my Ex's Baby

What a time. What a place. What a showman. The late 40's to the late 60's, Chicago's south side, the incomparable Junior Wells… Muddy, Elvis, Wayne Cochrane, Sonny Boy all rolled into one tough little cookie. This album is one sweet treat after another. If you can stay still listening to "Stomach Ache," you are clinically dead. It's a true joy listening to Junior and Buddy Guy but I really envy people in the future; they might be able to transport themselves back to 1964 and see Junior live in Pepper's Lounge.

Toddlers will be introduced to baby animals in this informational board book filled with labeled images of cubs, puppies, ducklings, and more.

“Virtuosos of electric blues”…. that’s how William Tripplett of Washingtonian Magazine describes the Smokin’ Polecats. They are the best blues band in the DC metropolitan area. It’s the years and depth of experience that The Smokin' Polecats share that have afforded them that reputation. Their sound comes from the Post-World War 2 ensemble sound of the Chicago Masters like Jimmy Rogers, Little Walter, and Hubert Sumlin; the West Coast Jump/Swing sound of Tiny Grimes, Pee Wee Crayton, and T-Bone Walker; the Rock'a'Billy sound of Carl Perkins and Johnny Burnette; and the Louisiana swamp blues of Slim Harpo. They don’t just play songs by these artists, they have their own sound that consists of a melding together of their years of playing experience.

Backbeats Records is strictly a compilation company based in the U.K. and distributed throughout the European Union at budget prices. What they do is simply compile collections of dance music by well-known and obscure artists from the disco era to the late '90s. And for what it’s worth, when it comes to licensing, they do a terrific job, and this set is a case in point. Compiled by Ian Dewhirst, this collection of '70s and '80s soul walks the end of the classic soul era’s foray into funk, disco, and beyond into the '80s high-production modes associated with that era. Dewhirst is a smart cookie, however, and while the '80s produced some of the lamest records ever in the name of soul, he’s avoided all of them on Back to My Place Baby, an excellent collection of babymakers.

In the 50s and early 60s, Bobby "Blue" Bland was one of the main creators of the modern soul-blues sound. Along with such artists as Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, and Junior Parker, Bland developed a sound that mixed gospel with blues and R&B. Bobby's style of soul-blues was punctuated with a slick big-band sound, showing the considerable influence of B.B. Kingflavored guitar riffs. This essential collection compiles 22 tracks that Bland recorded for the Duke label. It serves as the best introduction for anyone wanting to explore the finest moments of Bobby Bland's discography. This is the material upon which Bland's reputation was built. It is enduring music: blues played by small to mid-size ensembles, complete with sassy horns and a ringing vibraphone. And Bobby Bland's wailing voice is, from the outset, a confident and expressive instrument. Veteran music critic Dave Marsh may have provided the best description of Bobby "Blue" Bland in the 1979 Rolling Stone Record Guide by rhetorically asking: "The black Sinatra?"