Timeline

 

 

 
The original recording of a great song that totally defies genre categories. Prior to 1949 the term R&B had yet to be coined. Along with Louis Jordan and T-Bone Walker, The King Cole Trio spanned jazz, blues, and pop, playing "Route 66" with an emphatic, swinging beat under Cole`s restrained vocal. The song was later covered by everyone from Bing Crosby and Perry Como to Chuck Berry and The Rolling Stones. The Stones` 1964 version, from their first LP, is a better rendition of the "Chuck Berry" rock & roll sound than the version Chuck Berry himself did in 1961! --- These two samples also offer a dramatic example of equalization (EQ) differences. Compared with each other, the King Cole Trio track sounds warm and full while the Stones track sounds bright and crisp. Each one reflects a combination of circumstances: the era, the studio, and the intent of the engineer to emphasize different aspects of the recording (intimacy of vocal jazz combo vs. energy of rock & roll band).
 

 

 

 
The original version of the song, in 3/4 time, that Elvis later recorded, sped up and in 4/4 time, as the B-side of his first single on Sun Records, "That`s All Right."
 

 
The shorter, standard version of this classic was first recorded in 1946 and released in 1947 on a rarely-heard album, "Work Songs to Grow On." I can`t find a specific date in 1947, so slotted it in March for best flow. The song gradually became widely known in the folk community through songbooks used in schools and summer camps, and through radio performances.
 

 
Most Elvis fans are amazed by how similar this original rendition sounds to Elvis`s 1954 cover version. Elvis also faithfully covered Crudup`s "My Baby Left Me" in 1956.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
This all-time great song was buried on the flip side of "My Bucket`s Got A Hole in It" on first release.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Curtis Mayfield`s dad wrote this unique, riveting prayer for peace and love that was a smash #1 R&B hit, as well as "Hit the Road, Jack" and others for Ray Charles.
 

 

 

 
Along with "Tennessee Waltz" by Patti Page, when "Cold, Cold Heart" was covered for the pop market by Tony Bennett it kicked off a brief era of pop covers of country songs and, eventually, of rhythm & blues songs.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
One of the greatest R&B instrumentals, this song owes its basic riff to a Duke Ellington composition, "Happy-Go-Lucky Local," one of four parts of his Deep South Suite, first recorded in 1946. Jimmy Forrest was a member of Ellington`s band when it performed the song. Forrest`s 1952 adaptation to a slow, earthy arrangement was a huge R&B hit and has stood the test of time. So has James Brown`s 1962 re-conceptualization of Night Train into an upbeat dance number with vocal recitation of a train ride of cities, which hit the pop as well as the R&B charts again.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
This cover of Jimmy Preston`s hot R&B hit from 1949 showed that Haley and his combo could really get down. It featured a superb guitar solo that lead guitarist Danny Cedrone replicated almost note for note two years later on "Rock Around the Clock."
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
BIg Joe Turner`s original version of this basic uptempo blues number featured such overtly sexual lyrics and musical style that it could never cross over to pop radio stations. Bill Haley`s cover version sanitized the lyrics and rearranged the song, transforming it into a very danceable pop record. In the samples you can hear the original version`s heavy backbeat with hand claps, sensual piano ride, and Joe`s "blues shouter" vocal punctuated with an insistent honking sax. The cover`s arrangement is lighter and bouncier, propelled by a thumping acoustic bass, with lilting horns answering Bill`s jauntier vocal style.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
BIg Joe Turner`s original version of this basic uptempo blues number featured such overtly sexual lyrics and musical style that it could never cross over to pop radio stations. Bill Haley`s cover version sanitized the lyrics and rearranged the song, transforming it into a very danceable pop record. In the samples you can hear the original version`s heavy backbeat with hand claps, sensual piano ride, and Joe`s "blues shouter" vocal punctuated with an insistent honking sax. The cover`s arrangement is lighter and bouncier, propelled by a thumping acoustic bass, with lilting horns answering Bill`s jauntier vocal style.
 

 

 

 
Some songs are known only to doo-wop fans; "The Wind" is among the best of the slow ones. It features a dramatic tenor lead with back-up chanting ("wind, wind, blow") and a memorable mid-song recitation. The Jesters` fine cover version appears in many doo-wop compilations, but the Diablos` superb, over-the-top original version was impossible to find on CD until 2003, when Varese Saraband included it in this hits collection. Smokey Robinson has said that, along with Clyde McPhatter, Nolan Strong was an early inspiration of his. Once pointed out, the influence is evident in Strong`s falsetto vocal timbre and phrasing, which we can easily imagine the young Robinson emulating.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Many CD reissues of this song use a source tape where a splice can be heard about half way through. Besides "Blowing The Fuse," you can find a completely intact version on "The Golden Age of American R&R vol.6" Ace (UK) 650 (1997)
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
This song was written by Atlantic Records` president, Ahmet Ertegun (as Nugetre, Ertegun spelled backwards). Its melody and arrangement were "borrowed" by Hank Ballard, who added new lyrics and recorded it as "The Twist." According to Ertegun, Ballard once owned up to him directly, but Ertegun never pressed for credit to be acknowledged officially.
 

 

 

 

 

 
The Muddy Waters` song, "Mannish Boy," is his cover version of Bo Diddley`s "I`m A Man." The different name hardly disguised Muddy`s intent to stake his claim on it.
 

 
This song was first recorded by Haley in April 1954 and released the next month (as the B-side to "Thirteen Women"). It sold about 75,000 copies. When it was interpolated into the movie "Blackboard Jungle" in the spring of 1955, the record was re-released and immediately shot to #1 on the pop charts. Its guitar solo was taken directly from "Rock the Joint," a hit for Haley from 1952.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
The Muddy Waters` song, "Mannish Boy," is his cover version of Bo Diddley`s "I`m A Man." The different name hardly disguised Muddy`s intent to stake his claim on it.