Plug It In! Turn It Up! Electric Blues - The Definitive Collection, Pt. 1: Beginnings 1939-1954

by N/A

Overview

Bear Family's Electric Blues history Plug It In! Turn It Up! may not seem quite as ambitious as some of their projects, but that's only because it arrives in four volumes of three CDs, not a hulking 12-disc, 12X12 box complete with a hardcover book. Taken on its own terms, it is a pretty impressive chronicle of electrified blues from its infancy to its prime. Here in the first volume, the spotlight shines on its birth, opening up with a cut from Andy Kirk & His Twelve Clouds of Joy, a 1939 side called "Floyd's Guitar Blues" featuring a solo by Floyd Smith, and running to 1954, when the jumping, hard-charged sound started to break into the big time. Wisely, Bear Family is happy to repeat artists -- there is no way to limit yourself to just one T-Bone Walker or Muddy Waters song, after all -- and they bend the rules ever so slightly, letting in sides by R&B singers like Fats Domino and Ray Charles, artists who aren't always strictly classified as electric blues but certainly fit this wide definition. Roughly speaking, the first disc here is devoted to the swinging, jumping sounds of the '40s and '50s, with the second finding the rawer, nastier sounds starting to sneak in (Jackie Brenston's 'Rocket '88'," Howlin' Wolf's "How Many More Years," Elmore James' "Dust My Broom," and Little Walter's "Juke" pop up here), and the third concluding with the rise of overdriven Chicago blues and boogie, with Jimmy Reed rubbing shoulders with Wynonie Harris. Perhaps there are some seminal sides from these 15 minutes -- almost certainly there are -- but this first volume of Plug it In! Turn It Up! tells its story expertly and, best of all, it sounds like a party as it does so. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	06/15/2012
Label:	Bear Family Records
UPC:	4000127169211
Rank:	101419

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Floyd's Guitar Blues  - Chris Colombo  -  Kirk  - Floyd Smith  - John Weigand
2. Mean Old World  - Aaron Walker  - T-Bone Walker
3. Strange Things Happening Every Day  - Rosetta Tharpe  -  Traditional
4. Drifting Blues  - Charles Brown  - Johnny Moore  -  Moore  - Eddie Williams
5. Ain't That Just Like a Woman  - Claude DeMetruis  -  Jordan  - Fleecie Moore
6. That's All Right  - Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup
7. Let Me Play with Your Poodle  - Lightnin' Hopkins  - Hudson Whittaker
8. Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)  - Aaron Walker  - T-Bone Walker
9. Better Cut That Out  - John Lee Williamson  - Sonny Boy Williamson
10. Ramblin' Bill  - Big Bill Broonzy  -  Broonzy
11. I Can't Be Satisfied  - McKinley Morganfield  - Muddy Waters
12. Boogie Chillen  - Bernard Besman  - John Lee Hooker
13. Blues After Hours  - Pee Wee Crayton  - Jules Taub
14. Mary Is Fine  - Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown  - Don Robey
15. Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee  - Granville "Sticks" McGhee  -  McGhee  - J. Mayo Williams
16. Hit the Road  - Little Willie Littlefield  - Jules Taub
17. Who's Been Jivin' You  - Joe Josea  - Jimmy Weatherspoon  - Jimmy Witherspoon
18. Black Angel Blues (Sweet Black Angel)  - Robert McCullom  -  Nighthawks
19. My Special Friend Blues  - Baby Boy Warren
20. Every Day I Have the Blues (Lonely Heart Blues)  - Peter Chatman  - Lowell Fulson
21. Rock Awhile  - Goree Carter  -  Carter
22. Bon Ton Roula  - Clarence "Bon Ton" Garlow  - Eddie Shuler
23. Rollin' and Tumblin', Pt. 1  -  Baby Face Leroy Trio  - Muddy Waters
24. Slippin' and Slidin'  -  McVea  - Gene Phillips
25. Rockin' All Day (Rockin' and Reelin')  - Jimmy McCracklin  - Jules Taub
26. Love Don't Love Nobody  - Roy Brown  -  Brown

