Académique Documents
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New Orleans
The History of New Orleans Rhythm & Blues Vol. 9 1958 Whirlaway
1.
Whirlaway
Al Tousan
2.
Sea Cruise
Frankie Ford
3.
RP, ART, CW
4.
The Upsetters
5.
Bad Boy
Larry Williams
EP
6.
Art Neville
7.
The Velvetiers
8.
Oh,Oh
Eddie Bo
EB, RC, CW
9.
10.
Honeycomb
Edgar Blanchard
Unreleased 1958
11.
Leonard Carbo
12.
Hattie Malatti
The Upsetters
13.
14.
RP, ART, CW
15.
Albert Scott
16.
Only Sixteen
Tal Miller
17.
18.
Eddie Lang
MR
19.
Larry Williams
EP
20.
Harry Lee
21.
Leonard Carbo
22.
Lottie-Mo
Lee Dorsey
23.
RP, ART, CW
24.
Roberta
Frankie Ford
25.
Bobby Marchan
ART, HS,
26.
Earl King
27.
Pleadin'
Mercy Baby
28.
Fats Domino
29.
Shirley
John Fred
30.
Darling
PG
31.
Java
Al Tousan
32.
Poinciana
Argo 5306
Earl King
Joe Ruffino
Earl Palmer
Eddie Bo
Charles Hungry
Williams
Lee Dorsey
Chris Kenner
Johnny Vincent
Art Rupe
Clarence Frogman
Henry & The Beatles
Dave Bartholemew
Eddie Bo
Bobby Marchan
Upsetters
Earl king
Art Neville
Bobby Charles
Benny Spellman
10
11
12
13
Fats Domino
Guitar Slim
Smiley Lewis
Joe banashak
The ShaWeez
14
The very first record label to be owned by AfroAmerican musicians, AFO, was established as a
collective in June 1961 by saxophonist Harold
Battiste with the AFO Combo, Chuck Badie, John
Boudreaux, Melvin Lastie, Roy Montrell and Alvin
'Red' Tyler. Battiste was the brains behind the whole
15
16
Amos Milburn
Barbara George
Bobby Marchan
17
Earl Palmer
Little Richard
Little Richard
Lloyd Price
Lee Allen
TV Slim
Mac Rebennack
Huey Smith
Fats Domino
Allen Toussaint
18
Other Labels
With the amount of hits rolling out of New Orleans
in 1956, everybody wanted a piece of the action.
Cosimo Matassa: Record companies were running
from all over the world to record something ... (but)
I dont think nobody from New Orleans made any
money.' After leaving the Los Angeles-based label
Flair Records in 1954, Clarence Garlow only made
half a dozen further records, the last of which, Sound
The Bell was cut for Louisianas Goldband Records
sometime in 1957 and features Katie Webster on
piano. His crisp guitar tone cuts through the track
like ice, leaving the rhythm section sounding as if it
was recorded out in the yard.
In March 1956, Elvis Presleys first release on RCA,
Heartbreak Hotel, went to #1 in the national charts.
RCA looked to capitalise on the new market for
rhythm and blues and they launched a new imprint
in April, Vik Records, which was to specialise in R&B.
Amongst the many artists they signed were Mickey
(Baker) & Sylvia, who hit with Love Is Strange in
January 1957, and Champion Jack Dupree, whose
first track for them was Dirty Woman. Dupree was
one of the first bluesmen to leave his native country
for a more (racially) accepting climate when he
moved to Europe in 1959; Ici Mo-Mo was recorded
in London in 1960.
The Upsetters backed up Lester Robinson in
1958 on My Girl Across Town, kicking off Sam
Montalbanos Baton Rougebased Montel Records.
The record sold well enough for him to cut local
teenager John Fred (Gourriers) self-composed
Shirley as the labels second release. The disc did
surprisingly well and shot up to #82 on Billboards
national charts, helped no doubt by the fact that the
backing musicians were none other than the J&M
studio band, who had just completed work on Fats
Dominos Whole Lotta Loving. Fred is of course better
known for his work in the 60s with the Playboys but,
to his credit, he never strayed far from his Louisiana
roots. Judy In Disguise slowed down (without the 60s
sound effects) is pure New Orleans Popeye.
19
Lee Allen was born in Kansas and came to New Orleans to study at Xavier University. He began playing
with Paul Gayten before becoming a member of the
J&M studio band. Eddie Mesner approached him to
cut a solo disc for Aladdin, and though Rockin' at
Cosmo's was not a success, it heralded the start of a
new career specialising in pop instrumentals. Herald
Records was run from New York by Al Silver and Sidney Braverman. Lee Allen signed for their sister label
Ember in 1957 and had a couple of hits for them in
1958 with Tic Toc and Walkin With Mr. Lee. Allen:
We were on a big show with Fats Domino... Id come
up with this little riff of mine and these guys from
New York City said why didnt I record that. [Later]
the guy from New York called up and said, You got a
hit (#54 Pop). Tic Toc didnt do as well, #92 Pop, and
strangely, neither disc made it on the R&B charts.
