Time: 62:03
File: Flac
Released: 2020
Styles: Blues
Art: Front
1. Call It Stormy Monday (3:00)
2. That Evening Train (3:07)
3. You'll Never Find Anyone to Be a Slave Like Me (4:24)
4. Glamour Girl (2:47)
5. Louisiana Bayou Drive (3:15)
6. All Night Long (2:59)
7. My Patience Is Running Out (2:28)
8. T-Bone Blues (3:48)
9. Got to Cross the Deep Blue Sea (1:52)
10. Left Home When I Was a Kid (3:13)
11. Don't Go Back To New Orleans (1:21)
12. T-Bone's Way (4:21)
13. T-Bone Shuffle (2:50)
14. You Don't Love Me Blues (2:58)
15. Papa Ain't Salty (2:47)
16. Blues Rock (2:49)
17. Every Day I Have the Blues (4:22)
18. Mean Old World (4:07)
19. Evil Hearted Woman (2:35)
20. Long Skirt Baby Blues (2:50)
Blues guitarist T-Bone Walker is not only one of the most influential musicians to emerge from the fertile soil of Texas, but his impact on the blues guitar cannot be denied. He is one of the first, if not the very first, guitarist to electrically amplify his instrument, thereby unleashing a revolution in the blues and influencing artists from B.B. King and Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown to Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and many others.
Aaron Thibeaux Walker was born on May 28, 1910, in rural Linden, Texas. When he was two years old, he moved with his family to Dallas, TX. Little Aaron began performing with his stepfather, who was a bassist with the Dallas String Band. Here, he developed his basic knowledge of various string instruments.
He only truly learned to play the blues from guitarist Blind Lemon Jefferson, with whom he became friends. He accompanied the blind guitarist from time to time when the latter played on street corners and in the bars of Dallas. In return, Jefferson taught him the fundamentals of the blues guitar. Walker was a quick learner, and as a young teenager, he was already touring with the Dr. Breeding Medicine Show and performing at numerous fairs.
By around 1929, Walker's reputation was already so great that he made his first two recordings with Columbia Records under the name Oak Cliff T-Bone: “Wichita Falls Blues” and “Trinity River Blues.” In 1930, he won a talent contest in Dallas, and the prize was the opportunity to perform with Cab Calloway’s big band. Walker played more frequently with jazz bands and artists, and he also became friends with Charlie Christian, one of the “fathers” of the jazz guitar. Walker moved to Los Angeles in 1934, where he played in numerous small combos, and around 1935/1936, he began experimenting with the first electric guitars. It is generally accepted that he was the first to play an electrically amplified guitar during a performance. In 1939, he recorded “T-Bone Blues” while he was part of Les Hite's Cotton Club Orchestra. The immediate success was so great that he left the orchestra and continued with his own band.
Walker began recording for Capitol Records in 1942, releasing songs such as “Mean Old World” and “I Got A Break Baby.” These songs immediately showcased his own style. Sometime in the 1940s, he moved to Chicago, where he played regularly at the Rhumboogie Club and also recorded for the club's label.
T-Bone Walker was a tremendous showman. He played guitar behind his neck, between his legs, and ran and danced across the stage while playing. In doing so, he would influence later artists such as Chuck Berry and Jimi Hendrix.
He returned to Los Angeles in 1946, where he signed with the Black & White label. And it was with this label that his triumphant march truly began. With them, he recorded "Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just As Bad)" and "T-Bone Shuffle," among others. Other singles were released by Capitol when Black & White ceased to exist, but by then Walker had already signed with Imperial. Over the next five years, he recorded "Vida Lee," "Cold Cold Feeling," and "Blue Mood" for them.
In 1955, he signed with Atlantic Records, and his first session for this label featured Junior Wells and Jimmy Rogers, among others. Several more recording sessions followed, but by the end of the fifties, the jazzy blues style was pushed much further into the background by the harder Chicago blues, soul, and rock 'n' roll. In 1962, T-Bone Walker visited Europe as part of the American Folk Blues Festival and performed with artists such as Willie Dixon and Memphis Slim. The European audience appreciated him, and he would return many more times. After 1960, Walker made very few recordings, and those he did make no longer reached the level of those of the 1940s and 1950s. Exceptions to this were the albums “I Want A Little Girl” from 1968 and “Good Feelin'” from 1970, for which he received a Grammy Award.