Disc 2

27. That's All Right  - James A. Lane  - Jimmy Rogers
28. Midnight Boogie  -  Tampa Red  - Hudson Whittaker
29. Black Night  - Charles Brown  - Jessie Mae Robinson
30. Rock Little Baby  - Eunice Davis  - Cecil Gant  - Alberta Hunter
31. Why Should I Cry?  - Lonnie Johnson
32. Rocket '88'  - Jackie Brenston
33. How Many More Years?  - Chester Burnett  -  Howlin' Wolf
34. Boogie Woogie Nighthawk  - James "Wide Mouth" Brown  - Robert Shad
35. Baby Let's Go Down to the Woods  - Floyd Dixon
36. Kansas City Blues  - Robert Nighthawk
37. Pontiac Blues  - Sonny Boy Williamson
38. Dust My Broom  - Elmore James
39. I'm in the Mood  - Bernard Besman  - John Lee Hooker
40. Cold Cold Feeling  - Jessie Mae Robinson  - T-Bone Walker
41. Ramblin' on My Mind  - Boyd Gilmore  - Robert Johnson
42. Please Send My Baby Back  - Sunny Blair  - Joe Josea  - John Lee Williamson
43. Trust in Me  - Fats Domino  - Ted Jarrett
44. Juke  - Walter Jacobs  -  Little Walter
45. Me and My Chauffeur Blues  - Ernest Lawlars  -  Memphis Minnie
46. Five Long Years  - Eddie Boyd
47. Lonesome Train  - Teddy McRae  - Charles Singleton  - Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson
48. Hound Dog  - Jerry Leiber  - Johnny Otis  - Mike Stoller  - Big Mama Thornton
49. Chocolate Pork Chop Man  - Pete Lewis  - Pete "Guitar" Lewis
50. Woke Up This Morning  - B.B. King  - Jules Taub
51. Evening Sun  - Joe Brown  - John Shines  - Johnny Shines
52. Cryin' Shame  - James Pryor  - Snooky Pryor

Disc 3

53. Messin' Up  - Charles Norris  - Chuck Norris
54. Please Love Me  - B.B. King  - Jules Taub
55. Forty Cups of Coffee  - Danny Overbea
56. Ice Cream Man  - John Brim
57. Losing Hand  - Charles Calhoun  - Ray Charles
58. Hydramatic Woman  - Joe Hill Louis
59. Feelin' Good  -  Little Junior's Blue Flames  - Junior Parker
60. One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer  - Amos Milburn  - Rudy Toombs
61. Tiger Man  - S. Burns  - Joe Hill Louis  - Rufus Jr. Thomas
62. Blues with a Feeling  - Walter Jacobs  -  Little Walter
63. Piggly Wiggly  - Melvin "Li'l" Son Jackson
64. TV Mama  - Big Joe Turner  - Lou Willie Turner
65. The Things That I Used to Do  -  Guitar Slim  - Eddie Jones
66. Shim Sham Shimmy  - Champion Jack Dupree  - Bobby Robinson
67. Dirty Work at the Crossroad  - Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown  - Don Robey
68. You Don't Have to Go  - Jimmy Reed
69. I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man  - Willie Dixon  - Muddy Waters
70. Sloppy Drunk  - James A. Lane  - Jimmy Rogers
71. Shake That Thing  - Wynonie Harris
72. Wine, Women, Whiskey  - Alexander Lightfoot  -  Papa Lightfoot
73. I'm Gonna Murder My Baby  - Peter Clayton  - Pat Hare
74. Pet Cream Man  - J.B. Hutto  - Joseph Benjamin Hutto
75. Reconsider Baby  - Lowell Fulson
76. Don't Have to Worry (Jumpin' in the Heart of Town)  - Lafayette Thomas
77. The Boogie Disease  - Doctor Ross  - Isaiah Ross

