Piano Influences
People sometimes ask me for recommendations of blues piano recordings, especially for someone trying to learn to play. I've compiled a list of some albums by people who helped shape my playing. There are many wonderful albums out there, so it was really hard to narrow it down -- I've set myself a limit of 10. I've tried to find ones that are available (what's the point if you can't get them?).
I'm not including the boogie woogie players (Smith, Lewis, Ammons, Johnson, et al. -- with one exception)
nor the New Orleans players (with one exception)
nor those wonderful, jazzy, sophisticated West Coast guys I love so much
(the Charleses -- Ray and Brown -- etc.) and limited myself to the low
down blues. I'm not including the wonderful players I listened to on the
juke boxes of my youth -- Little Richard, Johnnie Johnson, Jerry Lee Lewis,
Ivory Joe Hunter, Smiley Lewis and Huey "Piano" Smith etc. -- with one
exception. Any of these categories could produce its own Top Ten and
write-up.
I'm horrified that there are no women piano players on my
list of 10, except for one song. I was very inspired by several women
players, most notably Mary Lou Williams (in her Boogie days) and Georgia
White. My folks had 78s of them. The women players' work that's still
available has them buried in bands, so they don't make the cut. I guess
Louise Johnson and her sisters weren't considered much worth recording.
Our loss! I'd sure love to hear an album of Katie Webster solo.
This would be my recommended 10. Many of these are solo or very sparse
recordings where I could really hear the piano. So after all that BS,
here's my list in no particular order:
BIG MACEO MERRIWEATHER -
"King of Chicago Blues Piano" (Arhoolie)
A must! Worried
Life Blues to Chicago Breakdown and every single note in between is
golden.
TUTS WASHINGTON - "New Orleans Piano Professor"
(Rounder)
OK, so he's from New Orleans -- but he fits right
in with the rest of my gritty favorites. He's universal!
OTIS SPANN - "Walkin' the Blues" (Candid)
Everyone's
hero.
JIMMY YANCEY - "Complete Recorded Works Vol 1-3" (Document)
OK, I cheated a little -- I just couldn't leave anything out.
Mr. Yancey's my main man. If you want to start with one, you might
want to start with the 3rd volume.
SUNNYLAND SLIM - "Chicago Jump" (Evidence)
Sunnyland has lots of releases. My favorite is "Live At The DC
Blues Society" on Mapleshade, where he is solo, but this is no
longer available. I like "Chicago Jump" partly because it's the
band I know him with and love.
HENRY GRAY - "Lucky Man" (Blind Pig)
Henry makes deep blues completely unfettered by those mundane
musical rules. I admire his music tremendously.
MEMPHIS SLIM - "Lonesome" (Drive Archive)
I love this album. I have at least 6 or 7 versions of the same
LP with different covers. Just started collecting them for a lark.
It's now available in CD. For those of you who've heard me perform
the tune Pigalle Love, here's where it comes from.
LITTLE BROTHER MONTGOMERY and ROOSEVELT SYKES,
on the SIPPIE WALLACE album "Women Be Wise" (Alligator)
I've heard a rumor that this lovely album may no longer be available.
That would be a shame. This is what accompaniment should be. Miz
Wallace's singing is lovingly enhanced and enriched by Mr. Montgomery's
and Mr. Sykes' playing. One cut features a charmingly idiosyncratic
accompaniment by Miz Wallace herself.
LEROY CARR (with Scrapper Blackwell) - "Blues Before Sunrise"
(Portrait)
A great artist -- I never found him easy to
learn from, but just love to listen.
AMOS MILBURN - "Down the Road a Piece" (EMI America)
OK, so he's kind of West Coast/kind of boogie woogie and he was on
my juke box. Still he makes the list.
There are many others who have been a huge influence:
Cripple Clarence Lofton, Georgia Tom Dorsey, Walter Davis,
Alex Moore, and on and on.
There are also some wonderful contemporary players you can hear
in person like Pinetop Perkins, Joe Krown, Deanna Bogart,
Erwin Helfer, Omar Sharriff,
Marcia Ball ... to name a few.
It's a big, beautiful piano world out there!
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GREAT NEWS!!!
For ages I've complained
bitterly to anyone who would listen about the lack of available recordings
by the outstanding Chicago piano legend 
