Next time someone voices the goofball opinion that blues is simply too depressing to embrace, sit 'em down and expose 'em to a heady dose of Roosevelt Sykes. If he doesn't change their minds, nothing will. There was absolutely nothing downbeat about this roly-poly, effervescent pianist (nicknamed "Honeydripper" for his youthful prowess around the girls), whose lengthy career spanned the pre-war and postwar eras with no interruption whatsoever. Sykes' romping boogies and hilariously risqué lyrics (his double-entendre gems included "Dirty Mother for You," "Ice Cream Freezer," and "Peeping Tom") characterize his monumental contributions to the blues idiom. He was a pioneering piano pounder responsible for the seminal pieces "44 Blues," "Driving Wheel," and "Night Time Is the Right Time."Sykes began playing while growing up in Helena. At age 15, he hit the road, developing his rowdy barrelhouse style around the blues-fertile St. Louis area. Sykes began recording in 1929 for OKeh and was signed to four different labels the next year under four different names (he was variously billed as Dobby Bragg, Willie Kelly, and Easy Papa Johnson)! Sykes joined Decca Records in 1935, where his popularity blossomed. After relocating to Chicago, Sykes inked a pact with Bluebird in 1943 and recorded prolifically for the RCA subsidiary with his combo, the Honeydrippers, scoring a pair of R&B hits in 1945 (covers of Cecil Gant's "I Wonder" and Joe Liggins' "The Honeydripper"). The following year, he scored one more national chart item for the parent Victor logo, the lowdown blues "Sunny Road." He also often toured and recorded with singer St. Louis Jimmy Oden, the originator of the classic "Going Down Slow."
In 1951, Sykes joined Chicago's United Records, cutting more fine sides over the next couple of years. (by Bill Dahl)
This album is the first album to contain all 17 songs Sykes recorded for the United label from 1951-53, plus 3 alternate takes !
It contains some of the pianist's finest work with his jumping combo, the Honeydrippers (with unusual augmentation from violinist Remo Biondi on one 1952 date). "Toy Piano Blues" finds Sykes switching over to celeste, but "Too Hot to Handle," "Walking the Boogie," and "Fine and Brown" are in the customary Sykes mode Raining in My Heart songs.
Fred Below (drums)
Remo Biondi (violin)
J.T. Brown (saxophone)
Robert "Sax" Crowder (saxophone)
Armand Jump Jackson (drums)
Oett "Sax" Mallard (saxophone)
Roosevelt Sykes (vocals, piano, celesta)
Remo Biondi (violin)
J.T. Brown (saxophone)
Robert "Sax" Crowder (saxophone)
Armand Jump Jackson (drums)
Oett "Sax" Mallard (saxophone)
Roosevelt Sykes (vocals, piano, celesta)
John Porter (guitar)
Tracklist:
01. Fine And Brown (alternate version) 2.59
02. Lucky Blues 2.45
03. Raining In My Heart 3.05
04. Heavy Heart 2.41
05. 4.00 Blues 3.08
06. Too Hot To Handle (Hot Boogie) 2.51
07. Tell Me True 3.13
08. Ruthie Lee 2.35
09. Something Like That 3.03
10. Security Blues 2.50
11. Boogie Sykes 2.34
12. Listen To My Song (She’s The One For Me) 2.25
13. Toy Piano Blues 3.04
14. Been Through The Mill 2.53
15. Walkin’ This Boogie 2.29
16. Come Back Baby 2.39
17. 44 Blues 3.11
18. 4.00 Blues (alernate version) 2.59
19. Fine And Brown 2.56