Piano Red - The Lost Atlanta Tapes
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.
Websites where you can procure Piano Red - The Lost Atlanta Tapes are Bang Bang Lulu
Productions, Amazon,
System
Records, iTunes, and
CD
Universe.
©November 2010. Luxury Experience. www.LuxuryExperience.com. All
rights reserved.
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