Leroy Carr
The term "urban blues" is usually applied to post-World War II blues band music, but one of the forefathers of the genre in its pre-electric format was pianist Leroy Carr. Teamed with the exemplary guitarist Scrapper Blackwell in Indianapolis, Carr became one of the top blues stars of his day, composing and recording almost 200 sides during his short lifetime, including such classics as "How Long, How Long," "Prison Bound Blues," "When the Sun Goes Down," and "Blues Before Sunrise." His blues were expressive and evocative, recorded only with piano and guitar, yet as author Sam Charters has noted, Carr was "a city man" whose singing was never as rough or intense as that of the country bluesmen, and as reissue producer Francis Smith put it, "He, perhaps more than any other single artist, was responsible for transforming the rural blues patterns of the '20s into the more city-oriented blues of the '30s."
Born in Nashville, Leroy Carr moved to Indianapolis as a child. While he was still in his teens, he taught himself how to play piano. Carr quit school in his mid-teens, heading out for a life on the road. For the next few years, he would play piano at various parties and dances in the Midwest and South. During this time, he held a number of odd jobs -- he joined a circus, he was in the Army for a while, and he was briefly a bootlegger. In addition to his string of jobs, he was married for a short time.
Carr wandered back toward Indianapolis, where he met guitarist Scrapper Blackwell in 1928. The duo began performing and shortly afterward they were recording for Vocalion, releasing "How Long How Long Blues" before the year was finished. The song was an instant, surprise hit. For the next seven years, Carr and Blackwell would record a number of classic songs for Vocalion, including "Midnight Hour Blues," "Blues Before Sunrise," "Hurry Down Sunshine," "Shady Lane Blues," and many others.
Throughout the early '30s, Carr was one of the most popular bluesmen in America. While his professional career was successful, his personal life was spinning out of control, as he sunk deeper and deeper into alcoholism. His addiction eventually cut his life short -- he died in April 1935. Carr left behind a enormous catalog of blues and his influence could be heard throughout successive generation of blues musicians, as evidenced by artists like T-Bone Walker, Otis Spann, and Champion Jack Dupree.
© Jim O'Neal /TiVo
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Rocks In My Bed - Treasury Of Jazz No. 32 (Recordings of 1935)
Pop - Released by Treasury of Jazz on 30 jan. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Presenting Leroy Carr
Blues - Released by Universal Digital Enterprises on 27 mei 1928
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rocks In My Bed
Leroy Carr, Scrapper Blackwell
Jazz - Released by Jazz League Music on 19 jun. 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
American Blues Legend
Blues - Released by Charly Records on 14 apr. 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Volume 1: "How Long Has That Evening Train Been Gone", CD D
Scrapper Blackwell, Leroy Carr
Blues - Released by JSP Records on 1 jan. 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Volume 1: "How Long Has That Evening Train Been Gone", CD A
Scrapper Blackwell, Leroy Carr
Blues - Released by JSP Records on 1 jan. 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
American Blues Legend
Blues - Released by Charly Records on 14 apr. 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Piano Blues Vol. 2: 1929-1935
Blues - Released by Interstate Records on 23 nov. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Piano Blues 1930-1935
Blues - Released by Interstate Records on 23 nov. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Good Woman Blues
Jazz - Released by Red Cab Records on 1 aug. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
See You On Some Rainy Day
Blues - Released by Reminisce Music on 29 mei 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Jazz Figures / Leroy Carr (1928 - 1934), Volume 2
Jazz - Released by Collector Records Greece on 24 dec. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Numero Uno Blues
Blues - Released by Excess Music on 7 sep. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Whiskey Is My Habit, Good Women Is All I Crave, The Best Of Leroy Carr (Hd Remastered, Restored Edition, Doxy Collection)
Blues - Released by Doxy Records on 12 sep. 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Whiskey Is My Habit, Women Is All I Crave the Best of Leroy Carr (Hd Remastered)
Blues - Released by Reborn recordings on 16 mei 2019
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 5 (1934) [Hd Remastered]
Blues - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 mei 2019
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
I Keep the Blues
Blues - Released by Milestones Records on 27 nov. 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 4 (1932-1934) [Hd Remastered]
Blues - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 mei 2019
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 3 (1930-1932) [Hd Remastered]
Blues - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 mei 2019
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 6 (1934-1935) [Hd Remastered]
Blues - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 mei 2019
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo