Roy Brown - Blues & Rhythm Series Classics 5036: The Chronological Roy Brown 1950-1951 (2002)

A native of New Orleans, LA who came up in Galveston, Houston and Los Angeles, Roy Brown was an essential component in the infusion of Southern R&B into the mainstream youth market during the late 1940s and early '50s, churning up the cultural waters from coast to coast while aiding and abetting in the inevitable rise of Rock & Roll. Possessed of a penetratingly passionate voice, Brown belongs in the same glorious category with B.B. King, Jackie Wilson, Larry Darnell, Hank Ballard, Titus Turner, Lloyd Price, Little Richard and Little Willie John. This installment in the Classics Roy Brown chronology taps into the exciting records he made with his "Mighty-Mighty Men" in Cincinnati, OH for the DeLuxe label between April 19, 1950 and March 22, 1951. Note that tracks 19 through 22, discographically designated as having been "rejected" by DeLuxe, were recorded live in front of an appreciative audience somewhere in Cincinnati with "possible" accompaniment by the Lucky Millinder Orchestra. One interesting ingredient in Brown's hot little 1950 jump band was trumpeter Wilbur Harden, best remembered today as the man who collaborated with John Coltrane on three different Savoy sessions in 1958. ~arwulf arwulf