Search - Big Maceo Merriweather :: Bluebird Recordings 1941-42

Absolutely essential for evry blues addict

JEAN-MARIE JUIF | BESANCON France | 05/24/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Major Merriweather, aka Big Maceo (March 31,1905-February 26,1953) may be the greatest blues piano player of all times with Montana Taylor.Born in Atlanta,he recorded 33 tracks between 1941 and 1947,and some more in 1952 with JOhn Brim.He was a colossus,a giant,and had a rough and smoky voice that was o,to me,one of the most beautiful voices in the history of blues.
In these sixteen tracks,he teams with the amazing Tampa Red on guitar (Hudson Whittaker,1904-1981),maybe the greatest slide player of all times.Each tune is a gem;if you're listening to this album,or to the other one (Big Maceo 1945-1947),you'll find the same amount of masterpieces than when you listen to Robert Johnson's works.Tampa Red's slide guitar will fascinate you,I hope;Big Maceo's voice and piano will amaze you."Worried life blues","County jail blues","Texas blues",and many more, are masterpieces.Big Maceo had a prodigious technique,and he combined it with a very low down,traditionnal feeling.The combination of his piano playing with the imperial and almost hypnotic slide guitar of Tampa Red created the greatest team of blues players.15 of these tracks are at the same highest level,and "worried life blues" is surely one of the ten greatest things ever recorded in the blues field.Big Maceo's incredible playing will deeply inflence Otis Spann,Eddie Boyd,Litlle Johnny Jones and Henry Gray.And me.That's the kind of blues I try to play,even if I'm a poor piano player.Please,discover this music,and discover Big Maceo's 1945-47 works,you'll find an absolute masterpiece,an incredible piece of piano playing,"Chicago breakdown"."

Power, rocking, real live hot blues

Tony Thomas | SUNNY ISLES BEACH, FL USA | 04/26/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Maceo and his accompaniest here Tampa Red were among the most popular blues musicians of all time. Tampa probably sold more blues records than any individual in the years between 1930 and the 1950s and influence everybody from Bob Johnson down to James Brown whom he actually gave guitar lessons to. Maceo's star burned up more quickly due to his health. Maceo's music adds the stronger stomping boogie sound that came out of the old Southwest (meaning Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, and Texas) to the great piano and guitar blues duet style developed by the great Leroy Carr and Scrapper Blackwell, a team that was probably the most important and imitated (even by Robert Johnson) blues players in history. Maceo has such power in both his playing and singing that you really are rocked by it. It puts so much feeling in there.
When he sings "Can't you read, can't you read in your Bible" here, even though the song is a humorous novelty song, you feel sooo much musicial power. Tampa Red is no slouch. His slinky jangly but very clean slide playing is an education for those of you who identify slide with rough Mississippi juke styles. Maceo and Tampa here lead both backward to the great Leroy Carr and Scrapper Blackwell as well as forward to Otis Spahn a pianist with Muddy Waters and then on his own who said he would go listen to Maceo to learn how to play right. I have been listening to this first on LP, then on tape, and now on CD for about 30 years. After you hear this, you wont be satisfied going without it either."

One of the finest blues piano performances.

Tony Thomas | 04/30/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Together with Otis Spann, Memphis Slim, Big Maceo has been one of the most influencial blues pianists. He performs blues piano very cheerfully just like B.B. King does on the guitar. The first song of this album, "Worried Blues" performed by other blues men such as James Cotton sounds very gloomy. But Big Maceo is the one who is able to play this song cheerfully and nicely. This is one of the most important blues albums for blues pianists. This CD contains many essential blues piano idioms, and very educational. 'Click'"