inspiration for subsequent versions by Son House, Bumble Bee Slim and many others. Jason Ankeny

From this album’s booklet notes: At the dawn of 1931 sales of race records were in sharp decline. Companies who six months previously had pressed in the region of 2,000 copies per record had cut that almost by half. Industry figures of the time showed that race records only accounted for about one percent of total sales, a very significant drop from the previous year. It was in this climate, and the period covered by this compilation, that Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe continued to record. A measure of the seriousness of the situation as it affected them can probably be gauged by their output; barely thirty titles recorded, at least half a dozen of which never saw release. Despite all this the quality of their recordings didn’t appear to suffer and, if anything, seemed to draw from Minnie a renewed sense of personal intensity both in lyric and playing.

The poignant, Crazy Crying Blues, with its terse lyric, ‘crying’ verse endings and moaned choruses almost echoing the blues of female singers of the twenties. The superb instrumental, Let’s Go To Town, couldn’t be better named with its rhythmic imagination and subtle tempo changes, the sheer drive of the piece creating the motion of an express train — a sort of “Honky Tonk Train” with two guitars. The period also witnessed Memphis Minnie adopt the bottleneck, or slide, guitar technique which she probably learnt from her first husband, Casey Bill Weldon, as can be heard on Kansas Joe‘s Shake Mattie and My Wash Woman’s Gone, the former containing perhaps the first reference in blues to, “Shake, rattle and roll”! For reasons best known to the company they switched Memphis Minnie and Joe McCoy‘s recording location from Chicago to New York where the pair had first recorded three years earlier.

If 1931 had been short on sessions, the following year was worse with only a dozen titles recorded over a two day period during February. The material cut favoured more traditionally based themes as Jailhouse Trouble Blues, Joliet Bound (a blues by Joe concerning the notorious prison) and Fishin’ Blues, the latter a minstrel song long associated with Texas having been collected there in the early twenties by musicologist Walter Prescott Webb and first commercially recorded by songster, Henry ‘Ragtime’ Thomas. DOCD-5030
Tracklist :
1    Memphis Minnie–    I Don't Want That Junk Outa You 2:22
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
2    Memphis Minnie–    Crazy Cryin' Blues 3:26
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
3    Memphis Minnie–    Tricks Ain't Walking No More 2:48
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
4    Memphis Minnie–    Don't Bother It 3:08
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals – Memphis Minnie
5    Memphis Minnie–    Today Today Blues 2:46
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals – Memphis Minnie
6    Memphis Minnie–    Lay My Money Down (If You Run Around) 2:55
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
7    Memphis Minnie–    Hard Down Lie 2:40
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
8    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    Somebody's Got To Help You 3:08
Guitar, Vocals – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
9    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    Pickin' The Blues 3:02
Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
10    Kansas Joe And Memphis Minnie–    Let's Go To Town 3:07
Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
11    Memphis Minnie–    Soo Cow Soo 2:37
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
12    Memphis Minnie–    After While Blues 2:51
Mandolin – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
13    Memphis Minnie–    Fishin' Blues 2:55
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
14    Memphis Minnie–    Jailhouse Trouble Blues 3:12
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
15    Memphis Minnie–    Outdoor Blues 3:00
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
16    Memphis Minnie–    Where Is My Good Man 2:59
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
17    Memphis Minnie–    You Stole My Cake 2:56
Vocals, Guitar – Joe McCoy, Memphis Minnie
18    Memphis Minnie–    Kind Treatment Blues 2:46
Guitar – Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
19    Kansas Joe–    You Know You Done Me Wrong 3:07
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe
20    Kansas Joe–    Joliet Bound 3:06
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe
21    Kansas Joe–    Stranger's Blues 2:50
Guitar – Memphis Minnie
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe
22    Memphis Minnie–    Socket Blues 2:55
Guitar – Kansas Joe
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie

MEMPHIS MINNIE & KANSAS JOE — 1929-1934 Recordings In Chronological Order ★ Volume 4 • 1933-1934 | DOCD-5031 (1991) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Although the title credits the material herein to Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe, very few of the tracks which comprise this volume are actually collaborative efforts between the duo -- by 1933 their personal and professional relationships were both on the rocks, with Minnie instead recording solo and Joe working with his guitarist brother Charlie. The Minnie solo sides which open the set are uniformly excellent, with the saucy "My Butcher Man" spotlighting her gifts as a lyricist and the Mississippi-styled "Too Late" underscoring her guitar prowess. By mid-1934, some measure of reconciliation had clearly been reached, as the couple was now performing together again; although their reunion was short-lived -- and their subsequent break final -- these last sides are also powerful, with the revealing "Moaning the Blues" capping their career in peak form. Jason Ankeny

