Meade Lux Lewis

Boogie-woogie pianist Meade Lux Lewis' next-to-last record was his first recording in five years and his final opportunity to stretch out unaccompanied. This solo Riverside set as usual finds Lewis generally sticking to the blues (with "You Were Meant for Me" and "Fate" being exceptions), mostly performing originals. On a few of the songs Lewis switches effectively to celeste. It apparently only took Meade Lux Lewis two hours to record the full set and the results are quite spontaneous yet well organized, a fine all-around portrait of the veteran pianist in his later period.

In 2005 the Classics Chronological Series, in a continuous effort to reissue the complete recordings of boogie-woogie piano ace Meade "Lux" Lewis, released a fourth volume containing material dating from between 1946 and 1954. Opening with a solo Lewis set recorded by Norman Granz for the Mercury label at a Jazz at the Philharmonic concert inside of the Embassy Auditorium in Los Angeles on April 22, 1946, this delightful album also features the work of bassist Israel Crosby and drummer Louie Bellson. These are some of Lewis' very best recordings; the tonal palette is richly varied as he pays homage to his influences and contemporaries in the pantheon of classic blues and boogie-woogie piano. They include Pete Johnson, Albert Ammons, Cow Cow Davenport, Jimmy Yancey, Clarence Pinetop Smith, Hersal Thomas, and Freddie Shayne.

Albert Ammons & Meade Lux Lewis - The Complete Blue Note Recordings (1989) {2CD Set, Mosaic MD2-103 rec 1935-1944}
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© 1935-44, 1989 Blue Note / Mosaic | MD2-103
Jazz / Blues / Boogie-Woogie / Piano Blues

Mosaic's Complete Blue Note Recordings contains all of the recordings Meade Lux Lewis made for the label between 1935 and 1944, making it the definitive statement on the influential boogie-woogie pianist. This magnificent three-LP box set was issued as part of the first release by the Mosaic label. The out of print collection has all of the music recorded during Blue Note"s first session (nine piano solos by Albert Ammons, eight including a five-part "The Blues" by Meade Lux Lewis, and a pair of Ammons-Lewis duets) plus Lewis" 1935 version of "Honky Tonk Train Blues" and his complete sessions of October 4, 1940, April 9, 1941 (four songs on harpsichord), and August 22, 1944.

Meade Lux Lewis - Cat House Piano (1998) {Verve Elite 314 557 098-2 rec 1954-1955}
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© 1954-55, 1998 PolyGram / Verve Elite Edition | 314 557 098-2
Jazz / Jazz Blues / Boogie-Woogie / Piano Blues

This single CD from 1998 has all of the music from boogie-woogie pianist Meade Lux Lewis' two Verve LPs of 1954-1955. The earlier date is a set of duets with drummer Louie Bellson, while the later session finds Lewis accompanied by bassist Red Callender and drummer Jo Jones. The packaging is perfect, and with 76-and-a-half minutes of playing, the amount of music is generous. The only problem is that there is a definite sameness to the 14 selections (which mostly clock in between four and seven minutes), the majority of which are medium-tempo blues romps. None of the melodies (all Lewis originals) are at all memorable. The romping momentum of the music overall is difficult to resist, but it is advisable to listen to this set in small doses.

A wonderful collector's edition of jazz pianists' records in almost all styles from the first ragtimes to modern jazz.

From Spirituals to Swing was the title of two concerts presented by John Hammond in Carnegie Hall on 23 December 1938 and 24 December 1939. The concerts included performances by Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Big Joe Turner and Pete Johnson, Helen Humes, Meade Lux Lewis, Albert Ammons, Mitchell's Christian Singers, the Golden Gate Quartet, James P. Johnson, Big Bill Broonzy and Sonny Terry.

From Spirituals to Swing was the title of two concerts presented by John Hammond in Carnegie Hall on 23 December 1938 and 24 December 1939. The concerts included performances by Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Big Joe Turner and Pete Johnson, Helen Humes, Meade Lux Lewis, Albert Ammons, Mitchell's Christian Singers, the Golden Gate Quartet, James P. Johnson, Big Bill Broonzy and Sonny Terry.

From Spirituals to Swing was the title of two concerts presented by John Hammond in Carnegie Hall on 23 December 1938 and 24 December 1939. The concerts included performances by Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Big Joe Turner and Pete Johnson, Helen Humes, Meade Lux Lewis, Albert Ammons, Mitchell's Christian Singers, the Golden Gate Quartet, James P. Johnson, Big Bill Broonzy and Sonny Terry.

In this magnificent collection presented melodies performed by these masters of jazz piano: Scott Joplin, James P. Johnson, Eubie Blake, Mandy Randolph, Duke Ellington, Art Tatum, Joe Sullivan, Teddy Wilson, Count Basie, Oscar Peterson, Thelonious Monk, Nat King Cole and many, many others …

Chicago Urban Blues 1923-1945 is a concentrated anthology of historic recordings by individuals with ties to communities all across the southern United States. This collection includes well chosen examples by pianists Meade "Lux" Lewis, Bob Robinson (of Hokum Boys fame), Roosevelt Sykes, Clarence "Pinetop" Smith, and Jimmy Yancey, who played on one of only two recordings known to have been made by vocalist Faber Smith. Amos Easton, also known as Bumble Bee Slim, was backed on the ivories by Myrtle Jenkins, who also made records with Priscilla Stewart, Mary Mack, and the State Street Swingers. There's enough female energy in here to settle anybody's business. You hear Ida Cox accompanied by pianist Lovie Austin; Bertha "Chippie" Hill by Richard M. Jones, and Hannah May, who might have been Victoria Spivey's sister Elton Spivey, with Georgia Tom Dorsey and Tampa Red. Lil Johnson sings "My Stove's in Good Condition" backed by pianist Black Bob and guitarist Big Bill Broonzy. "Squat It" comes from a large body of works generated by the team of Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe McCoy. Sippie Wallace sings the "Bedroom Blues," and her little brother Hersal Thomas performs his own "Suitcase Blues," which became a staple of the piano blues repertoire and received its best reinterpretation on a 1939 Blue Note recording by Albert Ammons.