Luxury Experience - Piano Red - The Lost Atlanta Tapes

Piano Red (aka Dr. Feelgood) is not just an icon, he is the blues, and on The Lost Atlanta Tapes he has been preserved for all to enjoy and to respect the genius that started in the 1920's ragtime era and spanned more than six decades.

The Lost Atlanta Tapes: She's Mine; My Baby's Gone; That's My Desire; Let's Get It On; C.C Rider; Baby, Please Don't Go; Shake, That's All Right; Cottonfields; Corinna, Corinna; The Right String (But the Wrong Yo Yo); Blues and Trouble; Let's Have A Good Time Tonight; St. Louis Blues; Ain't Gonna Be Your Lowdown Dog No More; Pay It No Mind; Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone; Rockin' with Red; Doctor Feelgood

Personnel: Piano Red "Dr. Feelgood": Piano; James Jackson: Drums; George Miller: Bass

Piano Red - The Lost Atlanta Tapes was released by Bang Bang Lulu Productions on the Landslide Records label. Willie Lee Perryman (aka Piano Red and Dr. Feelgood) was at the age of 73 and had not done an album in over 7 years, so in one night in 1984, and with the collaboration of two of his favorite musicians (James Jackson on drums and George Miller on bass) they laid down the tracks to what eventually would become The Lost Atlanta Tapes. While the music was in production Piano Red passed away in 1985 and the feeling was that the release should be held up for awhile. Twenty Five years later the tapes of that eventful evening were found and thus, The Lost Atlanta Tapes were released, and for blues enthusiast, this is a release to cherish.

The Lost Atlanta Tapes is 18 tracks full of vintage blues like only Piano Red could play, and there are 8 tracks that were previously unreleased. The Lost Atlanta Tapes opens with She's Mine an old ragtime tune that typified the early years of Piano Red and shows that he had not lost anything over the years as he bangs out the ragtime waltz tempo. The track My Baby's Gone is pure blues and as Piano Red said "I use to live the blues years ago and that is where I learned to play ‘em." The track That's My Desire is one of the more requested songs Piano Red played over the years, and he touches all the notes that connect with the audience, making it a fan favorite.

Piano Red has adopted so many of the classic tracks over the years, and the track C.C Rider, first recorded by Gertrude "Ma" Rainey in 1924, has become a staple of Red's work; his rendering on The Lost Atlanta Tapes is masterful in a way that only Red could do it. The track Baby, Please Don't Go is a slow and sultry blues song that Red's voice carries to a new level. Shake, That's All Right is a pulsating cover with Red banging on the ivory keys and stirring up a whole lot of shaking.

Cottonfields is a track everyone remembers, but Red's version captures the essence of working and toiling in the fields. Corinna, Corinna is my favorite track of the release and it is the fountain of youth with the sound and energy of a 20 year old Willie Lee Perryman singing and playing the piano. The Right String (But the Wrong Yo Yo), written by Piano Red, is a rollicking ragtime track with Red leading the band as they barrel through this song.

The track Blues and Trouble is a down and dirty blues song that Red's voice brings to life from deep within his soul. The track Let's Have A Good Time Tonight is a swing ragtime beat that gets the audience involved and there is no way you cannot have a good time listening to Piano Red. The track St. Louis Blues is another toe tapper with Red's arrangement capturing the raw elements of blues through a vibrant piano and his captivating vocals.

The release also include the tracks Ain't Gonna Be Your Lowdown Dog No More, Pay It No Mind, Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone, Rockin' with Red, and Doctor Feelgood, each its own testament to the genius of Piano Red. The Lost Atlanta Tapes are a treasure found and preserved for blues aficionados to add to their collection.