BUNK JOHNSON – "THE KING OF THE BLUES" (1989) (FULL ALBUM)

Описание: Tracklist
0:00 1. C.C. Rider
3:44 2. Lowdown Blues
8:12 3. St. Louis Blues
12:23 4. Blue As I Can Be
16:22 5. Dippermouth Blues
20:09 6. Midnight Blues
29:33 7. Weary Blues
34:02 8. New Iberia Blues
38:13 9. Careless Love
42:44 10. How Long Blues
46:30 11. Royal Garden Blues
50:21 12. Tishomingo Blues
55:07 13. C.C. Rider Blues

Banjo – Lawrence Marrero
Bass – Alcide (Slow Drag) Pavageau
Clarinet – George Lewis
Drums – Baby Dodds
Trombone – Jim Robinson
Trumpet – Bunk Johnson
Tuba – Sidney Brown (pistas: 2, 8)
Vocals – Myrtle Jones (pistas: 4, 13)

1989 issue considering runout (see image) Recorded July and August 1944. Tracks 7, 10, 11, 12 previously unissued

The album Bunk Johnson – The King of the Blues, reissued in 1989 by the American Music label (AMCD-1), is an essential testament to the revival of traditional New Orleans jazz and the continued relevance of one of its most charismatic musicians. Johnson, a trumpeter whose legend was forged as much by his talent as by the gaps in his career—marked by silences, personal problems, and belated recognition—here displays a vibrant, warm, and deeply human sound, capable of evoking the rawness of early funeral marches and the contagious joy of brass bands. The performances on this album don't seek technical virtuosity or stylistic modernity: rather, they are a vindication of his roots, with an almost oral expressiveness that transports us to the clubs and parades of the 1920s. Bunk's phrasing is both harsh and moving, with that raspy timbre that conveys the authenticity of a musician who lived the blues and jazz from their foundations. The interaction with the accompanists—especially the clarinet and trombone, who engage in constant counterpoint—reinforces the sense of being surrounded by collective music, where each instrument is the voice and witness of an era. This CD reissue not only rescues recordings of enormous historical value but also allows modern listeners to experience a sound that, despite its apparent simplicity, captures the full emotional power of a genre born from the African-American experience. The King of the Blues is not simply an honorific title: it is an affirmation that Johnson, in his mature years, knew how to condense into his trumpet the essence of a musical language that still pulsates with freshness, nostalgia, and truth today.