Worried Men

An influential singer and pianist of the 1940s, whose smoky voice and commanding keyboard skills had a major influence on the Chicago blues sound.
The thundering 88s of Big Maceo Merriweather helped pave the way for the great Chicago blues pianists of the 1950s - men like Johnny Jones, Otis Spann, and Henry Gray. Unfortunately, Merriweather wouldn't be around to enjoy their innovations - he died a few years after suffering a debilitating stroke in 1946. Major Merriweather was already a seasoned pianist when he arrived in Detroit in 1924. After working around the Motor City scene, he ventured to Chicago in 1941 to make his recording debut for producer Lester Melrose and RCA Victor's Bluebird subsidiary…

This collection of 8 discs may be the most comprehensive collection of its type. There are a total of 120 songs from almost as many artists. There are a few artists represented more than once, with The Kingston Trio represented by 9 songs, every one memorable. The era represented by these songs spans about ten years. The earliest songs in this collection date back to the late 1950's. The latest songs date to about 1968.