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Sunny Blair   Primary Artist
Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup   Primary Artist
Muddy Waters   Primary Artist
Goree Carter & His Hepcats   Primary Artist
Roy Brown & His Mighty-Mighty Men   Primary Artist
Rufus Thomas Jr.   Primary Artist
Cecil Gant   Primary Artist
Amos Milburn   Primary Artist
Louis Jordan & His Tympany 5   Primary Artist
Johnny Moore's Three Blazers   Primary Artist
Pee Wee Crayton   Primary Artist
Little Willie Littlefield   Primary Artist
Lonnie Johnson   Primary Artist
Big Bill Broonzy & His Rhythm Band   Primary Artist
Guitar Slim   Primary Artist
Snooky Pryor   Primary Artist
Big Mama Thornton   Primary Artist
Baby Boy Warren   Primary Artist
Jimmy Rogers   Primary Artist
J.B. Hutto   Primary Artist
Lafayette Thomas   Primary Artist
Jackie Brenston   Primary Artist
Clarence "Bon Ton" Garlow   Primary Artist
Doctor Ross   Primary Artist
Charles Brown   Primary Artist
Elmore James   Primary Artist
Tampa Red   Primary Artist
Baby Face Leroy Trio   Primary Artist
T-Bone Walker   Primary Artist
Papa Lightfoot   Primary Artist
Sister Rosetta Tharpe   Primary Artist
Sonny Boy Williamson II   Primary Artist
Andy Kirk & His Twelve Clouds of Joy   Primary Artist
Ray Charles   Primary Artist
B.B. King   Primary Artist
John Lee Hooker   Primary Artist
Little Walter   Primary Artist
Lightnin' Hopkins   Primary Artist
Danny Overbea   Primary Artist
Wynonie Harris   Primary Artist
Melvin "Lil' Son" Jackson   Primary Artist
Sticks McGhee & His Buddies   Primary Artist
James Wide Mouth Brown   Primary Artist
John Brim   Primary Artist
Floyd Dixon   Primary Artist
Champion Jack Dupree   Primary Artist
Gene Phillips   Primary Artist
Johnny Shines   Primary Artist
Big Joe Turner   Primary Artist
Jimmy Reed   Primary Artist
Jimmy McCracklin   Primary Artist
Boyd Gilmore   Primary Artist
Joe Hill Louis   Primary Artist
Chuck Norris   Primary Artist
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown   Primary Artist
Jimmy Weatherspoon   Primary Artist
Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson   Primary Artist
Fats Domino   Primary Artist
Pat Hare   Primary Artist
Eddie Boyd   Primary Artist
Howlin' Wolf   Primary Artist
Robert Nighthawk   Primary Artist
Little Junior's Blue Flames   Primary Artist
Lowell Fulson   Primary Artist
Pete "Guitar" Lewis   Primary Artist
Memphis Minnie   Primary Artist
The Nighthawks   Primary Artist
Jack McVea Orchestra   Featured Artist
Floyd Smith   Guitar,Soloist

