Artist.......: LaVern Baker
Album........: 1949-1954 (Blues & Rhythm Series Classics)
Label........: Night & Day
Genre........: Blues
Catnr........: n/a
source.......: CDDA
rip.date.....: 20-11-2005
str.date.....: 00-01-2005
quality......: VBR/44,1Hz/Joint-Stereo
Url..........: n/a
track title time
01. Easy baby 02:41
02. I wonder, baby 02:55
03. Take out some time 03:06
04. I'll try (I've tried) 02:46
05. How long 02:20
06. I want to rock 02:43
07. Good daddy 02:22
08. I want a Lavendar Cadillac 02:55
09. Make it good 02:34
10. Trying 02:35
11. Pig latin blues 02:41
12. Lost child 02:30
13. Must i cry again 02:25
14. You'll be crying 02:59
15. How can you leave a man like this 02:39
16. Soul on fire 03:05
17. I'm living my life for you 03:09
18. I'm in a crying mood 02:53
19. I can't hold out any longer 03:05
20. Of course i do 02:54
21. Tomorrow night 03:15
22. You better stop 02:47
23. Tweedle dee 03:05
Runtime 64:24 min
Size 58,3 MB
Release Notes:
A distant relative of Memphis Minnie, LaVern Baker
was instrumental in reshaping the blues vocal into
something closer to pop. This interesting
collection includes the fiery singer's earliest
sides, beginning with her debut recording for RCA
Victor in 1949, "Easy Baby," when she was billing
herself as Little Miss Sharecropper. Also included
here are sides she cut for the Columbia and OKeh
labels in 1952 under the name Bea Baker, and the
four songs she recorded for the King label a year
later under her own name before signing with
Atlantic in 1953. Baker's stay at Atlantic was to
last ten years, and her reputation rests with the
material she did while with the label, the earliest
sides of which appear on this compilation,
including the masterful "Must I Cry Again," the
stunning "Soul on Fire," and her first big hit,
"Tweedle Dee." White singer Georgia Gibbs quickly
did a note-for-note cover of "Tweedle Dee" and had
a substantial pop hit with it, leading Baker to sue
her, and although Baker lost the suit, she had no
problem hitting the pop charts with her subsequent
Atlantic releases. Sexy, sensual, and a dynamite
singer, Baker brought style and substance to her
jazzy jump blues material, transforming it to the
edge of rock & roll, and paving the way for the
pop-soul of the 1960s. Her best work was on
Atlantic, and this collection just edges into that
era, so casual listeners may be better off picking
up Atlantic's fine 20-track, single-disc Soul on
Fire anthology that features the highlights from
her stay with the label. As a buildup to that,
though, this chronological set gives a fine
portrait of this impressive performer. ~ Steve
Leggett, All Music Guide