Billy Bland
Billy Bland had a one-shot hit in 1960 with "Let the Little Girl Dance" (number seven), a pop-R&B- early soul mixture very much in the same mold as records from the period by Jackie Wilson, right down to the Latinate "Lonely Teardrops" rhythm. Some of his other singles were in the same style, but Bland (not to be confused with the unrelated Bobby Bland) was actually a pretty versatile vocalist, also purveying R&B, Bo Diddley-styled rock & roll, urban blues, and dance-craze early-'60s rock. He recorded often for Old Town from the mid-'50s through 1963, but though his range was wide, his quality was not. He was a competent journeyman no matter what his genre, never finding another song with the pop hooks of "Let the Little Girl Dance." Or writing one: though he didn't pen "Let the Little Girl Dance," he wrote much of his own material.
Bland began singing shortly after moving to New York in the late
'40s, and made his first records for Imperial in New Orleans in the mid-'50s, as a member of the Bees. They did an early version of Dave Bartholomew's naughty "My Ding-a-Ling" (eventually a hit for Chuck Berry), although when the Bees did it, it was titled "Toy Bell." (It can now be found on the box set Crescent City Soul: The Sound of New Orleans 1947-1974). Bland went solo in 1955, however, beginning his lengthy association with the New York-based Old Town label. "Let the Little Girl Dance" was almost an accident: it was being recorded by Titus Turner, and Bland showed him how to do it in the studio. Unknown to Bland, his demonstration was recorded by Henry Glover, and became the hit, with guitar ace Mickey Baker playing on the session.
Bland tried to vary the "Let the Little Girl Dance" pop-R&B sound on various singles, and also ride the bandwagons of other rock trends, with no success, and made his final Old Town disc in 1963. As of the late '80s, he was running a soul food restaurant in Harlem.
© Richie Unterberger /TiVo
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Discographie
20 album(s) • Trié par Meilleures ventes
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Let the Little Girl Sing
R&B - Paru chez Old Town Records le 16 déc. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Let the Little Girl Dance
R&B - Paru chez Old Town Records le 9 nov. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Soul Classics-Billy Bland-Vol. 25
Jazz - Paru chez RP-DSP le 28 nov. 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Let the Little Girl Sing
Soul - Paru chez Bridge Pa Digital le 16 déc. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Let The Little Girl Dance (Billboard Hot 100 - No. 07)
Soul - Paru chez Music Manager le 19 déc. 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Let the Little Girl Dance
Jazz - Paru chez Black Sheep Music le 22 oct. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Let the Little Girl Dance/Sweet Thing
Rock - Paru chez Old Town le 25 janv. 1960
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
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Let the Little Girl Dance
Pop - Paru chez Eastside Records le 9 nov. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Billy Bland - Vintage Selection
Soul - Paru chez Vintage Jukebox le 9 oct. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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The Best Vintage Selection - Billy Bland
R&B - Paru chez Retro Music Box le 9 oct. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chicken Hop
Blues - Paru chez Sleeping Giant Music le 18 juil. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Let the Little Girl Dance
Jazz - Paru chez Stars and Stripes le 22 oct. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
All the Best
R&B - Paru chez Don't stop the music le 5 mars 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Let the Little Girl Dance
Soul - Paru chez CTS Digital le 9 nov. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -