Classics
2001
The Chronological Professor Longhair - 1949
About This Album
This exacting chronological survey of Professor Longhair's first recordings is a welcome alternative to the usual reissue practice of mingling some of these tracks with later material from the early '50s. As is often the case with the Classics Chronological series, a succession of historical sessions bolstered with all of the available discographical information tells a story that is vital to the development of a clear comprehension of the musician's life and creative accomplishments. In this case that means the saga of how Henry Roeland Byrd, born in Bogalusa, LA, in December of 1918, radically transformed the popular music of North America during the 1950s and '60s by making a handful of scruffy records in 1949 down in New Orleans. When Byrd's band replaced Dave Bartholomew's at the Caldonia Inn, the management decided to bill the group as Professor Longhair & the Four Hairs Combo, simply because of the fact that they wore their hair considerably longer than was the fashion at that time. Note that Lester Young, who also hailed from southern Louisiana, wore his hair uncommonly long. Byrd's band at this time consisted of alto saxophonist Robert "Barefootin'" Parker, Walter "Papoose" Nelson on the guitar, and a drummer known as Big Slick, later to be replaced by Al Miller, who could also play trumpet.
Track List (try tracks 2,5,9,11,12 and 13)

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