Finger Poppin' And Stompin' Feet - 20 Classic Allen Toussaint Productions For Minit Records 1960-1962

This blog has been semi-dormant lately. I might post a few things in the near future but the text would be brief.
Here's a compilation of Allen Toissaint's songwriting/producing work from the early 60s - that great New Orleans sound on the crossroads of blues, soul, girl-group pop, R'n'B, early funk... He is the great unknown figure behind the scene. I knew a few hours' worth of his songs before I first heard his name: "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" as covered by Ike and Tina Turner, "A Certain Girl" (Yardbirds), "Pain in My Heart" (Otis Redding), The Stones' version of "Fortune Teller," several covers of "Get Out of My Life, Woman", "Lady Marmalade" which I actually played in one of my bands, several superb tracks by Irma Thomas (It's Raining, Take a Look, Cry On) etc.etc.

AMG review: Allen Toussaint is a giant of American popular music, but his work was primarily behind the scenes as a songwriter, producer, arranger, and sessionman. Even as a leader, his songs and recordings became better-known through interpretations and assimilations from such artists as Glen Campbell, Lowell George, and Bonnie Raitt, instead of his darkly sensual, funky records of the '70s. That's why a collection like Finger Poppin' and Stompin' Feet: 20 Classic Allen Toussaint Productions is so welcome -- it shines a spotlight on Toussaint's most influential work as a producer and songwriter, all from the vaults of Minit Records. This is hardly the totality of Toussaint's contributions -- not only are his solo recordings nowhere to be seen, such brilliant work as his collaborations with Lee Dorsey are nowhere to be heard on this disc -- but it's an exuberant celebration of a musician at the top of his game. Plus, it's just a hell of a good listen, nearly a greatest-hits collection of New Orleans R&B as a whole, thanks to such classics as the Showmen's "It Will Stand"; Ernie K-Doe's "Mother-in-Law," "A Certain Girl," and "I Cried My Last Tear"; Aaron Neville's "Over You"; Jessie Hill's "Ooh Poo Pah Doo, Pt. 1"; Benny Spellman's "Fortune Teller" and "Lipstick Traces (On a Cigarette)"; and Irma Thomas' "Ruler of My Heart" and "It's Raining." In addition to those, there are lesser-known gems from the same artists, plus cult artists like the Del Royals and Allen Orange, which add seasoning to a collection already bursting with flavor. Even if you already know Allen Toussaint's work and reputation, it's a revelation and a joyous listen. And, needless to say, it's also essential to any pop or R&B collection.


Finger Poppin' And Stompin' Feet
20 Classic Allen Toussaint Productions For Minit Records 1960-1962
REUP: 320kbps, 94mb on mediafire
1. The Showmen – It Will Stand
2. Ernie K-Doe – Mother-In-Law
3. Aaron Neville – Over You
4. Allen & Allen – Heavenly Baby
5. Jessie Hill – Ooh Poo Pah Doo, Pt. 1
6. Ernie K-Doe – Tain't It The Truth
7. Irma Thomas – Cry On
8. Allen Orange – True Love Never Dies
9. Aaron Neville – Let's Live
10. Ernie K-Doe – Te-Ta-Te-Ta-Ta
11. Jessie Hill – Whip It On Me
12. Benny Spellman – Fortune Teller
13. Ernie K-Doe – I Cried My Last Tear
14. Benny Spellman – Lipstick Traces (On A Cigarette)
15. The Del-Royals – Always Naggin' (Grumblin' Fussin' Nag Nag)
16. Irma Thomas – It's Raining
17. Ernie K-Doe – A Certain Girl
18. The Showmen – 39-21-46
19. Irma Thomas – Ruler Of My Heart
20. Jessie Hill – Ooh Poo Pah Doo, Pt. 2

Yiddish Songs - Traditionals 1911-1950

Yiddish Songs - Traditionals 1911-1950
CDs 1+2, VBR, 198mb on megaupload or rapidshare
CDs 3+4, VBR, 176mb on rapidshare or megaupload
Tracklist in comments
The first two CDs came out separately with the following artwork:

