McVoutie's Central Avenue Blues

by Jack McVea

Overview

Jack McVea sports a jacket, tie, and spectacles on the cover of McVoutie's Central Avenue Blues, looking more like a professor than a saxophonist. While he is most certainly the latter, his debonair appearance does mirror the smooth, elegant style of his horn. McVoutie's Central Avenue Blues captures the tenor/alto player in 1945 in a number of settings that mostly emphasize his R&B work. The other central figure of this disc is drummer/vocalist Rabon Tarrant, who joins McVea on 13 of the 23 tracks. Tarrant's powerful vocals on pieces like "Listen Baby Blues" and "Blues All Night" provide an agreeable contrast to McVea's silky saxophone. There's a bouncy take on "The 'G' Man Got the 'T' Man" with singer Cee Pee Johnson and a bizarre, risque piece titled "Wiggle Wiggle Woogie" with singer Duke Henderson. Although the singers and personnel vary quite a bit, the material gels together into a pretty uniform set. There are also three instrumentals -- one kicking off the album, the other two ending it -- that allow McVea a little more room to strut his stuff. In another year, the saxophonist would strike gold with "Open the Door, Richard" and forever be associated with R&B as opposed to jazz. McVoutie's Central Avenue Blues offers a fine assortment of the saxophonist's early R&B work. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr.

Product Details

Release Date:	05/14/2002
Label:	Delmark
UPC:	0038153075620
Rank:	134812

Tracks

1. Okay for Baby
2. Listen Baby Blues
3. Opus Boogie
4. It Never Should Have Been This Way
5. Gone With the Wind
6. Baby, Look at You
7. Don't Blame Me
8. Boulevard Boogie
9. Blues This Morning
10. We're Together Again
11. Naggin' Woman Blues
12. The "G" Man Got the "T" Man
13. Tarrant Blues
14. Blues All Night
15. I Live True to You
16. B Flat Boogie
17. Then I've Got to Go
18. I'll Be True
19. Wiggle Wiggle Woogie
20. Love Will Get You Down
21. Hey Hey Hey Baby
22. Don't Blame Me
23. Okay for Baby

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Jack McVea   Primary Artist,Sax (Tenor),Sax (Alto)
Bob Mosley   Primary Artist,Piano
Rabon Tarrant   Primary Artist,Vocals,Drums
Duke Henderson   Primary Artist,Guest Artist,Vocals
Cee Pee Johnson   Primary Artist,Vocals
Wynonie Harris   Primary Artist,Guest Artist,Vocals
Wild Bill Moore   Primary Artist,Guest Artist,Sax (Tenor)
Teddy Buckner   Guest Artist,Trumpet
Lucky Thompson   Guest Artist,Sax (Tenor)
Marshall Royal   Sax (Alto)
Jewell L. Grant   Sax (Alto)
Karl George   Trumpet
Wilbert Barranco   Piano
Jimmy Shackleton   Piano
George "Happy" Johnson   Trombone
Dale Russell   Bass
Frank Clarke   Bass
Gene Porter   Clarinet
Earl Brooks   Piano
R.J. Ross   Drums
Charles Mingus   Bass
Shifty Henry   Bass
William B. Woodman, Jr.   Sax (Tenor)
Gene Phillips   Guitar
Lee Young   Drums
Edward Hale   Sax (Alto)

Technical Credits

Rabon Tarrant   Composer
Allie Wrubel   Composer
Jimmy McHugh   Composer
Dorothy Fields   Composer
Wynonie Harris   Composer
Duncan P. Schiedt   Cover Photo
Cee Pee Johnson   Composer
Al Brandtner   Design
Tom Kelly   Photography
Steve Wagner   Producer
Bob Mosley   Composer
Bob Koester   Producer,Liner Notes
Frank Driggs   Liner Notes
Jack Towers   Transfers
Duke Henderson   Composer
William Ford   Composer