Magic Sam Live

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Magic Sam Live
Magic Sam Live.jpg
Live album by
Magic Sam
Released1981
RecordedOctober 1963, February 1964 and August 3, 1969
VenueThe Alex Club, Chicago and the Ann Arbor Blues Festival, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Genre Blues
Length75:45
Label Delmark
DL-645/646
Producer Steve Tomashefsky
Magic Sam chronology
Black Magic
(1968)		Magic Sam Live
(1981)		 Magic Touch
(1983)

Magic Sam Live is a live album by the American blues musician Magic Sam, recorded in Chicago in 1963/63 and at the first Ann Arbor Blues Festival in Michigan in 1969, that was released by the Delmark label in 1981. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Samuel Gene Maghett, known as Magic Sam, was an American Chicago blues musician. He was born in Grenada County, Mississippi, and learned to play the blues from listening to records by Muddy Waters and Little Walter. After moving to Chicago at the age of 19, he was signed by Cobra Records and became well known as a bluesman after the release of his first record, "All Your Love", in 1957. He was known for his distinctive tremolo guitar playing.

Ann Arbor Blues and Jazz Festival is a music festival in Ann Arbor, Michigan, that started in 1972 from the Ann Arbor Blues Festival, which itself began in 1969. Although the festival has had a tumultuous history and suspended operations in 2006, it was restarted in 2017.

Delmark Records American record label

Delmark Records is the oldest American jazz and blues independent record label. It was founded in 1958 and is based in Chicago, Illinois. The label originated in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1953 when owner Bob Koester released a recording of the Windy City Six, a traditional jazz group, under the Delmar imprint.

Contents

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [5]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [6]

Allmusic reviewer Al Campbell stated "While the sound quality leaves something to be desired, fans of electric Chicago blues should hear Magic Sam Live. Recorded at two separate locations ... this disc captures the raw energy not only of the musicians, but the crowds' tremendous response to them. ... Ignore the rotten sound quality, this is raw blues power and provides a priceless document of Sam Maghett's vital showmanship". [5] The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings said "The gig tapes ... are of indifferent quality but they can't mask the energy coming from the bandstand. Sam was a talented guitarist but that was merely an adjunct to the forceful personality projected on his vocals ... Sam sweeps all before him, accustomed to leading from the front and grateful if musicians keep up". [6]

<i>The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings</i> book by Chris Smith

The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings is a non-fiction book that is an encyclopedic referencing of all known blues music albums released on CD.

Track listing

All compositions by Magic Sam except where noted

Disc One: At the Alex Club, 1963/64

  1. "Every Night About This Time" (Dave Bartholomew, Fats Domino) − 3:44
  2. "I Don't Believe You'd Let Me Down" − 4:19
  3. "Mole's Blues" − 4:49
  4. "I Just Got to Know" − 4:22
  5. "Tore Down" (Sonny Thompson) − 3:18
  6. "You Were Wrong" − 5:14
  7. "Backstroke" 3:48
  8. "Come On in This House" (Junior Wells) − 4:07
  9. "Looking Good" − 3:17 Omitted from single CD reissue
  10. "Riding High" − 1:41

Disc Two: At the Ann Arbor Blues Festival, 1969

  1. "San-Ho-Zay" − 2:31
  2. "I Need You So Bad" (B.B. King, Sam Ling) − 4:15
  3. "You Don't Love Me" − 4:04 Omitted from single CD reissue
  4. "Strange Things Happening" (Percy Mayfield) − 4:10
  5. "I Feel So Good (I Wanna Boogie)" − 4:54
  6. "All Your Love" − 4:55
  7. "Sweet Home Chicago" (Robert Johnson) − 3:28
  8. "I Got Papers On You, Baby" − 3:30 Omitted from single CD reissue
  9. "Looking Good" − 3:33
  10. "Looking Good (Encore)" − 1:46

Personnel

Eddie Shaw African American, Chicago blues tenor saxophonist

Eddie Shaw was an American Chicago blues tenor saxophonist, arranger and bandleader. He led Howlin' Wolf's band, the Wolf Gang, from 1972, both before Wolf's death in 1976 and subsequently.

Sam Lay is an American drummer and vocalist who has been performing since the late 1950s. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015.

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References

  1. ↑ Wirz' American Music: Magic Sam discography accessed October 31, 2019
  2. ↑ Delmark Records: album details accessed October 31, 2019
  3. ↑ Wirz' American Music: Illustrated Delmar/Delmark Discography accessed October 31, 2019
  4. ↑ Both Sides Now: Discography of the Delmar(k) Label accessed October 31, 2019
  5. 1 2 Campbell, Al. Magic Sam: Magic Sam Live – Review at AllMusic . Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  6. 1 2 Russell, Tony; Smith, Chris (2006). The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. London: Penguin. p. 478. ISBN   978-0-140-51384-4.
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