Louis Armstrong - Blues Accompaniments 1924-1927

If I were to compile a list of my favorite jazz players, it probably won't overlap with a "jazz genius top ten" by much. I'll take Sonny over Trane any day, ditto Fats and Brownie over Miles, and I am only lately starting to warm up to Parker, and then probably because of overexposure than because of a true emotional connection - I must've heard his Savoy sides more times than I've heard Pink Floyd. But there is one guy that will probably top both lists, and that is Louis Armstrong. Satchmo does it for me every time.
I'll take his Hot Fives/Sevens to a desert island, no contest. There is no point in sharing them, though: there have been at least three different "complete" reissues, probably more, and all are easily available elsewhere. However, his sideman recordings are more obscure. After coming up to Chicago in 1922 to play with King Oliver and then Fletcher Henderson, Pops was very much in demand as a studio musician and accompanist. I am sure he did not mind making some dough on the side, either, so there is a wealth of his solos backing the famous and not-so-famous blues singers of the day, from Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith on down. In fact, the record execs noticed that the 78s with his solos - even uncredited - often sold better, and that gave them a bright idea to record Armstrong as a leader; the rest, as they say, is history.
Today's share is a collection of tracks with Armstrong's participation, recorded between 1924 and 1927. There are some sublime solos here; my favorites are two Bessie Smith tracks - I Ain't Gonna Play No Second Fiddle and You've Been a Good Ole Wagon; another great track, He Likes It Slow, features the whole Hot Five and so appeared as a part of the "Complete" box sets. I should warn the prospective listeners that some of this is pretty sonically crude. Hot Fives and Sevens were an all-star band and they got all the latest studio gizmos and extra attention from the recording engineers; also, we get to hear the Hot Fives and Sevens after they've been put through the marvels of modern remastering. These tracks, OTOH, have none of the above; what they often do have is a distinctive unrehearsed "let's cut it and go drinking" one-take feel - the balance is all over the place, there are stumbles and rough spots, and the instrumentation is sometimes rather skeletal, such as the vocal-cornet-harmonium trio on the St. Louis Blues. So, for all the historical interest and occasional brilliance of Satchmo's solos, these probably won't be going with me to any desert island unless I'll be taking my 500GB hard drive with me.
A very thorough Armstrong discography can be found here, refer to it for session dates, personnel and instrumentation.
Track list and links are in comments.

Jelly Roll Morton - Birth of the Hot 1926-27

Jelly Roll Morton - Birth of the Hot: The Classic Chicago "Red Hot Peppers" Sessions 1926-27
VBR, 94mb on depositfiles
1. Black Bottom Stomp
2. Smoke House Blues
3. The Chant
4. Sidewalk Blues [Take 3]
5. Dead Man Blues [Take 1]
6. Steamboat Stomp
7. Someday Sweetheart
8. Grandpa's Spells [Take 3]
9. Original Jelly-Roll Blues
10. Doctor Jazz
11. Cannon Ball Blues [Take 2]
12. Hyena Stomp
13. Billy Goat Stomp
14. Wild Man Blues
15. Jungle Blues
16. Beale Street Blues
17. The Pearls
18. Wolverine Blues
19. Mr. Jelly Lord
20. Sidewalk Blues [Alt.Take 2]
21. Dead Man Blues [Alt.Take 2]
22. Grandpa's Spells [Alt.Take 2]
23. Cannon Ball Blues [Alt.Take 1]

The Essential Preservation Hall Jazz Band

The Essential Preservation Hall Jazz Band
High VBR, 206mb CD1 and CD2 on sharebee
1. Tiger Rag
2. Mood Indigo
3. The Bucket's Got A Hole In It
4. His Eye Is On The Sparrow
5. St. Louis Blues
6. Gerorgia On My Mind
7. Careless Love
8. Precious Lord
9. Joe Avery
10. I Ain't Got Nobody
11. Shake It And Brake It
12. Just A Closer Walk With Thee, Part II
13. When The Saints Go Marchin' In
14. Petite Fleur
15. (True,) You Don't Love Me
16. Jesus On The Main Line
17. Do Lord
18. God Will Take Care Of You
19. Over In Gloryland
20. Bill Bailey (Won't You Please Come Home)
21. Somebody Else Is Taking My Place
22. Lily Of The Valley
23. Put On Your Old Grey Bonnet
24. Hindustan

Golden Age Gospel Choirs (1954-1963)

