Good Rockin' Tonight

by Roy Brown

Overview

Covering Brown's most fertile period of 1947-1954, Good Rocking Tonight is the second of three Route 66 volumes covering rare sides by the jump blues star. Same as the first collection, Laughing But Crying, this disc nicely fills in gaps left by high-profile titles from Rhino and King. The focus is on a mix of rough-and-ready R&B and after-hours blues, with alternate takes of hits like "Good Rocking Tonight" and "Mighty, Mighty Man" giving collectors something to relish. Most impressive, though, are breakneck-tempo cuts like "Whose Hat Is That" and the infamous "Butcher Pete, Pt. 2" (the blues lyrical taste for sexual double entendre reaching over-the-top levels on the latter). Besides matching the speed of bebop, the frantic energy of these and many other sides Brown cut during the late '40s and early '50s shores up the singer's place as a rock & roll pioneer. On the other hand, Brown also influenced the gospel-based world of soul with pathos-ridden and urbane blues like "Brown Angel." And putting further pay to the singer's impressive flexibility -- not to mention his admitted admiration for crooner Bing Crosby -- he delivers a velvety cool vocal performance on "Teenage Jamboree." In light of all the musical wealth herein, then, it's definitely a shame this and the other Brown titles on Route 66 are only to be found in the used bins; interested listeners are advised to first run out and get Rhino's retrospective, the namesake collection Good Rocking Tonight, before putting in time scouring the local record emporium. ~ Stephen Cook

Product Details

Release Date:	11/15/2005
Label:	Ace
UPC:	0029667014427
Rank:	147224

Tracks

1. Good Rockin' Tonight
2. Lolly Pop Mama
3. Special Lesson No 1
4. Woman's a Wonderful Thing
5. Roy Brown Boogie
6. Please Don't Go
7. Mighty, Mighty Man
8. Deep Sea Diver
9. Cry Baby Blues
10. Miss Fanny Brown
11. Farm Town Gal
12. I'm the Man Who Sings the Blues
13. Bye Baby Bye
14. Jailhouse Blues
15. Looking for a Woman
16. Whose Hat Is That
17. Wine Women and Song
18. My Mama's Boy Friend
19. Midnight Rider
20. The Gal's Drunk Again
21. 'Long About Midnight
22. Miss Fanny Brown Returns
23. Roy Brown Boogie
24. Whose Hat Is That

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Roy Brown   Primary Artist,Vocals

Technical Credits

Cole Porter   Composer
Fats Domino   Composer
Roy Brown   Composer
Dave Bartholomew   Composer
Chuck Calhoun   Composer