Label: JSP Records.
Release Date: June 27, 2006.
Releases: August 1, 2006 (JSP).
Recording Time: 287 minutes.
Recording Date: June 20, 1935 - July 14, 1953.
Release Info: Studio Recording.
Styles: East Coast Blues, Regional Blues, Acoustic Blues.
JSP's Shake That Thing: East Coast Blues compiles four CD's of performances by country blues pickers Gabriel Brown, Dan Pickett, and Ralph Willis. It's hard to go wrong with these 105 obscure recordings cut between 1935 and 1953. The tracks have been remastered, making the majority of this material sound great. Unlike other packages of this type, the liner notes are informative; listing personnel, dates, and concise history without going on ad nauseam. As an extra bonus this is a budget-priced set making it highly recommended, for both the collector and the blues novice.
by Al Campbell
Credits: Gabriel Brown - primary artist; Gary Mapp - bass, group member; Brownie McGhee - group member, guitar, vocals; Dan Pickett - guitar, primary artist, vocals; Dumas Ransom - bass; Peter Sanders - group member, washboard; Sonny Terry - group member, harmonica; Ralph Willis - primary artist.
Tracks, Disc 1: 1) John Henry (Vocal) - Gabriel Brown; 2) John Henry - Gabriel Brown; 3) Blues - Gabriel Brown; 4) Tone The Bell Easy - Gabriel Brown; 5) Motherless Child - Gabriel Brown; 6) Po' Boy, Long Way From Home - Gabriel Brown; 7) A Dream Of Mine - Gabriel Brown; 8) Education Blues - Gabriel Brown; 9) Talking In Sebastopol - Gabriel Brown; 10) Careless Love - Gabriel Brown; 11) I Get Evil When My Love Comes Down - Gabriel Brown; 12) You Ain't No Good - Gabriel Brown; 13) Black Jack Blues - Gabriel Brown; 14) Going My Way - Gabriel Brown; 15) Down In The Bottom - Gabriel Brown; 16) Bad Love - Gabriel Brown; 17) I've Got To Stop Drinkin' - Gabriel Brown; 18) Cold Love - Gabriel Brown; 19) Not Now, I'll Tell You When - Gabriel Brown; 20) I'm Gonna Take It Easy - Gabriel Brown; 21) That's Alright - Gabriel Brown; 22) Stick With Me - Gabriel Brown; 23) I've Done Stopped Gamblin' - Gabriel Brown; 24) Doing My Best - Gabriel Brown; 25) Good-Time Papa - Gabriel Brown; 26) Baby, Boy, Baby - Gabriel Brown.
Tracks, Disc 2: 1) It's Getting Soft - Gabriel Brown; 2) Don't Worry About It - Gabriel Brown; 3) Mean Old Blues - Gabriel Brown; 4) You Have To Be Different - Gabriel Brown; 5) The Jinx Is On Me - Gabriel Brown; 6) It's Time To Move - Gabriel Brown; 7) Hold Me Baby - Gabriel Brown; 8) Nobody Loves Me Like My Little Girl - Gabriel Brown; 9) Youngster's Blues - Gabriel Brown; 10) Cold Mama - Gabriel Brown; 11) I'm Just Crazy - Gabriel Brown; 12) I Am Playing The Game - Gabriel Brown; 13) I Am Just Hard Luck - Gabriel Brown; 14) Got No Money Blues - Gabriel Brown; 15) I Had My Hands On It - Gabriel Brown; 16) Laughing Rag - Dan Pickett; 17) Baby How Long - Dan Pickett; 18) You Got To Do Better - Dan Pickett; 19) Ride To A Funeral In A V-8 - Dan Pickett; 20) Decoration Day - Dan Pickett; 21) Drivin' That Thing - Dan Pickett; 22) That's Grieving Me - Dan Pickett; 23) 99 1/2 Won't Do - Dan Pickett; 24) Baby Don't You Want To Go - Dan Pickett; 25) Chicago Blues - Dan Pickett; 26) Something's Gone Wrong - Dan Pickett.
Tracks, Disc 3: 1) Worried Blues - Ralph Willis; 2) Comb Your Kitty Kat - Ralph Willis; 3) Just A Note - Ralph Willis; 4) Church Bells - Ralph Willis; 5) Trouble Don't Last - Ralph Willis; 6) Shake That Thing - Ralph Willis; 7) So Many Days - Ralph Willis; 8) That Gal's No Good - Ralph Willis; 9) New Goin' Down Slow - Ralph Willis; 10) Goin' To Chattanooga - Ralph Willis; 11) Steel Mill Blues - Ralph Willis; 12) I Will Never Love Again - Ralph Willis; 13) Goin' To Virginia - Ralph Willis; 14) Boar Hog Blues - Ralph Willis; 15) Eloise - Ralph Willis; 16) I've Been A Fool - Ralph Willis; 17) Christmas Blues - Ralph Willis; 18) Amen Blues - Ralph Willis; 19) Neighborhood Blues - Ralph Willis; 20) Mama, Mama Blues - Ralph Willis; 21) Tell Me Pretty Baby - Ralph Willis; 22) I'm Gonna Rock - Ralph Willis; 23) Cool That Thing - Ralph Willis; 24) Sportin' Life - Ralph Willis; 25) Everyday I Weep And Moan - Ralph Willis; 26) Somebody Is Got To Go - Ralph Willis.
Tracks, Disc 4: 1) Blues, Blues, Blues - Ralph Willis; 2) I Got A Letter - Ralph Willis; 3) Too Late To Scream And Shout - Ralph Willis; 4) Hoodoo Man - Ralph Willis; 5) Income Tax Blues - Ralph Willis; 6) Bed Tick Blues - Ralph Willis; 7) Cold Chills - Ralph Willis; 8) Black And Tan - Ralph Willis; 9) Church Bell Blues - Ralph Willis; 10) Tell Me Pretty Baby - Ralph Willis; 11) Goodbye Blues - Ralph Willis; 12) Lazy Woman Blues - Ralph Willis; 13) Old Home Blues - Ralph Willis; 14) Salty Dog - Ralph Willis; 15) Cold Chills - Ralph Willis; 16) Amen - Ralph Willis; 17) Gonna Hop On Down The Line - Ralph Willis; 18) Do Right - Ralph Willis; 19) Door Bell Blues - Ralph Willis; 20) Why'd You Do It - Ralph Willis; 21) Early One Morning - Dan Pickett; 22) Number Writer - Dan Pickett; 23) Lemon Man - Dan Pickett; 24) Laughing Blues - Dan Pickett; 25) Number Writer Take 1 - Dan Pickett; 26) I Can Shake It - Dan Pickett; 27) Drivin' That Thing (Alternate) - Dan Pickett.