Golden Age Gospel Choirs (1954-1963)
128kbps, 62mb on sharebee
1. The Back Home Choir - He's So Mighty
2. The Back Home Choir - I Trust Him
3. The Back Home Choir - Ride On King Jesus
4. The Back Home Choir - Without God I Can Do Nothing
5. The Back Home Choir - He Knows How Much We Can Bear
6. The Back Home Choir - Climbing High Mountains
7. The Back Home Choir - Come Out The Wilderness
8. The Back Home Choir - Yes I Found Him
9. The Back Home Choir - Jesus
10. The Back Home Choir - Jordan River
11. The Pentecostal Choir Of Detroit - Prayer Wheel Turning Over
12. The Pentecostal Choir Of Detroit - How Glad Am I
13. The Helen Robinson Youth Choir - Sit Down Children
14. The Helen Robinson Youth Choir - Working On The Building
15. The Helen Robinson Youth Choir - Run And Help Us Tell
16. Voices Of Victory - Invocation (The Lord's Prayer)
17. Voices Of Victory - I'm So Glad Jesus Lifted Me
18. Voices Of Victory - The Angels Keep Watching
19. Voices Of Victory - Great Change In Me
20. Voices Of Victory - Lord, Lord, Lord
21. Voices Of Victory - I Am Somebody
22. Voices Of Victory - Blessed Assurance
23. Voices Of Victory - Benediction (The Lord's Prayer)

Golden Age Gospel Quartets Volume Two (1954-1963)

Golden Age Gospel Quartets Volume Two (1954-1963)
128kbps, 70mb on sharebee
1. The Soul Stirrers - He'll Make A Way
2. The Soul Stirrers - Be With Me Jesus
3. The Chosen Gospel Singers - Don't Worry About Me
4. The Chosen Gospel Singers - What A Wonderful Sight
5. The Chosen Gospel Singers - The Lifeboat Is Coming
6. The Pilgrim Travelers - Straight Street
7. The Pilgrim Travelers - After While
8. The Pilgrim Travelers - Did You Stop To Pray This Morning
9. The Pilgrim Jubilee Singers - What Do You Know (About Jesus)
10. The Pilgrim Jubilee Singers - Oh, Lord
11. The Pilgrim Jubilee Singers - Tell Jesus (What You Want)
12. The Pilgrim Jubilee Singers - Yesteryear
13. Original Five Blind Boys Of Alabama - Broken Heart Of Mine
14. Original Five Blind Boys Of Alabama - Goodbye Mother
15. Original Five Blind Boys Of Alabama - I've Been Born Again
16. The Soul Stirrers - Were You There
17. The Soul Stirrers - Sinner To Jesus
18. The Soul Stirrers - Out On A Hill
19. The Gate City Singers - I Thank You Jesus
20. The Gate City Singers - Peace In The Valley
21. The Capitol City Stars - Friends Talk About Me
22. The Capitol City Stars - Jesus, I Love To Call Your Name
23. The Clefs Of Calvary - Trouble Of This World
24. The Clefs Of Calvary - Miracle Temple
25. The Gable Airs - Move Upstairs
26. The Gable Airs - Miracle Temple
27. The Gable Airs - Travelin' Shoes

Golden Age Gospel Quartets Volume One (1947-1954)

Golden Age Gospel Quartets Volume One (1947-1954)
128kbps, 72mb on sharebee
1. The Southern Harmonizers - These Old Bones
2. The Southern Harmonizers - What Are They Doing In Heaven Today
3. The Pilgrim Travelers - The Old Rugged Cross
4. The Pilgrim Travelers - He Will Remember Me
5. The Golden Echoes - Since I Laid My Burden Down (Glory, Glory Hallelujah)
6. The Golden Echoes - Where Shall I Be (When The First Trumpet Sounds)
7. The Paramount Singers - He Means So Much To Me
8. The Paramount Singers - Heaven In My View
9. The Soul Stirrers - Faith And Grace
10. The Soul Stirrers - By And By
11. The Pilgrim Travelers - Jesus Hits Like The Atom Bomb
12. The Pilgrim Travelers - Jesus, I'm Thankful
13. The Detroiters - Let Jesus Lead You
14. The Detroiters - Mother, I Need Your Prayer
15. The Soul Stirrers - Peace In The Valley
16. The Soul Stirrers - Christ Is All
17. The Chosen Gospel Singers - Before This Time Another Year
18. The Chosen Gospel Singers - Leaning On The Lord
19. The Swan Silvertones - I'm Coming Home
20. The Swan Silvertones - He Won't Deny Me
21. The Pilgrim Travelers - Weary Traveler
22. The Pilgrim Travelers - My Old Home
23. Original Five Blind Boys Of Alabama - There Is A Fountain
24. Original Five Blind Boys Of Alabama - Marching Up To Zion
25. The West Coast Jubilees - Since Jesus Came To My Heart (Live)
26. The West Coast Jubilees - He'll Be There (Live)

