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Bobby "Blue" Bland is closing in on sixty years as a professional singer (he cut his first single way back in 1951), and while his technical singing range has shrunk with age, he has more than compensated for it with his elegant sense of phrasing and his intelligent use of appropriate melisma, a trait that any number of contemporary would-be R&B singers (who all too often seem to strangle the ends of melody lines rather than glide naturally through them) would do well to emulate. Starting out as a raw blues shouter, Bland instinctively understood the benefits of balance and refinement, and by the time of his first big hit, "Farther Up the Road," which he cut for Don Robey's Duke Records in 1957, he wasn't just shouting anymore but giving his material real emotional breathing room, and developing his gospel-informed crying style, which put the blue back in the blues. This excellent 22-track selection spans Bland's career, beginning with key sides from his long stay at Duke like "Farther Up the Road," "I Pity the Fool," "Who Will the Next Fool Be?" and his brilliant re-imagining of T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday Blues," which was a surprise hit for Bland in 1962, as well as his later hits for the ABC imprint Dunhill Records (Robey sold Duke Records to ABC in 1973 and Bland's contract was included in the deal), "Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City" and "I Wouldn't Treat a Dog (The Way You Treat Me)," both from 1974. Generally presented as a blues singer, Bland is equally at home in the R&B, soul and gospel areas, and when presented with a good pop ballad, he knows exactly what to do with it. Truthfully, there's as much Perry Como in his musical DNA as there is T-Bone Walker, and the mix makes Bland a completely unique singer. The bottom line here is that Bland is a singer's singer, and he has never strangled the life out of a song in his life. That's how you last nearly sixty years in a business that is always looking for the next big thing.
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
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DON D. ROBEY, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Universal-Duchess Music Corp., MusicPublisher
℗ 1957 Geffen Records
Joe Veasey, Composer, Author - DON D. ROBEY, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Universal-Duchess Music Corp., MusicPublisher
℗ 1957 Geffen Records
Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Joseph Wade Scott, Composer, Author - LaCharles Harper, Composer, Author - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
℗ 1958 Geffen Records
Brook Benton, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Iza Music Corp., MusicPublisher
℗ 1959 Geffen Records
DEADRIC MALONE, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Leon Copeland, Composer, Author - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
℗ 1960 Geffen Records
DEADRIC MALONE, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
℗ 1960 Geffen Records
DON ROBEY, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, Vocalist, MainArtist - Songs Of Universal, Inc., MusicPublisher - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer
℗ 1960 Geffen Records
DEADRIC MALONE, Composer, Author - DON ROBEY, Producer - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
℗ 1960 Geffen Records
Joe Scott, Conductor, Recording Arranger - Charlie Rich, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Knox Music, Inc., MusicPublisher
℗ 1962 Geffen Records
Joe Scott, Recording Arranger - Bob Crowder, Composer, Author - Earl Hines, Composer, Author - Wayne Bennett, Guitar - Billy Eckstine, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, Vocalist, MainArtist - Skippy Brooks, Piano - Warner Bros. Music Co. Inc., MusicPublisher - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer - John "Jabo" Starks, Drums - Hamp Simmons, Bass Guitar
A Geffen Records Release; ℗ 1962 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Joseph Scott, Composer, Author - DON ROBEY, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Leonard Chess, Producer - Phil Chess, Producer - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
A Geffen Records Release; ℗ 1961 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Joe Scott, Conductor, Recording Arranger - DEADRIC MALONE, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
℗ 1962 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Joe Scott, Conductor, Recording Arranger - DON D. ROBEY, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Songs Of Universal, Inc., MusicPublisher
℗ 1962 Geffen Records
Joe Scott, Conductor, Recording Arranger - DEADRIC MALONE, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
℗ 1962 Geffen Records
Joe Scott, Composer, Author, Conductor, Recording Arranger - DEADRIC MALONE, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Publisher Unknown, MusicPublisher - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
℗ 1964 Geffen Records
Joe Scott, Conductor, Recording Arranger - Al Braggs, Composer, Author - DEADRIC MALONE, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Songs Of Universal, Inc., MusicPublisher
℗ 1964 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Joe Scott, A & R - Joseph Scott, Composer, Author - DEADRIC MALONE, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Joseph Wade Scott, Composer, Author - Caple Gil, Composer, Author - MCA-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher - Gilbert G. Caple, Composer, Author
℗ 1966 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Pearl Woods, Composer, Author, A & R - Dave Clark, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Universal-Duchess Music Corporation, MusicPublisher
℗ 1966 Geffen Records
Joe Scott, A & R - Andre Williams, A & R - AHMET ERTEGUN, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Ahmet Nugetre, Composer, Author - Unichappell Music, Inc., MusicPublisher
℗ 1969 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Michael Omartian, Conductor, Recording Arranger - Michael Price, Composer, Author - Dan Walsh, Composer, Author - Steve Barri, Producer - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Universal Music Corp., MusicPublisher
A Geffen Records Release; ℗ 1974 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Michael Omartian, Composer, Author, Conductor, Recording Arranger - Michael Price, Composer, Author - Dan Walsh, Composer, Author - Steve Barri, Composer, Author, Producer - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Michael Alan Price, Composer, Author - Universal-MCA Music Publishing A Division of Universal Studios Inc., MusicPublisher - MCA Music Publishing, A Division Of Universal Studios, Inc., MusicPublisher
℗ 1974 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Fleecy Moore, Composer, Author - B.B. King, MainArtist - Johnny Pate, Recording Arranger - Sam Theard, Composer, Author - Bobby Bland, MainArtist - Esmond Edwards, Producer - Rytvoc, Inc., MusicPublisher
℗ 1976 Geffen Records
Album review
Bobby "Blue" Bland is closing in on sixty years as a professional singer (he cut his first single way back in 1951), and while his technical singing range has shrunk with age, he has more than compensated for it with his elegant sense of phrasing and his intelligent use of appropriate melisma, a trait that any number of contemporary would-be R&B singers (who all too often seem to strangle the ends of melody lines rather than glide naturally through them) would do well to emulate. Starting out as a raw blues shouter, Bland instinctively understood the benefits of balance and refinement, and by the time of his first big hit, "Farther Up the Road," which he cut for Don Robey's Duke Records in 1957, he wasn't just shouting anymore but giving his material real emotional breathing room, and developing his gospel-informed crying style, which put the blue back in the blues. This excellent 22-track selection spans Bland's career, beginning with key sides from his long stay at Duke like "Farther Up the Road," "I Pity the Fool," "Who Will the Next Fool Be?" and his brilliant re-imagining of T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday Blues," which was a surprise hit for Bland in 1962, as well as his later hits for the ABC imprint Dunhill Records (Robey sold Duke Records to ABC in 1973 and Bland's contract was included in the deal), "Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City" and "I Wouldn't Treat a Dog (The Way You Treat Me)," both from 1974. Generally presented as a blues singer, Bland is equally at home in the R&B, soul and gospel areas, and when presented with a good pop ballad, he knows exactly what to do with it. Truthfully, there's as much Perry Como in his musical DNA as there is T-Bone Walker, and the mix makes Bland a completely unique singer. The bottom line here is that Bland is a singer's singer, and he has never strangled the life out of a song in his life. That's how you last nearly sixty years in a business that is always looking for the next big thing.
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 22 track(s)
- Total length: 01:02:47
- Main artists: Bobby Bland
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Geffen
- Genre: Blues/Country/Folk Blues
© 2007 Geffen Records ℗ 2007 Geffen Records
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