Henry Brown with
Henry Townsend
At 90 years of age, Henry Townsend remains a consummate musician,
as well as godfather of the vibrant St. Louis blues scene, which
he helped establish during the Roaring Twenties. In 1969, his
name was well known to the Adelphi crew from his 1929 and 1931
recordings for Columbia and Paramount, and the sessions with Townsend,
some of which took place in the music room of the artist's St.
Louis home, demonstrated his virtuoso command of both guitar and
piano.
Townsend's longtime friend and fellow St. Louis blues legend
Henry Brown joined some of these sessions, contributing his signature
boogie woogie piano stride to the selection presented here.
Of this session, Adelphi Records owner Gene Rosenthal recalls
that the St. Louis musicians put the biggest single dent in the
alcohol budget for the trip. "People were tripping over lights
and mike stands, making faces for the camera, it was a zoo."
Watch carefully as an inebriated friend staggers over the players,
then settles down for an in tempo hair styling, with expected
results!