Soul Stirrers

AMG review: If you want to hear what I humbly submit as one of the most impassioned gospel performances ever recorded, just throw this disc in the player, and brace yourself. Rebert Harris was undoubtedly one of the great voices and stylists of the genre, and his performances on this disc go a long way to justifying the claim that he was the greatest of them all. Every track on here is a gem of beauty, tone and commitment. But the kickoff track on this compilation, an alternate take of their two-part single, "By and By," is absolutely devastating in its use of shading, dynamics, and unrelenting fervor in getting its message across. The Soul Stirrers lock the groove down mightily, chiming up on those low seventh chords like twelve feet of concrete. Harris, as the old saying goes, sings his rear end off on this one, and, as transcendent moments go, this one is in a class all by itself. If the issued versions included here are slightly less subdued and don't quite hit as high a quotient on the fervor meter, so what? — we should be grateful enough that this performance has survived. If impassioned gospel is your thing, boy, are you gonna love this.


Soul Stirrers - Shine On Me
128kbps, 68mb on sharebee
1. By And By
2. I'm Still Living On Mother's Prayer
3. Fell Like My Time Ain't Long
4. Today
5. I Have A Right To The Tree Of Life
6. In That Awful Hour
7. Jesus Hits Like The Atom Bomb
8. Shine On Me
9. Faith And Grace
10. Everybody Ought To Love Their Soul
11. Blessed Be The Name Of The Lord
12. I'm Gonna Move In The Room With The Lord
13. My Loved Ones Are Waiting For Me
14. How Long
15. Who'll Be The One (There's A Vacant Room In Glory)
16. The Lord Is My Shepherd
17. Christ Is All (The World To Me)
18. By And By Part I
19. By And By Part II
20. By And By Part II (Version 2)
21. I'm Still Living On Mother's Prayer (Version 2)
22. Feel Like My Time Ain't Long (Version 2)
23. I Have A Right To The Tree Of Life (Version 2)
24. In That Awful Hour (Version 2)
25. Faith And Grace (Version 2)
26. My Loved Ones Are Waiting For Me (Version 2)

Amazon: While Sam Cooke certainly made beautiful music in the pop realm, his greatest sides were those made with the Soul Stirrers. When Cooke joined the group in 1950 at the age of 19, he'd already spent 4 years singing with the Highway Q.C.'s. The Soul Stirrers lead singer, R.H. Harris, who quit just before Cooke's arrival, had spent almost 25 years molding the group into gospel stardom through an innovative use of two lead singers matched with utmost energy and sophistication. Cooke initially sang in a style similar to Harris's, but soon took off into his own unearthly realm, writing spine-tingling songs like "Nearer to Thee," "Mean Old World," and the brilliant "Touch the Hem of His Garment," then singing them in his soaring, inimitable style with perfect control of phrasing and enunciation. This is an awesome collection, a record to listen to many, many times--to grow old with. Save it for those days when you need absolute proof that true grace does exist.


Sam Cooke - Sam Cooke with the Soul Stirrers
128kbps, 62mb on sharebee
1. Peace in the Valley
2. It Won't be Very Long
3. How Far am I From Cannan?
4. Just Another Day
5. Come and go to That Land
6. Any Day Now
7. He'll Make a Way
8. Nearer to Thee
9. Be With Me Jesus
10. One More River
11. I'm so Glad (Trouble Don't Last Always)
12. Wonderful
13. Farther Along
14. Touch the Hem of His Garment
15. Jesus, Wash Away My Troubles
16. Must Jesus Bear This Cross Alone?
17. That's Heaven to Me
18. Were You There?
19. Mean Old World
20. Lord Remember Me
21. Lovable
22. Forever
23. I'll Come Running Back to You
24. That's All I Need to Know
25. I Don't Want to Cry

Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant - Stratosphere Boogie + Swinging On The Strings

An easy way to describe this would be to string a bunch of labels together - instrumental-country-jazz-rockabilly-blues-bop-blah-blah... The uniqueness of these recordings is that they exist outside of the style divisions. In fact, this music was created before the modern styles drifted apart; and by people who simply did not know that country cannot be jazz because "that's not done". Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant were two white hillbilly kids, and so they grew up with the sounds of bluegrass and country-and-western; they also were very talented, curious musicians, and their ears were open to the cutting edge of instrumental music in America, and in the late 40s - early 50s it was bebop. Finally, both played new, recently invented, futuristic instruments: Speedy West was a steel guitar player, and Jimmy Bryant was one of the first solidbody guitarists in the world, and the first one to get Fender Telecaster when it went into production. There is no self-conscious "breaking the rules" kind of feeling, as there were no rules. They were unconstrained by the tradition because there was none: they simply had to invent everything themselves from the ground up. Nothing like this have ever been recorded before, and soon after they walked out of the studio for the last time, the gates between different styles shut down for keeps.
The "starting-from-a-clean-slate" approach sometimes produces interesting results even in the hands of people completely devoid of talent - just look at the Shaggs or the Stooges - but West and Bryant were accomplished studio musicians, true musical geniuses, and these two collections might be some of the most far-out, unique stuff you might hear.

