Bo Carter, the essential DOUBLE CD
Classic Blues is devoted to re-issuing the classic recordings of America's greatist blues artists.

Bill Wyman's Blues Odyssey DOUBLE CD

Rude Dudes - Part 2 Of Bill Wyman's Blues Odyssey

Banana In Your Fruit Basket, If It Don't Fit Don't Force It and He's Just My Size? Well, no prizes for guessing what they're all about. But what is a Southern Can, who is the Boy in the Boat and why a Man O' War? This excellent double CD, with twelve page full colour booklet, is packed with some of the most intriguing and often humorous Hokum, Blues, Jazz and Boogie-Woogie pieces based on the subject of sex. Outrageous double entendres and curious metaphors are abound. If Bananas, Lollypops, Fish and Jelly be the food of love, then play on! Continued...

Blues, Blues Christmas 1925 - 1955

Bo Carter Vol 1 1928 - 1931

Bo Chatman (Bo Carter) vocal, guitar.

Includes Mary Butler (probably Rosie Mae Moore) vocal.

With contributions by: Lonnie Chatmon, violin; Charlie McCoy, mandolin; Walter Vincson, guitar.

Genres: Blues, Country Blues, Mississippi Blues, Blues Guitar, String Band.

Informative booklet notes.
Detailed discography.

From this album's booklet notes.
Bo's first appearance on record seems to be a Columbia session held in Atlanta, Georgia on November 2, 1928, where he, Charlie and Joe McCoy, and an unknown pianist, backed a singer named Alec Johnson. A Columbia session did take place on December 17, 1928 in New Orleans, with Bo, Charlie McCoy and Walter Vincson, where two titles were cut as the Jackson Blue Boys. But before that session, the group ran into the Brunswick mobile unit and recorded as Charlie McCoy and Do Chatman, as well as backing Mary Butler on four titles. After Good Old Turnip Greens the vocal chores were turned over to Mary Butler for four blues titles. Bungalow Blues was handled smoothly, although a bit stiffly, with its occasional II and VI chords lending it a vaudeville flavour. On Mary Blues the blues style in the vocal was harder and the guitarist (probably Vincson) begins the instrumental introduction with a few bluesy slurs. On Electric Chair Blues the mandolinist had the same difficulty as on Mary Blues, and Butler cut Mad Dog Blues to better effect with only Vincson on guitar (including some mandolin imitation on the breaks). Continued...

Bo Carter Vol 2 5th June 1931 to 26th March 1934

Bo Carter Vol 3: 27 March 1934 to 20 February 1936

Bo Carter, vocal, guitar.

With contributions by Harry Chatmon, piano (tracks 13 & 14)

Genres; Country Blues, Mississippi Blues, Country Blues Guitar.

The first Bluebird sessions in March of 1934 marked a return to the studio for Bo after a two and a half year absence. Tastes in blues had changed and the record companies could no longer afford to take chances on untested acts or untried material. A more disciplined approach was applied in the studio and this sometimes led to records that sounded formulaic or unexciting. Bo Carter's records at this time showed as much or more diversity as any of his recording rivals and his regular trips to the studio attested to his popularity. Continued...

Bo Carter Vol 4: 20 February 1936 to 22 October 1938

Bo Carter, vocal guitar.

Genres: Country Blues, Mississippi Blues, Country Blues Guitar.

It has taken quite some time for Bo Carter's rightful place in blues history to be established. His music was complicated and multifaceted. The question of whether his lyrics are "pornographic" or merely an uninhibited and even healthy view of sexuality is really a relative one. There is certainly enough "raw" data contained in Bo Carter - Vol. 4 for the listener to come to his own conclusion. All Around Man, It's Too Wet, Cigarette Blues, Your Biscuits Are Big Enough For Me, and Don't Mash My Digger So Deep are classics of their type and the gorgeous guitar work on "Cigarette Blues" alone should be enough to persuade even the casual listener that there is more here than suggestive wordplay. Continued...

Bo Carter Vol 5: 22 October 1938 to 12 February 1940

Bo Carter was still touring the South with the Mississippi Sheiks in the years 1930 through 1935. This activity took the band through Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, Louisiana, and as far north as Illinois and New York. During this period Bo's eyesight got progressively worse and he eventually went blind sometime in the 1930s. This ensuing blindness and the disbanding of the Sheiks led Carter to concentrate on his solo recordings. On October 22, 1938 he had his longest session ever, recording eighteen titles in one day, all but one of them issued. This session produced some of his most advanced music from a structural and harmonic standpoint. Continued...

Too Late Too Late Blues 1926 - 1944
DOCD-5150 Too Late Too Late Blues 1926 - 1944 Alternative takes and rare, late, discoveries. Various. The first Document CD appeared in 1990 with DOCD-5001 “Tommy Johnson”. Three years and 150 releases later the first volume of the “Too Late, Too Late” albums appeared. The unprecedented unleashing of such a fast growing bulk of blues and gospel recordings in such a “completist” fashion inspired both fans of the music and collectors alike. Once that the great river of releases had been flowing for a while collectors began to think again about what might be hidden in the corners of their collections or had until then been regarded of no real significance. In addition there were recent and continue to be, rare finds. A Big Bill Broonzy 78 had just recently been found, having been picked up in a lot that was saved from the street where it had been left for disposal. Then there was the box of Paramount tests that had been found several years ago which were made available. Collectors also began to revisit their records with more attention being paid to the recordings themselves and on many occasions found that takes that appeared on their records were not the takes that had thus far been re-issued.