b. January 29, 1920 in New Orleans, LA, d. March 26, 1991 in Los Angeles, CA. This R&B band leader and producer began his professional career when he formed a combo in the late 30s. Gayten made his first sides for the New Jersey-based Deluxe label in 1947 and immediately had a US R&B hit with ‘(You Don’t Love Me) True’ (number 5). The follow-up, ‘Since I Fell For You’ (number 3, 1947), featured vocalist Annie Laurie, who would lead on many other Gayten hits, including ‘Cuttin’ Out’ (number 6, 1949) and ‘I’ll Never Be Free’ (number 4, 1950). Another chart record, ‘Goodnight Irene’ (number 6, 1950), featured the Coleman Brothers ensemble on vocals. By 1949 Gayten had expanded his combo into a nine-piece orchestra and switched to the Regal label. Besides his own hits on the label, he backed and produced Larry Darnell on a spate of hits. He moved to OKeh Records in 1951. In 1954 Gayten moved to Chess Records, and began production and A&R work in New Orleans for the company, producing records on various New Orleans artists, namely Clarence ‘Frogman’ Henry, Sugar Boy Crawford, TV Slim and Bobby Charles, as well as for himself. His most successful records were a revival of ‘The Music Goes Round And Round’ (1956) and the instrumental ‘Nervous Boogie’ (1957). In 1960 he moved to Los Angeles to open a Chess office there. Gayten left Chess in 1968 and retired from the music business in 1978. Creole Gal is a retrospective of Gayten’s late 40s and early 50s material and the 1989 album is a retrospective of his Chess years.