23 of the R&B superstar’s seminal King sides in best-ever sound, plus an entire CD of alternates, all mastered from fresh transfers from the original acetates.
During the first run of CDs drawn from the original King Records acetates, we proudly announced the arrival of a compilation made up entirely of never-before-heard alternate takes and unissued masters by the great blues shouter Wynonie Harris. Unfortunately, the fates conspired against us and we were not able to bring the project to fruition at that time. This time it’s for real. “Don’t You Want To Rock?” is not a single CD but a definitive two-disc set featuring every surviving Wynonie acetate master on CD1, with the originally scheduled rarities on CD2. It’s been a long time coming but well worth the wait.
You will never have heard the master takes with such awesome clarity as they are here, and the alternates and unissued tracks will be a revelation to even the most ardent collector. The previously unheard titles are as strong as those that were issued at the time, particularly ‘Love Is Crazy’, the three takes of which differ so much they might almost be considered different songs.
The highlight for many will be the complete ‘Good Rockin’ Tonight’ session – two takes and a breakdown of one of the most famous R&B recordings of all. It’s not often you can hear history being made before your very ears, but you can here! A typically lavish booklet with session-by-session annotation seals the deal on what will surely be one of the most eagerly anticipated R&B reissues of the year, if not the decade.
Tony Rounce
