Our Monthly Club Meeting will be Sunday, May 3rd at the Homewood Public Library. 2:00 PM. Next club meeting will be June 14th, 2009, the second Sunday

BE SURE TO BE IN ATTENDANCE AT THIS MONTH’S MEETING TO MEET AND HEAR FROM JERRY “BOOGIE” MCCAIN. “BOOGIE” WILL HAVE A 2 CD SET CONTAINING 30 OF HIS HITS. DON’T MISS THIS CHANCE TO SEE AND HEAR FROM ONE OF THE WORLD’S RENOWNED BLUES HARP PLAYER.

Jerry was born in Gadsden Alabama in 1930. Jerry's first exposure to blues came in the form of two popular itinerant street musicians that would regularly traverse the streets of his neighborhood. Jerry himself, became a familiar character in Gadsden, hanging on corners and serenading the passers-by for tips. He earned a regular radio slot over local station WETO fronting a jug band. He cut some 78 acetates on Shuler Avenue in Alabama City and mailed them to any record label that might give it a listen.

Finally a chance to record came in 1953. He and his band traveled to Jackson City, Mississippi. His first release was on the Trumpet label. The songs were “East Of The Sun” and “Wine-o-Wine”.
With songs like “She’s Tough”, “Cutie Named Judy”, “Choo Choo Rock”, “Red Top” and “Welfare Cadillac Blues”, it doesn’t get much better.

Soon to turn 79 years “young”, “Boogie” has not stopped boogieing yet. He will be one of the headliners at this year’s Ponderosa Stomp held in New Orleans.

Here is the press release from the Ponderosa Stomp’s website concerning “Boogie”:
Update: McCain will dust off his insane Excello sides for this year's Stomp! Expect a two guitars and drums lineup tearing through "Geronimo Rock 'n' Roll" and more.

To study Jerry McCain's primal slices of Excello rock 'n' roll cannibalism is to witness a man standing upon the edge of something about to come completely unhinged. It's at once cathartic, otherworldly, bombastic, yet as earthy and solid as the Alabama clay from which it sprang. "Stay Out of Automobiles," "Geronimo Rock 'n' Roll," "I'm A Ding-Dong Daddy From a Rock 'n' Roll City," "Tryin' Just To Please," "Next Door Neighbor," "Choo Choo Rock." Were more telling titles ever scrawled on a shelved reel-to-reel tape box?

These masterpieces of mania are only rock 'n' roll in spirit, as they're like nothing that's come before them and nothing that's come since. And frankly, one wonders whether the world would have been a better place had they been unleashed in the '50s, because this is music, in the immortal words of Donald "Duck" Dunn, "Powerful enough to turn goat piss to gasoline." If there ever was a holy ghost of punk rock, it dwelt in the soul of Jerry McCain during those few short years that he employed ringing alarm clocks and rolled up magazines as musical instruments.

Of course, McCain had had a career in the blues prior to his presumed revelation to change the world. His pedigree dawned with some gut-bucket sides for Lillian McMurry's Trumpet label, and later, the brilliant two-sided stroke of genius "She's Tough," backed with "Steady" on Ace, not to mention a pile of nuggets cut for Jewel and, of course, the classic "Welfare Cadillac" on Royal American. Taken along with his Excello wild streak, you might find yourself asking: The perfect career? Quite Possibly.

That’s What They Want http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pwZmqn7pDM
Geronimo Rock ‘n’ Roll http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcZK8otg9LY&feature=related
Tryin’ To Please http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6yAks9eNS0&feature=related

ANOTHER CLUB MEMBER’S TOP 5 ALABAMA’S MOST SIGNIFICANT RECORDINGS

At last month’s meeting we had Andy Millard discuss his article written for a UAB publication in which he chose his 5 most significant Alabama recordings. This month we hear from club member Mike Maddox and his top 5.

1. Straighten Up And Fly Right- King Cole Trio- Capitol 154 ( 1943 ) ( Nat Cole, performer and songwriter ) ( This was Nat's first hit record and it was tremendously influential on the development of all of the Black Pop, R&B and jump blues that followed in its wake ).

2. You Better Move On/ A Shot Of Rhythm and Blues- Dot 16309 ( 1961) Arthur Alexander, Spooner Oldham, et al. ( A. Alexander, performer and songwriter, Spooner Oldham, producer and studio musician) ( A perfect marriage of White and Black American roots music)

3. I Never Loved A Man- Aretha Franklin (Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section) - Atlantic 2386 ( 1967) (Aretha’s first real hit and a GREAT ensemble soul performance)

4. I Saw The Light- Hank Williams, performer and songwriter- MGM 10271 ( 1948). One day when each of us stands before the Lord, he's going to ask us, " Who did you tell about me?” In the release of this record, before he had his first real hit with Lovesick Blues, Hank told everybody about what Jesus had done for him. Although
Hank went home to be with the Lord long ago, his testimony lives on as his song is performed many times every day all over the world.

5. Green Green Grass Of Home ( 1964)- written by Alabama native Claude " Curley " Putman, Jr., born 11-20-1930, in Princeton, Jackson County, Alabama. EVERYBODY has recorded this great song: Porter Wagoner, Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Bobby Bare, Joe Tex, Tom Jones and over 600 others in all major languages across the globe. Oh, by the way, Curley also wrote, in his spare time, " He Stopped Loving Her Today " for George Jones, " D-I-V-O-R-C-E " for Tammy Wynette, and " My Elusive Dreams " for David Houston and Tammy Wynette.

Thanks, Mike. A very interesting list and much different than Andy’s. As we heard at last month’s meeting, the list could go on and on and still a recording would be left out. Have your list ready. You may be asked for yours next.

COMING UP AT THE JUNE CLUB MEETING

Remember “Name It And Claim It?” Well we won’t be giving records away but we do hope you will be at the June meeting when we play some records that might surprise you who the artists are. Got one that you want to bring and try to stump the members? Please bring it and give it a spin. Who knows there might be a prize of some kind. You never know.

Here’s a few to give you some practice:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPys2vDCQGo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KON4FWSYtUI&feature=PlayList&p=C84D92748F...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leB413qgrgs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CA4bw7tIPNs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAmDxxLV_vw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCJp9OpuT2U&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojRyoul4Qlk&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06qN66vEZVE

UPCOMING RECORD SHOWS
ATLANTA………SUNDAY JUNE 14TH
BIRMINGHAM........SATURDAY & SUNDAY AUGUST 15TH & 16TH

See ya,

Charlie