AMG says: Fans of country and jazz guitar will discover two new idols after delving into this 16-track collection [Stratosphere Boogie], which features the best of the genre-shattering sessions recorded by this legendary duo. Between Bryant's jazzy, lightning-fast leads and West's brash, groundbreaking pedal steel work, the two recorded some of the most astounding instrumental country music of all time. Whether it's the hilarious "Sleepwalker's Lullaby" or top-fuel classics like "Old Joe Clark" and "Arkansas Traveler," the pair's 1950s records were among the most experimental music being made anywhere in America. It doesn't hurt to add that they were extremely influential, and one spends nearly as much time laughing along with these songs as they do trying to figure out how the hell anyone ever got this good.


Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant - Stratosphere Boogie
256kbps, 67mb on depositfiles
1. Stratosphere Boogie
2. Blue Bonnet Rag
3. Cotton Pickin'
4. Old Joe Clark
5. Sleepwalker's Lullaby
6. Arkansas Traveler
7. The Night Rider
8. Low Man On A Totem Pole
9. Speedin' West
10. Comin' On
11. Bryant's Bounce
12. Midnight Ramble
13. Pickin' Peppers
14. Shuffleboard Rag
15. Bustin' Thru
16. Flippin' The Lid


Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant - Swinging On The Strings
256kbps, 94mb on depositfiles
1. Frettin' Fingers
2. Lover
3. Two Of A Kind
4. Yodeling Guitar
5. West Of Samoa
6. Opus 1
7. Truck Driver's Ride
8. T-Bone Rag
9. Skiddle-Dee-Boo
10. China Boy
11. Railroadin'
12. Jammin' With Jimmy
13. Deep Water
14. This Ain't The Blues
15. The Rollin' Sky
16. Whistle Stop
17. Hillcrest (Opus 3)
18. Pushin' The Blues
19. Swingin' On The Strings
20. Caffeine Patrol

Eddie Lang - Jazz Guitar Virtuoso

Beautiful early jazz guitar. Eddie Lang was the first player who defined guitar as a real jazz instrument. He was in great demand as a studio player during his tragically brief life, guesting on recordings by anybody who was anybody in the late 20s' jazz, from Armstrong, Ellington, Bix, and Dorsey brothers on down. This Yazoo comp collects his sides as a leader, including two solo pieces (Rachmaninoff's Prelude opens the disc), duos with guitarists Lonnie Johnson and Karl Cress, and several guitar-piano duos as well.
Read his bio here or a longer article here.
Bitrate isn't high, but I don't think this matters for recordings from 1920s.


Eddie Lang - Jazz Guitar Virtuoso
128 kbps, 38 mb
megaupload
mediafire
1. Prelude
2. Pickin' My Way
3. Rainbow Dreams
4. Blue Guitars
5. April Kisses
6. I'll Never Be The Same
7. Blue Room
8. Eddie's Twister
9. Midnight Call Blues
10. Perfect
11. A Little Love, A Little Kiss
12. Melody Man's Dream
13. Feeling My Way
14. Church Street Sobbin' Blues

Blind Boy Fuller - Truckin' My Blues Away

This CD was my first introduction to Blind Boy Fuller, to Piedmont blues, to pre-war blues in general. As it often happens with the first impressions, it was the strongest one. I've heard a lot of old blues since - the raw power of Charlie Patton, the effortless virtuosity of Blind Blake, the encyclopedic repertoire of Gary Davis - but Fuller remains my favorite. Pigmeat and the title track still make me jump, and Walking My Troubles Away still gives me chills, just like it did the first time I heard them almost fifteen years ago. I listened to it over and over, trying to figure out how many guitar players are there on this record. Now I know it's just one, the one and only Blind Boy Fuller.
Of course, an additional bonus is the cover by Robert Crumb.


