This, the single greatest collection of Southern-style R&B was never officially released in the US, and has never been reissued on CD. The Legendary Jay Miller Sessions is a collection of Blues, Rockabilly, Country, Cajun, Zydeco, and Swamp Pop, recorded in Crowley, Louisiana, that has never been matched by any comparable release. Miller licensed these tracks to Flyright Records (UK) who were authorized to distribute them in the UK and Scandinavia, from about 1975 to 1985.
Miller
is often compared with Sam Phillips, the legendary Memphis producer,
but Miller was not only a producer and talent scout, he was a
successful songwriter and performer in his own right. A large
percentage of songs on these LP's were written or co-written by Miller
himself, some credited to his nomme de plume, J. West.
What
strikes me about Miller's productions is his lack of a predictable
formula. Some productions are incredibly slick, even by today's
standards. Others are primitive examples of the early days of rock and
roll recording. The make-up of every band is different. Some bands had
no bass player or kit drummer, for instance. He used combinations of
electric and acoustic instruments, including steel guitars and fiddles,
"found" percussion (as well as shakers, claves,
congas and bongos), accordions, and electronic studio effects. Horn sections
were sometimes tightly arranged, other times, they took on more of a
free-form Dixieland style.
Lousiana R&B during this period (1945 - 1970) reflected a wide variety of influences, including Appalachian bluegrass, Memphis rockabilly, Texas swing and Chicago blues, not to mention the influence of old-time polkas and waltzes that came to us from Europe. Much of it is sung in Creole French. And it is all captured in these collections. I personally own Volumes 2 and 11, and I am seeking to find more. I hope that someday Flyright will license the release of lovingly remastered CD's.
Special thanks to Uncle Gil's Rockin' Archives .
For a complete song list, click HERE .
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