I’ve got two shows to share with you this week because I had to dash off last week and didnt’ have a chance to edit and upload until now
Start with this one which has three “kings” in it.
I celebrated Little Freddie King’s birthday with a song by him followed by a song by his namesake, Freddie King. (That’s two of the kings). Little Freddie King is actually Fred Martin and he turned 78 last week. I spin “I Used to be Down” from his latest release. To get to that song though, I “force” you to listen to two jazz and rhythm and blues sets that include tracks from new releases by Jon Cleary, Sabertooth Swing and Tin Men. I hope you can survive and stick with the show for the third king.
Later in the show, I do a set of songs that Elvis Presley popularized, including Smiley Lewis singing “One Night of Sin.” Elvis took the melody but toned down the lyrics so it was moreof a love song and less of a confessional. I did this so I could talk about “The King” a documentary about the American Dream viewed from the perspective of Elvis Presley’s life. I interviewed the director, Eugene Jerecki for a different program, and I include a one-minute clip of that interview where he describes the amazing music in this movie.
The July 26 show celebrates saxophonists Kevin Harris’ birthday by playing “Swampthang” from the New Orleans Suspects live album recorded at the Maple Leaf club. Kevin Harris, who performs with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, blows his horn with with the Suspect’s Jeff Watkins that must made that old nightclub feel like it was coming down. This song alone is worth playing the show but you’ll also hear Lil Queenie (and Dog Days by Leigh Harris), Dr. John, Charmaine Neville, Lena Prima, Slim Harpo, Zigaboo Modeliste, Larry Garner, Tab Benoit to name a few.
Sweeney's Gumbo YaYa 