Trix Blues From Muse Records

Trix Blues Reissues

Here are four more releases from the reactivated Trix label. The albums by Big Chief Ellis, Honeyboy Edwards and Willie Trice are reissues of the original albums with producer Pete Lowry adding an update to the original liner notes. While these are straight reissues of the vinyl albums, the Trix albums were generous with their playing times. The Big Chief Ellis is close to an hour while Willie Trice’s album is about 53 minutes. Trix has also issued a splendid new Homesick James recording. ( I had reviewed several other Trix reissues in prior issues of Jazz & Blues Report. One might need to check eBay or sellers of out-of-print recordings for availability).

It was releases like the Big Chief Ellis (Trix 3316) album that made Trix such a singular label back in the seventies. Ellis, a strong pianist, played and sang introspectively, so his blues often are reminiscent of Walter Davis. His performances here are all at slow or moderate tempos and marked by a firm, rumbling left-hand bass that creates a somber cast to the performances. Often playing simple accompaniments he sometimes throws in hesitating sounding right-hand runs and fills while delivering the lyrics with a smoky, gritty voice. He eschews playing any showcase boogies here. Playing it as a minor-key slow blues, Chief transforms the well-known Sweet Home Chicago into what sounds like a totally different song. While all the songs are credited to Ellis, several are piano blues classics that suit his pensive approach, including Leroy Carr’s Prison Bound and How Long Blues, and Walter Davis’ Come Back, Baby, (here titled Let’s Talk It Over). Brownie McGhee, who shares the vocal on Come Back, Baby, makes his presence felt on the terrific gambling blues, Dices # 2, a remake of one of Ellis’ few fifties’ recordings. In addition to McGhee, the late Tarheel Slim is heard on guitar on a couple tracks, as is John Cephas (on what may be his first issued recordings) who is present on four selections. Some may be put off by the lack of fast-tempoed piano romps and might find difficulty listening to this in one sitting. However, all of these performances are tasty gems of blues piano, and for discerning listeners make a refreshing change from some of the hyper-kinetic recordings that pass for blues today.  (I discovered this blog post from Peter Lowry on this recording, https://peterblowry.com/2015/06/11/trix-3316-big-chief-ellis/).

Blue and Rag’d (Trix 3305) features Willie Trice, a Carolina bluesman who lived all his life near Durham and was associated with such legendary figures as Gary Davis, Floyd Council and Blind Boy Fuller. Like his brother Richard, Willie Trice recorded for Decca in 1937, but whereas Richard moved north and recorded in 1949 as Little Fuller, Willie Trice remained in Durham holding a variety of day jobs
and only playing outside the tobacco warehouses occasionally - unlike Fuller and the rest. While he stopped playing by the mid- sixties, after losing his legs to diabetes, he started playing again and Pete Lowry recorded him several times between 1971 and 1973 for the recordings issued here. He also recorded later for Lowry and others. Trice’s music is in the classic mode of Fuller and others. His National steel guitar provides a slightly clipped sound to his playing, but (despite his serious illness) his playing only occasionally sounds rusty. His vocals are also generally robust, although his range is obviously not what it once must have been. Included are original adaptations of songs associated with Blind Blake (New Diddey Wah Diddey) and Blind Boy Fuller (New Careless Love), along with his adaptations of traditional themes. For example, Shine On is a bouncy performance using the Crow Jane/ Red River Blues melody. Fuller’s music is also suggested by a number of other tracks, including the slow Fuller styled blues, You Have Treated Me and I’ve Had Troubled, with moving vocals. I Love You, Sweet Baby sports a bouncy accompaniment, while he adds a recitation behind his good-time fingerpicking on Good Time Boogie. It is too bad that we don’t have more recordings of Willie Trice in his prime. However, even though it was recorded while he was recuperating from a serious hospital illness, Blue and Rag’d provides a generous set of classic Piedmont blues performances and there are few recordings in this vein as good as these being made any more.

David “Honeyboy” Edwards’ disc, I’ve Been Around (Trix 3319), was the first American album by the Mississippi born blues artist who will have turned 80 by the time this review appears. One of the last links to such Mississippi blues greats as Charlie Patton, Big Joe Williams, Tommy Johnson and Robert Johnson, Edwards has been of interest to blues fans as much for his recollections of these artists as his music. In the company of Walter Horton (on four tracks) and guitarist Eddie El (on three), Honeyboy sings songs associated with Patton - Pony Blues, and Banty Rooster, Howlin’ Wolf - Ride With Me Tonight, and Tommy Johnson - Big Fat Mama, and Big Road Blues. Also, he renders his own songs Sad & Lonesome and I Feel Good So Today. Playing a rhythmic guitar style reminiscent of his main mentor, Big Joe Williams, Honeyboy displays a unique sense of time. While he sings in a sometimes hesitant, brittle voice, Edwards provides a distinct tint on these musical indigos, although his performances may lack the charisma of those by his mentors. I’ve Been Around stands well up compared his other recent recordings. When featured, Walter Horton adds some strong harp that sympathetically supports Edwards without overpowering him. It is valuable to have this available again, and stacks up against most of Honeyboy’s other albums, although | would recommend the Earwig album containing Honeyboy’s Library of Congress recordings first.

