The Legends of the Rocking Dutchman - episode 216

Columbia 30000 series

I've done a lot of shows on record labels here on the Legends of the Rocking Dutchman, but few are so odd as the Columbia 30000 "Race" series. Columbia did come from an awful position when it started the series in 1945. It had signed an agreement with the AFM a year later than Decca and the smaller independent record companies, and so they had been affected by the 1942-44 recording strike a whole year longer. In the meanwhile their market share, but also their roster of artists had moved to these labels.

But by 1947, the label was for this "Race" series still mainly relying on re-issuing from pre-war masters. They'd managed to sign only a handful of Rhythm & Blues acts in these two years - the Big Three Trio, Buster Bennett and veterans Memphis Minnie and Big Bill Broonzy. It wasn't until they re-installed the OKeh subsidiary, in 1951, that the company again got some grip on the Rhythm & Blues market.

Transcript

Playlist

  1. Roosevelt Sykes - Keep Your Hands Off Her (Columbia 30037)
  2. Yas Yas Girl - Two By Four Blues (30038)
  3. Curtis Jones - Don't Leave Me Baby (30039)
  4. Roosevelt Sykes - Roll On Blues (30040)
  5. Big Bill Broonzy - Rising Sun Shine On (30041)
  6. Big Bill Broonzy - I can fix it (30051)
  7. Buster Bennett - Don't Worry About A Thing (30052)
  8. Rosetta Howard & the Big Three Trio - When I Been Drinking (30053)
  9. Memphis Minnie - Lean Meat Won't Fry (30054)
  10. Big Three Trio - Money Tree Blues (30055)
  11. Chicago All Stars - Green Light (30056)
  12. Clarence Williams - Beer Garden Blues (30057)
  13. Lonnie Johnson - Monkey And The Baboon (30058)
  14. Lil Johnson - Two Timin' Man (30059)
  15. Blind Boy Fuller - Big Leg Woman Gets My Pay (30060)
  16. Blind Boy Fuller - You've Got Something There (30061)
  17. Yas Yas Girl - I Got To Have It Daddy (30062)

Outtro:

  • Wild Bill Moore Sextette - Bongo Bounce
The following music served as background music during the spoken parts:
  • Kirk Kirkland - The Saxaphone Rag
  • Cozy Eggleston - Big Heavy
  • Eddie Chamblee - Last Call
  • Sax Mallard - The Mojo
  • Sonny Thompson - Backyard Affair
  • Tiny Bradshaw - Ping Pong