Blind Boy Fuller - Truckin' My Blues Away
REUP 2/8/2014:4shared
192 kbps, 55 mb
1. Truckin' My Blues Away
2. Untrue Blues
3. Homesick And Lonesome Blues
4. You Never Can Tell
5. Mamie
6. Jivin' Woman Blues
7. Weeping Willow
8. Funny Feeling Blues
9. I Crave My Pigmeat
10. Corrine What Makes You Treat Me So?
11. Meat Shakin' Woman
12. Walking My Troubles Away
13. Painful Hearted Man
14. Sweet Honey Hole

Shanghai Lounge Divas Vol. 1

In 2003 the global music company EMI was clearing out an old warehouse in Mumbai, India in preparation for its demolition. EMI had been there since the 1920s when it manufactured and distributed records under the Pathe label. In the warehouse, workmen unearthed a trunk with Chinese writing on it and inside were the mother shells of about 800 songs from the thirties and forties. These were the reels used to press the stamper that produced the old vinyl 78s [...] Music as unique as the city in its golden era, a mixture of Eastern and Western influences, blues, jazz, traditional Chinese opera and folk music. Read more


Shanghai Lounge Divas, CD1 - The Remixes
320kbps, 150 mb
zippyshare
1. Plum Blossom – Li Xiang-lan
2. Waiting 4 U – Bai Kwong
3. If Only… - Li Xiang-lan
4. Stop Singing – Chow Hsuan
5. The Pretender – Bai Kwong
6. All the Stars in the Sky – Chang Loo
7. This Love is Not for Me – Yao Lee
8. Listen Up – Bai Hong
9. Autumn Evening – Bai Kwong
10. The Wandering Songstress – Chow Hsuan
11. The Plough Song – Chang Loo
12. Ye Shanghai – Chow Hsuan

Shanghai Lounge Divas, CD2 - The Originals
320 kbps, 160 mb
depositfiles
1. Plum Blossom – Li Xiang-lan
2. Waiting 4 U – Bai Kwong
3. If Only… - Li Xiang-lan
4. Stop Singing - Chow Hsuan
5. The Pretender – Bai Kwong
6. All the Stars in the Sky – Chang Loo
7. This Love is Not for Me – Yao Lee
8. Listen Up – Bai Hong
9. Autumn Evening – Bai Kwong
10. The Wandering Songstress – Chow Hsuan
11. The Plough Song – Chang Loo
12. Ye Shanghai 2003 – Chow Hsuan
13. Longing for You – Gong Chio-xia
14. Lingering Love – Man Ping
15. Shangri-La – OuYoung Fei-ying
16. Shanghai Miss – Zhang Yi-wen
17. Love that’s Gone – Gu Ying
18. Song of the Fisherman – Wang Ren-mei
19. Harmonious Couple - Lang Yu-xiu
20. Hundred Birds – Li Li-hua/Yan Hua
21. Fallen Petals – Lu Min
22. Heavenly Spring Dream – Lu Ming
23. The Blossom Youth - Chow Hsuan
24. The Night Is Too Beautiful To Last – Pei Ni

Musette

Two compilations of musette (AKA bal-musette), a french accordion style of the first half of XXth century. You can hear it grow from simple folk dance tunes into a beautiful, harmonically complex style of jazz-influenced virtuosos like Tony Murena and Gus Viseur. The material overlaps a little. Viseur's signature tune (and, possibly, the most famous musette piece of all), Flambee Montalbanaise, is a soundtrack to the Pixar short about an old man playing chess (Geri's Game). Also, listen to Tony Murena's Passion on the second CD for some truly mind-warping virtuosity.



Cafe De Paris 1930-41 (24 Accordeon Classics)
160 kbps, 72 mb
REUP: depositfiles
1. Gus Viseur Et Son Orchestre - Flambee Montalbanaise
2. Edith Piaf Avec Accompagnement De Grande Orchestre - L'Accordeoniste
3. Medard Ferrero Et Ses Clochards - El Ferrero
4. Les Freres Peguri - Enivrante
5. Michel Warlop Et Son Orchestre - Strange Harmony
6. Emile Vacher - Mado
7. Gus Viseur Et Son Orchestre - Matelotte
8. Jean Gabin - Quand On Se Promene
9. Emile Vacher - Sporting Java
10. Tony Murena Et Son Ensemble - Pepee
11. Damia - La Guinguette A Ferme Ses Volets
12. Gus Viseur Et Son Orchestre - Swing Valse
13. Guerino Et Son Orchestre Musette De La Boite A Matelots - Brise Napolitaine
14. Orchestre Musette Victor Sous La Direction De Boris Sarbeck - Coeur Vagabond
15. Tony Murena Et Son Ensemble - Nostalgia Gitana
16. Gus Viseur Et Son Ensemble - Soir De Dispute
17. Le Quartette Swing Emile Carrara - Le Charmeur De Serpents
18. Medard Ferrero Et Ses Clochards - Les Triolets
19. Guerino Et Son Orchestre Musette De La Boite A Matelots - Gallito
20. Gus Viseur Et Son Orchestre - Swing 39
21. Emile Prud'homme Et Son Orchestre Musette Du Tourbillon - Pinsonnette
22. Gus Viseur Et Son Orchestre - Rosetta
23. Tony Murena Et Son Ensemble - Melancolie
24. Gus Viseur Et Son Ensemble - Jeannette


