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George Thorogood and the Destroyers

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George Thorogood and The Destroyers – Nadine

MCA Records – MCAD 20350
(previously released as Better Than The Rest)
Nadine – My Way – You’re Gonna Miss Me – Worried About My Baby – Night-Time – I’m Ready – My Weakness – Goodbye Baby – Huckle up Baby – Howlin’ for My Darlin’

Thorogood Nadine

The worst thing that can happen to a musician is slowly falling into a routine and losing the excitement of the beginning. It’s been quite a while since I’ve flipped over a George Thorogood album. I don’t mean they’re bad, they’re just a little exciting as they used to be.
“Nadine,” first published on vinyl as “Better Than The Rest,” reminds us how exciting George once was. This compilation is a collection of demos recorded in 1974 for MCA when the band was still looking for a contract. The band never got the contract, but these recordings were published by MCA by the time the Delaware Destroyers began to draw attention with their second Rounder release, “Move It On Mover.” Though it’s close to the first album, the sound is even rawer. Thorogood’s music has always been synonymous with sweat and beer, and it’s never been so true. The vocal is raspy (a good example is his version of Howlin’ Wolf’s “Howlin’ For My Darlin’,” the band is tight and nervous, and you can feel they definitely have something to prove. Of course, it’s not flawless, but it’s lively, and this is what this music should always be, right? As usual with George Thorogood (and the Delaware Destroyers), the program comprises Chuck Berry / Elmore James / Hound Dog Taylor Dog-influenced brands of boogie blues and some good rockers to make you bop and stomp your feet. Two acoustic songs bring some rest to the listeners after this flood of electricity: “Gonna Miss Me,” a variation around Muddy Waters’ “Can’t Be Satisfied,” and John Lee Hooker’s “Huckle Up Baby.” Some of the songs will resurface on later recordings in newer versions, but for the most part, you can find George’s versions of these covers only in this selection.There’s no musical revolution here, but who cares? This is just music to please your heart and drink a cold beer with. Fans of heavy-produced blues will disdain it, but true fans of authentic electric blues and early Thorogood’s album will like this one.

George Thorogood and the Destroyers – s/t

Rounder Records – 3013 [1977]
You Got To Lose – Madison Blues – One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer – Kind Hearted Woman – Can’t Stop Lovin’ – Ride On Josephine – Homesick Boy – John Hardy – I’ll Change My Style – Delaware Slide

George thorogood

Thorogood’s debut album, simply called “George Thorogood & The Destroyers” and released on the more bluegrass-oriented label Rounder, sets the (winning) recipe that’ll stay unchanged for many years. Thorogood is backed by the solid rhythm section of Jeff Simon, Billy Blough, and Ron Smith on “some tracks.” I remember reading somewhere that this album was first recorded with only Thorogood and Simon, but the label didn’t want to release it without a proper bass, so Bill Blough overdubbed his parts. It’s a deluge of slide guitar with Elmore James tunes (Madison Blues, Can’t Stop Loving), nods to Hound Dog Taylor, John Lee Hooker’s boogie (One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer) and Diddley beat (Ride On Josephine) and two Thorogood’s originals: Homesick Boy and Delaware Slide (that almost hits the 8’ mark). The whole thing is played with a youthful exuberance and a rock’n’roll attitude that are very refreshing and contribute to the success of this release. Add some acoustic numbers to calm the pace (a convincing Robert Johnson’s Kindhearted Woman and the traditional John Hardy), and you’ll get the perfect album to party and drink with your buddies.

George Thorogood and the Destroyers – More

Rounder Records – RR 3045 [1980]
I’m Wanted – Kids From Philly – One Way Ticket – Bottom Of The Sea – Night Time – Tip On In – Goodbye Baby – House Of Blue Lights – Just Can’t Make It – Restless

more George thorogood

Released in 1980, “More George Thorogood and The Destroyers,” the band’s 3rd album, finds George Thorogood at the dawn of breaking into the charts with the multi-platinum “Bad To The Bone.” And the sound reflects this slight evolution. It’s not yet the production you’ll find on Bad to The Bone, but since his first album and Move It On Over, the sound has polished a bit, and a sax player, Hank Carter, has joined the Destroyers. This exception made, the program is not very different from the previous albums, a good and solid mix of boogie blues inspired by John Lee Hooker (One Way Ticket), Elmore James (Goodbye Baby), Muddy Waters (an excellent rendition of Bottom Of The Sea where the rhythm section shines) and Hound Dog Taylor (Just Can Make It) with some detour by rockabilly (Carl Perkins’ Restless), a cover of Freddie Slack’s House of Blue Light and a powerful rendition of The Strangeloves’ Night Time. And, as usual, plenty of slide guitar. Before playing in front of thousands in giant arenas, the Destroyers proved with their first three albums that they were one of the best bar bands on the planet, able to make the audience laugh, cry, dance, and sweat.

