William Smith

William O. Smith (b.1926) - Two Sides of William O. Smith (1974) {Composers Recordings Inc NWCRL 320 Digital Download rel 2017}
FLAC (tracks) - 16bit/44kHz - Digital Download (deezer.com) -> 115 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 74 Mb | Cover | 5% repair rar
© 1974, 2017 Composers Recordings, Inc. | NWCRL 282
Classical / Modern Classical / Jazz / Third Stream / Clarinet

This disc is part of an ongoing series of re-issues of the Lp catalog of the CRI (Composer's Recordings Inc.) label. These important documents of 20th c. compositions have been out of print since the advent of the CD, but have now been transferred to digital files from the original master tapes in order to make them available once again.

The heir apparent to Chicago's legacy of amplified blues harmonica, William Clarke was the first original new voice on his instrument to come along in quite some time; he became a sensation in blues circles during the late '80s and early '90s, stopped short by an untimely death in 1996. A pupil and devotee of George Harmonica Smith, Clarke was a technical virtuoso and master of both the diatonic harp and the more difficult chromatic harp (the signature instrument of both Smith and Little Walter). Where many new harmonica players had become content to cop licks from the Chicago masters, Clarke developed his own style and vocabulary, building on everything he learned from Smith and moving beyond it. His four '90s albums for Alligator earned wide critical acclaim and remain his signature showcases.