Some October Blues Births:
- October 2nd.,1951-- Henry "Co Co" Montoya
- October 14th.,1957-- Kenny Neal
- October 30th.,1930-- Haywood S. Warner, aka Little Sonny Warner.
Answer To The September Blues Question: The bluesman we were looking for was/is Edward P. "Eddie"/"Ed" Harris, aka "Country Paul", "Jammin' Jim", "Lazy Slim Jim", "Paul Howard", and the one he is best known by - "Carolina Slim", born August 22, 1923, in Leasburg, North Carolina. While he learned guitar from his father, his main influences were Sam "Lightnin' " Hopkins and Blind Boy Fuller (born Fulton Allen), both considered to be Piedmont-style blues performers. In 1950 he moved to Newark, New Jersey, and made his recording debut. That first session was on July 24, 1950, and 4 songs were recorded, listing the performer's name as "Carolina Slim", on the Acorn Records label, a subsidiary of Savoy. I stated, in the September blog that he only recorded 27 songs, but I have to add here that those 27 were the total songs of his that were released, and then add that there were 4 more songs recorded that were never released, and still, to this day, haven't been found. I do have those 4 song titles, their recording dates and recording numbers, if they are ever found and issued. Those first sessions for him were at the Nola Recording Studios, which were on the top floor of the Steinway Building, so, because of that, you may find the Nola studio referred to as Penthouse Recordings. His best-known songs were "Black Cat Trail" and "I'll Never Walk In Your Door", for the King Records label, on April 11, 1952, on record numbers K8215 and K8214, respectively. . The odd part of that is that there were 3 label printings of it: 1 on a white label, 1 on a light blue label, and 1 on a dark blue label. He made a total of 8 recordings for King, all under the "Country Paul" name, showing Paul Harris as the writer on the disc's label. Paul, by the way, was Slim's middle name. There were 4 songs done on December 14, 1951 and 4 done on April 11, 1952. He then went back to the Savoy label and did 5 songs on June 5, 1952, under the name "Lazy Slim Jim", which would be his final recordings. Henry Glover, a record producer, songwriter, trumpet player, and arranger, who met Slim at his sessions for King, said that Slim "was a very sickly young man at the time". At some point in '53 Slim entered the hospital in Newark for surgery on his back. While undergoing that operation, he had a heart attack and died, on October 22, 1953. His body was returned to and buried in Roxboro, North Carolina. The 27 songs of his that were released can be found on Document Records #BDCD 6043, done in 1993, and is now out of print. They can also be found on the 4 disc set "New York Blues", by JSP records, #77108. Disc #4 has the 27 tracks, with each song listed under the name on which it was originally released. That set we have in stock.
Blues Question For October 2020: Over the years, some of the bluesmen (and blueswomen too), lost limbs, or, even sometimes, their lives, in any number of ways or causes, that were not "natural". Some of those who were so injured, went on to be better at their craft, maybe because they just endured another of the life's trials that the blues was/is based on. This bluesman was one of those who went on to become better. He worked most often as a sideman, but did do some recording on his own. Any ideas on who this bluesman might be, or for that matter, what instrument he plays ??
Blues Song(s) And Artist(s) For October 2020: The song is "Bad Luck Shadow" and the artists are Johnny and Shuggie Otis. I couldn't establish exactly when or where this was recorded, but it seemed appropriate for Halloween. Also, just for your information, we have roughly 75 c.d.'s here, in stock, for or about Halloween: blues, garage blues, rockabilly, stories to scare the kids, sound effects, rock and rock and roll, and even Elvira.
Blues Trivia For October 2020: This is just going to be a random collection of thoughts that come from the research that goes into what I do, here, at the store, and to put together this blog. The blues is kind of like building a house-- it must have a solid foundation, or what follows will be flawed, or, on a lesser note, never be quite right. Let's go from the top floor now, then descend into the basement. If you get on your computer, listen to Sirius radio, your cable channels, or some other device, you can put together a pretty accurate picture of today's performers. You're saturated with info about them all the time. Now, do the same search for an old-timer, long since gone from us. You'll be doing a lot of looking, as there is so much conflicting info into the early history. One of them might be well-documented, but the next one you look for can't be found. Let's look at an early blues song that's still performed today-- "Catfish Blues". It's most often credited to first being recorded and written by Robert Petway, in 1939. Around those years, Petway travelled, most of the time, with Tommy McClennan. Some say McClennan recorded it first. His recording, however, used a different title, and was recorded in 1942. So, let's dig some more. Ending in 1928, Jim Jackson recorded 6 records, for Vocalion, the first 4 titled Kansas City Blues, the last 2 titled as "I'm Gonna Move to Louisiana". He was a medicine show performer who did these, for a long time, at his shows. The one which was the third one, had the line inclusive of the word "catfish" on it. There is evidence of it being recorded in 1926, under a different title. It's still being performed and recorded today. Jimi Hendrix did it on his blues album. Muddy Waters changed a few of the words in it and recorded it as "Rollin' Stone" (that one aught to sound familiar to you). Most recently, it's been recorded on Alligator Records, by Christone "Kingfish" Ingram. It's been performed by Gary Clark Jr., Eric Gales and Beth Hart, just to name a few. Sound like I'm rambling ? It should, because I am--but, with purpose. It just shows how something that should be real simple, takes off and goes wherever. When you dig into this stuff, be prepared for a long journey !
Some October Blues Passings:
- October 4th.,1994-- Daniel "Danny" Wood Gatton
- October 18th.,2011-- Robert "Bob" Brunning
- October 26th.,1952-- Hattie McDaniel.
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