Roots and Rhythms
Wednesday March 15th, 2017 with Renny
THE SWAMPCATS BEAT! Goldband Records was the longest running independent label in the U.S. at the time of the owner, Eddie Shuler's death in 2005. Tonight's show features Goldband recordings from the Fifties.
Music from the swamp. Goldband Records and it's subsiduary label, Folk Star, recorded the music of southern Louisianna for 60 years. Tonight's show is a sampling of some of the genres of music Eddie Shuler recorded in the 1950s: rockabilly, R&B, blues and zydeco. Rough, raw and rockin'.
| Eddie Shuler moved to Lake Charles during the Second World War. He was looking for work in the Louisiana oil fields. He played guitar in the legendary Cajun band, the Hackberry Ramblers until forming his own group Eddie Shuler’s Reveliers in 1945. He started his label the same year in order to record his group. In 1949 he started the Folk-Star label to put out Cajun and blues recordings.
The real impetus came when he recorded the Hackberry Ramblers in 1952. When no one was interested in the recordings he built a studio in his TV repair shop. |
| Forty One Days Boozoo Chavis - Boozoo Chavis "The Lake Charles Atom Bomb" - ’55 Goldband Records/’90, Rounder Records |
| Boozoo Chavis was a zydeco accordion player from Lake Charles, Louisiana. This was his second recording released on Goldband Records in 1955. This was one of the first zydeco recordings and Boozoo is recognized as being one of the fathers of modern zydeco. |
| Bon Ton Roule (Good Times Roll) Clarence “Bon Ton” Garlow - Rockin’ Jumpin’ Shoutin’ - late ’56 – early ’57, Goldband Records, unissued/’87, Charly Records |
| “Bon Ton” Garlow was an amazing blues guitarist, singer & songwriter who was born in Louisiana but lived in Beaumont, in Southeast Texas. After recording for the Macy’s, Lyric, Features, Aladdin and Flair labels he started recording for Eddie Shuler at Goldband studios in 1954. He had releases on both Goldband and its subsidiary label Folk-Star. This is a re-recording of his big 1950 hit, Bon Ton Roula. Not only did “Bon Ton” record for Shuler but he also acted as the A&R man for the label and played as a session musician there as well. |
| Wicked Old Fever Charles "Mad Dog" Sheffield - Rockin' Jumpin' Shoutin' - late ’56 – early ’57, Goldband Records/’87, Charly Records |
| A native of Lake Charles, Charles “Mad Dog” Sheffield was brought to Goldband by “Bon Ton” Garlow in ’54. He was backed by Clarence Garlow and His Orchestra on all his Goldband recordings. |
| Hey Little Shyrell Jay Richards & the Blues King Band - Rockin' On Top - ’58, Goldband Records/’84, Ace Records |
| This recording was leased to Hollywood Records in 1958. Jay Richard is being backed by the Blues King Band on this track. |
| Bop Stop Rock Ray Vict & the Bop Rockers - Boppin' Tonight: The Best Of Goldband Rockabilly - ’58 Goldband Records/’93, Ace Records |
| Ray Vict (short for Victorian) was a rockabilly native of Lake Charles. He moved to Hollywood in the late Fifties looking for work in the movie industry. He was one of the composers of Guitar Junior song "The Crawl". |
| We Gonna Rock Mumbo Rhumbo Eddie Shuler with Elton Anderson and the Sid Lawrence Band - Bop Boogie In The Dark - ’56, Goldband Records, unissued/ ’84, Charly Records |
| On this track Eddie Shuler sings a song of his own composition with the Sid Lawrence Band, a black band. This song was never released but it became the basis of the next song. |
| Feel So Good Billy & Carroll & The Netche Valley Boys - Swampcats Beat - ’56, Goldband Records/’84, Charly Records |
| Billy & Carroll & The Netche Valley Boys were a swinging hillbilly group from near Beaumont, Texas. This song was re-recorded the next year and released on Dixie Records. |
| Let's Go Boppin' Tonight Al Ferrier & His Boppin’ Billies - Boppin' Tonight: The Best Of Goldband Rockabilly - ’58, Goldband Records/’93, Ace Records |
