Matt The Cat presents the soul that came before rock n’ roll: 1950s rhythm and blues. Each week, this underrated and rollicking music plays on that old Rockola Jukebox in the back.
This week, the “Juke In The Back” solutes the Unsung Ladies of R&B! We’ll dig deep into a stack of shellac from some women you know, like Varetta Dillard, Ann Cole and The Cookies, as well as from some that you may not know, such as Gwen Johnson and Bonita Cole. Matt The Cat will also feature an audition tape by the seldom heard Olive Brown, which was never issued at the time. None of the chanteuses on this week’s program have catalogs deep enough to be main features, so we’ve gathered them together so they can shine on their own program. Pick up on what these ladies are puttin’ down on this week’s “Juke In The Back” and the “soul that came before Rock n’ Roll.”
This week, “Juke In The Back” features The Griffin Brothers, one of the unsung Rhythm & Blues groups from the early 1950s. Jimmy and “Buddy” Griffin began in their hometown of Norfolk, VA in the late ’40 playing jump blues. They settled in Washington, DC and were asked to backup Roy Brown on “Hard Luck Blues” in April, 1950. That recorded went to #1 in August and soon the brothers had their own record deal with Randy Wood’s Dot Records out of Gallatin, TN. With vocalists Margie Day and Tommy Brown, The Griffin Brothers Orchestra scored six charting R&B hits from 1950-52, before embarking on separate solo careers in 1954. Matt The Cat features The Griffin’s biggest hits, jumpin’ B-sides and solo records on this week’s “Juke.” The Griffin Brothers were an important part of R&B’s rise, scoring a #1 smash in early 1952 with “Weepin’ & Cryin'” (featuring Tommy Brown on lead vocals) and now they’re finally getting their due, even if time has left them behind.
Let’s get together, throw some nickels in the ol’ Rockola Jukebox and celebrate the 15th Anniversary of the “Juke In The Back.” It’s hard to believe that Matt The Cat’s been droppin’ down the plattahs and makin’ ’em splattah like pancake battah for 15 years. He couldn’t have done it without the listenership and support of all you hep cats and crazy kittens. This week, we open up the Request-O-Matic Hotline and take some of your requests as well as play some records that have never been played on previous “Juke In The Back” programs. We take the opportunity to look back at the last 15 years before blasting into the next 15 years with next week’s program. So belly up to the bar at Rosie Juke Joint and get ready for a solid hour of what we do best, vintage Rhythm & Blues from the Jukers that make it possible. Thank you!
Next week, it’s the “Juke In The Back” 15th Anniversary Special. So pick up the phone and call the Juke Request-O-Matic Hotline and make a request and maybe you’ll hear your voice on next week’s program. Call 812-JUKE-MTC (812-585-3682) and be a part of the 15th anniversary of “Juke In The Back” on show #780!
I’m looking forward to hearing from my hep cats and crazy kittens!
Thanks so much for listening to and supporting this labor of love for the past 15 years!
The “Juke In The Back” digs deep into New Orleans Rhythm & Blues this week to focus on Bobby Mitchell & The Toppers, one of the few vocal groups to come out of a city best known for its blues, jazz and cajun roots. The Spiders were the best known vocal group to come out of 1950s New Orleans, but Bobby Mitchell & The Toppers were probably more versatile in the sense that they could not only shout the blues, like Roy Brown or Wynonie Harris, but they could also harmonize like a top notch doo wop group. Bobby Mitchell is best remembered today as the cat who originally sang “I’m Gonna Be A Wheel Someday,” two years before Fats Domino would cut it, but it was his “Try Rock n’ Roll” from 1956 that would be his only charting hit (reaching #14 nationally). That song capitalized on the emerging rock n’ roll craze and remains a record of its time. Bobby Mitchell and The Toppers were definitely a vocal group of their time, but they are well worth checking out as Matt The Cat gives them the spotlight treatment on this week’s “Juke In The Back.”
Producer Jerry Wexler called Etta James, “The greatest of all modern blues singers.” That’s great praise coming from a guy who worked with the greatest of the greats for 50 years. Etta had an amazing talent for mixing a bit of tenderness and heartbreak into her gritty, tough and soulful voice. She had a style all her own and she played by her own rules. Her success on record was equally matched by her personal failures off-mic, dealing with drug addiction, bad relationships and financial problems. On this week’s “Juke In The Back,” Matt The Cat looks at how this incredible legend got started, focusing on Etta’s first recordings from 1954 to her great rise in 1960. Through these records, you’ll hear that even in her early days, Etta’s music had great depth and variety. We honor the late, great Etta James, this week on the “Juke In The Back.”
With so many wonderful vocal groups present during the 1950s, it took a few distinct ones to lead the pack and blaze the trail. The Heartbeats are always right up there with The Clovers, Harptones, Moonglows, Flamingos and the other leaders who carried the torch lit by the Orioles and Ravens during the late ’40s. The Heartbeats began as the Hearts in 1953, but before making their first record in 1955, changed their name after a female group called The Hearts scored a big hit with “Lonely Nights.” Their first record came out in mid-1955 on Network Records. Although it was not successful, it gave them something to interest Hull Records, a tiny startup looking to enter the vocal group scene. Their first few records for Hull got regional airplay and made the charts in New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore. It was “A Thousand Miles Away,” their 4th Hull single that really took off nationally. Knowing the record would do better on a label with greater distribution and push, they jumped over to George Goldner’s storied Rama Records and “A Thousand Miles Away” went top 5 R&B and #53 Pop. Now one of the biggest vocal groups in the country, they continued to release slightly more polished songs for Rama and Gee, before falling apart by the end of 1959. Matt The Cat presents The Heartbeats’ story and their fantastic music on this week’s “Juke In The Back.”
At the end of the Second World War, economics forced the big bands to trim their once great size and thus, the Jump Blues combo was born. Between 1946-1954, rhythm and blues laid the tracks for what was to become Rock n’ Roll. So how come, 70 years later, this vibrant and influential music is still so unknown to so many?
Matt The Cat is going to change that with the radio program, “Juke In The Back.†These were the records that you couldn’t hear on the jukebox in the front of the establishment. To hear all this great 1950s rhythm & blues, you had to go to “Juke In The Back.â€
At the end of the Second World War, economics forced the big bands to trim their once great size and thus, the Jump Blues combo was born. Between 1946-1954, rhythm and blues laid the tracks for what was to become Rock n’ Roll. So how come, 70 years later, this vibrant and influential music is still so unknown to so many?
Matt The Cat is going to change that with the radio program, “Juke In The Back.” These were the records that you couldn’t hear on the jukebox in the front of the establishment. To hear all this great 1950s rhythm & blues, you had to go to “Juke In The Back.”
