Customer Reviews

Let The Good Times Roll: The Anthology 1938-1953

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Without the help of former angst/punk-rocker Joe Jackson, many of my generation would never have heard of Louis Jordan. Jackson's JUMPIN' JIVE album was made long before the current swing revival and it exposed many under fortysomethings to the incredible fun, unbridled joy and sheer pop smarts of Jordan at a time when prog-rock was on the wane, disco was just about dead and the new wave was where it was at. But, for far too many years since CDs have been with us, there had been no satisfactory anthology of his biggest, bestest, swingin'-est hits. For years I made do with THE BEST OF LOUIS JORDAN on MCA U.K., a great but not fabulous collection that missed many of the great cuts on this fab double retrospective. Now, MCA's newest anthology, a double, does the man justice thanks to great sound, ALL the key cuts and a decently packaged graphic/booklet treatment. One could rightly make a claim that this is the true start of rock and roll. Jordan was immensely popular during and right after WWII. And though he may have hated rock and roll (and he made no bones about how he felt about it), where would rock be without "Caldonia" or "Choo Choo Ch'Boogie"? This is more than just a historical document, it's a blast from the past that causes heads to nod, feet to shake, hands to get clapped. It's the balls, y'all!

In his autobiography, James Brown mentions Louis Jordan as one of his biggest influences, especially the way Louis would go up real high when he'd do that shout on Caldonia, just like Little Richard only when Little Richard was actually LITTLE (as in still in the crib.)

I thought it was strange how Ken Burns's JAZZ only gave this monumental figure in modern American music a brief mention but then again, although Jordan did incorporate a lot of Jazz into his playing, and could sing pretty smooth too (I can swear he sounds like Lady Day on Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying) really he created an entirely different art form, one merging everything from the jump blues sounds of Kansas City, with the slick bebop licks of Mintons - - and the influences of all the dance crazes at the time, from Swing to Latin - - and of course, those catchy lyrics which in many ways would end up getting him labeled as a "novelty" act (two of my favorites are What's The Use of Getting Sober and Beware Brother Beware.) From it all, came the musical forms that would eventually be known as R & B, soul, rock and roll and the modern blues. In fact, if you listen to Louis, then early R & B and rock and roll, you hear very little difference... and its no suprize that Louis was singing Let The Good Times Roll long before any white people were doing in on Band Stand - - For this historical reason alone, no true music lover should be without atleast one CD... and this greatly packaged CD is definitely a good place to come.

Do not think it possible to understand almost any form of American music, or truly appreciate life, without the presence of Louis Jordan in your player ! ! !

Check out Slim Galliard, and also organists Bill Dogett and Wild Bill Davis (who both did stints with Jordan)...

Starting as a member of the Count Basie band in the 1930s, Louis Jordan soon became known as sax player, vocalist, and jive man extraordinaire on his many solo recordings from the late 1930s until his death in the mid-1970s. This package focuses only on the years 1938 thru 1953, which is admittedly most of his best work, but it would be nice to hear some of his later recordings as well. In particular, two recordings of the classic "Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens", cut in the 50s and 70s, improve by being taken at a faster tempo. Louis practically invented jump blues, and no less a giant than BB King has paid tribute with an album of all Jordan material. (Let the Good Times Roll). Building on Cab Calloway's earlier reputation as the king of jive language and music, Jordan creates an evocative, often hilarious picture of the trials and tribulations of the black performer of his day. His takes on trains ("Texas and Pacific", "Choo Choo, Ch'Boogie," and "Salt Pork, West Virginia"), drinking ("What's the Use of Being Sober?"), waitresses ("Boogie Woogie Blue Plate"), and life itself (the wonderful "Life is So Peculiar" duet with Louis Armstrong) still delight after all these years due to his irrepresible humor and jive language. So, if your budget only allows for a two-CD set, spring for this edition by one of the most upbeat, positive, and all around funny cats ever, and run, don't walk, to the nearest Saturday night fish fry.

DAMN Chuck Berry! LATER for Little Richard (he could just SHUT UP!) LOUIE JORDAN was the TRUE King of Rock and Roll and R&B! Listen to the wild preaching in "Beans and Cornbread" and try not to roll on the floor laughing. Dig "Open the Door Richard" and I DARE you not to sing along. Try keeping your feet still through "Salt Pork West Virginia" or "Don't Worry Bout That Mule." Trying to find a bad Louis Jordan record is like finding green snow and chicken's teeth! They don't exist!

