Roosevelt Sykes - Chicago Boogie (2004)

Tracklist

01. Drivin' Wheel
02. West Helena Blues
03. Wonderin' Blues
04. Monkey Face Blues
05. Rock It
06. Chicago Boogie
07. Security Blues
08. Soon Forgotten
09. Green Onion Top
10. Mail Box Blues
11. 44 Blues
12. Complete This Order
13. Blues n' Boogie
14. Winter Time Blues (Alternate)
15. Rock It (Alternate)
16. My Resolution
17. Kickin' Motor Scooter



This Delmark CD issue is taken from Roosevelt Sykes' first early-'50s recordings for the Regal label, with a few tracks taken from the early '60s, and issued by Delmark originally. Sykes was fresh from a long tenure with RCA Victor and Bluebird, and artistically hungry for the first time in at least a decade. The sides here reflect that fresh-start feel. Sykes performs here like a young lion artist who is trying to blow the doors off the joint to prove himself, rather than as a seasoned veteran. There are three different sessions here: one from March 14, 1950 (with Jump Jackson on drums), another from April 10, 1951 (with J.T. Brown on tenor sax, Ransom Knowling on bass, and Jackson on drums), and a final one from May 17, 1963 (with St. Louis Jimmy on vocals on four of the nine). This stuff is the Sykes' mother lode. Not only have none of these tracks ever appeared on CD before, nine of them are issued here for the very first time anywhere. Here is the piano-pumping, wailing singer, digging deep and having a ball on the title track, "Drivin' Wheel," "Rock It," "Green Onion Top," "44 Blues," and "West Helena Blues," with 12 others in the mix. Sound quality here is pretty much great and the sequencing is primo. This is an indispensable addition to any Roosevelt Sykes' shelf, and one hell of an introduction for novices.

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