There Are Better Drug-Themed Compilations Out There
02/29/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"This is one of a small series from the German distributor which, while not bad, comes nowhere close to Bear Family in terms of both sound quality and background notes. And while poor sound may be expected for tunes dating back to 1917, and from the 1920s as many of these are, it still would have been nice to see more detailed liner notes, especially as the artists involved here are so fascinating in many respects.
Anyone who grew up with the music of the late 1960s and 1970s knows of the many songs which dealt with the drug culture, such as White Rabbit, Higher, and Eight Miles High, but it's interesting to know that it was also a musical subject far back into the 20th Century. And, if you search around, you'll find there are several good compilations out there, some with informative notes and improved sound.
Since the listing above does not show the artists concerned, I have repeated them here to reflect those details, along with the year of release and both chart details and label number (where applicable and known): 1) That Cat Is High - The Ink Spots (1938); 2) Junker's Blues - Champion Jack Dupree (Okeh 06152); 3) Who Put The Benzedrine In Mrs. Murphy's Ovaltine - Harry "The Hipster" Gibson (c. 1946/47); 4) Don't You Make Me High - Blue Lou Barker with Danny Barker's Fly Cats (1938 # 15 on Decca 7506); 5) I'm Wild About My Stuff - Kansas Joe & Memphis Minnie (c. 1929/30); 6) You're A Viper - Stuff Smith & His Onyx Club Boys (1936); 7) Selling That Stuff - The McKinney Cotton Pickers (c. 1928-1930); 8) Moonshine Man Blues - Peter Cleighton with Blind John Davis (1941); 9) Cigarettes, Cigars - Florence Desmond (c. 1932/33 on Victor 24382); 10) Minnie The Moocher's Wedding Day - The Mills Blue Rhythm Band (1932); 11) The Ghost Of Smokey Joe - Cab Calloway & His Orch (1939 # 13 on Vocalion 4807); 12) Let's Have Another Cup Of Coffee - Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians with vocal by Chuck Bullock & The Three Waring Girls (1932 # 5 on Victor 22936); 13) Dope Head Blues - Victoria Spivey & Lonnie Johnson (1927); 14) Wacky Dust - Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb & His Orch (1938 # 13 on Decca 2021); 15) Fixin' To Die Blues - Bukka White (1940); 16) Cocaine Habit Blues - The Memphis Jug Band (1930); 17) Reefer Man - Baron Lee & The Blue Rhythm Band (1932); 18) Cocaine - Dick Justice (1929); 19) Jake Wqalk Papa - Asa Martin (1933); 20) Kickin' The Gong Around - Louis Armstrong (1932 # 11 on Okeh 41550 and Columbia 2600); 21) The Candy Man - Rosetta Howard & The Harlem Hamfats (c. 1938/39); 22) Repeal The Blues - Ray Noble & His Orch (1934); 23) Feeling High And Happy - Gene Krupa & His Orch (1938); 24) Knockin' Myself Out - Jean Brady & Big Bill Broonzy (1941); 25) Smoke Clouds - Herbert Payne (1917).
As you can see, the drug theme here also included tobacco and caffeine, and in the cases of tracks 15 and 22 really have nothing to do with drugs at all. Tracks 10, 11 and 20 are songs that were all sequels to Cab Calloway's immortal Minnie The Moocher which he introduced in early 1931 (# 1) based upon the traditional folk song Willie The Weeper. They were also hits for Cab, appearing in this order: Kickin' The Gong Around - late 1931 # 4; Minnie The Moocher's Wedding Day - summer 1932 # 8; The Ghost Of Smokey Joe (see above)."
Track Listings (25) - Disc #1