George Thorogood and the Destroyers – Boogie People

EMI USA – CDP 7 92514 2 [1991]
If you don’t Start Drinking (I’m going to leave) – Long Distance Lover – Mad Man Blues – Boogie People – Can’t Be Satisfied – No Place To Go – Six Days On The Road – Born In Chicago – Oklahoma Sweetheart – Hello Little Girl

Boogie People

Released three years after “Born To Be Bad” and with the same line-up, “Boogie People” is in a similar vein but with a fuller production that serves Thorogood’s brand of blues better. As usual, he pays tribute to his heroes with covers of Chuck Berry, Howlin’ Wolf, John Lee Hooker (a mean version of Mad Man Blues), and Muddy Waters (an acoustic rendition of Can’t Be Satisfied).Lonesome George also has a couple of excellent self-penned numbers. The opener, the humorous and not politically correct “If You Don’t Start Drinkin’ (I’m Gonna Leave)” on which he complains about his sober girlfriend (Don’t give me no lectures / ‘Bout stress and strife / So-ber-i-ety / Just ain’t my way of life / You better change / Yes, I’m begging you please / Cuz if you don’t start drinkin’ / I’m gonna leave.) is a solid rocker; “Long Distance Lover” carries on the Elmore James/Hound Dog Taylor torch, “Boogie People” is a strong boogie-blues and “Oklahoma Sweetheart” a compelling country ballad. Talking about country music, they also cover Dave Dudley’s Six Days On The Road and turn it into a slide guitar festival. Boogie People is an excellent album, as good as any of his Rounder albums.

George Thorogood on Facebook.
Official website.

Unkool Hillbillies (the)

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The Unkool Hillbillies – The Corona Sessions vol. 2

Wham Bam Baloony / Rock My Blues Away [2021]

unkool hillbillies

Here are two more tracks recorded by The Unkool Hillbillies during the pandemic.
Wham Bam Baloony is a relaxed piano-driven number with a bluesy feel and a laidback shuffle. Otto Gryting returns and delivers a brief but excellent sax part.
Rock My Blues Away is not that original, but nonetheless, it is efficient. It’s a Rock’n’roll number with a slight Neo-Rockabilly feel.

The Unkool Hillbillies – The Corona Sessions vol. 1

Flat Top Boogie / So Long Mole [2021]

unkool hillbillies

The Unkool Hillbillies (Anders Umegård on piano/vocals, Fredric Bergström double bass, Mats Brobäck on drums, and Jonas Säfsten on electric guitar/backup vocals) recently went to the studio to record a couple of songs. To help us wait until their forthcoming album, two of them have been released as digital singles. Flat Top Boogie is a traditional piano-led rocker yet modern at the same time. It also features some tasty guitar licks. By listening to the intro of So Long Mole, you’d think (and be slightly afraid) that you’ll hear a Twist. Fortunately for us, it evolves into a solid rocker enhanced by the presence of guest saxman Otto Gryting.

The Unkool Hillbillies – Evil Times

Strawberry Records GET004 [2009]
Dangling On A String – Another Day Another Lie – Sarah – Wake Up – I Aint Mad At You – Just Your Fool – I’ll Do My Best – Jump Start My Heart – Linda Lee – Rock This Joint – Evil Times – It Hurts Me Too – Your The One – Dirty – Tore Up – Blisters – Stampen Boogie – Tell Me

unkool hillbillies

Don’t let the band’s name mislead you: this band is anything but uncool, and their music belongs more to New Orleans and Chicago than to the Grand Ole Opry.Featuring the pounding piano of Anders Umegarg and the fantastic blues harp of Richard Andersson (and both sing), a mean guitar, and a solid rhythm section, this 18-song (13 originals) album is a killer from start to finish.It’s a mix of Chicago Blues (Little Walter’s Just Your Fool), jumpin’ blues with an early rock’n’roll edge (Rock This Joint), Jerry Lee Lewis piano (Dangling On A String), New Orleans rhythm’n’blues featuring juicy saxes (Sarah), good old boogie woogie (Stampen Boogie) and some Blasters influences (Wake Up, Evil Time). They add diversity with three songs recorded live (Tore Up, Blisters, and Stampen Boogie), and guest singer Karin Johansson is featured on three tunes, including It Hurts Me Too (done initially by Tampa Red, although their version owes more to Elmore James). After all this, I’m not sure you’ll continue to call them unkool!

