“The Mack” Original Blacksploitation Soundtrack on American Artists Records.   Starying Richard Pryor, Roger Mosley and Max Juien.     1973   Great soul by Willie Hutch and Vocalist Eugene McDaniels.

(42 votes, average: 3.64 out of 5)

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A gunslinger of a different sort — Don Byas   Savoy Records

“Years ago the game was vicious, cutthroat. Can you imagine Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Chu Berry, Don Byas, and Ben Webster on the same little jam session? And guess who won the fight?   That’s what it was–a saxophone duel. Don Byas walked off with everything.”

— Sonny Stitt

(45 votes, average: 3.91 out of 5)

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“Blood on the Saddle” Tex Ritter   Capitol Records   Listen as Tex really slows down and stretches out the lyrics on this baby.   Nice pulp Western painting on the cover.

John Ritter’s pappy was well suited to the role of singing cowboy. He looked and acted the part and was singing the type of songs he loved best.   Although Ritter’s films never had the production values of films starring Gene Autry or Roy Rogers, he still enjoyed considerable success at the box office.

In 1942, after a decade of recording with little success, Ritter became one of the first artists signed by the newly formed Capitol Records. He soon began scoring major hits with records such as “Jealous Heart,” “ Rye Whiskey,” “I’m Wastin’ My Tears on You,” and “You Will Have to Pay.” Ritter would record for Capitol for the rest of his life.

In 1952, Ritter recorded the movie title-track song “High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darlin’) which became a hit. He sang “High Noon” at the first Academy Awards ceremony to be televised in 1953, and it received an Oscar for Best Song that year.

He achieved significant success with “Jingle, Jangle, Jingle,” and in 1944, he scored another hit with “I’m Wastin’ My Tears On You,” which hit #1 on the country charts and #11 on the Pop charts. “There’s A New Moon Over My Shoulder” was a country charts #2 and Pop charts #21. In 1945, he had the #1, #2 and #3 songs on Billboard’s “Most Played Jukebox Folk Records” poll, a first in the industry. Between 1945 and 1946, he registered seven consecutive Top 5 hits, including “You Two Timed Me One Time Too Often,” a country #1 which spent eleven weeks on the charts.   In 1948, “Rye Whiskey” and his cover of “Deck Of Cards” both made the Top 10 and “Pecos Bill” reached #15. In 1950, “Daddy’s Last Letter (Private First Class John H. McCormick)” also became a hit.

Tex bit the dust in 1974.

(64 votes, average: 4.33 out of 5)

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“Cocktail Swing”   Jack Sterling and his Quintet   Columbia Harmony Records

“Idol Worship of the Worshipped Idols” a piece of original art by John Purlia.

A solo exhibit of John Purlia’s Lp cover-inspired art is coming to Distinction Gallery in Escondido, California.   The show is titled “Plastic Prophets of Vinyl Redemption” and will run from February 14-March 7.   Check it out!

(44 votes, average: 3.77 out of 5)

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“After the Riot at Newport”   The Nashvilled All-Stars   RCA Victor   Cover art by the always whimsical and wonderful Jim Flora.   (1960)   A weird collection of western swing and be-bop by Hank Garland, Chet Atkins (guitars), Gary Burton (Vibes), Brenton Banks (violin, piano), Floyd Cramer (piano), Bob Moore (bass), Buddy Harman (drums), Boots Randolph (tenor sax).

Songs include: “Relaxin'” (Jimmy Guinn); “Nashville to Newport” (Chet Atkins); “Opus de Funk” (Horace Silver); “S’Wonderful” (Gershwin); “‘Round Midnight” (Monk); “Frankie and Johnny” (Traditional); “Riot-Chous” (Hank Garland, Boots Randolph).

The All-Stars Newport Jazz Festival performance was cancelled after the infamous 1960 “riot” that caused George Wein and organizers to shut down the festival.   The band performed never-the-less at one of those Newport mansions where they recorded this record.   George Wein wrote the liner notes.

(54 votes, average: 3.89 out of 5)

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Clay Tyson “Digs The Beatniks”   “Spick-boo, dad!   Winley Records   (Check out his zoot suit!)

(64 votes, average: 4.11 out of 5)

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“Big Terror Movie Themes”   Geoff Love and his Orchestra   MFP Records (UK) (That’s Music For Pleasure)   A surprisingly funky budget bin disk.

(44 votes, average: 3.27 out of 5)

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“For Women Only”   Spicy Songs Sung by Saul T. Peter (!)   Davis Records   Songs include “Ooooh, Have I Got Hot Nuts For You”, “He’s the Queen of Fire Island”,   “She Loves Her Peter” and the classic “The Horse With the Hansom Behind”.

(41 votes, average: 3.44 out of 5)

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‘A Stay-At-Home-Do-It-Yourself Pilgrimage to Lourdes”   The Rev. Dr. Frederic J. Nelson, Tour Guide.   For armchair, er, wheel chair, travelers.     Courtesy of Lp cover lover,   Art Scott.

(30 votes, average: 2.33 out of 5)

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“Music for the Night”   “Une Heure de Slow”   Ducretet –   Thomson   A nice French record of jazz with players including Lucky Thomson,   Zoot Sims, Guy Lafitte, etc.

(47 votes, average: 3.62 out of 5)

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