New York City - The Blues Yesterday Vol.1

BETTY JAMES (Nadine Renaye), vocals; B. Renaye, guitars; J. Renaye, bass; drums. 
New York City, 1961
01. I'm a little mixed up
02. Help me to find my love

Betty James (Nadine Renaye), vocals; band. New York City, 1962
03. Henry Lee
04. I'm not mixed up anymore

Betty James (Nadine Renaye), vocals; band. New York City, 1966
05. Little Lee
06. I like the way you walk n°1
07. I like the way you walk n°2
08. Salt in your coffee

B. BROWN, vocals, drums; Cool Papa Sadler, guitar; band. Los Angeles, Ca. 28 june 1955
09. Mambo for dancers
10. Good woman blues

B. Brown, vocals/harmonica; Charles Walker, guitar; Wild Jimmy Spruill, guitar; bass; drums. 
New York City, 1960
11. My baby left me
12. Hard working man
13. Fannie Mae is back
14. Candied Yams
15. Chewing gum
16. Rocking with B.

B. Brown, vocals/harmonica; Wild Jimmy Spruill, guitar; band. New York City, december 1961
17. Standing on the corner

ALONZO SCALES, vocals, guitar; Brownie Mc Ghee, guitar; Champion Jack Dupree, piano; drums. 
New York City, 1948
18. My baby don't allow
19. Left me home blues

Alonzo Scales, vocals, guitar; Sonny Terry, harmonica; Brownie Mc Ghee, guitar; Bob Gaddy, piano; ; bass; George Wood, drums. 
New York City, august 1955
20. Hard luck child
21. My baby likes to shuffle
22. We just can't agree
23. She's gone

Betty James is the recording name of Nadine Renaye (or maybe Renée) who, born in Louisiana, was singing in Baltimore (Md) backed by her husband and son. She tried her luck for the small Cee Jay label in 1961 and her own penned I'm a little mixed up stirred enough local sales to persuade Chess Records to reissue the title with a wider distribution. Koko Taylor, under the tutelage of Willie Dixon, recorded this blues and made a hit from it. After that, Betty would come back twice in the studios with six more top notch rocking blues but without any success. One of her single was also issued under her real name of Nadine Renaye! Her music is rooted in the Piedmont blues style with a strong Blind Boy Fuller influence. We don't know what happened to her although her granddaughter wrote some laconic lines on the web about her "wonderful grandmother"! If some US searchers could find and interview her, it would be great.

Almost as obscure is B. Brown (Daniel Brown) who hailed from Los Angeles (where he recorded a first single as a drummer!), resurfacing in New York as a very good harp player under the name of B. Brown, certainly to cash on the success of the much well known Buster Brown who enjoyed at that time a massive hit with his classic Fanny Mae. B. Brown waxed a handful of excellent 45's, generally backed by his friend Charles Walker (see an article about this fine bluesman on this blog) and Wild Jimmy Spruill. After a divorce, B. Brown left New York to resettle in Tennessee.

Alonzo Scales, a singer and guitarist born in North Carolina around the turn of the XXth century came to New York during the 2nd World War, playing with Champion Jack Dupree (and recording with him as early as 1948) and Brownie Mc Ghee and Sonny Terry who backs him on his nice last 1955 session. Scales quit the music scene during the 60's and died in New York City in 1975. --- jukegh.blogspot.com

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