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

website: http://www.unkool.se/index2.html

Trixie Smith

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trixie smith

Trixie Smith – Vol 2 1925 – 1939

DOCD-5333
Everybody loves my baby (take 6) – How come you do me like you do? (take 6) – You’ve got to beat me to keep me – Mining camp blues (take 1) – Mining camp blues (take 2) – The worlds jazz crazy and so am I (take 1) – The worlds jazz crazy and so am I (take 2) – Railroad blues (take 1) – Railroad blues (take 2) – Everybodys doing that Charleston now (take 1) – He likes it slow (take 2) – Black bottom hop – Love me like you used to do – Messinaround (take 1) – Messin around (take 2) – Freight train blues – Trixie blues – My daddy rocks me – My daddy rocks me no. 2 – He may be your man (but he comes to see me sometime) – Jack I`m mellow – My unusual man – No good man

Trixie Smith

The first two tracks, recorded in January 1925, feature Phil Napoleon on trumpet, Miff Mole on trombone, Jimmy Lytell on clarinet, Frank Signorelli on piano, and Jack Roth on drums. The result is two lively versions of “Everybody Loves My Baby” and “How Come You Do Me Like You Do.”
The following month she recorded the next session with a new lineup of her Down Home Syncopators, which included Charlie Dixon on banjo, Fletcher Henderson on piano, Buster Bailey on clarinet, Charlie Green on trombone, and Louis Armstrong on cornet.
This session and the next one (March 1925) with the same backing band are more in a blues vein. Next to Mining Camp Blues, Railroad Blues, and The World’s Jazz Crazy And So Am I, you’ll find the unsettling and masochistic “You’ve Got To Beat Me To Keep Me.” Written by Porter Grainger, composer of the blues standard “T’ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do” it features disturbing lyrics like “You’ve got to beat me to keep me, ’cause Mama loves a hard-boiled man / So don’t you let no man cheat me if he’s got a good right hand. / Beat me up for breakfast, knock me down for tea, / Black my eye for supper, then you’re pleasing me. / You’ve got to beat me to keep me cause Mama loves a hard-boiled man. / Mama don’t want no diamond rings, and she don’t want no swell clothes / Wail me daddy til it stings across my mouth and nose. / I don’t want no hug and kiss, / I don’t want no love and smile, / Beat me with your hand or fist, Papa like I was your child.” As you can see, it’s not your average “I woke up this morning, and you left me” kind of blues.
At the end of the year, she collaborated with Fletcher Henderson’s Orchestra to record four songs. These includes the lively “Everybody’s Doing That Charleston Now” and the excellent “He Likes It Slow.” Other tracks from the session were “Black Bottom Hop” and “Love Me Like You Used To Do,” which is quite similar to “Baby Won’t You Please Come Home.”

The song “Messin’ Around” was recorded in July 1926 with Johnny Blythe and his Raggamuffins. This lively and joyful number showcased Trixie Smith’s vocals and featured a top-notch band including Freddie Keppard and Johnny Dodds.
After a twelve-year hiatus, Smith returned to the studio in 1938, backed by Sidney Bechet, Sammy Price, O’Neil Spencer, and Teddy Bunn, among others. Better recorded and preserved, this session allows listeners to clearly hear Smith’s fantastic voice (and elocution) and one can regret she stayed far from the studios for so long. The material contains new versions of songs she recorded decades earlier (see Volume 1) and ranges from blues (Freight Train Blues, Trixie Blues) to swing (Jack I’m Mellow) and featured high-class performances from the band (Teddy Bunn’s guitar chorus on “Trixie Blues” is worth mentioning). In 1939, she recorded “No Good Man” with Sid Catlett, Red Allen, and Barney Bigard before disappearing and passing away four years later.

Available here.

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Hociel Thomas & Lillie Delk Christian

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Hociel Thomas & Lillie Delk Christian – 1925-1928

Document – DOCD-5448
Hociel Thomas (1925-1926) gamblers dream – Sunshine baby – Adam and Eve had the blues – Put it where I can get it – Wash woman blues – Ive stopped my man – Deep water blues – Gwan I told you – Listen to ma – Lonesome hours - Lillie Delk Christian (1926-1928) Lonesome and sorry – Baby o mine (take a) – Baby omine (take b) – It all depends on you – Aint she sweet – My blue heaven – Whos wonderful! Whos marvellous? Miss Annabelle Lee – Youre a real sweetheart – Too busy! – Was it a dream? (waltz) – Last night I dreamed you kissed me – I cant give you anything but love – Sweethearts on parade – Baby – I must have that man

