Erskine Tate's Vendome Orchestra - Vocalion 15372 (1926)

Click here for the other Erskine Tate sides featuring Freddy Keppard.

Erskine Tate dir / Louis Armstrong, ? James Tate t / Eddie Atkins tb / Angelo Fernandez cl / as / Stump Evans as, bar / Norval Morton ts / Teddy Weatherford and another p / Frank Ethridge bj / John Hare bb / Jimmy Bertrand d, wb.

Recorded in Chicago on May 28, 1926.


Walter "Buddy Boy" Hawkins - Paramount 12802 (1929)

From wikipedia...

[Walter "Buddy Boy" Hawkins was an American country blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He recorded only 12 songs, between 1927 and 1929.

The date and place of his birth are unknown, but there is consensus among blues historians that Hawkins probably originated in either Alabama or, somewhat less definitely, the northern Mississippi Delta.

Hawkins recorded a dozen tracks for Paramount Records between 1927 and 1929. Many of his lyrics mention the railroad, with some hint that he had worked laying rail track. The first 10-inch 78-rpm shellac single released by Paramount was Number Three Blues backed with Snatch It Back Blues, recorded about April 1927 in Chicago. Paramount released another five singles between 1927 and 1929; these later recordings were issued under his birth name, Walter Hawkins. His tracks included the slightly peculiar Voice Throwin' Blues, in which he employed a call and response banter between two voices, one purportedly being a ventriloquist's dummy. A Rag Blues contained lyrics that hinted that it origins lay in Jackson, Mississippi, although it was performed in a Spanish-inflected style.

Hawkins played exclusively in open A tuning. His records sold poorly and he faded into obscurity. His life story after his recording career ended is shrouded in mystery]

Walter Hawkins g, v.

Recorded in Richmond, IN on June 14, 1929.



Pedro Flores Y Su Orquesta - Brunswick 41576 (1933)

From wikipedia...

Pedro Flores (March 9, 1894 – July 14, 1979) was one Puerto Rico's best known composers of ballads and boleros.

Flores (birth name: Pedro Juan Flores Córdova) was one of twelve children born into a poor family in the town of Naguabo, Puerto Rico. Flores' father died when he was only nine years old and therefore, he was forced to work at a young age. When he was sixteen years old, he took a special course in the Universidad de Puerto Rico and received his teachers certificate. Flores taught for five years and worked for one year at a sugar mill in the island of Vieques. In 1918, he served in a clerical position in the U.S. Army. He was honorably discharged from the Army when he was twenty-four years old.

In 1926, Flores went to New York City without any formal musical education and joined another Puerto Rican composer, Rafael Hernández in his Trío Borinquen. Even though Flores and Hernández became very good friends, they also became competitors as composers. When Flores wrote Sin Bandera, Hernández rushed and wrote Preciosa.

In 1930, Flores formed his own trio which he named "Trío Galón", and whose music and songs had a faster beat than the "Trío Borinquen". Flores had problems with the music publishing company and he abandoned the trio. He moved to Mexico and then lived in Cuba for a short period of time. Flores eventually returned to New York where he reorganized his old trio. Some of the singers of this new trio were Myrta Silva, Daniel Santos and Pedro Ortiz Dávila "Davilita".

A 1996 television special honoring his work features versions by many Puerto Rican and international artists, such as Ednita Nazario, Marc Anthony, Yolandita Monge and Shakira.

Pedro Flores died in San Juan, Puerto Rico on July 14, 1979 and is buried in Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery located in Old San Juan.



Recorded in New York in 1933.



Johnny Bayersdorffer & His Jazzola Novelty Orchestra - Okeh 40133 (1924)

Excited to finally add this one to the NOLA collection.

Johnny Bayersdorffer c, dir / Tom Brown t / Charlie Scaglioni cl / Johnny Miller p / Steve Loyacano bj / Leo Adde d.

Recorded in New Orleans on March 17, 1924.


Charley Patton - Paramount 13014 (1929 - 1930)

Going To Move To Alabama
Charlie Patton v, g
Recorded in Grafton, WI in October, 1929.

Moon Going Down
Charley Patton v, g / Willie Brown g
Recorded in Grafton, WI in May, 1930.


Johnny Shines - J.O.B. 1010 (1953)

Mentored by Robert Johnson for two years, here are some of Johnny Shines earliest issued sides.

Johnny Shines v, g / Walter Horton hca / Al Smith bass.

Recorded in Chicago on January 22, 1953.



Louis Armstrong & His Hot Five - Okeh 8597 (1928)

Louis Armstrong t, v / Fred Robinson tb / Jimmy Strong cl, ts / Earl Hines p / Mancy Cara bj / Zutty Singleton d.

Recorded in Chicago on June 27 & 28, 1928.


Tempo Toppers Featuring Little Richard - Peacock 1628 (1953)

Unfortunately, only one side of this record is playable as it was, evidently, a juke box record and Always was turned into fine grit sand paper.

The good news is that Rice, Red Beans and Turnip Greens looks unplayed.

Little Richard, Billy Brooks, Barry Lee Gilmore, Jimmy Swann v / Eddie Lee Williams g / Mildred Taylor d / Raymond Taylor organ, p, t, tb.