Like Honeyboy Edwards, Homesick James Williamson is noted for an unusual sense of time, but on his fourth new recording in the past few years, he shows that his music possesses plenty of vitality. On Got to Move (Trix 3320) he is given steadfast support by a band that includes guitarist Ron Thompson (formerly with John Lee Hooker and part of Mick Fleetwood’s Blue Whale). Homesick James renders solid versions of songs by his famous cousin, Elmore James (Baby Please Set a Date, Hawaiian Boogie and Got to Move), and by Arthur Crudup (That's All Right), and Bob Geddins’ Tin Pan Alley, along with several originals. His broomdusting and his gravelly vocals are crisply delivered, if not as upfront as the recordings by his famous cousin. There are three solo tracks, including a fresh sounding Dust My Broom, in addition to the solid band performances. While several songs are ones Homesick James has recorded before, he does not give any of them a run of the mill performance making for a collection of particularly vital performances.

This review originally appeared in 1995 in Issue 201 of Jazz & Blues Report. I received review copies from the record label or a distributor. I note that this review appeared in a slightly different form in the May 1995 DC Blues Calendar. In that review I note about the four selections in the Big Chief Ellis album with John Cephas, that they were produced by Joe Wilson and Dick Spottswood and were the best recorded sides on the album. "The interplay between Ellis and Cephas on the closing Blues For Moot is worth noting.

Piano Boogie Woogie and Blues From Smithsonian Folkways

Smithsonian Institution’s acquisition of the legendary Folkways catalog served music lovers well by preserving and keeping available the rich trove of music that label had recorded. it also has served as a vehicle for the Smithsonian to issue new recordings of diverse musical traditions from around the world including live performances recorded at Smithsonian Folklife Festivals and programs. Included is the production of compilations drawn from the thousands of recordings in their catalog and in their archive. One such compilation is Classic Piano Blues that brings together recordings by Memphis Slim, Speckled Red, Victoria Spivey, Meade Lux Lewis, Roosevelt Sykes, Little Brother Montgomery, Lead Belly, and James P. Johnson from Folkways albums with efforts by Booker T. Laury from the 1990s “Folk Masters” series of concerts and radio broadcasts and a 1976 Folklife Festival performance of Dices Blues by Big ‘Chief’ Ellis (with John Cephas and Phil Wiggins accompanying him).

Jeff Place has compiled an interesting mix of material that is a credible introduction to the piano blues tradition although some might suggest that there are some curious choices of material. The opening Memphis Slim Tribute to Pete Johnson,” is a rousing boogie woogie as is Meade Lux Lewis’ Medium Blues, a strong medium tempo variation on Yancey Special, with a strong left hand bass. Booker T. Laury was heavily influenced by Roosevelt Sykes as his vigorous rendition of Early in the Morning,” that some may be more familiar from Junior Wells’ recordings of this Walter Roland number. I am surprised that a rendition of The Dirty Dozens by Speckled Red was not included, but this barrelhouse player is heard on a solid How Long, attributed by Red to St. Louis pianist Walter Davis. Red’s barrelhouse rendition of Pinetop’s Boogie Woogie, follows the more ragtime-tinged rendition by Little Brother Montgomery, and the contrasts in style is fascinating. Little Brother is good here and on his own No Special Rider Blues, but this listener has heard stronger recordings by him.

Champion Jack Dupree’s Black Wolf Blues, is a European small group recording of Texas guitarist-vocalist, J.T. ‘Funny Paper’ Smith’s Howling Wolf. Big Chief Ellis (he was part Black Creek Indian) originally recorded Dices Blues for a small New York label, and reprised it here displaying the influence of the afore-mentioned Walter Davis in his bittersweet approach. Lead Belly’s Big Fat Woman is more interesting for his mix of traditional lyrics than his unusual piano style. Sam Price’s instrumental, Parlour Blues, is another performance from the Folk Masters series and captures the famed pianist and talent scout in one of his last performances. While the booklet credits this to a performance at the Barns of Wolf Trap, I wonder if this was from the first season of Folk masters which I believe was held at Carnegie Hall.

Little Drops of Water, bring together the Deep Morgan (St. Louis piano of Henry Brown with vocalist Edith Johnson, both of whom recorded in the heyday of blues recordings in the twenties. Another St. Louis pianist is Henry Townsend who does a sober rendition of Roosevelt Sykes All My Money Gone” in an approach that suggest Walter Davis’ influence (Townsend played guitar on many Davis recordings). Sykes is represented by a solo version of Sweet Old Chicago, which he had recorded in New Orleans for Imperial. This is a variant of Sweet Home Chicago, but in any case Robert johnson’s recording itself is derived from Kokomo Blues and Sykes includes a verse not in Johnson’s recording. Sykes takes a boogie solo here, unlike his Imperial recording that featured a hot guitar solo, but was wondering why one of his more famous numbers were not included. Stride pianist James P. Johnson is heard with a small group for Hesitation Blues, as well as backs Katherine Handy Lewis on her father’s Yellow Dog Blues, where she wonders where her “easy rider has gone.” These are fine performances, although I am not sure they are classic piano blues.

As indicated, this serves as an introduction of the piano blues that can be heard on Smithsonian Folkways. There is some marvelous music here and even what I might consider curious selections is entertaining. It comes with a booklet that includes Jeff Place’s overview on piano blues and a discussion of the tracks as well as a biography and a list of pertinent Smithsonian piano blues releases. You can access the Smithsonian/Folkways catalog through the Smithsonian’s website, www.si.edu. The Folkways link is http://www.folkways.si.edu/index.aspx, and you can order or purchase as downloads there.

I purchased this CD.