| Al Ferrier was from Montgomery, Louisiana and had his start on the famous Louisiana Hayride. He re-recorded this song for Excello Records. He was still recording at Goldband studios in the Nineties. |
| Rock-A-Way Blues Dale Sterling - Swampcats Beat - late ’50s, Goldband Records, unissued/’84 Charly Records |
| This song is a rockabilly ballad from a balladeer by the name of Dale Sterling. I love the fiddle on this song. Sterling recorded one single for Goldband in the late Fifties. |
| Goin' To Louisiana Fank Lowery & the Golden Rockets - Rockin' On Top - ’57, Goldband Records, unissued/’84, Charly Records |
| Frank Lowery was brought to the Goldband studio in George Khoury of Lyric Records in 1957. Lowery was from Mobile, Alabama but here he sings the praises of Louisiana on the birth of rock & roll. |
| Oh! Baby Johnny Jano - Boppin' Tonight: The Best Of Goldband Rockabilly - ’57 Goldband Records/’93, Ace Records |
| This Johnny Jano song was recorded with the Yellow Jackets backing him. Jano was also a disc jockey in the late Fifties. |
| Freight Train Larry Hart - Boppin' Tonight: The Best Of Goldband Rockabilly - ’58, Goldband Records, unissued/’93, Ace Records |
| Born Herman Lawrence, Larry Hart was a Texan from Victoria. He was a rhythm guitar player who also sang and co-wrote his own material. He retired from rockabilly and became a draughtsman and artist in Houston. |
| The Crawl Guitar Junior - Rockin' On Top - ’58, Goldband Records/’84, Charly Records |
| Guitar Junior was another musician that was born in Louisiana and raised in Texas, Port Arthur to be exact. Before coming to Goldband he had played guitar with Clifton Chenier in the early Fifties. This song was covered, and covered well, by the Fabulous Thunderbirds. |
| Flim Flam Lionel Prevo - Bayou Rhythm & Blues Shuffle Vol. 3 - mid to late ’50s, Goldband Records/’88 Charly Records |
| On “Flim Flam” sax man Lionel Prevo is backed by Clarence Garlow’s guitar and Orchestra. |
| Raise Some Sand Jay Nelson & His Jumpers - Alligator Swing - ’58, Goldband Records, alternate take/’87, Charly Records |
| “Raise Some Sand” was released by Jay Nelson & His Jumpers on the Hollywood label in 1958. It was recorded at Goldband studio as was this version, an alternate take. |
| Whole Lotta Drinkin' On The Block Left Hand Charlie - Whole Lotta Drinkin' On The Block - ’54, Folk-Star Records/’84, Charly Records |
| Left Hand Charlie’s real name was Charlie Morris and he hailed from Lafayette, Louisiana. The sax player in Left Hand Charlie’s band was John Hart who went on to play in Clifton Chenier’s Red Hot Louisiana Band. |
| Bop Cat Stomp King Charles - Whole Lotta Drinkin' On The Block - ’54, Folk-Star Records/’84, Charly Records |
| A wild blues instrumental by King Charles & His Orchestra. This track was released on a single released by Folk-Star Records, a subsidiary label of Eddie Shuler’s. |
| San Antonio “Big” Walter Price - Bayou Rhythm & Blues Shuffle Vol. 3 - early ’58, Goldband Records, unissued/’88, Charly Records |
| Another Texan, another blues…billing himself as “The Big Walter – The Thunderbird known from coast to coast.” Big Walter set up these Goldband sessions himself after two records on the T.N.T. and Peacock labels. “San Antonio” is an unreleased alternate take. |
| Gitty Up, Gitty I (Woah Mule!) Leroy James & Combo - Bop Boogie In The Dark - ’56, Goldband Records, alternate take/’84, Charly Records |
| Leroy James was the session sax man at Goldband Records. “Gitty Up, Gitty I (Woah Mule!)” is performed in classic jump blues style. |
| I Gotta Leave Little Ray Campell - Alligator Swing - ’57, Goldband Records/’87, Charly Records |
| Little Ray Campell was another native of Lake Charles. He is backed by the Joe Williams Combo on this song. |
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Something sweaty from the swamp.
8:05 PM, March 15th, 2017