Memphis Monday Morning

Last updated
Memphis Monday Morning
Memphis Monday Morning.jpg
Studio album by
Released1998
Genre Blues, soul
Label Malaco
Producer Wolf Stephenson, Tommy Couch
Bobby "Blue" Bland chronology
Live on Beale Street
(1998)
Memphis Monday Morning
(1998)
The Anthology
(2001)

Memphis Monday Morning is an album by the American musician Bobby "Blue" Bland, released in 1998. [1] [2] Bland supported the album with North American club dates. [3] It entered the Top Blues Albums chart at No. 14. [4]

Contents

The album was nominated for a Grammy Award for best traditional blues album, as well as a W. C. Handy Award for best soul-blues album. [5] [6]

Production

The album was produced by Wolf Stephenson and Tommy Couch. Bland worked on it for a year and a half. [7] Most of the songs were written by a team of Malaco Records songwriters that included George Jackson. [8] "Lookin' for Some Tush", a cover of the ZZ Top song, was recorded during a 1985 session. [9]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [10]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [11]
(The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [12]
Springfield News-Leader Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [13]

The Commercial Appeal wrote that the album "finds the singing legend in a brashly relaxed mood." [9] The Springfield News-Leader determined that "the centerpiece numbers are languid blues, especially the nine-minute title track with a restrained but emotional vocal and nice brass ensemble work." [13] The Washington Post said that "Malaco's stable of gifted house writers ... have a knack for coming up with fresh variations on the ancient blues themes of hard times and unfaithful lovers." [14] The San Diego Union-Tribune called the album "superb," writing that Bland is "backed by some of the South's finest studio musicians." [15]

AllMusic wrote that "the husky-throated blues singer, who was close to 70 when this CD dropped, still has that growl that makes body hair stand on end, and he forges on stronger than ever without any noticeable quality drops." [10] The Rough Guide to the Blues considered the title track to be "his best recording in several years." [16]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."I'm Bobby 'B'" 
2."I Don't Want No Kickin' in My Stall" 
3."There's a Rat Loose in My House" 
4."The Truth Will Set You Free" 
5."Memphis Monday Morning" 
6."I'm Glad" 
7."My Baby Is the Only One" 
8."I Hate Missin' You" 
9."You Left Me With the Blues" 
10."Lookin' for Some Tush" 

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Bland</span> American blues and soul singer and musician (1930–2013)

Robert Calvin Bland, known professionally as Bobby "Blue" Bland, was an American blues singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Rush (musician)</span> American singer-songwriter

Bobby Rush is an American blues musician, composer, and singer. His style incorporates elements of blues, rap, and funk.

James Carson Whitsett was an American keyboardist, songwriter, and record producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Cotton</span> American blues singer-songwriter (1935–2017)

James Henry Cotton was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, who performed and recorded with many fellow blues artists and with his own band. He also played drums early in his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reggie Young</span> American musician (1936–2019)

Reggie Grimes Young Jr. was an American musician who was lead guitarist in the American Sound Studio house band, The Memphis Boys, and was a leading session musician. He played on various recordings with artists such as Elvis Presley, Joe Cocker, Dobie Gray, Joe Tex, Merrilee Rush, B.J. Thomas, John Prine, Dusty Springfield, Lynn Anderson, Herbie Mann, J.J. Cale, Jimmy Buffett, Dionne Warwick, Roy Hamilton, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, the Box Tops, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Merle Haggard, Joey Tempest, George Strait, and The Highwaymen. Young was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malaco Records</span> American record label founded 1962

Malaco Records is an American independent record label based in Jackson, Mississippi, United States, that has been the home of various major blues and gospel acts, such as Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Bland, Mel Waiters, Z. Z. Hill, Denise LaSalle, Latimore, Dorothy Moore, Little Milton, Shirley Brown, Tyrone Davis, Marvin Sease, and the Mississippi Mass Choir. It has received an historic marker issued by the Mississippi Blues Commission to commemorate its important place on the Mississippi Blues Trail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)</span> Blues standard written by T-Bone Walker

"Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)" (commonly referred to as "Stormy Monday") is a song written and recorded by American blues electric guitar pioneer T-Bone Walker. It is a slow twelve-bar blues performed in the West Coast blues-style that features Walker's smooth, plaintive vocal and distinctive guitar work. As well as becoming a record chart hit in 1948, it inspired B.B. King and others to take up the electric guitar. "Stormy Monday" became Walker's best-known and most-recorded song.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Select-O-Hits</span>

Select-O-Hits is an American independent record label distributor of music based in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. They have been in business for almost 60 years, and distribute artists that include Johnnie Taylor, Jimmy Buffett, Three 6 Mafia, Colt Ford, Diana Reyes, and The Texas Tenors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scott Bomar</span> American musician, producer, and film composer

Scott Bomar is a Memphis-based musician, Emmy Award-winning film composer, Grammy-nominated music producer, and recording engineer. Scott Bomar's songs are represented by Downtown Music Publishing.

