Junior

A superb and thrilling collection of early singles from one of the all-time blues greats, pioneering vocalist and harmonica player Junior Wells! Wells blended numerous styles including soul, gospel and even early rock on these early recordings some of which still remain his most identifiable sides including “Hoodoo Man,” “Lovey Dovey Lovey One,” “Messin’ With The Kid” and more!

Following his recorded debut as a leader for States Records, Junior Wells signed with Mel London, producing a number of sides for the producer's Chief and Profile imprints. Perhaps best-known for his spectacular harmonica playing, this period, documented on Calling All Blues, saw Wells emerging as an outstanding vocalist as well. A consummate performer with a firm grasp of the range of emotions the music can produce, Wells wrings every drop of feeling out of the lyrics. The singer growls, shouts, howls, moans across these 24 tracks including two versions of his great "I Could Cry" and other classics like "Little By Little," "Cha-Cha-Cha in Blue," and "Lovey Dovey Lovey One." While it has a great deal of overlap with the collections from Paula Records, Calling All Blues remains a fine introduction with no glaring omissions…

Considering the troubled background of this album (Eric Clapton, Ahmet Ertegun, and Tom Dowd only ended up with eight tracks at a series of 1970 sessions in Miami; two years later, the J. Geils Band was brought in to cut two additional songs to round out the long-delayed LP for 1972 release), the results were pretty impressive. Buddy Guy contributes dazzling lead axe to their revival of "T-Bone Shuffle"; Junior Wells provides a sparkling remake of Sonny Boy's "My Baby She Left Me," and Guy is entirely credible in a grinding Otis Redding mode on the Southern soul stomper "A Man of Many Words."

Pianist Junior Mance originally released these albums in 1967-1968 on the Atlantic label; they were then combined in 2000 for the first time on CD by the Collectables label. Harlem Lullaby is a haphazard recording with a revolving-door rhythm section that is marred by Mance's insistence to occasionally utilize a harpsichord instead of piano. By contrast, I Believe to My Soul is a horn-laden affair with Mance sticking to piano; appearances from David "Fathead" Newman, Frank Wess, and Joe Newman also help make this the better date of the two. Neither album is essential, but they will be of interest to collectors of mid-'60s mainstream soul jazz.

Pianist Junior Mance originally released these albums in 1967-1968 on the Atlantic label; they were then combined in 2000 for the first time on CD by the Collectables label. Harlem Lullaby is a haphazard recording with a revolving-door rhythm section that is marred by Mance's insistence to occasionally utilize a harpsichord instead of piano. By contrast, I Believe to My Soul is a horn-laden affair with Mance sticking to piano; appearances from David "Fathead" Newman, Frank Wess, and Joe Newman also help make this the better date of the two. Neither album is essential, but they will be of interest to collectors of mid-'60s mainstream soul jazz.

Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson's third album for Telarc is the sonic equivalent of the sun coming out from behind the clouds, from the opening notes of the upbeat, cheerful title track to the energetic, swing-y "I'm Gone." Even songs like "Why Are People Like That" and "Suffer So Hard with the Blues" can't bring this album down; they'll elicit more empathy than depression. This is a soul-injected, high-quality collection of Chicago-style blues in the best West Side tradition, and it's every bit as good as you'd expect from someone who's played with such luminaries as Muddy Waters and Magic Sam. Whether he's covering Sam Cooke's "Somebody Have Mercy" or heading more for traditional blues with "Ramblin' Blues," there's no question that Johnson is one of the best there is at melding musical traditions to create something distinctive, keeping things exciting all the way.