This genius was the #1 selling African American artist of the 1940's. No one else sold more records or had more hits. He out sold The Mills Bros.,Nat Cole,Duke,Ella,Buddy and Ella Johnson,Satchmo, and Count Basie.He was the #1 R&B artist of the 40's with more top 10 hits and more #1's on the r&b charts than any other Black act of that period. Louis also had a total of 9 top 10 pop hits between 1944 and 1950 and he is the only r&b based artist to have 2 #1 hits on the country music charts(an astonishing feat back then). Those two songs are Jordan classics-1943's and early 44's classic "Ration Blues" and 1944's "Is You Is Or Is You Ain't Ma Baby".Both songs are included on this wonderful cd.The great Nat "King"Cole hit #1 on the Country charts in the mid 40's with his "Straighten up and fly right" but Nat was more of a pop singer than r&b singer. 'G.I.Jive" was a massive hit for him in 1944.It was #1 on both the r&b and pop charts that year. Some may think of Louis Jordan as a clown and that's a monumental tragedy-this cat was a musical genius and an incredible composer,bandleader,and saxophonist. The clown moniker could be easily applied to Charlie Chaplin,Jerry Lewis,Laurel and Hardy,and Harold Lloyd,but they were genuises as well. This cd is a must for any music lovers collection.

I first heard this in a bar in New York as my wife and I were celebrating our wedding anniversary. The barman had a whole load of old music that he was playing - he was a real expert
Anyway every time we heard a tune that we really liked it turned out to be a Louis Jordan number so we went home and ordered this CD

We play it all the time: its very varied, there's some really neat period pieces which initially sound a little silly but they really grow on you - I find myself singing "barnacle bill" all the time. Great fun and a lovely change from the normal fare- try it

I've heard these songs many times by many recording artists and local bands, but there is nothing like Jordan's brand of jump blues and swing. This is a pair of cd's that you can listen to over and over and probably never tire of (I haven't). High voltage music, sly humorous lyrics, glimpses of the times in both. Jordan will endure and hopefully always be respected. Do yourself a favor and put this set on your cd player!

This album is Louis Jordan at his best. For someone who likes his music, this is a must-have.

Not many people realize this, but Louis Jordan is third on the list of most top R&B hits and had many number 1 hits during the 1940s. Today, most people don't know who this guy is, and its a shame because Louis could create his own style of jazz/blues and mix elements together to get a good beat, as well as add comedy to the music. Unlike Spike Jones, the humor of Jordan was in the lyrics and tone of voice rather than random outbursts and sounds. Louis also had some very jazzy numbers like Is You is or Is You Ain't My Baby, which was covered by Louis Armstrong and used on Tom and Jerry. Louis also helped pioneer the creation of Rock n Roll and Saturday Night Fish Fry, is considered one of the first songs with a rock n roll rhythm. It sounds almost identical to the style of Rock Around the Clock, which was the first Rock n Roll song to gain popularity and hit number 1 on the billboard. If it weren't for Louis Jordan, Rock Around the Clock would not have the same pattern and beat that made it so iconic, which was pretty much copied from Fish Fry. So thank Louis for inspiring the writers for that song. Louis also pokes fun at racism and uses metaphors and deeper meanings in most of his songs, that seem innocent today, but in their day, these songs were somewhat controversial. Open the Door Richard, Ain't Nobody Here but Us Chickens, and Saturday Night Fish Fry are only some of the songs that can be interpreted as having racial humor. So this collection offers most of Louis' R&B hits going as far back as 1938, which is the time he left the big bands to pursue a career as a singer. It covers a good chunk of his success in the 40s, which include his best songs, as well as a few in the early 50s, which is when his popularity declined due to rock n roll and doo wop taking over. Any music lover must learn to appreciate this guys contributions to the music industry, as well as get to know this performer for the true genius he was. He inspired many later Rock n Roll performers and Soul artists who became some of the music industries biggest names like Ray Charles, Chuck Berry, James Brown, and B.B. King to name a few. So this collection is a must own for any r&b/jazz lover, because Louis was always at the top of his class, and the humor is flawless. You can see why he inspired so many big names.

I bought this several years back and just now got to playing it, don't ask. Randomly I started with "Open the Door, Richard." If this isn't the most laugh-out-loud song ever I don't know what is. I am afraid to go any further; too much of it and I might OD. Certainly there is no harm in playing "Choo Choo Ch 'Boogie" every now and then; it's the greatest boogie ever.

It will not do merely to liken Louis Jordan to the incomparable Fats Waller, because Jordan was clearly incomparable in his own right. What they both share is a spirit, no, a zeal, an undying willingness to please, and above all, superb musicianship. By rights Jordan's reputation should live forever.

Of course that won't happen if tone-deaf record companies delete outstanding anthologies like this. Yes there's Bear Family's, but who wants to shell out so much and possibly get a fair number of clunkers? And the sound here's fine, too. Well, I have my copy, and it is in downloads, so it may never be too late to deeply savor in it.