Search:willie walker

A double treat for those who love timeless Southern Soul flavoured with some of those good ol’ down home blues. Memphis born, and Minneapolis based, Willie Walker can comfortably be included in the pantheon of grittiest soul singers along with Wilson Pickett, Syl Johnson, Lou Rawls, James Carr, Eddie Floyd, Tyrone Davis and L.V. Johnson, to name but a few, but there has always been speculation about other Willie Walkers. The recordings on Eutor and Hi in the 70’s are not by the same Willie as those on Goldwax and Checker in the 60’s. He did, however, also record as Wee Willie Walker.
 
He was a member of The Rhythm Harmonizers, The Val-Dons, The Exciters, The Bound Band, Willie & The Bumblebees (although that Willie is actually Willie Murphy of The Val-Dons), and Canoise, spanning a long and varied career before hooking up with the Minneapolis based band The Butanes in 2004, with whom he made the next three albums. The first of these was mainly cover versions, but "Right Where I Belong" (2004) and "Memphisapolis" (2006) are notable for each providing the tracks that make up this latest Jai Alai release, a label that differs from sister label Soul4Real by featuring 21st century tracks previously CD only but now released on 7” vinyl for the first time. It also has to be noted that all the tracks on both these albums were written and produced by Curtis Obeda, who managed to track down Willie after so many years.
 
“I Feel It” will have been missed by most as it was on the CD "Right Where I Belong" which was released in 2004 on the most unlikely of UK imprints, the Wirral based One On One Records run by Colin Dilnot. The album is a lavish display of real instruments from a band that once backed John Lee Hooker and Little Johnny Taylor and the perfect setting for Willie’s powerful vocals. 
 
Just tipping five glorious minutes, "Cry, Cry, Cry" is a perfect example of why soul music is inextricably linked to the blues, and when the gospel styled chorus joins in towards the end, you realise that this could, maybe should, have carried on for just a little bit longer. Perhaps a fuller length version exists? Sadly, Willie died peacefully in his sleep in November 2019, but to complete his story check out the two albums on Blue Dot as Wee Willie Walker & The Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra. To quote the great Quinton Claunch…”Willie was one of the best to come out of Memphis in the 60’s”.
 
Steve Hobbs
(Solar Radio, Totally Wired Radio)

Born and raised in small Texas towns, the members of Good Looks met and began playing together in Austin. Songwriter Tyler Jordan grew up in a South Texas coastal town dominated by the petrochemical industry, his childhood steeped in the tension between nature and industry, exploitation abundantly present and the wealth gap on full display. His father's church, described by Tyler as "cult-like in its intensity," was homebase and where he learned to sing. Tyler eventually met lead guitarist Jake Ames in the late-night song-swap circles of the Kerrville Folk Festival campground (where they would also meet Buck Meek and Adrienne Lenker pre-Big Thief). They shared their mutual love of the Texas hill country canon (Blaze Foley, Townes Van Zandt, and Willie Nelson), a love of cheap diner food, thrift store baseball caps, and a healthy dose of harmless shit-talking. They began playing in bands together, backing up other songwriters and taking turns in the spotlight. They sought out producer Dan Duszynski (Loma, RF Shannon, Jess Williamson) to engineer their debut album. What would form was Good Looks, a blue-collar political indie-rock band with healthy doses of Replacements swagger and shimmering, desert rock riffs not unlike The War On Drugs.

An exclusive 7" re-release of this psychedelic funk ballad from Tulsa's "Outback" Band. As featured on Now-Again's 'More Loving On The Flipside' compilation, "Strangers (In Our Homeland)" epitomises the expression of social & political change during an era of psychedlia infused music. In partnership with the two surviving members of Outback, both Symphonical & Now-Again are proud to showcase the voice of independent artists.

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The origin of "Outback" dates back to the late 50s, a five-piece blues outfit named "Little Lo and the Rest of Us" included music educator & bass guitarist Edward "Cha-Cha" Cherry, saxophonists Eugene "Buggy" Roach & James "Flab" Farley whom, alongside drummer Roscoe J. Dabney III "Roach", Ronnie Wilson on trumpet, guitarists Roy "Rochester" Walker & Michael Collins, would form The Magnificent Seven, the house band for Tulsa's 'Rose Room'.