Technical Credits

Granville "Sticks" McGhee   Composer
Claude de Metruis   Composer
Charles Shaar Murray   Source Material
Robert Gordon   Source Material
Johnny Moore   Composer
Leslie Fancourt   Source Material
Joe Brown   Composer
John Lee Williamson   Composer
Mark Hoffman   Source Material
John Chilton   Source Material
Rick Coleman   Source Material
John Godrich   Source Material
Charles Calhoun   Composer
Tony Collins   Source Material
Chip Deffaa   Source Material
Mike Rowe   Source Material
Peter Clayton   Composer
Sebastian Danchin   Source Material
Don Snowden   Source Material
Charles Norris   Composer
S. Burns   Composer
Pee Wee Crayton   Composer
Scott Dirks   Source Material
Little Willie Littlefield   Composer
Lonnie Johnson   Composer
Cilla Huggins   Source Material
Joseph Benjamin Hutto   Composer
Eddie Jones   Composer
Este   Photography,Illustrations,Photo Restoration
Beth Garon   Source Material
Chris Colombo   Composer
Ward Gaines   Source Material
John Weigand   Composer
Kevin Hahn   Source Material
Ted Jarrett   Composer
Big Bill Broonzy   Composer,Source Material
Baby Boy Warren   Composer
Colin Escott   Source Material
Lafayette Thomas   Composer
Jackie Brenston   Composer
Clarence "Bon Ton" Garlow   Composer
Eddie Shuler   Composer,Source Material
Charles Brown   Composer
Isaiah Ross   Composer
Eunice Davis   Composer
David Ritz   Source Material
Jeff Hannusch   Source Material
John Lee Hooker   Composer
R.A. Andreas   Illustrations,Photography
Eddie Williams   Composer
John Brim   Composer
Steve Franz   Source Material
Slim Notini   Source Material
Galen Gart   Source Material
Robert McCullom   Composer
Mike Leadbitter   Source Material
Helen Oakley Dance   Source Material
Norbert Hess   Source Material
Ulf Carlsson   Source Material
Teddy McRae   Composer
Steve LaVere   Source Material
Traditional   Composer
Paul Pelletier   Source Material
Sonny Boy Williamson II   Composer
B.B. King   Composer,Source Material
John Shines   Composer
Johnny Otis   Composer
Lou Willie Turner   Composer
Robert Johnson   Composer
Jim O'Neal   Source Material
Richard Weize   Discography
Neil Slaven   Source Material
Alberta Hunter   Composer
Danny Overbea   Composer
Willie Dixon   Composer,Source Material
Wynonie Harris   Composer
Melvin "Lil' Son" Jackson   Composer
Martin Hawkins   Source Material
Dave Booth   Research
Amy O'Neal   Source Material
Robert M.W. Dixon   Source Material
Paul Garon   Source Material
Pete Lewis   Composer
Andreas Merck   Photo Scanning
James Segrest   Source Material
Alexander Lightfoot   Composer
Marcus Heumann   Mastering
Robert Pruter   Source Material
Elmore James   Composer
John Broven   Source Material
Walter Jacobs   Composer
Don Robey   Composer
Floyd Smith   Composer
Floyd Dixon   Composer
Gene Phillips   Composer
Leonard Feather   Source Material
Joel Whitburn   Source Material
Nadine Cohodas   Source Material
Bernard Besman   Composer
Bill Dahl   Liner Notes,Reissue Producer
Jimmy Reed   Composer
Jimmy McCracklin   Composer
Bobby Robinson   Composer
Jimmy Witherspoon   Composer
J. Mayo Williams   Composer
Chester Burnett   Composer
Joe Hill Louis   Composer
Joe Josea   Composer
James A. Lane   Composer
Fats Domino   Composer
Fleecie Moore   Composer
Charles Singleton   Composer
Eddie Boyd   Composer
Ernest Lawlars   Composer
James Pryor   Composer
Rob Bowman   Source Material
Hudson Whittaker   Composer
Robert Nighthawk   Composer
Robert Shad   Composer
Lowell Fulson   Composer
Rudy Toombs   Composer
Jules Taub   Composer
Peter Chatman   Composer
Pete Welding   Source Material
Jerry Leiber   Composer
Jessie Mae Robinson   Composer
Roy C. Ames   Source Material
Roy Brown   Composer
Memphis Minnie   Composer
Goree Carter   Composer
McKinley Morganfield   Composer
Michael Lydon   Source Material
Marc Ryan   Source Material
Junior Parker   Composer
Mike Stoller   Composer
Aaron Walker   Composer
Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup   Composer
Muddy Waters   Composer
Tony Glover   Source Material