"America's Premier Black Music Label" says the small print on the front sleeve, and while that's highly disputable, Vee-Jay was undoubtedly one of America's premier black music labels from the mid-'50s to the mid-'60s. This two-CD, 50-song set is a strong and varied selection of their wares, focusing mostly but not exclusively on their hit singles and better-known performers. Vee-Jay went into every area of black music, and though their
jazz roster isn't represented here to keep the scope more manageable, every other genre is:
r&b,
doo wop,
blues,
gospel,
rock & roll, and early
soul. As with any select condensation of a huge vault, there's bound to be some argument among knowledgeable fans as to what tracks were selected; it seems odd that
Billy Boy Arnold's "Rockin'itis" is here rather than his seminal
blues "I Wish You Would," for example. But you can't argue with the bounty of hits that are present, from
Jerry Butler,
Betty Everett,
Jimmy Reed,
the El Dorados,
Dee Clark,
John Lee Hooker,
the Spaniels,
the Dells,
Gladys Knight & the Pips, and
Gene Chandler. Hits like "Duke of Earl," "The Shoop Shoop Song," "For Your Precious Love," "Every Beat of My Heart," "Raindrops," and "Boom Boom" (all here, of course) might be expected from any Vee-Jay compilation, but to its credit this also has a lot of smaller hits or non-hits that have escaped oldies rotation. There's
Fred Hughes' fine midtempo
soul-popper "Oo Wee Baby, I Love You," for instance, a number three
r&b hit in 1965 that barely made the
pop charts;
Memphis Slim's mordant
blues "Mother Earth";
Hank Ballard's first version of "The Twist," predating both his own hit version and
Chubby Checker's cover, recorded in 1958 but not issued until 1985;
Little Richard's mid-'60s single "I Don't Know What You Got But It's Got Me," with
Jimi Hendrix on guitar;
Betty Everett's "You're No Good," just a moderate hit in 1963 but a much bigger one for
Linda Ronstadt in the '70s;
Jay McShann and
Priscilla Bowman's
jump blues "Hands Off";
Rosco Gordon's oft-covered
r&b classic "Just a Little Bit"; and
Gene Allison's early
soul ballad "You Can Make It if You Try," covered by
the Rolling Stones on their first album. Perhaps it might have made more sense to make the stylistic tone more even and not include
gospel cuts as well. But the
gospel acts represented here are undeniably important, including
the Original Blind Boys of Alabama,
the Swan Silvertones, and (on the mid-'50s sides)
the Staple Singers. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
