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Label Series

Show 42: Alphabet Blues, Pt. 2: Backbeat / Blind Pig

Backbeat and Blind Pig mark two different moments in the blues business: one tied to mid-century R&B traffic, the other to revival and modern roots marketing. Grouping them shows how labels shape not just distribution, but what kind of blues each era chooses to hear.

Host Narration

For today's 42nd episode, we'll be continuing along our series of alphabetically covering all record labels which recorded blues musicians during the previous century. Last episode, we did the A's, and today we'll be doing the B's. We'll hear a handful of my favorites from Back Beat Records, then a few from Big Bear Records, and we'll use the overwhelming remainder to cover, arguably, the most important French blues label of all time, Black and Blue Records. Up first is Roy Head and the Traits' Eddie Cochran-style romp entitled "One More Time," followed by two tracks by O.V. Wright, and then we'll crack open the British Big Bear Records releases by Paul Butterfield and Foghat. But now, here's Roy Head.

27Tracks
25Artists
5Theme Tags
5Genre Tags
SeriesLabel Series
Tagsrecord labelsBackbeatBlind Pigmodern bluesreissues
Genreschicago bluesdelta bluestraditional bluesharmonica bluesblues
Tracklist
#TrackArtist
1One More Time - Back Beat Records versionRoy Head And The Traits
2A Nickel And A NailO.V. Wright
3Don't Let My Baby RideO.V. Wright
4New Walkin' BluesPaul Butterfield's Better Days
5I Just Want to Make Love to YouFoghat
7I Feel So FineWashboard Willie
8I Wish I Had Somebody bridgeGood Rockin' Charles
10Sugar MamaBilly Boy Arnold
11Short Dressed WomanLafayette Leake
12Dust My BroomSunnyland Slim
13You Don't Love MeEddie Taylor
14I'm So Glad You Don't Know What's On My Mind (take 1)Jessie Mae Hemphill,Hezekiah,The Houserockers
15Crawling King Snake bridgeJames Son" Thomas"
16Take A Walk With Me (Take2) bridgeRobert Lockwood, Jr.,JR.
17Nobody's Fault But MineJohnny Shines
18Take Me Back BabyWhispering Smith
19On My Way To SchoolDoctor Ross
20Woke Up This MorningLonnie Brooks
21One Eyed Woman bridgeLefty Dizz
Baby Please Set a DateHomesick James
Five Long YearsMighty Joe Young
Happy With My French FriendsHubert Sumlin
Honey BeeBuster Benton
I Can't Lose With The Stuff I Use - Artist: Cousin Joe From New OrleansVarious Artists
MaybellineFoghat
Pinetop Boogie woogiePinetop Perkins
Sweet Little AngelJohn Littlejohn