1992 Issue
Recorded at Universal Recorders, Hollywood, California and Master Recorders Los Angeles,
California between 1950 and 1957
Blues
With his rough, gravely phrasing, accompanied by a plaintive tenor saxophone or the sad, slow tinkling of a piano, Percy Mayfield sung like a skid row Nat King Cole.
Included in this second volume of Mayfield's tunes are several alternate takes of Mayfield's biggest hits, most virtually indistinguishable from the original. The bulk of the material, and many of the best performances, however, come from the period after Mayfield's career was derailed by a car accident that scarred his face and ruined his self-esteem as a performer. Many of these later compositions are previously unreleased. Capping off the album is an a cappela demo recording of "Hit the Road Jack." The song ultimately became the first of several hits written by Mayfield and recorded by Ray Charles.
Memory Pain makes clear Mayfield's extraordinary talents as both singer and songwriter in a long overdue tribute to a recording artist who at his best possessed much of the same emotional quality as Billie Holiday.
By Jacob Weisman.
**
Known as the "poet of the blues," Percy Mayfield was a songwriter nonpareil, who transmuted the sound of postwar R&B to suit his own purposes, scoring hits of his own and writing hits for others. MEMORY PAIN is a unique collection of the recordings Mayfield made for the Specialty label in the first half of the 1950s. It contains some of his signature tunes, such as the immortal "Please Send Me Someone To Love," as well as some of his lesser known (though equally great) compositions, and even his own recording of "Hit the Road Jack," which Ray Charles picked from the Mayfield songbag. Whether it's a stone-cold classic or some archival esoterica, though, every track here is given its own dose of magic via Mayfield's bluesy croon, idiosyncratic songwriting, and beautifully broken heart.
**
Ranging from major hits to alternate takes and rarities, this CD (released in 1992) illustrates the prolific nature of Percy Mayfield's Specialty Records output during the 1950s. Though not everything on Memory Pain is essential, the collection of early R&B and 12-bar blues is consistently satisfying. The best known song here is the number one hit of 1950, "Please Send Me Someone to Love," and many listeners will also be familiar with such gems as "Strange Things Happening" and the title song. A singer who was flexible as well as charismatic, Mayfield is as convincing on a rare version of the mournful, jazz-tinged "Nightless Lovers" as he is on 12-bar numbers like "My Blues" and "The Big Question." The CD ends on an interesting note with a demo of "Hit the Road Jack" (which became a major hit for Ray Charles). Highly recommended.
By Alex Henderson, All Music Guide.
**
William Lundy- Baritone Sax
Willard McDaniel- Piano
Herman Burell Mitchell- Guitar
Hubert Myers- Tenor Sax
Charlie Eldridge "Chuck" Norris- Guitar
Earl Palmer- Drums
Eugene Floyd Phillips- Guitar
Robert Pittman- Drums
William Harvey Pyles- Guitar
Jesse Sailes- Drums
Theodore Shirley- Bass
Maurice Simon- Baritone Sax
Fletcher Smith- Piano
Floyd Turnham- Baritone Sax
Charlie Waller- Baritone Sax
Mitchell "Tiny" Webb- Guitar
Richard Wells- Saxophone
Clifton White- Guitar
William B. Woodman, Jr.- Tenor Sax
Leonidas Raymond "Lee" Young- Drums
Jack McVea- Tenor Sax
Ronald Barrett- Background Vocals
Edward Truman Beal- Piano
Ted Brinson- Bass
David Bryant- Bass
Red Callender- Bass
Christine Chatman- Piano
John Shelley Crawford- Sax
Thomas Maxwell Davis- Tenor Sax
William V. Douglass- Drums
Harold Leonard Grant- Guitar
Joe Grant- Alto,Bariton Sax
William K. "Billy" Hadnott- Bass
Rene Hall- Guitar
Joy Hamilton- Vocals
Ralph HamiltonBass
Earl Sumner Jackson- Tenor Sax
James Jackson- Tenor Sax
Earl Jones- Background Vocals
Lee Wesley Jones- Piano
Ulysses Livingston- Guitar
Don Julian- Background Vocals
Gerald Wiggins- Piano
Percy Mayfield- Vocals
**
01. Please Send Me Someone to Love [Take 3]
02. Strange Things Happening [Take 2]
03. Two Hearts Are Greater Than One
04. Big Question [Take 1]
05. My Blues
06. Nightless Lover [Take 6]
07. How Deep Is the Well
08. Ruthie Mae
09. My Heart
10. Lonesome Highway
11. Lonely One
12. I Ain't Gonna Cry No More
13. Memory Pain
14. You Are My Future
15. Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
16. Advice (For Men Only)
17. I Need Love So Bad
18. Does Anyone Care for Me
19. It's Good to See You Baby
20. Sugar Mama-Peachy Papa
21. You Were Lyin' to Me
22. Voice Within
23. Please Believe Me
24. Diggin' the Moonglow
25. Hit the Road Jack
**
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