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Lazy Lester: The Return of the Last True Bluesman

By John Morthland, eMusic Contributor

Lazy Lester, the last of the Big Four of swamp blues, is enjoying one of his periodic comebacks. His 2011 album You Better Listen netted him nominations for three Blues Music Awards (Best Traditional Blues Album, Traditional Blues Artist of the Year and Harmonica Player of the Year), with the outcome to be announced May 10 in Memphis. The album was recorded in Norway for a Norwegian label, with the star being backed by the… more »

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Bobby Blue Bland: The Singer’s Singer

By John Morthland, eMusic Contributor

Until his health gave out on him, Bobby Blue Bland was the singer's singer. One of the biggest black hitmakers of the '60s, he had little crossover success but influenced countless other vocalists. He personified the sturdiest bridge in the transition from blues to soul music. And nearly everything you need to know about him can be found on three albums of two discs apiece: I Pity the Fool/The Duke Recordings, Volume 1; Turn On… more »

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Alabama Shakes, Boys & Girls

2012 | Label: ATO Records

The chatter that southern blues-rockers Alabama Shakes have generated in the months leading up to their debut is usually reserved for legends twice their age, or at least groups with more than a couple of songs to their name. There have been Janis Joplin and Otis Redding comparisons, endorsements from the likes of Jack White and Adele, and fans talking about their raucous live shows like they're enough to convert you to a new religion. And — if you can believe it — the Athens, Alabama quartet’s full length debut Boys & Girls lives up to the hype.

The first thing that will bowl you over is that voice. "Bless my heart, bless my soul/ I didn't… more »

Four Vagabonds, Complete Recorded Works (1941-1951): Vol. 3 (1943)

2005 | Label: Document Records / The Orchard

The Four Vagabonds are the missing link between the Mills Brothers, the Ink Spots and the bird groups (the Orioles, the Ravens, the Flamingoes), bridging the war years of the 1940s to span black secular harmony emerging from the church and swing bands as it evolves into the underpinnings of rock 'n' roll and the whiter, more teen-friendly variety known as doo-wop. They tend to get overlooked in this lineage in the same way WWII vets found when they returned from duty, a world changed, aged by their experience on the front, which in the Vagabonds' case meant also weathering the Musician's Union strike of 1942-44, which effectively banned instruments from the studio. They were lucky that, like the Mills,… more »

Four Vagabonds, Complete Recorded Works (1941-1951): Vol. 1

2005 | Label: Document Records / The Orchard

The Four Vagabonds are the missing link between the Mills Brothers, the Ink Spots and the bird groups (the Orioles, the Ravens, the Flamingoes), bridging the war years of the 1940s to span black secular harmony emerging from the church and swing bands as it evolves into the underpinnings of rock 'n' roll and the whiter, more teen-friendly variety known as doo-wop. They tend to get overlooked in this lineage in the same way WWII vets found when they returned from duty, a world changed, aged by their experience on the front, which in the Vagabonds' case meant also weathering the Musician's Union strike of 1942-44, which effectively banned instruments from the studio. They were lucky that, like the Mills,… more »

Four Vagabonds, Complete Recorded Works (1941-1951): Vol. 2 (1942-1943)

2005 | Label: Document Records / The Orchard

The Four Vagabonds are the missing link between the Mills Brothers, the Ink Spots and the bird groups (the Orioles, the Ravens, the Flamingoes), bridging the war years of the 1940s to span black secular harmony emerging from the church and swing bands as it evolves into the underpinnings of rock 'n' roll and the whiter, more teen-friendly variety known as doo-wop. They tend to get overlooked in this lineage in the same way WWII vets found when they returned from duty, a world changed, aged by their experience on the front, which in the Vagabonds' case meant also weathering the Musician's Union strike of 1942-44, which effectively banned instruments from the studio. They were lucky that, like the Mills,… more »

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Don’t Forget (The Rest of) The Motor City

By John Morthland, eMusic Contributor

Everybody knows Motown was great, but few realize what an incubator the entire City of Detroit was for soul music in its heyday. For each artist on Berry Gordy’s label there were several more just as good who went with another major, or with a smaller, local indie. Some made their names in r&b, vocal groups or gospel before evolving into soul; others started in soul but had their greatest impact in funk. But even… more »

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