Where to start with Elmore James on CD?

I've been wanting an Elmore James CD in my collection for awhile. I'm debating between the Rhino release of The Sky Is Crying: The History Of Elmore James, and Whose Muddy Shoes, with all his Chess sides.

I assume that sound quality is inconsistent but I have most of the Chess 50th Anniversary CDs and they sound pretty good for the most part. Hence my interest in the Chess CD.

Suggestions?

 

The Chess "Whose Muddy Shoes" is essential stuff, though it does not feature the raw, distorted slide guitar that Elmore recorded prior to recording for Chess. "Sky Is Crying" is decent, but there are better compilations out there.

If you can find it, you should start with "Classic Early Recordings, 1951-1956" box set, now OOP, issued on Ace in the U.K. It is Elmore at his loudest, rawest, most electric best.

Easy to find, and, my second choice, is the recently issued (in 2005) "Blues After Hours" also on Ace. What makes this compilation so special?

Someone at Ace found some master tapes of a bunch of Elmore's early recordings that are audibly superior to anything previously issued. I've been listening to Elmore since 1970, and I thought it was just hype when this CD was issued that it was sonically a "revelation"....but I bought it anyway, and was startled at how someone really did find some tapes that were spectacularly better than any other issues of this material.

 

This looks good. I see that there's a 24 bit Japanese import too. Do you know if it's basically the same as the domestic issue?

 

Well, you've just told me something I didn't know!

It certainly looks like the same recording as the original Ace CD from two years ago, just a 24 bit version. The tip-off is that it includes all the same bonus tracks as the original Ace. If this were just a CD reissue of the original vinyl, those tracks would not have been there.

 

$26 vs. $9 at Caiman.com.

 

How does the 2003 Virgin / Blues Foundation / Right Stuff "Blues Kingpins" comp (which comprises cuts from 1952-1959 and was mastered by Dave Schultz) compare sound-wise?

 

They share 9 tracks in common.

However, Schultz did not use/have access to the same newly-discovered tapes that Ace used on "Blues After Hours", so the sound quality is not as good on "Kingpins."

 

A second for Blues After Hours on Ace, essential early Flair and RPM sides.

Once you're steeped in this stuff, search for the now-deleted Bobby Robinson material on Relic for the late 50s, early 60s Fury and Fire classics...

 

I have a 3 CD box set issued by Charly called King of the Slide Guitar: the Complete Chief & Fire Sessions. It has 63 tracks and includes the original version of Dust My Broom. Amazon UK has it listed here. This isn't a bad place to start.

Cheers,
Chris

 

Blues After Hours and the Rhino disc what the hell get them both.

 

Much of the Bobby Robinson material is in stereo, true stereo. Well worth finding, although it's decidedly second-tier compared with the early stuff.

 

Though I don't have the box, I'd be wary of Charly's stuff. In the past, they've issued sub-standard masterings of other blues artists like Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, etc. I'm referring to their "Complete Chess" boxes. In fact, it is rumored that they just "stole" someone else's transfers (they could do this because the copyright laws in Europe are different/weaker than those in the US).

 

I second that, avoid Charly for the reasons given by Saatvik.

 

I have the Flair 3CD-set Classic Early Recordings, which is the American version of the U.K. Ace set. It covers the years 1951-1956 and it's essential.

I also own these Elmore James CDs:
Street Talkin' - Muse; 1957 Chief/Vee Jay recordings; CD shared with Eddie Taylor and Jimmy Reed
Whose Muddy Shoes - Chess; 1960 recordings; CD shared with John Brim
Rollin' & Tumblin': The Best of Elmore James - Relic
Dust My Broom: The Best of Elmore James, Vol.2 - Relic
Elmore James: The Last Sessions - Relic
These 3 Relic CDs contain recordings Elmore made for Fire/Enjoy in 1959-1963.

 

Yes, I'm quite aware of Charly's reputation. I usually steer clear of their material. It was a cheap and cheerful investment at the time.

Cheers,
Chris

 

Does "Blues After Hours" on Ace have "Dust My Broom"?

If so, original recording or later re-record?

 

Nope.

 

How is the boxset regarded?

 

It has a re-record version called "Dust My Blues", which is much better than the original, IMHO.

The original Dust My Broom by Elmore is more of a historical curiosity, it is mostly acoustic, and has a 1930s blues sound to it from a performance perspective.

And how is the box regarded? From a performance perspective, it contains the creme de la creme of Elmore's recorded work, along with some fascinating outtakes that demonstrate how his songs evolved in the studio. From a sound perspective, it doesn't contain the incredible tape upgrade that turned up for "Blues After Hours", but then, the box has been OOP for nearly a decade. Still, I have 3,000 CDs and 200 different box sets. This particular box may be my most treasured and most-played box. YMMV.

 

King of the Slide Guitar is an excellent compliation!!! Good mastering too!

 

Just to avoid any misunderstandings: there's no overlap between the CDs I mentioned, they contain recordings from different eras and different record labels.

 

In order to have the complete recorded works of Elmore James (sans his guest guitar appearances on recordings by Big Joe Turner, Junior Wells & Johnny Jones) one only needs the following titles:

The Classic Early Recordings 1951-1956 (3CD) (Virgin-U.S./Ace-U.K.)
This set contains all of his Meteor, Flair, Modern & Kent sides. However, as others have already stated, Ace's latest release of "Blues After Hours" (1CD) is from superior tapes and is the definitive source for these recordings.

King Of The Slide Guitar (3CD) (Charly-U.K.)This set contains the complete Trumpet, Chief, Fire & Enjoy sessions. Be aware, however, P-Vine Records of Japan's "The Sky is Crying: The Legendary Fire/Enjoy Sessions" (3CD) has the Fire & Enjoy sessions in better fidelity along with studio chatter, slates and count-offs. The Charly set has none of this and is only really neccessary because of the Trumpet and Chief sides.

Whose Muddy Shoes (1CD) (Universal - Japan)
This contains James' complete recorded output for Chess Records along with tracks by John Brim.

 

Alas, if only this was true.

But the Elmore James catalogue is absolutely rife with confusion, mislabeled outtakes, etc.

There are some miscellaneous tracks/outtakes that have been issued on the Collectables label that have not turned up on any other CDs.