Rene Hall is quite possibly the most underrated musician in America's pop and blues history.  As a guitarist he is certainly amongst the very best and is as equally important as an arranger and conductor on a myriad of classic pop, rock and R&B recordings to come out of Los Angeles.  Covering just one decade of his career in the studio from 1950 - 1960 these twenty-nine recordings run the gamut of blues, jazz and rock & roll.  As a guitarist, arranger, bandleader and label A&R man he worked with many of the genres most influential artists from Sam Cooke and Billy Ward to Little Richard and Marvin Gaye.  He was part of many of the era's most memorable recordings.                                                                                  

This is, by far the most comprehensive collection of Eddie's pre-funk recordings and features some rock & roll classics like I’m Wise which later became a smash for Little Richard under the title Slippin’ and a Slidin’. From the raw, early bluesy sound of his Ace and Apollo recordings through his time at Chess, he maintained a rough tough r&b sound that rivaled such contemporaries as Guitar Slim & Professor Longhair.  The second disc delves into his amazing recordings for the New Orleans RIC label which are 60's Crescent City classics.

This 51-track collection is nowhere near Johnny Fuller's complete recorded work, but serves as an excellent introduction to one of the unsung heroes of the blues.  His acid toned guitar and menacing lyrics were a mainstay of his recordings and this collection features most of the early sides, many of which have never been reissued.  This CD includes the original version of Haunted House which went on to become a rock and roll standard.

This collection of the earliest sides by these two Crescent City gems presents many previously un-reissued sides from Johnny Adams and Lee Dorsey's earliest Allen Toussaint productions. Here 31 sides, from the Ric, Fury and Ace labels give listeners some kind of idea of the talent that New Orleans had to offer, in addition to Fats Domino, who seemed to swallow up most of the national spotlight back in the day.                                

Gus Jenkins enjoyed only one major hit in his lengthy career, the instrumental Tricky which peaked at #2 on the Billboard R&B charts and even made #79 on the pop charts.  This is the most comprehensive package of his work to be released in the CD era. His wife Mamie Perry who also recorded as Mamie Jenkins is featured as well as tough sides from BLUES SLIM- HAZE HART & ALBERT & CHARLES.........         

Although he remains perhaps best known for See You Later Alligator, Louisiana-born singer/songwriter Bobby Charles penned several other R&R/R&B classics. These sides are included on this cd set which anthologizes his early recording career with everything that he recorded for Chess and Imperial between 1955-62.  Also included are well-known covers of eight of his songs, by Bill Haley, Fats Domino, John Fred, Clarence 'Frogman' Henry and Johnnie Allan, all of which were significant hits. This is the most comprehensive collection of Bobby Charles' early career currently available. 

Subtitled From Rock & Roll to Northern Soul, this "best of" release covers the breadth of Sanchez's talents. Featured on these selections are artists as varied as Knockout Greg & The Beat From Palookaville to Albert Lee.  I have never heard a bad track from Sanchez and this CD could be the best single representation of his work.                                                                                                                           .

The Big Six were one of the best British jump blues bands of the 1990's.  During that era the market was flooded with bands cashing in on the short-lived swing craze but The Big Six had the sound and the musicianship that made them more than a rockabilly band with horns. Sporting their insane Spike Jones inspired stage costumes, they put on outrageous fun and rocking shows(I saw them a few times in 1996). This 25-track retrospective pulls from their releases from the 90's and feature such hard guitar rockers as Master Blaster and Out Tonight, as well as 50's inspired rockers like All Night Long and New Orleans.  If you Like Knockout Greg, The Igor Prado Band or Mike Sanchez this CD will flip your wig. 

One of the toughest of female R&B singers, this compilation rounds up her entire recorded output between 1951-62, for six different labels, including a side released under a couple of different pseudonyms, plus a rarity which was unreleased the first time around.  It also features her regional hits Every Night In The Week, Snake In The Grass, Black Cat Crossed My Path and Evil-Eyed Woman” as well as the original version of Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller's much covered classic I'm A Woman. 

Lucky Millinder's big band was loud and raucous and designed mainly for dancers, but over the years it featured some of the greatest jazz musicians and R&B players to ever grace a stage or recording studio. With vocal talents such as Trevor Bacon, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Wynonie Harris, and Annisteen Allen to name a few. The members of his orchestra were equally famous in the jazz world and feature such top flight musicians as Bill Doggett, Sam 'The Man' Taylor, Dizzy Gillespie, Ike Quebec,Paul Quinichette and Art Blakey… 

This is Jasmine's second release of Johnny 'Guitar' Watson following  The Gangster of Love (JASMINE171), which covered his greatest recordings from 1953-1959.  This collection presents 19 tracks covering his singles between 1959-1962, and kicks off with an alternate version on the innovative and influential Space Guitar and both sides of a single by Cordella De Milo from 1955, featuring some stunning guitar work from Johnny.