Abridged from this album’s original booklet notes After a gap of almost two years Memphis Minnie returned to the studio in November 1933 but this time it was as a solo artist. The session only produced four numbers of which two were commercially released. My Butcher Man, a double-entendre employing some nice ‘meat cutting’ imagery (“slice my pork chop, grind my sausage too” etc) and culminating in the vivid,

If anybody ask you “butcher man where you bin?”, Show them that long bladed knife, tell ’em you’ve bin butchering out in that slaughter pen.

was coupled with the outstanding, Too Late, a blues that in structure and attack owed more to Mississippi than Memphis or Chicago, the superb guitar accompaniment so reminiscent of Mattie Delaney. Four months later, in March 1934, she returned to record a further two titles, Stinging Snake Blues and Drunken Barrel House, again without Joe McCoy. The reasons behind Joe McCoy‘s disappearance from the recording scene have never been explained, though artists who knew the couple reported that Joe couldn’t come to terms with Minnie’s success and as such was putting a strain on the marriage. However, they must have resolved their problems because in August 1934 they signed to the newly formed Decca label. The company policy was to undercut existing race labels by pricing all records at 35 cents. This was justified by maintaining that corresponding cuts in overheads would be achieved by keeping as many recordings as possible to a single take. In practice though this seldom happened as the two takes of Keep It To Yourself prove. It was in this climate that Memphis Minnie and Joe McCoy came to record their initial sessions for Decca and over a two month period they cut a mixture of duets and solo items. The reconciliation, however, was short lived and following their last recording, the magnificent if slightly prophetic, Moanin’ The Blues, they parted permanently. Ironically the split was to coincide with a shift in the tastes of black record buyers who were demanding less traditional sounds and more ‘swing’. Joe McCoy forged a career for himself under his own name, finally teaming up with the Harlem Hamfats and Memphis Minnie embarked upon a very busy recording career which will be covered by further discs in this series. DOCD-5031
Tracklist :
1    Memphis Minnie–    My Butcher Man 2:58
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
2    Memphis Minnie–    Too Late 2:56
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
3    Memphis Minnie–    Ain't No Use Trying To Tell On Me 3:11
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
4    Memphis Minnie–    Stinging Snake Blues 3:01
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
5    Memphis Minnie–    Drunken Barrel House Blues 2:50
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
6    The Mississippi Mudder (Mud Dauber Joe)–    I Got To Have A Little More 3:16
Piano – Chuck Segar
Vocals – Unknown Artist
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Washboard [Prob.] – Unknown Artist
7    The Mississippi Mudder (Mud Dauber Joe)–    Someday I'll Be In The Clay 3:12
Piano – Jimmie Gordon
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Washboard [Prob.] – Unknown Artist
8    Kansas Joe McCoy–    Evil Devil Woman Blues 3:10
Guitar [Poss.] – Charlie McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
9    Kansas Joe McCoy–    Going Back Home Blues 3:02
Guitar [Poss.] – Charlie McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
10    Kansas Joe McCoy–    Meat Cutter Blues 2:52
Guitar [Poss.] – Charlie McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
11    Memphis Minnie And Kansas Joe–    You Got To Move - Part I 3:02
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
12    Memphis Minnie–    Keep It To Yourself 2:47
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
13    Memphis Minnie–    Keep It To Yourself 2:55
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
14    Memphis Minnie–    Chickasaw Train Blues (Low Down Dirty Thing) 3:15
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
15    Memphis Minnie–    Banana Man Blues (I Don't Want That Thing) 3:02
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
16    Memphis Minnie And Kansas Joe–    You Got To Move - Part II 2:47
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
17    Memphis Minnie And Kansas Joe–    Hole In The Wall 3:11
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
18    Memphis Minnie And Kansas Joe–    Give It To Me In My Hand (Can I Go Home With You) 3:25
Vocals, Guitar – Kansas Joe, Memphis Minnie
19    Memphis Minnie–    Squat It 2:48
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie
20    Memphis Minnie–    Moaning The Blues 3:05
Guitar – Kansas Joe McCoy
Vocals, Guitar – Memphis Minnie