Lillie Delk Christian Hociel Thomas

There’s a clear contrast in styles and quality between Thomas and Christian. Both tried (and sometimes succeeded) to create a hybrid of jazz-blues-pop, and both have benefited from the presence of Louis Armstrong’s cornet. The comparison ends here.
Hociel Thomas hailed from a family of musicians. Her father was a renowned pianist, and her aunt was none other than Sippie Wallace. Unfortunately, Thomas often sings in a key where she isn’t at ease, which results in her sounding tired and not very engaged and even top-notch musicians like Armstrong can’t transform more than average material into gold.
Lillie Delk Christian is more interesting vocally, and her material is far superior (I Can’t Give You Anything But Love, Ain’t She Sweet, I Must Have That Man). This probably explains why the band gives a better performance. Noone (clarinet) and St Cyr (guitar) enliven the December 12 session featuring My Blue Heaven and Miss Annabelle Lee with gutsy accompaniment and fine solos. Armstrong appears six months later for the June 26, 1928 session. This session features the best, Too Busy, a bouncing number with Armstrong scatting, and the worst of Christian, Was It A Dream, a waltz that doesn’t allow the Hot Four to express themselves.
The last recordings lack a bit of swing in the vocals but are saved by a good rendition of I Must Have That Man.
This selection is an excellent addition to anyone interested in Satchmo’s early years and work as a backup band. Despite some flaws and, Lillie Delk Christian’s sides have a certain charm and are appealing enough for a curious listener and anyone who digs Annette Hanshaw with whom she shares a common repertoire and style.

Find it here.

Note: two more Christian tunes (Sweet georgia Brown and Sweet Man) can be found on Vocal Blues & Jazz – Remaining Titles Vol. 3: (1921-1928)

Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Tommy Johnson

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Tommy Johnson – 1928 – 1929

Document Records – DOCD-5001
Cool drink of water blues – Big road blues – Bye-bye blues – Maggie Campbell blues – Canned heat blues – Lonesome home blues (take 1) – Lonesome home blues (take 2) – Big fat mama blues – I wonder to myself – Slidin` delta – Lonesome home blues – Boogaloosa woman – Morning prayer – Black mare blues (take 1) – Black mare blues (take 2) – Ridin` horse – Alcohol and jake blues

Tommy Johnson

Probably because he doesn’t have the same romantic aura around him as his homonym Robert, Tommy is not the Johnson that history, or more precisely the media, remembers.
His recording career was brief, with only 17 titles, all available here, but the quality was constant.
During two sessions, one for Victor (songs 1-8) and the other for Paramount (9 to 17), he recorded one of the most interesting, rich and unique catalogues in terms of Delta Blues that’ll influence many generations after him (Howlin Wolf, Houston Stackhouse…). He was also among the first to come with the “crossroad mythology”.
His voice is full of intensity, especially on autobiographical pieces like “Canned Heat Blues” or “Maggie Campbell Blues” (named after one of his wives) and can turn into a high-pitched falsetto, sometimes close to yodel. He supports it with a solid guitar style inspired by Charley Patton. Some sides show him backed by a second guitar (Charlie McCoy), a clarinet, and a piano on Black Mare Blues.
Maybe the Paramount sides, compared to the Victor recordings, don’t fit your quality standards, which is not a surprise from the label (Paramount, not Document), but make an effort, and you’ll be rewarded ten times by the quality of the music you’ll hear.
Sadly, Johnson’s bad temper and his alcoholic habits didn’t allow him to build a “serious” career, which I guess led to more alcoholism. He lost his royalties gambling and drinking and died in extreme poverty in 1956.
His musical legacy is a must-have for anyone interested in Delta Blues.

Available here
Fred “Virgil” Turgis

Big Mama Thorton

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Big Mama Thorton – Just Like A Dog

El Toro ET15.138
Just Like a Dog (Barking Up the Wrong Tree) – My Man Called Me / Stop A-Hoppin’ On Me – I Smell a Rat

Big Mama Thorton

Big Mama Thornton, and her incredible voice, need no introduction (so I hope). This EP gathers four tracks. On side A, you’ll find the rocking Just Like A Dog (this lady has something with the dogs) and the mellower My Man. The flip opens with the Rumba-tinged Rhythm’n’Blues of Stop A-Hoppin’ On Me and ends with the jungle beat of I Smell A Rat. All songs were recorded with Johnny Otis Orchestra except for Stop-A-Hoppin, which features Burt Kendricks & His Orchestra.

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