Whistling Alex Moore – From North Dallas To The East Side / Arhoolie CD-408

Description

CD 408

Alexander H. Moore – vocals & piano.

Alex Moore was a true original, a barrelhouse pianist and a folk blues poet of the city who could improvise lyrics and piano themes endlessly, sometimes comic, sometimes grim, and mostly very personal. #1-13 recorded in Dallas, Tx., 1960; #14-21 recorded in Dallas, Tx, 1947. #22 & 23 recorded in Germany in 1968.

1. Whistling Alex Moore’s Blues
2. Pretty Woman With A Sack Dress On
3. Rubber Tired Hack
4. You Say I’m A Bad Feller
5. From North Dallas To The East Side
6. New Miss No Good Weed
7. Black Eyed Peas And Hog Jowls
8. Boogie In The Barrel
9. Going Back To Froggy Bottom
10. July Boogie
11. West Texas Woman
12. Frisky Gal
13. Chock House Boogie
14. Miss No-Good Weed
15. Alex’s Boogie
16. You Got Me Dissatisfied
17. Alex’s Rag
18. Alex’s Blues
19. Alex’s Wild Blues
20. Sometime I Feel Worried
21. I Love You Baby
22. Rock And Roll Bed
23. Boogiein’ In Strassburg

REVIEWS

“I can’t think of enough good things to say about both Alex Moore and this CD! It combines the twelve tracks that made up Arhoolie LP 1008 with the two cuts made in Germany which appeared on LP 1048, an unreleased track and eight sides that Alex recorded at Radio KLIF in Dallas in 1947 which were salvaged by Alan Govenar. These last were discussed by Alan Balfour in his review of Documentary Arts cassette DA 105 in Blues & Rhythm 82. Some retitling has been done on the 1947 tracks and, not having heard the DA cassette, I can only offer the following as a guess as to how it was done: `I Want My Mary’ is not here because it was on Document DOCD 5178: ‘Dishwasher Boogie’ is here as ‘Alex’s Boogie’: ‘Disagreeable Woman’ as ‘You Got Me Dissatisfied’: ‘AIex Rag’ as ‘Alex’s Rag’: ‘SIow Blues Improvisation’ as ‘Alex’s Blues’: ‘Fast Blues Improvisation’ as ‘Alex’s Wild Blues’ And that is as far as I can go with it. Where ‘Sometime I Feel Worried’ and ‘I Love You Baby’ fit in I don’t know: I look forward to a letter from Alan (or someone) revealing all. The CD forms a companion piece to Arhoolie 377 by Robert Shaw by presenting an outstanding collection of Texas piano blues performed by a master. Alex Moore’s work on the domino box is both muscular and constantly inventive while his self-composed lyrics are often startling in their wit and originality. He can transport you to Froggy Bottom where you can eat hog jowls and drink chock until you collapse into your rock and roll bed. The set enjoys great sound and is complemented by a fond memoir from Paul Oliver illustrated by a photograph taken during the 1947 session. A superior release in every way.”

(Keith Briggs — Blues & Rhythm)

“Alex Moore cut a small number of solo sides for Columbia and Decca (1929 and 1937) and a few accompaniments to blues singers and dropped out of sight. The story of his rediscovery, tracked down by blues researcher Paul Oliver,is movingly told in Paul’s notes to this superb album. Moore had never left Dallas, where he had often played in the notorious Central Tracks district, in the honky tonks, bars and bor-dellos, finding similar employment in the Deep Elm, Froggy Bottom and East Side areas too.

When Oliver and Chris Strachwitz caught up with Moore in 1960, the Districts had gone, razed to the ground. But his marvellous Texas blues piano and singing remained intact, untainted by any commercialism. Indeed, he was playing and singing better than ever, as these exciting sides confirm. This is compelling stuff indeed, with thunderous boogie alternating with rolling barrelhouse blues. Alex Moore was a special singer too, conjuring up his own lyrics, often with a fine poetic feel and sense of ironylisten to “Miss No Good Weed,” “Pretty Woman With A Sack Dress On” and “You Say I Am A Bad Feller.” “Goin’ Back To Froggy Bottom” is particularly poignant.

Alex Moore had surfaced briefly in 1947, cutting eight titles in the studios of a Dallas radio stationthe history of these five sides is also detailed in the notes and they are included in this compilation. Sound quality on these tracks is somewhat inferior to the rest of the album but still very listenable, with Moore in fine form. Recording quality is very good for the Oliver-Strachwitz material, and playing time is exemplary.

Eventually, in 1969, Chris Strachwitz and others persuaded Alex to join the annual American Folk Blues Festival and it was on this tour that Rock And Roll Bed and Boogiein’ In Strassburg were recorded in Stuttgart, Germany. Whistlin’ Alex Moore died in Dallas on January 1989, a few months short of his 90th birthday. With his passing the last link with a whole generation of Texas piano blues menRob Cooper, Andy Boy, Willie Tyson and Robert Shaw, was severed. I can’t praise his album too highly. A wonderful evocation in music of times and places that can never be again. One of my records of the year, this is the very essence of the blues.”

(Pat Hawes — Jazz Journal)

“Husky-voiced blues and boogie pianist Alex Moore (1899-1989) frequently improvised both his keyboard work and the verses to his songs. He made only a handful of commercial recordings between 1929 and 1951, but was sought out in 1960 by Chris Strachwitz and Paul Oliver who recorded 13 sides near Moore’s Dallas, Texas home. These, plus eight tracks made at a Dallas radio station in 1947 and two pieces cut at a 1969 blues festival, comprise this set of 13 songs and 10 instrumentals. Moore’s fancy finger work amazed me and I often wondered how he could fit in all the notes he played, especially when he was improvising and steering the melody away from, and then back to, a more standard blues formula. He occasionally accompanied himself by whistling, and there are two examples of that here.”

(Al Riess — Dirty Linen)