Sunday, 3/30/2024, 10pm - Juke In The Back

Chess Records Part 8 spends more time in 1956 as it was a very fruitful year for Chess. Paul Gayten was working full time for the company as a New Orleans talent scout and producer and he's the reason Clarence "Frog Man" Henry's "Ain't Got No Home" was issued on Chess' Argo subsidiary. That was a huge crossover hit in early 1957. The Blues was still strong at the end of '56 and into '57 with stellar releases from Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson II and Little Walter. Leonard Chess continued to ramp up vocal group releases and scored more hits with the Moonglows, but also added Lee Andrews & The Hearts, The Ravens and the Pastels to the Chess roster. We wind down our special series on Chess with part 8 as R&B and Rock n' Roll start to become synonymous in 1957. Chess continued to release groundbreaking hit records well into the 1960s from Etta James, Buddy Guy, The Ramsey Lewis Trio, Ahmad Jamal, Chuck Berry, Fontella Bass and their roster of classic Blues artists. Leonard and Phil sold Chess to GRT in early 1969, but the Chess magic can still be felt today and we hope you felt it during this series on this influential label.