Alumni of Booker T. Washington High School, The Magnificent Seven influenced & set the standard for the Tulsa sound, as demonstrated through their only single, recorded in 1966, the two part 'Pluck-A-Pluck'. 'The Sevenettes', the groups' female vocal trio, included the rotation of Lena Luckey Wilson, Gwendolyn French, Rose Brewer Lewis, Jeanetta Williams & Maxayn. The Magnificent Seven, led by "Cha-Cha", toured nationally throughout the 60s with their infectious, raw R&B sound, and were the platform for many of Tulsa's talent including Ronnie & Charlie Wilson who would later create the GAP Band.


Roscoe J. Dabney III, the first Black Panther to establish the Tulsa chapter in 1969 known as the NCCF (National Committee to Combat Fascism), proposed the name change to "Outback" in the early 70s. Their sound & formation was changing from R&B to Psychedelic, from the grit to the phase, epitomised by their unique line-up of having two bassists playing simultaneously, both Reggie Cherry & "Chilly" Willie Lewis, the musical foundation to their only recorded single, "Strangers (In Our Homeland)" & "Reggie's Thang".


Song writer & band affiliate, Maurice Pope, produced the lyrics to "Strangers (In Our Homeland)" and handed over the musical attributes to Willie Lewis & Outback to convey his message, as sung by Lena Luckey Wilson. Dabney recalls the song is based on religious scriptures, whilst highlighting the parallel of Black slavery in the U.S.


"Reggie's Thang", written by Dabney's cousin, bassist Reggie Cherry, provides a psychedelic instrumental, a sound which Lena recalls is what set apart Outback from other Tulsa groups. As well as playing clubs, the seated shows provided an environment for the group to showcase their musicianship to those who wanted to be immersed & listen.


Their single, released on Empathy, was recorded in 1972, and are the only known recordings by Outback. Recorded live onto 8-track at a studio located at on East Pine St in the heart of Tulsa's Black community, an independent & unknown studio located on a strip mall.


The Outback members who recorded are:


Lena Luckey Wilson - Vocals

Roscoe J. Dabney III "Roach" - Drums

"Chilly" Willie Lewis - Bass

Reggie Cherry - Bass

Edward "Cha-Cha" Cherry - Keys

Joyce Daws - Trumpet

Roy Walker "Rochester" - Guitar

Robert Luckey "Uncle Bobby"- Percussion

Fredy Berry "Freddy" - Tenor Sax


Band leader & group manager: Edward "Cha-Cha" Cherry

Booking Agent: Ernie Fields Sr.

In 1973 whilst performing in Ft. Worth, TX, Buck Ram approached Willie Lewis backstage and invited him to join The Platters, Lewis accepted. Supposedly, a recording deal was offered to Outback in exchange, which never happened.


The group continued in various formations after Lewis left, however as an integral member, the feeling never equalled their original form and soon after dissolved.


Leon Russell approached Lena Lucky Wilson in 1974 to go on tour with the GAP Band as their backing singer, upon returning Tulsa Lena moved to Los Angeles to pursue her musical career with Leon & Mary Russell amongst various others.


Dabney continued music and became a TV producer & director in 1976.


The only surviving members of Outback today are Lena Luckey Wilson & Roscoe J. Dabney III.

Nach Funk, Soul und Reggae entdecken Sie in der neuen Ausgabe der Greatest Hits-Sammlung alle Blues-Hits. Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, BB King, John Lee Hooker... Die größten und legendärsten Bluesmusiker auf einer schönen Vinyl 2LP

