When Dr John came to the UK on his first or second visit in the early 70s, he asked me where he could buy Little Jimmy Scott records. I directed him to Rock On in Camden Town. I never found out if he was successful but it led me to search for Scott's rare albums myself. I remember finding a copy of one of his Savoy albums - "Very Truly Yours" - while on an American trip several years later. From then on I was totally hooked. During the late 40s, Scott straddled the US jazz and R&B markets with his unique vocal styling. He was born in Cleveland Ohio on 17th July 1925. He first sang professionally with a group of youngsters called the Summer Music Festivals. As a youth he was influenced by singers such as Herb Jeffries, Billy Eckstine, Joe Medlin, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. During the late 40s, Lionel Hampton spotted Scott singing at a club in Ohio. He offered Scott a job there and then, singing with his band. With Hampton, Scott cut his first side - Everybody's Somebody's Fool. Subsequently Scott then signed a solo contract with Coral Records. Through the 50s Scott recorded many great sides for various labels, including Roost, Savoy, King and Regal. He performs some of those sides on this album, which offers previously unreleased sides recorded live at the Rip's Playhouse, New Orleans 1951. When the album, "Falling In Love Is Wonderful" (Tangerine LPPRC 1501), was ready for release, Herman Lubinsky served an injunction claiming that Scott was still under contract to Savoy. Sadly the Tangerine album is now very rare because only a few copies ever got out. Shortly after Scott went into retirement, Joel Dawn, an ex Philly DJ and a big fan of Scott persuaded Nesuhi Ertegun of Atlantic to sign Scott to a two album deal. With the release of the first Atlantic album, Lubinsky's lawyers got the album withdrawn and the second album remained unreleased (a recent Scott release through Rhino contains some of these sides). Several years ago at the South Bank in London, he made his first British appearance and we were all knocked out by his performance. The MC described him accurately as an American treasure.