Meade "Lux" Lewis Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
The running time on these ten tracks, recorded in 1954 by Lewis with bassist Red Callendar and an unknown electric guitarist, is a paltry 27 minutes, but they're 27 delightful minutes. Lewis' work is captured in between his 1952 Atlantic sessions and his 1957 Verve recordings, playing an easy, rollicking set that includes "Basin Street Blues," "Darktown Strutters Ball," "Birth of the Blues," and the title track. Ironically, the unnamed guitarist almost dominates "Birth of the Blues" and "Tidal Boogie," and it's a shame his name hasn't been preserved or recorded, but Lewis gets to shine on this number as well. The audio restoration by Seth Winner puts the piano practically against the ear of the listener, so that one can actually feel the action of the keys, and the bass and guitar are a match. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide
'Boogie Woogie House Party'
Release Date 1/1/1962
Tracks 12
Label Philips
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Meade Lux Lewis' final recording prior to his death in a 1964 traffic accident is a bit of a disappointment. The description on the album's cover, �honky tonk piano with a mash potato beat," says it all. The addition of a rhythm section means that Lewis' normally percussive left hand is held to a shadow of its capabilities, reducing the sessions to the kind of watered down form of boogie woogie which became all too common during the 1950s and early 1960s. In fairness to Lewis, the heyday of his type of boogie woogie had passed, so without the additional players, it is unlikely that this recording would have been made. The music consists of originals by Lewis, along with a few traditional songs and �St. Louis Blues," almost all of which he had previously recorded. The veteran pianist makes his best effort in spite of Robert Blackwell's hackneyed charts, but fans of Meade Lux Lewis are advised not to spend a lot of time searching for this long unavailable Phillips LP. Instead look for his far more memorable Blue Note sessions or the terrific solo album The Blues Piano Artistry of Meade Lux Lewis. ~ Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
'The Blues Piano Artistry of Meade Lux Lewis'
Release Date 1/1/1961
Tracks 10
Label Riverside/Original Blues Classics
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Boogie-woogie pianist Meade Lux Lewis' next-to-last record was his first recording in five years and his final opportunity to stretch out unaccompanied. This solo Riverside set (reissued by OJC on CD) as usual finds Lewis generally sticking to the blues (with "You Were Meant for Me" and "Fate" being exceptions), mostly performing originals. On a few of the songs Lewis switches effectively to celeste. It apparently only took Meade Lux Lewis two hours to record the full set and the results are quite spontaneous yet well organized, a fine all-around portrait of the veteran pianist in his later period. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide
'Out of the Roaring 20's'
Release Date 1/1/1957
Tracks 11
Label Paramount
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Boogie-woogie had widespread appeal to the American public in the 1930s and for a time in the 1940s, but by the time Meade "Lux" Lewis made this LP for ABC-Paramount in 1956, it had been pretty much reduced to mostly cliché-ridden recordings with performers frequently stuck playing awful, tinny-sounding upright honky tonk pianos. In any case, Lewis, one of the pioneers of the genre, was a trooper to the very end, so whether he's playing a real piano or a commercial clinker, he gives it his all, often with an unidentified bassist and drummer joining him. His quote-filled arrangement of the oldie "Ain't She Sweet" is inventive and amusing, though the inferior instrument he's stuck with makes listening to "'Deed I Do" an endurance test. He does a credible job adapting Earl Hines' "My Monday Date" to boogie-woogie, and adds several enjoyable originals as well. Overall, this LP is a bit uneven, especially when compared to his far better Riverside album The Blues Piano Artistry of Meade Lux Lewis. Long out of print, this record will be extremely hard to find for even the most devoted fan of boogie-woogie. ~ Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
