Otis Blackwell Volume Three: 28 Songs You've Probably Never Heard

Many years ago, I put together the first two volumes of Otis Blackwell compositions (both which are still available elsewhere on this blog).

I knew that, eventually, I'd get around to putting together another volume. Eight years passed, and with it much personal drama, illness and huge life changes. But I never forget my back-of-the-mind goal to get this set together.

Despite the host of big names you see at the left, I'll bet you a dollar to a doughnut you've never heard one single song on this compilation. Almost none of these songs were hits in their day. Many were stuck on the B-sides of singles, or were flops on the music marketplace when new.

50 or 60 years later, what didn't pass muster back in the day sounds pretty damned wonderful now. As I mention in the extensive liner notes I've drafted for this set, not every song here is a masterpiece, but all have their charm, and certain ones are guaranteed to knock your footwear off and become your new favorites.

I'm in recovery from my second go-round with non-Hodgkins' lymphoma. In April, I had a stem cell transplant and spent 20 days in the hospital. During this recovery time, I can't work and have a LOT of time on my hands. Thus, I decided to create an honest-to-gosh booklet for this compilation, as if it were a real CD.

This is my version of fantasy football--putting songs together for the sake of the music. If I attempted to do this disc for real, I'd be looking at dealing with massive corporations like Universal Media, and having to shell out thousands in licensing fees for old obscure songs the current holders could care less about. So much music from this period is trapped in this snare. 

This put a bit of a damper on the one legit CD project I've created, Ace Records' P. F. Sloan/Steve Barri compilation, which came out back in 2010. Many tracks I wanted were too expensive to license, and we had to make do with some sub-par recordings to take the place of those unattainables. I'm happy with that CD, overall, but wish that two or three blah tracks weren't on there. Oh well.

HERE are the 28 songs; HERE is the booklet and CD tray. If you're so inspired, print out the booklet and tray and mock up an old-school CD for your music shelf. But do listen to the music. "Stick Close" by Estelle Brown will brighten your day immensely, and I dare you not to tap your foot to Johnny Thunder's "Am I Right or Am I Wrong."

Since I wrote about each song in the liner notes, I'll cap this post and let it go. Hope you enjoy this compilation. And who knows--I may do another post here soon!

Alternate download link for this set HERE.