Musette
160 kbps, 62 mb
REUP: depositfiles
1. Emile Vacher - Reine De Musette
2. Emile Vacher - Les Triolets
3. Marceau - Ca Gaze
4. Fredo Gardoni - Galopade
5. Les Freres Peguri - Reproche
6. Medad Ferrero - Perles De Cristal
7. Guerino - Brise Napolitaine
8. Colombo & Tony Murena - Caprice Musette
9. Emile Prud'homme - Pinsonette
10. Colombo - Germaine
11. Medard Ferrero - La Rafale
12. Adolphe Deprince - Edelweiss
13. Jean Vaissade - Sombreros Et Mantilles
14. Gus Viseur - Jeannette
15. Gus Viseur - Gracieusette
16. Gus Viseur - Flambee Montalbanaise
17. Gus Viseur - Swing 42
18. Emile Prud'homme - Caravane Rabouine
19. Tony Murena - Passion
20. Emile Carrara - Mon Amant De Saint-Jean

There is also another musette compilation at the very interesting http://eldiablotuntun.blogspot.com

Emmett Miller - The Minstrel Man From Georgia

One of the stranger musical artifacts of the early XXth century, this record straddles the fence between the minstrel shows, country music, and early jazz. Emmett Miller is a white man in blackface, doing the minstrel routines, complete with stand-up comedy and singing. His backing band, the Georgia Crackers, is truly a stellar assembley of the early jazz luminaries, including Gene Krupa on drums, the Dorsey brothers on clarinet/sax and trombone, and Eddie Lang on guitar.
Miller is a cult figure among the connoisseurs of the weird and the obscure. Virtually nothing is known about him, which only adds to his mystique. Only two photographs survive, but he is in blackface on both, and it is impossible to tell what he really looked like. We are unsure of his birth and death dates, and we don't know where he lived, outside of the short period in the late 30s, when he was recording in New York.
Many reviews say that Emmett Miller's recordings are interesting only for the backing musicians, and trad jazz fans are usually put off by the presumed cultural imperialism of a white man having his way with black music, by the racial stereotyping of his - not always tasteful - jokes, and by the his minstrel show roots, which are associated with the segregation, oppression and the indignities suffered by the american blacks for so long. However, if one is to look at it in the cultural context, one would see a middle-class white boy who loved the negro music enough to make it his life's ambition, and who was stuck in the minstrel mask complete with the watermelon-stealing, happy-go-lucky stereotypes, because he perceived it as a ticket into the jazz circles.
None of this would elevate Miller beyond a footnote in a history of jazz, if it wasn't for his singing. He may have been a part of a tradition, doing jokes from the old minstrel repertoire and singing jazz standards, but his singing style is truly his own, sounding like nothing else before or since. His singing is a cross between a jazz balladeer, a pigmy yodel, and a cat's meow. He often breaks into his signature melisma, switching from the chest voice to make several shaky slides from one falcetto note to another, and then back, sounding like a baby crying inside the chest of a grown man. My favorite tracks here are Dusky Stevedore and St. Louis Blues. These are truly unique sounds - enjoy!


Emmett Miller - The Minstrel Man From Georgia
REUP: zippyshare
VBR 160, 66mb
1. God's River
2. I Ain't Got Nobody
3. Lovesick Blues
4. The Lion Tamers
5. Anytime
6. St. Louis Blues
7. Take Your Tomorrow
8. Dusky Stevedore
9. I Ain't Gonna Give Nobody None Of This Jelly Roll
10. (I Got A Woman Crazy For Me) She's Funny That Way
11. You Lose
12. Right Or Wrong
13. That's The Good Old Sunny South
14. You're The Cream In My Coffee
15. Lovin' Sam (The Sheik Of Alabam')
16. Big Bad Bill Is Sweet William Now
17. The Ghost Of The St. Louis Blues
18. Sweet Mama (Papa's Getting Mad)
19. The Pickaninnies' Paradise
20. The Blues Singer (From Alabam')