The follow up Cat Walk with its Latin cascara rhythm
didnt hit at all.
The long playing 33rpm album was slow to catch the
publics imagination. Modern Records were one of
the first indies off the mark with their modestly titled
A Collection of Popular Recordings series in 1950, but it
wasnt until 1956 that they began to tap the teenage
market with a series of attractively priced albums on
the Crown imprint at $1.49 each. Jimmy Beasley was
one artist who benefitted from this new policy with
an LP recorded in New Orleans with the Bartholomew
band entitled Fabulous. Initially released in mid 1957,
the album was repackaged in 1961 as Jimmy Beasley
Twist to cash in on the popular dance craze and a
number of tracks from his 1957 sessions were added
including Rhumba Rock. Apart from a single session
in 1965, Beasley made no further recordings.
Shirley Goodman was just thirteen years old when
she started her singing career. In 1952, she and her
friends somehow managed to persuade Cosimo
Mattassa to record them with the J&M studio band
behind them. Eddie Mesner heard the tape, signed
her up with school friend Leonard Lee, and only a
few weeks later, Aladdin Records had a top ten hit
on their hands with Im Gone. Things went quiet
for Shirley & Lee, giving them time to get back to
20
Lew Chudd
& Ricky Nelson
21
Bobby Mitchel
& The Toppers
Lloyd Price
Little Richard
Ernest Kador
Tommy Ridgely
Smiley Lewis
22
Appendix
The Musical Gumbo some of the qualities that
make New Orleans R&B so unique.
Low, greasy, horn sections of baritone and tenor
saxes playing chords in unison.
Percussive, staccato, piano rhythms played in
triplets and rolling piano arpeggios.
A tendency to play R&B in a slower tempo with a
more laid-back feel.
A preference for traditional eight or sixteen-bar
harmonic song structure over the twelve-bar blues
format.
Discography
Our incomplete discography lists the appearance
on disc (where known) of the following important
musicians
Horns: Dave Bartholomew DB, Wendell Duconge
WD, Frank Mitchell, FM, Buddy Hagans BH, Herb
Hardesty HH, Joe Harris JH, Clarence Hall CH, David
Lastie DL, Robert Parker RP, Julius Shakesnider JS,
Alvin Red Tyler AT, Lee Allen LA, Big Boy Myles BBM,
James Rivers JR, Wardell Quezergue WQ, Clarence
Ford CF, Melvin Lastie ML, Nat Perrilliat NP
Bibliography
John Broven, Rhythm & Blues In New Orleans
Jeff Hannusch, The Soul Of New Orleans
Jeff Hannusch, I Hear You Knocking
Dr. John, Under a Hoodoo Moon
Tony Scherman, Backbeat
Rick Coleman, Blue Monday
Ernest Borneman, Creole Echoes
Antoon Aukes, Second Line
Don Rouse, New Orleans Jazz and Caribbean Music
Al Rose, Storyville, New Orleans
Lichtenstein and Danker Musical Gumbo: The Music
of New Orleans
23
The Rhythms
Try to speak aloud the rhythm of the beats 1 &2 & 3
& 4 & while tapping the accented beats () with your
hands. Start slowly, repeat several times, speeding
up gradually, then listen to the tracks. Some of the
names for these rhythms are my own. Each bar has
at the beginning and end and the individual beats
in the bar are separated by (Quarter note pulse =
walking bass one note per bar)
Common Patterns in Jazz and R&B
Swing (triplet/swing time)tss t-t tss t-t
Oke-She-Moke-She-Pop (Joe Turner 1953);
Lawdy Miss Clawdy (Lloyd Price 1952)
Jazz/R&B Backbeat
Big Mamou (Smiley Lewis 1953); Aint It A
Shame (Fats Domino 1955)
Latin Patterns derived from 1st bar of the Son
Clave
Tresillo (Rumba)
New Orleans Joys (Jelly Roll Morton 1923);
Witchcraft (Spiders 1955)
Charleston
Black Snake Blues (King Oliver 1927 middle eight)
Two-bar patterns derived from whole of the
Son Clave
Son Clave
Besame Mucho (Edmund Hall 1944); Carnival
Day (Dave Bartholomew 1950)
New Orleans Double Downbeat
Lady Be Good (Eureka Brass Band 1951)
New Orleans Second Line Two-Beat
Big Noise From Winnetka (Bauduc/Haggart
1938); 3times 7 =21(Jewel King 1949)
24
Ragtime (1)
Hold That Tiger, I Got Rhythm
Ragtime (2)
Travelin Blues (Lovie Austin 1926); Maple Leaf
Rag; We Like Mambo (Huey Piano Smith 1955)
New Orleans R&B*
over
Roy Brown
Clarence Garlow
Fats Domino
25
Tommy Ridgley
Little Richard
Professor Longhair
Paul Gayten
Bobby Marchan
Guitar Slim