Many listeners tune in by using their phones. Here is where to get the app.
Later in the week you can stream the show from the Archive Player. Launch the Sunday 6 pm segment and click ahead one hour.
Jay Bruder’s big Washington music retrospective set, “R&B in D.C. 1940-1960” has been released by Bear Family Records and is available from their website. It’s been reviewed in the Washington Post and Washingtonian magazine. .
Many listeners tune in by using their phones. Here is where to get the app.
Later in the week you can stream the show from the Archive Player. Launch the Sunday 6 pm segment and click ahead one hour.
Jay Bruder’s big Washington music retrospective set, “R&B in D.C. 1940-1960” has been released by Bear Family Records and is available from their website. It’s been reviewed in the Washington Post and Washingtonian magazine. .
Sunday June 4
This week on the Home Town Special we go from silly to serious and back again. Gene Wyatt and Ronnie Dove give us their unrelated compositions called “Lover Boy.” Ronnie was from Baltimore so we follow on with Baltimore favorites by The Stratfords and and The Lafayettes. “Life’s Too Short” was a title used by both The Lafayettes in the 1960s and The Cats and The Fiddle in the 1940s. That takes us back to Depression era blues records by Louie Lasky and Lottie Kimbrough from the “Chimpin The Blues” CD by Jerry Zolten and Robert Crum. Ian Nagoski of Canary Records in Baltimore has recently published a book and CD on the Armenian-American vocalist Zabelle Panosian. Her acoustic era recording of “The Crane” is a remarkable sound document. We’ll hear it along with titles by Cheika Tetma and Rita Abazi. Lil’ Son Jackson follows the Middle Eastern theme with “Cairo Blues.” from Bill Quinn‘s Gold Star Records with other Gold Star titles by “D. C. Washington” and Lightin’ Hopkins. Mitchell’s Christian Singers round out the first hour. Jack Sneed and his Sneezers talk about “The Numbers” Man” while The Golden Light Quintet of Baltimore enjoins you not to play the numbers. They never convinced Wynonie Harris. He sings “Grandma Plays The Numbers” and a host of his jump blues standards. Art Sheirdan ran the legendary Chance and Sabre Record companies out of Chicago in the early 1950s. We’ll hear some of those much sought after discs by The Five Echoes, The Chanceteers, The 5 Blue Notes, and Johnny Sellers. Little Donna Hightower, Louis Jordan, and Jack McVea answer. Not to forget piano boogies, Redd Stewart and Chuck Murphy document the country piano tradition. Homer & Jethro send up Larry Darnell’s “Oh Babe!” The Pals remind us that “Summer Is Here” so don’t forget to get out and enjoy it. Hope you hear something you enjoy!
Thank you for your donations to bluegrasscountry.org.
Jay Bruder
Lover Boy | Gene Wyatt | Ebb 123 | Dec | 1957 |
Lover Boy | Ronnie Dove & The Bell Tones | Dove RINC 1021 | circa | 1959 |
Saddest Song | Ronnie Dove | JALO 1406 | Jan | 1962 |
Two Lovers | Stratfords | O’Dell 101 | Mar | 1964 |
Life’s Too Short | Lafayettes | RCA Victor 47-8044 | May | 1962 |
Life’s Too Short | Cats And The Fiddle | Bluebird B-8932 | Feb | 1942 |
Gang Busters | Cats And The Fiddle | Bluebird B-8248 | Jun | 1939 |
I Miss You So | Cats And The Fiddle | Bluebird B-8429 | May | 1940 |
How You Want Your Rolling Done | Louie Lasky | Vocalion 02955 | Apr | 1935 |
Rollin’ Log Blues | Lottie Kimbrough | Paramount 12850 | Nov | 1929 |
Groung -Crane Take 2 | Zabelle Panosian | Columbia E3503 | Apr | 1917 |
Guenene Tini | Cheika Tetma Algeria | Polyphon V-45344 | circa | 1930 |
Mother Please Don’t Send Me To America | Rita Abazi | Orthophoic S-319 | mid | 1930s |