Vintage Hawaiian Music: Steel Guitar Masters 1928-1934

Another recording rescued from disappearing in the cracks of the american pop-culture.
Lap steel style is playing guitar with a steel bar - somewhat like the bottleneck slide as used by bluesmen - but with guitar flat on your lap, rather than in the regular position. Hawaiian steel guitar playing was invented sometime in the late 1890s and became a raging fad in 1915, when several steel guitarists played to the crowds during the The Panama-Pacific International Exposition AKA San Francisco World Fair. Steel guitar became the sound of the islands - faraway and exotic places at the time. Hawaiian orchestras played in clubs, guitar teachers set up sold-out classes to teach the steel playing, and every guitar sold through the Sears-Roebuck mail order included a raised nut as a default accessory. The first commercial electric guitar was Rickenbacker "Frying Pan", a lap steel; the SG of the famous Gibson SG stands for "Spanish Guitar", to distinguish it from a hawaiian lap steel.
It is hard to believe that a style that once was so popular may disappear so completely and without a trace. All we are left with are the recordings from the steel's golden age, and this CD collects some of them. The high points of this collection are a track by Sol Hoopi, the biggest name in Hawaiian music and a real virtuoso player with a jazzy style, who had a long and successfull career and recorded many albums; and a track from Jim and Bob - a duo that performed on a Chicago radio show for a short while in the 30s. They made literally a handful of records, which are cherished by collectors and the musicians, and hardly anything is known about them; follow this link for more info.


Vintage Hawaiian Music: Steel Guitar Masters 1928-1934
REUP: zippyshare or uloz.to
66mb, 192kbps
01. George Ku Trio - Na Pua O Hawaii
02. Hilo Hawaiian Orchestra - Hula Love Medley March
03. King Benny Nawahi - Waikiki Waltz
04. Tau Moe & The Moes - Ellis March
05. (Unknown German Orchestra) - The Road To Paradise
06. Sam Ku West Harmony Blues - Wang Wang Blues
07. Sol Hoopii Trio - Lady Be Good
08. King Benny Nawahi's Red Devils - Dinah
09. George Ku Trio - Na Ali'i
10. S. Cortez Y Sus Hawaiianos - Lirios
11. Charlie Wilson - Palolo
12. Kanui & Lula - My Little Grass Shack
13. Walter Kolomoku - Medley Of Old-Time Waltzes
14. Kalama's Quartet - Maile Lau Li'l Li'l
15. Jim & Bob, The Genial Hawaiians - Hula Blues
16. Unknown - Unknown

Also, I will most highly recommend Sol Hoopii - Master of the Hawaiian Guitar, Vols. 1 and 2 [EDIT: zippyshare or uloz.to], a great compilation of Hawaiian swing by the master himself at http://eldiablotuntun.blogspot.com; I have it on CD, too.

Reefer Songs

A most excellent compilation of early blues and jazz concerning the muggles, tea, reefer, the jive and many other wonderful things known to the law enforcement as Cannabis sp. A very strong selection of tunes by a variety of artists, from the better-known like Benny Goodman and Ella Fitzgerald, to the forgotten ones. Hardly any filler here at all, folks!

REUP: megaupload
128kbps, 62 mb
1. Reefer Man - Don Redman And His Orchestra
2. The Man From Harlem - Cab Calloway And His Orchestra
3. Here Comes The Man With The Jive - Stuff Smith And His Onyx Club Boys
4. If You're A Viper - Bob Howard And His Boys
5. Texas Tea Party - Benny Goodman And His Orchestra, With Jack Teagarden
6. Light Up - Buster Bailey's Rhythm Busters
7. Jack I'm Mellow - Trixie Smith
8. Sweet Marijuana Brown - Barney Bigard Sextet
9. Viper Mad - Sidney Bechet With Noble Sissie's Swingers
10. The Weed Smoker's Dream (Why Don't You Do Right) - Harlem Hamfats
11. The G Man Got The T Man - Cee Pee Johnson And His Band
12. All The Jive Is Gone - Andy Kirk And His Twelve Clouds Of Joy
13. The Stuff Is Here - Georgia White
14. Wacky Dust - Chick Webb And His Orchestra, With Ella Fitzgerald
15. Who Put The Benzedrine In Mrs Murphy Ovaltine - Harry 'The Hipster' Gibson
16. Jerry The Junker - Clarence Williams And His Washboard band
17. Reefer Song - Fats Waller
18. Lotus Blossom (Sweet Marijuana) - Julia Lee And Her Boy Friends
19. Willie The Chimmeny Sweeper - Ernest Rodgers
20. Weed - Bea Foote
21. Save The Roach For Me - Buck Washington
22. Knockin Myself Out - Lil Greene
23. Minnie The Moocher - Cab Calloway And His Cotton Club Orchestra

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