Sunday, January 31, 2010

Various Artists--I Love TeeVee

Wilbert Harrison at the piano...this might be the only known footage of him. I never saw this footage of JB Lenoir before, shot in Chicago circa 1964. JB Lenoir again, this time with the great Freddie Below on drums. 1965
JB, at home with cool Kay guitar
Arthur 'Big Boy' Crudup wonders where the money went. Big Joe Turner with the Johnny Otis Show, 1970. Big Joe at the Apollo, early 50's.
Little Walter and Hound Dog Taylor, alcoholics unanimous. Muddy Waters and his drunk assed band. Muddy and Sonny Boy Williamson II (Rice Miller).
Mickey Baker (in shades) with Coleman Hawkins.
This is bizzarre, Serge Gainsbourg interviews Jerry Lee Lewis! Even if I have to watch it on my computer, I love TV. It's better than real life, you don't have to talk to people, and you can always change the channel. So here's some blues, and R&B clips and a bonus meeting of the minds between Serge Gainsbourg and Jerry Lee Lewis (courtesy of Donna Lethal) most from European TV and documentary footage. I have no idea where the Wilbert Harrison clip is from, but it's great, as was he. The Coleman Hawkins and Mickey Baker clip is incredible, it stand with the Ben Webster sides cut with Johnny Otis and Pete Guitar Lewis for Mercury, and the Albert Ayler recordings with Harvey Vestine (Gamblers/Canned Heat) as one of the most successful comminglings of blues and jazz.
Something to ponder, how come Various Artists isn't in the Rock'n'Roll Hall Of Fame? That name is on more good LP's than any other.
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16 comments:

  1. J.D. KingJanuary 31, 2010 at 6:13 AM

    WHOA! A treasure trove!

    BTW, about 20 years ago I illustrated the CD cover to "Dali," a Coleman Hawkins/Mickey Baker release on Stash Records.

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  2. The HoundJanuary 31, 2010 at 6:55 AM

    " illustrated the CD cover to "Dali," a Coleman Hawkins/Mickey Baker release on Stash Records."

    Looking through my records after I posted I realized I have one called Disorder At The Border with the same band seen in the clip-- Mickey Baker, George Arvanitas (piano), Jimmy Woods (bass), and Kansas Fields (drums) recorded in June of '62 in France, it even has one Mickey Baker original- Riviera Blues, plus Hawkins' Dali. My guess is it's the same recordings that Stash issued w/your cover art?

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  3. Pete WJanuary 31, 2010 at 8:54 AM

    Thanks for the Wilbert Harrison clip - like you, I'd never seen any footage of him before. He must be the only piano player ever to voluntarily play a walking boogie in the key of C sharp!

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  4. snakeboyJanuary 31, 2010 at 9:30 AM

    Hound:
    Better to grab a cup of coffee and watch these videos than getting a shovel to move snow around.

    Thanks

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  5. AnonymousJanuary 31, 2010 at 11:49 AM

    Thanks for the videos! The Wilbert Harrison is pretty amazing but that Mickey Baker one just blew me away!!! The others I'm familiar with as I'm a regular youtube junkie on that kinda stuff. By the way there is also a killer Esther Phillips clip also on youtube with Johnny Otis that I believe is from the same show as the Joe Turner you posted. She does an amazing version of Release Me and gets into a cool call n' response thing towards the end with Shuggie Otis on guitar. Shuggie may not be no Pete Guitar Lewis but it's still a fine performance and Esther is incredible! By the way there was a PBS show around 1970 that was a Johnny Otis Barrelhouse reunion. I've been praying that someone digs that show up as I have not seen it since the original broadcast. -Barry Soltz

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  6. The HoundJanuary 31, 2010 at 12:02 PM

    "By the way there was a PBS show around 1970 that was a Johnny Otis Barrelhouse reunion. I've been praying that someone digs that show up as I have not seen it since the original broadcast."

    I think the short clip of Otis w/Roy Buchanan that's on Youtube (or was last time I checked) might be from that. I'm looking for the PBS clip of Big Joe Turner w/Dr. John on piano from Doc Pomus' birthday party in the early 80's. I have it on VHS, if you look close I'm leaning against the piano as Mac and Joe wail away.
    If I could find a way to upload VHS to Youtube I'd post it, I don't even think I have a VHS machine in the house anymore.

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  7. Donna LethalJanuary 31, 2010 at 3:23 PM

    I'm so blown away by the HDT & Little Walter that I have to stop watching Serge and Jerry Lee for the tenth time! God bless the youtubes.

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  8. J.D. KingJanuary 31, 2010 at 5:27 PM

    "...My guess is it's the same recordings that Stash issued w/your cover art?"

    The Stash CD has 10 tracks, seven of which, it says, were recorded in Brussels in June 4 & 5, 1962 with the lineup you mention, except the bassist's surname is spelled Woode, not Woods. The tracks include "Disorder at the Border" and "Riviera Blues."

    (The three last tracks are from 1959, different group, including Roy Eldridge, recorded in DC at The Bayou Club.)

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  9. DISH NetworkFebruary 1, 2010 at 3:08 AM

    Nice to watch the video. It is like reading old newspaper. Both gives me pleasure. Some time people become bore listening modern music, for them this is a fresh air. I often watch old musical program in Dish Network

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  10. jneilnycFebruary 2, 2010 at 2:28 PM

    I was under the impression that the JB Lenoir whale clip was from the German TV series that came out as "The American Folk-Blues Festival" series. If so, I hope it makes it to DVD eventually.

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  11. AnonymousFebruary 3, 2010 at 10:02 AM

    Here's the whole half hour of that Coleman Hawkins/Mickey Baker thing:

    http://susauvieuxmonde.canalblog.com/archives/2009/10/11/15378902.html

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  12. The HoundFebruary 3, 2010 at 11:39 AM

    "Here's the whole half hour of that Coleman Hawkins/Mickey Baker thing:

    http://susauvieuxmonde.canalblog.com/archives/2009/10/11/15378902.html"

    Wow, thanks! Folks, don't forget to expand the comments box to get the whole url....

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  13. Smokey LaBeefFebruary 4, 2010 at 1:23 AM

    thanks a bunch for these, im particularly vibing on that little walter/hound dog taylor clip.

    while your on the subject, i have been trying to find some king era hank ballard footage - or any live footage of him at all really, but there only seems to be a couple of 70's funk clips and a rock n roll hall of fame clip floating around on youtube. There must be something else out there??

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  14. The HoundFebruary 4, 2010 at 8:31 AM

    "There must be something else out there??"

    If there is I've never seen it, he appeared on American Bandstand several times (1960-61) lip synching Let's Go Let's Go Let's Go and Finger Poppin' Time but Dick Clark has never seen to release that footage. He certainly appeared on plenty of 50's local tv shows but nothing seems to have surfaced yet.

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  15. ericFebruary 5, 2010 at 12:56 PM

    Amazing. The Gainsbourg and Jerry Lee Lewis clip is truly amazing! Always love to see Gainsbourg drunk while discussing music and politics with other artists. Thanks!

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  16. viagra onlineJanuary 18, 2012 at 11:01 AM

    The first time I heard J.B Lenoir i was near to shed tear: he is an amazing musician, the best of his era.

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