Georgia White Vol.2 1936-1937

Georgia White was one of Chicago's very best barrelhouse blues singers during the 1930s and early '40s. The second volume of her complete recorded works as compiled by Document in the '90s contains 23 sides recorded in 1936 and 1937 with rhythm accompaniment by pianist Richard M. Jones, guitarist Ikey Robinson, and bassist John Lindsay. Hopefully the second edition of this disc, which came out in 2005, opens with a cleaner sounding copy of "I Just Want Your Stingaree." The 78 rpm platter used for this 1996 edition is slightly marred by a rough start, with the needle sounding like it had trouble getting squarely settled in the groove. This is a pity, as "Stingaree" is one of White's charmingly smutty originals. Other delights in this category are "I'll Keep Sittin' on It" (which was successfully revived years later by Ruth Brown) and a cheerful, naughty bounce with the refrain: "Was I drunk? Was he handsome? Did my mama give me hell?" Cutting loose and partying down were staple themes in White's working repertoire. She clearly enjoyed handling material like Ma Rainey's "Moonshine Blues" and the rocking "Little Red Wagon," which was popularized by Count Basie as "Your Red Wagon." Richard M. Jones was an excellent accompanist, and several of his compositions appear on this collection. They are "Black Rider," "Walking the Street," "When My Love Comes Down," and "Trouble in Mind" which appears thrice as "Trouble in Mind," "New Trouble in Mind," and the upbeat "Trouble in Mind Swing."