VARIOUS ARTISTS / “Since I Fell For You Mixtape”
Woodrow Wilson Johnson, aka “Buddy,” was born January 10, 1915 in Darlington, South Carolina. He began his music studies as a child and was well schooled in classical music.
Johnson made his way to New York and became a respected professional. He worked with the Cotton Club Revue and during a 1939 the troupe was expelled from Germany. Later in 1939 he cut his first recordings under his own leadership and shortly thereafter added his sister, Ella, as the lead vocalist.
Buddy Johnson was not only an accomplished pianist and band leader he was also one of the major composers of his era. Johnson also successfully navigated the switch from jazz and blues, to rhythm & blues and rock and roll. His performances and recordings were very popular in the forties and fifties.
In 1945, Ella Johnson sang lead on “Since I Fell For You,” which went on to become one of Buddy Johnson’s most enduring compositions.
When I began putting this Mixtape together, I was surprised by the wide diversity in approaches to this song, from heavy blues to hard jazz, to pop, the song retains its identity even as it fits into the mouths of singers whose repertoires don’t generally overlap.
There’s a capella do-wahing from the Persuasions, Whirimako Black of New Zealand does a bluesy Maori version that is killer. There a reggae/lover’s rock version by John Holt out of Jamaica…but, you get the picture. The stylist approaches vary but the quality nevertheless remains high.
Enjoy 15 different interpretations of Buddy Johnson’s enduring composition, “Since I Fell For You.”
01 The Band That Swings The Blues - Buddy Johnson
02 Flip, Flop And Fly - Big Joe Turner & Count Basie
03 Save Your Love For Me - Nancy Wilson
04 Andy Bey & The Bey Sisters
05 Blue Hour: The Complete Sessions - Stanley Turrentine & The Three Sounds
06 Before Me - Gladys Knight
07 This Is a Journey... Into Time (Live) - Chuck Brown & The Soul Searchers
08 Acappella - The Persuasions
09 Reggae Heights - John Holt
10 Blues For Spoon And Groove - Jimmy Witherspoon And Groove Holmes
11 Whirimako Black Sings
12 Mose Alive! - Mose Allison
13 Jazz 'Round Midnight: Dinah Washington
14 Portrait - Hank Crawford
15 The Dream - Mark Murphy
This entry was posted on Monday, February 22nd, 2010 at 3:53 am and is filed under Cover. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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