VA - Black Top Blues-A-Rama Volume 1-7 [1988-1993] (7 x CDs)

BLUES

VA - Black Top Blues-A-Rama Volume 1-7 [1988-1993] (7 x CDs)

Black Top Blues-A-Rama Vol. 1–7 sits firmly within the world of Black Top Records, a New Orleans-based independent founded in 1981 by brothers Nauman and Hammond Scott. The label ran through to 1999, building a catalogue that stayed close to working blues rather than heritage presentation. That context matters here. These volumes, issued between 1988 and 1993, feel less like a loose compilation series and more like a direct extension of the label’s outlook at the time.

Across the seven volumes, the material leans heavily toward live recordings, and that’s really the core of the series. Most of it comes from club and festival settings, with that room sound and sense of stretch intact. Studio recordings do appear, but more sparingly, and they’re handled in a way that keeps them close in feel to the live material. What carries across is consistency. Whether recorded on stage or in the studio, the performances stay direct, unpolished, and rooted in the same working atmosphere.

Sequencing favors continuity over spotlighting. Artists move in and out, but the tone stays grounded in electric blues, with enough variation in tempo and phrasing to keep things shifting without losing focus. Over time, repetition becomes part of the appeal. Familiar structures return, small differences start to register, and the listening settles into a rhythm of its own.

This series shows how Black Top positioned its artists, close to performance, rooted in feel, and unconcerned with separating live from studio as long as the playing holds. That through-line is what giving the set its durability. (B)

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Track lists

Vol. 1

01 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - Pawnbroker 3:46

02 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - That's Alright 4:21

03 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - Suggestion Blues 4:57

04 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - Changin' Neighborhoods 6:56

05 Ron Levy - I'm Your Professor 3:11

06 Ron Levy - It's Hot in Here 3:44

07 Ron Levy - Big Mamou 3:23

08 Grady Gaines - Hard Time Blues 4:36

09 Grady Gaines - Something on Your Mind 5:40

Vol. 2

01 Nappy Brown - Lemon Squeezin' Daddy 6:46

02 Nappy Brown - Bye Bye Baby 3:49

03 Nappy Brown - Get to Gettin' 3:01

04 Earl King - Things I Used to Do 4:15

05 Ronnie Earl - West Side Soul 3:13

06 Ronnie Earl - Night Flight 3:50

07 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - Blue Monday Blues 4:39

08 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - Further on Up The Road 3:12

09 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - If I Had My Life to Live Over 2:06

10 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - Hello Sundown 3:48

Vol. 3

01 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - Theme Song and Introduction 1:41

02 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - Next Time You See Me 2:51

03 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - Your Turn to Cry 6:14

04 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - Don't Want No Woman 3:11

05 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - When There's No Way Out 2:43

06 James 'Thunderbird' Davis - You Did Me Wrong 2:36

07 Ron Levy - Introduction 0:23

08 Ron Levy - Organ-ism 4:05

09 Ron Levy - Tee-Na-Nee-Na-Nu 6:05

10 Bobby Radcliff - Introduction 0:15

11 Bobby Radcliff - Bonehead 3:19

12 Bobby Radcliff - Sex Machine 4:55

13 Bobby Radcliff - Bad Luck 2:50

14 Bobby Radcliff - Night Train 4:55

Vol. 4

01 Grady Gaines & The Texas Upsetters - Grady's Slow Theme and Introduction 1:15

02 Grady Gaines & The Texas Upsetters - Let Your Thing Hang Down 4:46

03 Grady Gaines & The Texas Upsetters - Lonesome Saxophone 3:03

04 Paul David Roberts - Miracle 4:29

05 Paul David Roberts - I Found A Sure Enough Good Love 3:52

06 Upsetters - Grady's Fast Chaser Theme 0:13

07 Joe Medwick - Introduction 0:34

08 Joe Medwick - Don't Cry No More 2:20

09 Joe Medwick - C.C. Rider 2:01

10 Joe Medwick - If I Don't Get Involved 4:13

11 Joe Medwick - I Pity The Fool 3:55

12 Big Robert Smith - Introduction 0:17

13 Big Robert Smith - Can't Turn You Loose 2:51

14 Big Robert Smith - 24 Hours of The Day 3:59

15 Big Robert Smith - Driving Wheel 4:08

16 Big Robert Smith - Big Robert's Strokin' Too 5:30

17 Upsetters - Grady's Slow Theme 0:30

18 Upsetters - Midnight Shuffle 3:53

Vol. 5

01 Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters - Love at First Sight 4:33

02 Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters - Keep Holding on Baby 3:47

03 Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters - Can't Keep From Crying 4:05

04 Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters - I Found A New Love 9:09

05 Earl King - Love Rent 8:01

06 Earl King - A Weary Silent Night 2:42

07 Earl King - Night Time is The Right Time 6:44

08 Joe 'Guitar' Hughes - Mother-In-Law Blues 4:22

09 Joe 'Guitar' Hughes - Don't Run From Your Own Shadow 3:11

10 Joe 'Guitar' Hughes - You Know You Didn't Want Me 4:03

Vol. 6

01 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - 20 Miles 3:32

02 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - Hold That Train Conductor 4:18

03 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - Look on Yonder's Wall 3:57

04 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - One Room Country Shack 6:19

05 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - Feel So Bad 4:39

06 Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers - Can't Stop Lovin' My Baby 2:50

07 Snooks Eaglin - I Cry, Oh! 3:47

08 Snooks Eaglin - Irene 3:21

09 Snooks Eaglin - Apache 3:13

10 Snooks Eaglin - Certainly Ya'll 2:43

11 Snooks Eaglin - Dizzy Miss Lizzy 3:10

12 Hubert Sumlin - Howlin' for My Darlin' 3:42

13 Hubert Sumlin - Your Clock is Running Out 8:12

14 Hubert Sumlin - Come Home Little Girl 4:38

15 Hubert Sumlin - Honey Dumplins 5:47

Vol. 7

01 Crawl - I Don't Want You Hangin' Around 5:18

02 Crawl - You Ain't Like You Used to Be 4:27

03 Crawl - Should've Done Better 4:30

04 Big Robert Smith - 24 Hours of The Day 5:02

05 Lynn August & The Hot August Knights - Blind Man 6:06

06 Lynn August & The Hot August Knights - Tous Les Temps En Temps 3:14

07 Lynn August & The Hot August Knights - Tous Les Jours Ce N'est Pas La Meme Chose 5:30

08 Lynn August & The Hot August Knights - Railroad Blues 4:55

09 Carol Fran & Clarence Hollimon - Golden Girl 3:27

10 Carol Fran & Clarence Hollimon - I Needs to Be Be'd With 4:35

11 Carol Fran & Clarence Hollimon - Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere 4:33

12 Robert Ward - Your Love is Real 4:05

13 Robert Ward - Your Love is Amazing 4:11

14 Robert Ward - Forgive Me Darling 3:13

15 Robert Ward - Something for Nothing 3:50

16 Robert Ward - Potato Soup 4:11

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Music weaves itself into the fabric of our emotions, dances through the corridors of memory, and whispers to the soul of who we are. Sharing these stories deepens the connection, turning the experience into something timeless and profound.

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