Posts Tagged ‘Savoy Records’

Big Maybelle Smith

Sunday, August 28th, 2011

Listen: Blues, Early Early (Part 1) /Big Maybelle Smith
Blues,

Okay, so Big Maybelle deservedly received a Grammy Hall Of Fame Award in 1999. Commendable gesture, generous even, given the deciding NARAS members in no way were to blame for the obscurity she endured during her lifetime. And to be fair, they clearly knew she earned such a recognition.

But Big Maybelle really did get shafted in her day. For instance, in ’55 she recorded ‘Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin On’, produced by Quincy Jones, a solid two years before Jerry Lee Lewis’ version. Both were full throttle rockin’, but being black of course meant the white guy got the airplay.

Her run with Savoy Records lasted between ’57 – ’61, and even in her professional lifetime, only ever released one single, ‘Blues, Early Early (Part 1)’, oddly in the middle of her string with Savoy, as Big Maybelle Smith.

Laying my eyes on ‘Blues, Early Early (Part 1)’ gave me a tingly jolt I will take to my deathbed. Was I frozen in that spot the moment I stumbled on it? Take a guess.

Mike Goldsmith rang me late one Friday night. He was jonsing to do some record digging, suggesting we hit random spots on Long Island that next day. I agreed. Somehow he’d sussed a comic book store that stocked records and so we leisurely dropped by. Holy whatever. The owner had stumbled on a radio station find. His store, including the backroom, was brimming, more liken heaving, with the most obscure promos I have truly ever seen in one place. Clearly a mainstream dealer had combed them first, leaving behind what was unfamiliar. Fine. Thank you God.

I picked up easily five hundred 7′s, hitting the cash machine several times. All in original sleeves. Note the period brown, ribbed, fold over bottom on this particular copy as proof.

And all mint. We were both experiencing tremors that cocaine crack can’t touch.

Miracles happen.

Carl Hall

Monday, July 18th, 2011

Listen: The Damn Busted / Carl Hall
The Damn Busted / Carl Hall

Wikipedia has this to say about Carl Hall:

Carl Hall was an African-American singer, actor, and musical arranger. A member of Raymond Raspberry’s eponymous gospel group The Raspberry Singers, recording on the US Savoy Records label, he performed in theatre for three decades, beginning with Tambourines To Glory in ’63.

Beyond The Raspberry Singers, he recorded later that decade several singles for Mercury Records and cut the now much sought-after tracks, ‘You Don’t Know Nothing About Love’ / ‘Mean It Baby’ (Loma 2086, ’67) and ‘The Dam Busted’ / ‘I Don’t Want To Be Your Used To Be’ (Loma 2098, ’67) for the Warner Brothers subsidiary label, Loma Records, produced by leading producer Jerry Ragovoy. In ’73, he released a single on Columbia called ‘What About You’ (45813 ). Also appeared on Broadway in the stage production of the musical The Wiz among other shows.

The only thing I can add is his vocal delivery on the first lyric of the very first 45 I ever heard by Carl Hall told me everything I needed to know.

Tarheel Slim & Little Ann

Wednesday, May 18th, 2011

Listen: Security / Tarheel Slim & Little Ann
Security / Tarheel Slim & Little Ann

The musical history of Tarheel Slim is a long one. As a member of The Jubilators, he and his cohorts pulled a true fast one in 1950, when the six man group drove to New York from North Carolina with a mission in mind. On a single day, they recorded seventeen songs for four different labels, under four different names.

Initially, billing themselves as The Selah Jubilee Singers, they cut four gospel songs for Jubilee Records, before moving on to Regal Records’ studio in New Jersey as The Jubilators. Then over to Newark, recording four secular blues songs, including ‘Lemon Squeezer’, as The 4 Barons for Savoy Records. Finally, they drove back to Apollo Records in Manhattan, where, as The Southern Harmonaires, they recorded four more gospel tracks. However, Apollo owner Bess Berman realized the subterfuge. She signed them to a contract which allowed the other companies to release their recordings, providing they promoted them as a secular R&B rather than gospel.

Fast forward to ’56, by which time he and Anna Lee Sanford, now married and professionally recording as The Lovers, found themselves signed to Fire Record as Tarheel Slim & Little Ann. In addition to being a much better name, seems the label steered them in a way better direction too. Suddenly they were releasing some happening 45′s, all a seemingly perfect balance between gospel, soul and rockabilly. Despite a red hot guitar break, as one reviewer described it, for some reason, ‘Security’ has remained basically overlooked.