Cairo Blues | Lil Son Jackson -Houston purchased | Gold Star 663 | circa | 1948 |
Rebob Boogie | D. C. Washington | Gold Star 661 | Dec | 1947 |
Big Mama Jump | Lightning Hopkins | Gold Star 3131 | circa | 1947 |
Who Was John | Mitchell’s Christian Singers | Melotone 6-07-58 | Jul | 1936 |
What Can Jesus Do | Mitchell’s Christian Singers | Melotone 6-07-58 | Jul | 1936 |
Hungry Slim | Slim Willett and his Hired Hands | 4 Star 1642 | Sep | 1953 |
The Numbers Man | Jack Sneed and his Sneezers | Decca 7522 | Jan | 1938 |
Stop Playing the Numbers | The Golden Light Quintet | Marshall 703 | circa | 1954 |
Grandma Plays the Numbers | Wynonie Harris | King 4276 | Feb | 1949 |
Quiet Whiskey | Wynonie Harris | King 4685 | Nov | 1953 |
Bloodshot Eyes | Wynonie Harris | King 4461 | Jun | 1951 |
Lovin’ Machine | Wynonie Harris | King 4485 | Nov | 1951 |
Git With The Grits | Wynonie Harris | King 4814 | Jul | 1955 |
You Can’t Have Your Cake And Eat It Too | Ike & Dee Dee Johnson | innis 3002 | Feb | 1964 |
Lonely Mood | Five Echoes | Sabre 102 | Sep | 1953 |
The Flame | Chanceteers | Chance 1107 | May | 1951 |
The Beat of Our Hearts | 5 Blue Notes of Washington, D.C. | Sabre 108 | Aug | 1954 |
Mirror Blues | Johnny Sellers | Chance 1138 | Jun | 1953 |
I Ain’t In The Mood | Little Donna Hightower | Decca 48254 | Dec | 1951 |
If I Had Any Sense I’d Go Back Home | Louis Jordan, Bert Payne guitar | Aladdin 3249 | Jul | 1954 |
Fightin’ Mama Blues | Jack McVea | Exclusive 48x | Sep | 1948 |
Brother Drop Dead | Redd Stewart | King 843 | Feb | 1950 |
Blue Ribbon Boogie | Chuck Murphy | Bama 301 | Jan | 1951 |
Oh Babe! | Homer & Jethro | RCA Victor 21-0404 | Oct | 1950 |
Summer Is Here | Pals | Turf 1000 | circa | 1958 |
Louie’s Blues | Louis Jordan | Aladdin 3249 | Jul | 1954 |
Sunday May 28
This week on the Home Town Special We start off with some rock’n’roll from ABC-Paramount including a track by “Vince Everett” of Atlanta (not his real name) and follow with tracks by Washington’s own “Vince Everett” (not his real name either) before turning our attention to some great late 1950s rock’ n’ roll songs by The Bell Notes, The Rocking Chairs, and The Keystoners. Terry Fell gives us near his last gasp at a hit while at RCA Victor records before we recognize Memorial Day with WWII and Korean War songs from The Armstrong Twins, L.W. Lambert, Carl Sauceman, and The Carter Family. Dewey Price travels the road that will eventually lead to bluegrass with two mid-1940s cuts. Harry “The Hipster” Gibson kicks off hour-2 with a bang. Then it is time to go fishing with Tony Hollis, Willie Love, and Chuck Willis. That leads us to Chicago Blues with Muddy Waters, Robert Nighthawk, and Little Johnny Jones. Bo Diddley demonstrates the Chicago to D.C. connection. Appalachian Reign was a popular bluegrass band around Washington in the 1970s and 1980s. Leader, Tom Knowles, has worked with Tom Mindte of Patuxent Music to create a CD in remembrance of the band and the many sidemen who played in it. We’ll hear a couple of cuts from the new CD. We’ll also hear “Sally Ann” the sole playable track from the acetate Tom and The New River Boys cut at WPIK in the Virginia Theater building in Alexandria about 1956. Tom says they had Circle Recording run off some extra copies of that acetate. If anybody has one, he’d love to hear the flip side again. We finish up with some Top 40 rock’n’roll 78 rpm discs from 1957. They mark the beginning of the end of the 78-era in the U.S. I think they sound better than the 45s or LP cuts, and sometimes they sound a little different that the master tape as presented on CD. Hope you hear something you enjoy!
