Curtis Amy's First Record

Saxophonist Curtis Amy (1929-2002) was born in Houston; in his thirties he moved to Los Angeles, where he because a busy and well-respected figure, recording some fine albums for Pacific Jazz, Verve, and other labels. His main source of income, though was the LA studio scene, where his talent and versatility kept him busy playing and arranging - for Ray Charles, Lou Rawls, The Doors, etc. As a teenager, I heard him on the radio frequently, since he played on Carole King's "It's Too Late," which was all over the airwaves at the time. I admired the tasteful, expressive soprano sax solo without knowing who it was until several years later.

Young Curtis Amy made his first record when he was still in Houston, around 1948 or so, for the Gold Star label. Bill Quinn's record label, based in Houston, specialized in blues, Cajun, and country sides. Amy's record fit the billl; the tunes are jump blues rather than straight-ahead jazz. The band is rather rough-hewn; guitarist Joyce McQuarn's is pretty out of tune, and the vocalist, Hubert Robinson, has a loose grasp of time. But I find the rawness appealing, and there are good tenor sax solos on both sides. There is another tenor saxophonist in the band, and I first thought that the saxophone solo on side A, "Realization Blues," was not the same player as the soloist on "Sleeping Blues," the flip. I have since changed my mind - I think it's Curtis Amy on both sides - but I've put the two solos back to back in one sound file so folks can listen and make up their own minds.

My copy shows the signs of being a former jukebox record - one side is in pretty good condition, while the other is much more worn. In this case, "Sleeping Blues" was the more popular side in whatever jukebox this record used to reside. But this is a scarce record, and I'm glad to have this copy of it.

Realization Blues

Sleeping Blues

Saxophone solos back to back

Lillian Glinn - Texas Blues

Lillian Glinn, a tough Texas blueswoman, was born in Hillsboro, Texas in 1902.  She recorded four sides for Columbia in December, 1927, when one of that company's field recording units stopped in Dallas to record local talent.  The results of that session were good enough, and presumably sold well enough, that she was invited to record 18 more sides for Columbia over the next two years.

I found her first issued record in a box of 78s in Chattanooga, Tennessee a few years ago, and it quickly became one of my favorite blues records.  Like many old blues records found "in the wild," it is well-worn.  (Blues and old-time country 78s tend to be very worn, while early classical records are often found in near-pristine condition.  Folks who bought classical records could afford to change needles frequently; rural record buyers often couldn't.)  In any case, I used more noise reduction than usual in my transfer of this disc.

Part of what I love about this record is the connection to the earliest days of jazz in New Orleans, via the presence of Octave Gaspard on tuba on "Doggin' Me Blues."  "Oak" Gaspard was born in New Orleans around 1870, and played bass and tuba with bands such as John Robichaux's at the time jazz was being born.  He moved to Texas during the depression, and showed up on several blues records made there in the 1920s.  He is thought to have died in Texas, but nobody seems to know when.

Gaspard is replaced on the other side, "Brown Skin Blues," by an anonymous guitarist, playing a twelve-string guitar, it sounds like.  Oddly, this side ends not with a vocal chorus or any kind of big finish, but with two fairly low-key instrumental choruses.  Pianist Willie Tyson plays on both sides.

At some point, probably in the 1930s, Lillian Glinn moved to California, married a preacher, and turned her back on the blues, performing only spiritual music thereafter.  But here is her first record, recorded on December 2, 1927 in Dallas.

Doggin' Me Blues

Brown Skin Blues

Johnny's House Party

West Coast bluesman Johnny Heartsman (1937-1996) was a phenomenally talented guy; he played guitar, organ, and (surprisingly for a blues musician) flute.  He was Al King's guitarist and music director for several years in the 1960s- that's the Al King who was based in California, not the Albert King who recorded for Stax.  Heartsman's contributions to King's "Think Twice Before You Speak," "Reconsider Baby," and "Everybody Ain't You're Friend" are important to the success of those records.  Late in life, Heartsman made a handful of excellent albums, like The Touch on Alligator.  But in 1957, he had a hit record with the irresistible instrumental "Johnny's House Party" on the Music City label.

Although "Johnny's House Party" made it to #13 on the R & B charts, copies of the record are seemingly hard to find these days.  My copy is fairly worn, especially toward the inner grooves - I can't imagine anyone who owned this record not playing it.  But the spirit shines through.  It's a fun little record, with pieces of "Honky Tonk," "Night Train," and other R & B hits thrown into the house party.  Enjoy "Johnny's House Party," parts one and two.

Part one

Part two