Recorded at ACA Studio in Houston, Texas on February 25, 1953.

Benny Meroff & His Orchestra - Okeh 41171 (1928)

Benny Meroff v, dir / Wild Bill Davison, Rosie Rusciolelli, Joe Rullo t / Al Marineau, Joe Quartell tb / Lenny Cohen, Tony Ciccone as / Arnold Pritikin ts, a / Roy Cole vn / Al Nillson p / Sid Pritikin g / George Physter sb / Benny Metz d.

Recorded in Chicago on December 9, 1928.



Original New Orleans Rhythm Kings - Okeh 40422 (1925)

There were only eight sides by this group recorded in New Orleans and with the recent acquisition of this one, I have finally completed that run.

Paul Mares c / Santo Pecora tb / Leon Roppolo cl / Charlie Cordella ts / Glyn Lea "Red" Long p / Bill Eastwood bj / Chink Martin bb / Leo Adde d.

Recorded in New Orleans on January 23, 1925.



New Orleans Owls - Columbia 1045 (1926)

Just received a much needed upgrade...

Benjie White cl, as, dir / Bill Padron c / Frank Netto tb / Pinky Vidacovich cl, as / Lester Smith ts / Mose Farrar p / Rene Gelpi bj, g / Dan LeBlanc bb / Earl Crumb d.

Recorded in New Orleans on April 14, 1926.


James Platt (Teddy Moss) - Champion 15860 (1929)

Teddy Moss v / unkown cl / Herve Duerson p (Electric Chair) / Turner Parrish p (Sympathizin' Blues)

Recorded in Richmond, IN on August 28, 1929.


Bessie Smith - Columbia A3888 (1923)

Bessie Smith v / Clarence Williams p.

Recorded in New York on April 11, 1923.


Dixie Jazz Band - Oriole 424 (1925)

Sam Lanin & His Orchestra: Red Nichols, Vic d'Ippolito t / Herb Winfield tb / Clarence Heidke, Alfie Evans cl, ss, as / George Slater cl, ts / Bill Krenz p / Tony Colucci bj, g / Joe Tarto bb / Vic Berton d.

Recorded in New York on May 8, 1925.


The Texas Ten under Nathan Glantz (personnel unknown).

Recorded May 5, 1925.

(Big) Joe Williams - Columbia 37945 (1947)

From wikipedia...

[Born in Oktibbeha County, a few miles west of Crawford, Mississippi, Williams as a youth began wandering across the United States busking and playing in stores, bars, alleys and work camps. In the early 1920s he worked in the Rabbit Foot Minstrels revue. He recorded with the Birmingham Jug Band in 1930 for Okeh Records.

In 1934, he was in St. Louis, Missouri, where he met the record producer Lester Melrose, who signed him to Bluebird Records in 1935. He stayed with Bluebird for ten years, recording such blues hits as "Baby, Please Don't Go" (1935) and "Crawlin' King Snake" (1941), both of which were later covered by many other musicians. He also recorded with other blues singers, including Sonny Boy Williamson, Robert Nighthawk and Peetie Wheatstraw.

During the early Thirties, Williams was accompanied on his travels through the Mississippi Delta by a young Muddy Waters. Williams recounted to Blewett Thomas, "I picked Muddy up in Rolling Fork when he was about 15. He went all 'round the Delta playin' harmonica behind me. But I had to put him down after awhile. All these women were comin' up to me and sayin', 'Oh. your young son is so nice!' See, I had to put Muddy down because he was takin' away my women."]

Not sure where to find the personnel for his later recordings.

Sonny Boy (John Lee) Williamson is on harmonica.


Modern Mountaineers - Bluebird 6976 (1937)

Personnel lineup from Praguefrank...

Smoky Wood g, v / Lefty Groves g / Johnny Thames bj / J.C.Way sg / Rip Ramsey sb / J.R. Chatwell fiddle / Hal Hebert cl, ts.

Recorded in San Antonio on March 1, 1937.


The Texas Night Hawks - Okeh 45363 (1929)

♫ If you're gonna play in Texas, you gotta have a fiddle in the band... ♫ 

Hugh Roden on fiddle.

Recorded in Dallas on June 25, 1929.


McKenzie & Condon's Chicagoans - Okeh 40971 (1927)

Excerpted from wikipedia...

[Krupa made his first recordings in 1927, with a band under the leadership of Red McKenzie and guitarist Eddie Condon. Along with other recordings by musicians from the Chicago jazz scene such as Bix Beiderbecke, these recordings are examples of Chicago style jazz. The numbers recorded at that session were "China Boy", "Sugar", "Nobody's Sweetheart", and "Liza". The McKenzie-Condon recordings are notable for being early examples of the use of a bass drum and snare drum/cymbals on recordings, at least for the studio where these recordings were made. Some of Krupa's big influences during this time were Father Ildefonse Rapp, Roy Knapp (both teachers of Gene).]

Jimmy McPartland c / Frank Teschemacher cl / Bud Freeman ts / Joe Sullivan p / Eddie Condon bj / Jim Lannigan bb, sb / Gene Krupa d / Mezz Mezzrow cymbals. 

Recorded in Chicago on December 16, 1927.