Stewball - Music

American Blues Pianist Memphis Slim And American Blues Double Bassist Willie Dixon Collaborated On The Live Albums ''Willie's Blues' 'Baby Please Come Home! Live In Paris' And More. See Willie Dixon's And Memphis Slim's Individual Descriptions For More Info. Album Willie's Blues AllMusic Review By Stephen Cook According To The Original Liner Notes This 1959 Willie Dixon Session Was Cut During A Two Hour Span In Between Flights. This Certainly Explains The Relaxed Jam Session Feel Of The Recordings. Unfortunately The Songs Come Out Sounding Sluggish And Stilted At Times This Is Partly Due No Doubt To The Makeshift Nature Of The Date But Also More Surprisingly Because Of Drummer Gus Johnson's Overly Slick And Formalized Playing. On Top Of This One Has To Contend With Dixon's Less-Then-Inspired Vocals -- It's Dixon's Writing Talents And A&R Savvy In The Blues World That Warrant Him A Place In The Pantheon Not His Skills At The Microphone. That All Said This Still Is An Enjoyable Disc To Listen To Not Least Of All Because Of The Quality Of Dixon's Many Originals And The Freshness Of Pianist Memphis Slim's Playing. And While The Vaudevillian Comedy Of A Song Like "Built For Comfort" Can Be Traced To Dixon's Earlier Pop R&B Work With The Big Three Trio Rougher Blues Standouts Like "Go Easy" And "Move Me" Lead Back To The Chicago Blues World Dixon Shared With Muddy Waters And Howlin' Wolf. Not A First Disc For Curious Listeners But Certainly A Pleasant Enough Addition To The Blues Lover's Collection. Album Baby Please Come Home! Live In Paris AllMusic Review By Richie Unterberger Recorded Live In Paris This Has The Two Blues Legends Accompanying Each Other Slim On Piano Dixon On Bass And Trading Lead Vocals Backed By Drummer Phillipe Combelle. It's Not A Landmark Event In Either Of The Legends' Distinguished Recording Careers But It's A Nice Enough Outing With A Friendly Low-Key Tone. Slim Recorded A Lot Of LPs In The Early '60s Often As A Solo Pianist/vocalist And This Is Frankly More Lively Than His Norm For The Era If For Nothing Else Than The Fact That He's Playing In A Band. The Dixon-Sung Tracks Are Interesting Inasmuch As He Didn't Record Much During This Period Though He's Really Adequate At Best As A Singer. When Slim Sings He Sticks Mostly To Self-Penned Material The Dixon-Fronted Cuts May Stir Some Curiosity Among Blues Fans Due To The Inclusion Of Some Of Willie's More Obscure Compositions Like The Novelty-Tinged "African Hunch With A Boogie Beat." read less