Earl Forest was an American musician and a member of the Memphis-based R&B coalition called the Beale Streeters, which included Johnny Ace, Bobby Bland, Junior Parker, B.B. King, and Roscoe Gordon. Forest had a hit record in 1953 with "Whoopin' And Hollerin'" on Duke Records. He also recorded for Meteor Records and Flair Records.

Andrew "Sunbeam" Mitchell was a Memphis-based businessman. He operated the Mitchell Hotel which lodged well-known musicians, and soon he began operating nightclubs on the Chitlin' Circuit such as the Club Handy, Club Ebony, and the Club Paradise. Mitchell ran nightclubs for 40 years until selling off his holdings in the 1980s.

<i>Sad Street</i> 1995 studio album by Bobby "Blue" Bland

Sad Street is an album by the American R&B musician Bobby "Blue" Bland. It was released in 1995.

<i>Im a Gambler</i> 1994 studio album by Little Milton

I'm a Gambler is an album by the American blues musician Little Milton, released in 1994. It was nominated for a W. C. Handy Award, in the "Soul/Blues Album" category. Little Milton promoted the album by touring the United States, Japan, and Europe.

<i>Big Daddy</i> (Bukka White album) 1974 studio album by Bukka White

Big Daddy is an album by the American blues musician Bukka White, released in 1974. It was White's final album. Big Daddy was reissued by Shout! Factory in 2004.

<i>Return of a Legend</i> 2002 studio album by Jody Williams

Return of a Legend is an album by the American musician Jody Williams, released in 2002. Williams had not recorded music in around 30 years; he was inspired in part to return to the studio after listening to his playing on a 1964 tape he found at his house. He supported the album with a North American tour.

<i>Years of Tears</i> 1993 studio album by Bobby "Blue" Bland

Years of Tears is an album by the American musician Bobby "Blue" Bland, released in 1993. Bland supported the album with a North American tour. The album peaked at No. 80 on Billboard's Top R&B Albums chart. It won a W. C. Handy Award, in the Soul/Blues category.

The Club Paradise was a nightclub at 645 E. Georgia Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee. It was a stop on the "Chitlin' Circuit," a selection of venues considered safe and acceptable for African-American entertainers in the era of racial segregation in the United States.

The Club Handy was a nightclub at 195 Hernando Street in Memphis, Tennessee. Originally called the Domino Lounge, the venue was owned and operated by Sunbeam Mitchell. He renamed the nightclub in honor of composer W.C. Handy in 1958. The Club Handy was a stop on the "Chitlin' Circuit," a selection of venues considered safe and acceptable for African-American entertainers in the era of racial segregation in the United States.

<i>Cadillac Blues</i> 1998 studio album by Johnnie Bassett

Cadillac Blues is an album by the American musician Johnnie Bassett, released in 1998. He is credited with his band, the Blues Insurgents. Bassett supported the album with a North American tour. Cadillac Blues was nominated for a W. C. Handy Award for best traditional blues album.

<i>The Gift</i> (Joe Louis Walker album) 1988 studio album by Joe Louis Walker

The Gift is the second album by the American musician Joe Louis Walker, released in 1988. Walker was backed by the Boss Talkers. He supported the album with a North American tour.

References

  1. Takiff, Jonathan (16 Oct 1998). "In the Bin". Calendar. Philadelphia Daily News. p. 12.
  2. "Bobby "Blue" Bland Biography by Bill Dahl". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  3. Orr, Jay (4 Feb 1999). "Bland's brand of blues". The Tennessean. p. 2F.
  4. "Top Blues Albums". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 7. Feb 13, 1999. p. 60.
  5. "Bobby 'Blue' Bland". Grammy Awards. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  6. Ellis, Bill (15 Jan 2000). "Walker Tops Nominees for Coveted W .C. Handy Blues Honors". The Commercial Appeal. p. F1.
  7. Lucas, Sherry (3 Dec 1998). "Blues great celebrates recording". The Clarion-Ledger. p. 14F.
  8. Farley, Charles (2011). Soul of the Man: Bobby "Blue" Bland. University Press of Mississippi. p. 236.
  9. 1 2 Ellis, Bill (20 Mar 1999). "Soul". The Commercial Appeal. p. F3.
  10. 1 2 "Memphis Monday Morning Review by Andrew Hamilton". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  11. Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press.
  12. (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. pp. 82, 83.
  13. 1 2 Underwood, Don (21 Mar 1999). "CD Reviews". Springfield News-Leader. p. 7G.
  14. Himes, Geoffrey (January 15, 1999). "Bland: Smooth, with a Twist". The Washington Post.
  15. Seigal, Buddy (9 Sep 1999). "The Storyteller". Entertainment. The San Diego Union-Tribune. p. 26.
  16. Williamson, Nigel (2007). The Rough Guide to the Blues. Rough Guides. p. 104.