This is a great collection of rare and hard to find tunes compiled by Jeffrey Glenn. Hundreds of odds & ends by little known groups, famous singers, and famous singers before they became famous.
Muddy Waters performing live at the University of Oregon in 1971. A postwar Chicago blues scene without the magnificent contributions of Muddy Waters is absolutely unimaginable. From the late '40s on, he eloquently defined the city's aggressive, swaggering, Delta-rooted sound with his declamatory vocals and piercing slide guitar attack. When he passed away in 1983, the Windy City would never quite recover. Like many of his contemporaries on the Chicago circuit, Waters was a product of the fertile Mississippi Delta. Born McKinley Morganfield in Rolling Fork, he grew up in nearby Clarksdale on Stovall's Plantation.
Never realised the breadth of the "Pop-Sike" genre until I heard Fading Yellow, a really fine compilation that hangs together beautifully as an album. That most of the tracks are obscure isn't surprising: everything is a little odd, a little ramshackle, with a strong melancholic undertow and not a little creepiness. Of course, this music is also specific to a particular time in Western pop music history so there's a strong nostalgic element, but the knowledge this music could never be exactly replicated is what also makes it so fascinating. Recommended, in a warm and loving 60s way.
Nico Wayne Toussaint - one of the top harmonica-playing singers of his generation, applauded both in Europe and in North America. Nico signs his shows with his personnality : charisme and pure energy. His repertoire is mainly originals deep rooted in the 50's Chicago Blues sound with a touch of more contemporary Blues. A tight teamwork by his group and his own unique voice complete a show of blues « a la » Nico Wayne Toussaint. His latest project is a 8 piece band with which he pays tribute to his all time mentor and strongest influence : James Cotton. Fall 2017 : the band is launching its new album "Nico Wayne Toussaint plays James Cotton" on Dixiefrog Records. Professional since 1998, he has recorded 13 albums under his name on Dixiefrog Records.
This DVD features a tribute concert for the legendary Buddy Holly. Recorded in Austin in 1987, it features Brian Setzer, John Fogerty, Carl Perkins, The Crickets and others.
Buddy Holly is perhaps the most anomalous legend of '50s rock & roll he had his share of hits, and he achieved major rock & roll stardom, but his importance transcends any sales figures or even the particulars of any one song (or group of songs) that he wrote or recorded. Holly was unique, his legendary status and his impact on popular music all the more extraordinary for having been achieved in barely 18 months.