“Laughin’ to Keep From Cryin'”   Lester Young, Roy Eldridge and Harry Edison   Verve Records   (1958)   What a great candid shot of Eldridge and Young in a private, unguarded moment of comradery.   The title says a lot for these brilliant musicians who suffered through segregation and humiliation their whole lives.   Especially Young who as a sensitive young artist felt the heartbreaking brunt of racism in the army and never quite recovered.   This lp is one of Young’s final recordings.   The title is shared by a Langston Hughes novel from 1952.

(55 votes, average: 4.05 out of 5)

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John Lee Hooker Plays and Sings the Blues   Chess LP 1454.   Early fifties recordings (When Hook was a younger stud) compiled and released by Chess in 1961.   Personnel: John Lee Hooker vocals; guitar.   (Eddie Kirkland guitar on “Just Me and My Telephone”.)   Studs Terkel writes the liner notes.   Another cool cover photo by Chess house photog Don Bronstein.   This is back porch music from the heart of the Delta.   “Although he often reworked themes by earlier bluesmen during this period, it was rare that Hooker outright covered another artist’s material. So his riveting interpretations of Muddy Waters’s ‘Please Don’t Go’ and Big Maceo Merriweather’s ‘Worried Life Blues’ peak this collection”

(56 votes, average: 4.41 out of 5)

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“Viva A Vida”   Pocho e Orquestra RGE     RGE Records Brazil

(54 votes, average: 4.07 out of 5)

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“The Buddy Holly Story”   Compare the U.K. Coral   (top) and U.S. Coral Records (bottom) releases.

(31 votes, average: 4.03 out of 5)

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“Mr. Tambourine Man”   The Byrds 1965 debut on Columbia Records.   #232 on Rolling Stones’ 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.”   Produced by Terry Melcher.   Cover Photo by:   Barry Feinstein.   Here’s an early TV appearance on Hullabaloo.

The only Byrd to play on the band’s first hit was Roger McGuinn, whose chiming twelve-string Rickenbacker guitar became folk rock’s defining sound. Everything else came from L.A. pros, including drummer Hal Blaine and bassist Larry Knechtel from Phil Spector’s Wrecking Crew. But the rest of the Byrds soon caught up, and as the song was breaking, a curious Dylan checked out the band at Ciro’s, an L.A. club, and reportedly didn’t recognize some of his own songs in their electrified versions.   – Rolling Stone

(24 votes, average: 3.33 out of 5)

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Helen Merrill   Emarcy Records   (1954) With Clifford Brown and Oscar Pettiford.   Produced and Arranged by (21 year-old) Quincy Jones.   Merrill’s first and greatest.

Don’t Explain / You’d Be Nice To Come Home To / What’s New / Falling In Love With Love

Yesterday’s / Born To Be Blue / ‘S Wonderful

(50 votes, average: 3.98 out of 5)

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Charlie “BIRD” Parker on Savoy Vol. 1   (1950)   This alternate cover for The Charlie Parker Quintet Vol. 3 by Burt Goldblatt.

(59 votes, average: 4.27 out of 5)

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“Angel Eyes” Duke Pearson, pianist, arranger, producer and Blue Note A&R man though most of the sixties is one of those great under-recognized Jazz musicians that always delivers. Here’s the original 1968 UK Polydor label release.   Recorded in New York on August the 1st, 1961 with Thomas Howard [bass] and Lex Humphries [drums] and with Bob Cranshaw [bass] and Walter Perkins [drums] on January the 12th, 1962.   Oh and this is pretty cool cover too!   Includes the Pearson-penned jazz standard “Jeannine,” “Angel Eyes” and I’m An Old Cowhand / Say You’re Mine / Le Carrousel / Exodus / Bags’ Groove / Say You’re Mine.

This one is hard to get right now, but if you don’t already have them, get “Wahoo,” “Sweet Honey Bee,” “Honey Buns” and “Sweet Prairie Dog” and check out his work on sessions for Donald Byrd, Freddie Hubbard, Hank Mobley, Lee Morgan and most of the Blue Note roster of hard boppers. Here’s the “other Duke’s” DISCOGRAPHY

(42 votes, average: 3.67 out of 5)

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João Villaret – “A man thanks the audience for their applause. The flash light is so harsh that everything looks like plastic. Great!” — Courtesy of Lp cover lover, Paulo Martins

(36 votes, average: 2.61 out of 5)

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“Emocoes!”   Norrie Paramor e sue Orquestra   Odeon Records

(67 votes, average: 3.94 out of 5)

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