Tampa Red

The Bluebird Recordings 1936-1938

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AllMusic Review by Cub Koda

By the mid-'30s, Tampa Red was a famous blues singer and guitarist, when he suddenly did an artistic about-face. The records Tampa Red made for the Bluebird label between 1936 and 1938 were certainly unlike anything he made before or after in his long recording career. His fabled guitar was relegated to the back burner, and he cut in two modes: first as a bandleader/vocalist fronting a small jazz-pop band, and secondly as a solo pianist/vocalist working the recently departed turf of Leroy Carr. All of these were cut at the same sessions, following a seamless thread except for a lone appearance of that patented slide guitar on two cuts from a 1937 date. Certainly not the place to start with Tampa, but an interesting sidebar for sure. Excellent notes by Jim O'Neal enhance the package.

Track Listing - Disc 1

	Title/Composer	Performer	Time
1	Stormy Sea Blues Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:46
2	Nutty and Buggy Blues Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:46
3	You Stole My Heart Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:08
4	You Got Me Worryin' Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:18
5	All Night Long Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:33
6	That's the Way I Do Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:56
7	I Hate Myself Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:41
8	I Need You by My Side Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:23
9	Blue and Evil Blues Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:04
10	If It Wasn't for You Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:04
11	Right or Wrong Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:23
12	Stop Truckin' and Suzi-Q Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:45
13	Cheatin' on Me Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:49
14	Your One and Only Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:55
15	My Za Zu Girl Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:45
16	Someday I'm Bound to Win Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:09
17	Taking It & Making My Getaway Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:59
18	She Said It Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:08
19	It's Hard to Believe It's True Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:01
20	When Love Comes In Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:51
21	You Got to Learn to Do It Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:53
22	I Give My Love to You Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:12
23	I See You Can't Take It Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:43

Track Listing - Disc 2

	Title/Composer	Performer	Time
1	My Gal Is Gone Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:10
2	When the One You Love Is Gone Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:04
3	You're More Than a Palace to Me Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:10
4	Harlem Swing Unknown / Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:08
5	Oh Babe, Oh Baby Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:08
6	I'm Gonna Get High Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:05
7	Delta Woman Blues Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:03
8	Deceitful Friend Blues Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:57
9	Wrong Idea Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:51
10	Whoopee Mama Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:49
11	Travel On Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:34
12	Seminole Blues Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:03
13	The Most of Us Do Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:45
14	We Gonna Get High Together Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:07
15	Happily Married Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:04
16	A Lie in My Heart Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:09
17	Heck of a How-Do-You-Do Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:43
18	That May Get It Now Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:57
19	That Don't Matter Now Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:38
20	Grouchy Hearted Woman Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	2:50
21	Why Should I Care? Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:20
22	Got to Leave My Woman Hudson Whittaker	Tampa Red	3:13

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Tampa Red

The Bluebird Recordings 1936-1938

AllMusic Review by Cub Koda

Track Listing - Disc 1

Track Listing - Disc 2