“The Blues of Otis Spann” (Decca 1964) / “Raw Blues” (Ace of Clubs 1967) ‘Stirs Me Up’ (Decca 45) Muddy Waters made his first trip to the U.K. in 1958, at the invitation of Chris Barber. Rather than bring his full band, he brought only his best friend, pianist Otis Spann. Barber had been […]
Blues (3CD Deluxe Edition) (UMC – Chess 2019) – CD2 – Acoustic Blues In May of 2019 Rory Gallagher’s estate released “Blues” (the title as unpretentious as Rory and his music). Available in two formats: a fifteen-track single CD and 2LP vinyl set and a thirty-six track 3CD Deluxe Edition. With performances ranging from 1971 […]
Eric Clapton & Jimmy Page meet Otis Spann & Muddy Waters Born March 21, 1930, Otis Spann had made his recorded debut in 1953 as a member of Muddy Waters’ band. He released a lone single under his own name a year later, but recording opportunities were scarce for the pianist after that. He cut […]
Build Myself a Cave / I’m Gonna Dig Myself A Hole The song that Danny Kirwan performed at the Chess Studios on January 04 1969 was a cover of Jimmy Rogers’ recording of the song in 1951. What I’d like to explore here are the songs that Rogers pulled from for his recording, as well […]
Otis Spann w/ FM ‘Ain’t Nobody’s Business’ Otis Spann was born on March 21, 1930 into a musical family (his mother played guitar, his father, piano), in Jackson, Mississippi. His informal schooling on piano began around the age of eight, under the supervision of a local musician named Friday Ford. By fourteen he was playing […]
Wolf Tracks – ‘How Many More Years’ / ‘No Place to Go’ / ‘You Gonna Wreck My Life’ Chester Burnett’s first record, ‘Moanin’ At Midnight’ backed with ‘How Many More Years’, was recorded by Sam Phillips at the Memphis Recording Studio in Tennessee in July of 1951. It was a rare two-sided hit with ‘How […]