Thank you for your donations to bluegrasscountry.org
Jay Bruder
Doggone It Baby I’m In Love | Clint Miller | ABCParamount 9878 | Dec | 1957 |
Cotton Pickin’ Rocker | Joe Bennett And The Sparkletones | ABCParamount 9885 | Jan | 1958 |
Baby Let’s Play House | Vince Everett rn Marvin Benfield | ABCParamount 10472 | May | 1963 |
Stay Right Here | Vince Everett rn Jay F Morris | SAGA 1002 | Nov | 1959 |
Don’t Worry | Vince Everett rn Jay F Morris | SAGA 1002 | Nov | 1959 |
Buttercup | Vince Everett rn Jay F Morris | Town 1964 | circa | 1964 |
I’ve Had It | Bell Notes | Time 1004 | Dec | 1958 |
A Kiss Is A Kiss | Rocking Chairs | Recorte 402 | May | 1958 |
Magic Kiss | Keystoners | G&M 102 | Jun | 1956 |
Hot To Trot | Terry Fell and the Fellers | X 0149 | Jul | 1955 |
That’s What I Like | Terry Fell | RCA Victor 20-6256 | Jul | 1955 |
I Know My Daddy’s There | Armstrong Twins | 4 Star 1244 | May | 1948 |
The Battle In Korea | L W Lambert and Harold Tomlin and the Carolina Neighbors | Blue Ridge 204 | early | 1953 |
Wrap My Body In Old Glory | Carl Sauceman | Capitol 2060 | Mar | 1952 |
Faded Coat of Blue | Carter Family | Bluebird B-5974 | Dec | 1934 |
I Have No One To Love Me | Carter Family | Victor V-40036 | May | 1928 |
Meet Me By The Moonlight Alone | Carter Family | Victor 23731 | Nov | 1932 |
So Worried So Blue | Dewey Price and his Carolina Hillbillies | Arista 6001 | Dec | 1946 |
Air Mail Special On The Fly | Dewey Price and his Carolina Hillbillies | Majestic 6008 | May | 1947 |
30 Pieces Of Silver | Stewart Family | 4 Star 1488 | Jun | 1950 |
Cope’s Wildflower | Cowboy Copas | Starday SEP-145 | late | 1950s |
Beer Party Saturday Night | Harry Gibson, “The Hipster” | Diamond 2066 | Apr | 1947 |
Barrelhouse Boogie | Harry “The Hipster” Gibson | Musicraft 293 | Dec | 1944 |
Fishing Blues | Tony Hollins | Decca 48300 | Jul | 1953 |
Everybody’s Fishin’ | Willie Love & His Three Aces | Trumpet 147 | Dec | 1951 |
Wrong Lake To Catch A Fish | Chuck Willis | OKeh 6930 | Dec | 1952 |
You’re Gonna Miss Me | Muddy Waters | Aristocrat 1307 | Dec | 1948 |
Return Mail Blues | Robert Nighthawk | Chess 1484 | Oct | 1951 |
Big Town Playboy | Little Johnny Jones | Aristocrat 405 | Jan | 1950 |
Who Do You Love | Bo Diddley | Checker 842 | Sep | 1956 |
Crackin’ Up | Bo Diddley | Checker 924 | May | 1959 |
Mona | Bo Diddley | Checker 860 | Mar | 1957 |
Barefoot Nellie | Appalachian Reign WAMU Concert | Patuxent CD-371-21 | Feb | 1980 |
Rain (Lennon-McCartney) | Appalachian Reign | Patuxent CD-371-04 | Apr | 1980 |
Sally Ann | New River Boys Tom Knowles. Johnny Hopkins | WPIK recording | circa | 1956 |
Mr. Lee | Bobbettes | Atlantic 1144 | Jun | 1957 |
Lotta Lovin’ | Gene Vincent And His Blue Caps | Capitol 3763 | Jul | 1957 |
Alone | Shepherd Sisters | Lance T-125 | Aug | 1957 |
Sweet Pauline | Blue Jays | Roadhouse 1004 | circa | 1952 |
The Flame | Chanceteers | Chance 1107 | May | 1951 |