Comments on: LOU RAWLS / “Street Corner Hustler’s Blues, World of Trouble” http://www.kalamu.com/bol/2008/06/23/lou-rawls-%e2%80%9cstreet-corner-husler%e2%80%99s-blues-world-of-trouble%e2%80%9d/ a conversation about black music Thu, 04 Dec 2008 02:25:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=1.5 by: Q http://www.kalamu.com/bol/2008/06/23/lou-rawls-%e2%80%9cstreet-corner-husler%e2%80%99s-blues-world-of-trouble%e2%80%9d/#comment-70847 Wed, 25 Jun 2008 10:19:43 -0500 http://www.kalamu.com/bol/2008/06/23/lou-rawls-%e2%80%9cstreet-corner-husler%e2%80%99s-blues-world-of-trouble%e2%80%9d/#comment-70847 Thanks Brothers for this. Thanks for the History lesson too. I now have a new found appreciation for Lou Rawls. I knew he was influential in his heyday, but unfortunately I grew accustomed to him during UNCF telethons...clearly a shadow of what you posted. For Gen X'ers like me not in the know, that's who Lou Rawls was...Mr. UNCF. Still, in listening to the tracks you posted, I wouldn't call him a poor man's Joe Williams or Joe Williams 2. Vocalizations aside, lyrically he was singing about the times and there was definitely a urban feel to his songs. A coolness, especially in the cover of the Sinatra tune “It Was A Very Good Year.” I mistakenly fell for the all to familiar classification of him as a almost-show-tune-jazz-balladeer. However, Lou is more than that. I also give him credit for his deadpan humor. "Street Corner Hustler's Blues" is great...even before he starts singing. Thanks Brothers for this. Thanks for the History lesson too. I now have a new found appreciation for Lou Rawls. I knew he was influential in his heyday, but unfortunately I grew accustomed to him during UNCF telethons…clearly a shadow of what you posted. For Gen X’ers like me not in the know, that’s who Lou Rawls was…Mr. UNCF. Still, in listening to the tracks you posted, I wouldn’t call him a poor man’s Joe Williams or Joe Williams 2. Vocalizations aside, lyrically he was singing about the times and there was definitely a urban feel to his songs. A coolness, especially in the cover of the Sinatra tune “It Was A Very Good Year.” I mistakenly fell for the all to familiar classification of him as a almost-show-tune-jazz-balladeer. However, Lou is more than that.

I also give him credit for his deadpan humor. “Street Corner Hustler’s Blues” is great…even before he starts singing.

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