He also performed only sporadically. He often toured without a band and played with local bands. These performances were often messy, but despite this, he rarely disappointed and managed to enchant the audience with his musical skills.
Stomach problems caused by long-term alcoholism resulted in poor health during those years. T-Bone Walker died on March 16, 1975, in Los Angeles from complications of pneumonia, which he had contracted following a stroke.
In 1980, he was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, and in 1987, into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He is ranked #47 in Rolling Stone magazine's Top 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.
Aaron Thibeaux Walker was born on May 28, 1910, in rural Linden, Texas. When he was two years old, he moved with his family to Dallas, TX. Little Aaron began performing with his stepfather, who was a bassist with the Dallas String Band. Here, he developed his basic knowledge of various string instruments.
He only truly learned to play the blues from guitarist Blind Lemon Jefferson, with whom he became friends. He accompanied the blind guitarist from time to time when the latter played on street corners and in the bars of Dallas. In return, Jefferson taught him the fundamentals of the blues guitar. Walker was a quick learner, and as a young teenager, he was already touring with the Dr. Breeding Medicine Show and performing at numerous fairs.
By around 1929, Walker's reputation was already so great that he made his first two recordings with Columbia Records under the name Oak Cliff T-Bone: “Wichita Falls Blues” and “Trinity River Blues.” In 1930, he won a talent contest in Dallas, and the prize was the opportunity to perform with Cab Calloway’s big band. Walker played more frequently with jazz bands and artists, and he also became friends with Charlie Christian, one of the “fathers” of the jazz guitar. Walker moved to Los Angeles in 1934, where he played in numerous small combos, and around 1935/1936, he began experimenting with the first electric guitars. It is generally accepted that he was the first to play an electrically amplified guitar during a performance. In 1939, he recorded “T-Bone Blues” while he was part of Les Hite's Cotton Club Orchestra. The immediate success was so great that he left the orchestra and continued with his own band.
Walker began recording for Capitol Records in 1942, releasing songs such as “Mean Old World” and “I Got A Break Baby.” These songs immediately showcased his own style. Sometime in the 1940s, he moved to Chicago, where he played regularly at the Rhumboogie Club and also recorded for the club's label.
T-Bone Walker was a tremendous showman. He played guitar behind his neck, between his legs, and ran and danced across the stage while playing. In doing so, he would influence later artists such as Chuck Berry and Jimi Hendrix.
He returned to Los Angeles in 1946, where he signed with the Black & White label. And it was with this label that his triumphant march truly began. With them, he recorded "Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just As Bad)" and "T-Bone Shuffle," among others. Other singles were released by Capitol when Black & White ceased to exist, but by then Walker had already signed with Imperial. Over the next five years, he recorded "Vida Lee," "Cold Cold Feeling," and "Blue Mood" for them.
In 1955, he signed with Atlantic Records, and his first session for this label featured Junior Wells and Jimmy Rogers, among others. Several more recording sessions followed, but by the end of the fifties, the jazzy blues style was pushed much further into the background by the harder Chicago blues, soul, and rock 'n' roll. In 1962, T-Bone Walker visited Europe as part of the American Folk Blues Festival and performed with artists such as Willie Dixon and Memphis Slim. The European audience appreciated him, and he would return many more times. After 1960, Walker made very few recordings, and those he did make no longer reached the level of those of the 1940s and 1950s. Exceptions to this were the albums “I Want A Little Girl” from 1968 and “Good Feelin'” from 1970, for which he received a Grammy Award.
He also performed only sporadically. He often toured without a band and played with local bands. These performances were often messy, but despite this, he rarely disappointed and managed to enchant the audience with his musical skills.
Stomach problems caused by long-term alcoholism resulted in poor health during those years. T-Bone Walker died on March 16, 1975, in Los Angeles from complications of pneumonia, which he had contracted following a stroke.
In 1980, he was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, and in 1987, into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He is ranked #47 in Rolling Stone magazine's Top 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.
One of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" FLAC
