Showing posts with label Joe Morris. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Joe Morris. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 12, 2020

Joe Morris - Blues & Rhythm Series 5125: The Chronological Joe Morris 1950-1953

Size: 198 MB
Time: 68:12
File: FLAC
Released: 2004
Styles: Blues, R&B
Art: Full

01. Anytime, Any Place, Anywhere (3:07)
02. Stormy Weather (2:57)
03. Come Back Daddy, Daddy (3:03)
04. Rock Me Daddy (2:32)
05. You're My Darling (2:56)
06. I Hope Your Satisfied (2:54)
07. Can't Stop My Crying (3:07)
08. Don't Take Your Love Away (2:55)
09. Ghost Train (2:57)
10. Midnight Grinder (2:42)
11. Jump Everybody Jump (2:35)
12. Love Fever Blues (3:18)
13. Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! (3:01)
14. Pack Up All Your Rags (3:23)
15. My Love, My Desire (3:09)
16. Bald Head Woman (3:11)
17. If I Had Known (2:52)
18. Let's Have A Ball Tonight (2:55)
19. Verna Lee (2:28)
20. Watch Out I Told You (2:52)
21. Someday You'll Be Sorry (3:24)
22. Travelin' Man (3:12)
23. No It Can't Be Done (2:28)

The second volume in Classics Records' chronological survey of the recording career of trumpet player and bandleader Joe Morris opens with his biggest hit, "Anytime, Any Place, Anywhere," which topped the R&B charts in 1950, thanks in part to a fine vocal by Laurie Tate. Tate sings the first eight tunes here, actually, with Teddy Smith, Billy Mitchell, Jimmy Lewis, and even Morris himself taking turns at singing on other tracks on this collection, which brings together Morris' early '50s sides for Atlantic Records (plus the "Travelin' Man" single from Herald Records). Among the clear highlights are the instrumental "Ghost Train," the edgy, relentless stomp of "Watch Out I Told You," a fine vocal duet by Billy Mitchell and Teddy Smith on "If I Had Known," and the marvelous "Travelin' Man," which clearly prefigures rock & roll, a genre Morris would have thrived in had he lived long enough (he died in 1958). "Anytime, Any Place, Anywhere" is frequently anthologized, but as far as dedicated albums are concerned, the two volumes from Classics Records are all there is on CD, with this second volume getting the nod if you can only afford one. ~Steve Leggett

The Chronological Joe Morris 1950-1953

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Joe Morris - Blues & Rhythm Series 5057: The Chronological Joe Morris 1946-1949

Size: 215 MB
Time: 74:39
File: FLAC
Released: 2003
Styles: Blues, R&B, Jazz
Art: Full

01. Fly Mister Fly (2:48)
02. Bam-A-Lam-A-Lam (2:35)
03. Boogie Woogie Joe (3:04)
04. Wilma's Idea (2:57)
05. Joe's Boogie (2:43)
06. Out Of The Night (2:59)
07. Lowe Groovin' (2:46)
08. Jump With Me (2:59)
09. Mad Moon (2:13)
10. Easy Riff (3:08)
11. The Spider (2:37)
12. Bottle Top (2:29)
13. Wow (3:02)
14. The Applejack (3:13)
15. Weasel Walk (2:50)
16. Boogie Woogie March (3:10)
17. Chuck-A-Boogie (3:09)
18. Jax Boogie (3:02)
19. Beans And Cornbread (2:53)
20. Tia Juana (2:41)
21. Sneaking Around (3:11)
22. Portia's Boogie (2:38)
23. Lowdown Baby (2:56)
24. Wig Head Mama Blues (2:41)
25. Broken Hearted Blues (2:44)
26. Ooh Ooh Ooh That's Good (2:59)

These 26 sides originally issued under the name of trumpeter Joe Morris have a lot going for them, but the main reason to get yourself a copy of this disc and play it really loud for the entire neighborhood is the continued presence of young Johnny Griffin blowing tenor sax like there's no tomorrow. On six sides cut for the Manor label in 1946, Griff cuts up in the manner of Lockjaw Davis, hammering away with abandon. Although the adventuresome electric guitarist is unidentified, he sounds like he might be George Freeman, who was present on the Atlantic sessions of December 1947. Here the bop element has set in a bit further, mingling powerfully with the R&B energies. Morris sings once in a while, scatting almost alarmingly on the rowdy opus simply called "Wow" and screaming like a banshee at the beginning of "Applejack." Beginning in September of 1948 the jazz players really start to file in -- Elmo Hope, Percy Heath, and Philly Joe Jones -- and every early modern jazz enthusiast will want to dive in and paddle around in these old Atlantic and Decca recordings. Check out Philly Joe's percussion and Griff's inspired improvising on "Tia Juana." Joe Morris blew fine trumpet and was a capable vocalist, but what makes this reissue so exciting is the presence of Johnny Griffin and a small pack of guys who were each getting ready to revolutionize the art of jazz. ~arwulf arwulf

The Chronological Joe Morris 1946-1949