Im neuesten Label-Spotlight der 'This Is'-Reihe - nach gefeierten Blicken auf Flying Dutchman und Fame - konzentrieren sich die Ace-Macher auf Goldwax, das seinen 60. Geburtstag feiert, und präsentieren die besten Aufnahmen, die während der kurzen Existenz des Soul-Labels entstanden sind.
Die Compilation rückt nicht nur James Carr ins Rampenlicht, sondern auch seinen wichtigen Labelkollegen Spencer Wiggins oder die wunderschönen Harmonien der Ovations. Diese drei Acts waren die tragenden Säulen von Goldwax und zeigen neben den Songschreiber-Talenten von George Jackson und Dan Greer, warum der Einfluss des Labels auch heute noch wichtig ist. Ein Katalog voller Juwelen, von den frühesten Aufnahmen des Hitmachers von 'Why Can't We Live Together', Timmy Thomas, bis hin zu selten aufgenommenen Künstlern wie Philip & The Faithfuls. Diese Zusammenstellung zeigt auch, wie stark die Club- und Studioszene in Memphis damals war, mit Aufnahmen von Willie Walker, Percy Milem, Barbara Perry, Gene 'Bowlegs' Miller und anderen, die zwar nur sporadisch Aufnahmen machten, aber beliebte Live-Performer waren. 'This is Goldwax' wird mit einem vollständig illustrierten Booklet mit Liner Notes von Dean Rudland geliefert. Eine perfekte Einführung in das Label zu Beginn seines siebten Jahrzehnts. Als Doppel-LP

Driving Shaka murder, fury and yearning mixed into a perfect marriage of digital and old-school music-making. Bagga Walker and a drum-machine tear up the dub. Complete with rare, ebullient Colarman toast.

A nice boxset with 3 LP and a poster. Including all the greatest blues artists: LIGHTNIN" HOPKINS, JOHN LEE HOOKER, SCREAMIN" JAY HAWKINS, BO DIDDLEY, MUDDY WATERS, HOWLIN" WOLF, T-BONE WALKER, B.B KING...

The Men collection is back with a new double vinyl dedicated to the greatest voices of the Blues including the man who inspired Elvis Presley, BB King.

'I've been obsessed with western swing since I was a kid, and it's always
been an influence, but my records in the past have ranged from bluegrass
to hard country to folk, So I've never fully explored it' - So says genrebusting Fargo-born, Austin- incubated, Nashville resident Brennen Leigh,
whose new collaboration with the kings of modern-day western swing,
Asleep at the Wheel, Obsessed With The West, is a showcase not just for
the Bob Wills fans, but for anyone who's ever curled up with Loretta Lynn,
Hank Sr, Cindy Walker, Billie Holiday, or Willie Nelson
On twelve all original songs, Leigh's supple winking voice and multi- instrument
fluency, her interplay with Ray Benson, and the undeniable chops of the Wheel
serve up a treat on Leigh's seventh album. With cameos from Emily Gimble and
Katie Shore, and all the players getting their moments in the sun, Leigh - a twotime winner of the Texas Music Awards Best Female Vocalist award -
demonstrates on the terrific jump 40's rhythm and blues, 'Comin' in Hot' and the
lonesome cowboy musing of 'Riding Off Onto Sunset Boulevard' why Rodney
Crowell and Lee Ann Womack have recorded her songs. Obsessed With The West
is a celebration of music for music's sake in 2022, not just an exercise in looking
back on times gone by.

Asleep At The Wheel is celebrating their 50th Anniversary with the release of Half A Hundred Years. The nineteen tracks feature original band members, current band members and guest artists. The special guest artists are Lyle Lovett, George Strait, Lee Ann Womack, Willie Nelson, and Emmylou Harris.
Tracks 1 - 11 are new songs featuring the original band members. Tracks 12 -16 are old songs featuring the current band members and Asleep At The Wheel alumni. Tracks 17 - 19 are songs from the vaults that have never been released and track 14 features the current and the two previous female band members.

RSD 2021 TITLE

Vinyl colourway will be Opaque Galaxy - Tangerine + Aqua

The debut album from Willie Jones, Right Now, features previously released singles “Windows Down,” “Bachelorettes on Broadway”, and his latest, “Down For It” featuring T.I. — an updated rendition of the original, which have accumulated more than 20 million streams across all platforms. The new track was featured on Pandora’s Country Rap, Apple’s New Music Daily, Country Risers and others, and it was the cover of TIDAL’s Rap & Country playlist. Jones has more than one million followers across his socials and recently debuted his own Apple Music show called “The Cross Roads Radio.”