Air Week: March 31-April 6, 2025

Producer Jerry Wexler called Etta James, “The greatest of all modern blues singers.”  That’s great praise coming from a guy who worked with the greatest of the greats for 50 years.  Etta had an amazing talent for mixing a bit of tenderness and heartbreak into her gritty, tough and soulful voice.  She had a style all her own and she played by her own rules.  Her success on record was equally matched by her personal failures off-mic, dealing with drug addiction, bad relationships and financial problems.  On this week’s “Juke In The Back,” Matt The Cat looks at how this incredible legend got started, focusing on Etta’s first recordings from 1954 to her great rise in 1960.  Through these records, you’ll hear that even in her early days, Etta’s music had great depth and variety.  We honor the late, great Etta James, this week on the “Juke In The Back.”

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Air Week: March 24-30, 2025

With so many wonderful vocal groups present during the 1950s, it took a few distinct ones to lead the pack and blaze the trail. The Heartbeats are always right up there with The Clovers, Harptones, Moonglows, Flamingos and the other leaders who carried the torch lit by the Orioles and Ravens during the late ’40s. The Heartbeats began as the Hearts in 1953, but before making their first record in 1955, changed their name after a female group called The Hearts scored a big hit with “Lonely Nights.” Their first record came out in mid-1955 on Network Records. Although it was not successful, it gave them something to interest Hull Records, a tiny startup looking to enter the vocal group scene. Their first few records for Hull got regional airplay and made the charts in New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore. It was “A Thousand Miles Away,” their 4th Hull single that really took off nationally. Knowing the record would do better on a label with greater distribution and push, they jumped over to George Goldner’s storied Rama Records and “A Thousand Miles Away” went top 5 R&B and #53 Pop. Now one of the biggest vocal groups in the country, they continued to release slightly more polished songs for Rama and Gee, before falling apart by the end of 1959. Matt The Cat presents The Heartbeats’ story and their fantastic music on this week’s “Juke In The Back.”

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Air Week: March 17-23, 2025

Paul Gayten is one of the unsung heroes of rhythm & blues and one of the many architects of rock n’ roll. This week, Matt The Cat spotlights Gayten’s great contributions to music on the “Juke In The Back.” Paul Gayten scored the first New Orleans’ hit of the post World War II R&B era with “True (You Don’t Love Me)” in 1947, thus kicking off a legacy of rhythm hit-making and influence from the Crescent City. His work with vocalists Annie Laurie and Chubby “Hip Shakin'” Newsome is legendary. As a songwriter, producer and talent scout for Chess Records, Gayten discovered and signed Clarence Henry and Bobby Charles and worked with Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley. Gayten made great contributions to R&B and Rock n’ Roll, but gets very little recognition these days. Matt The Cat and the “Juke In The Back” are out to change that with this week’s heartfelt dedication to the late, great Paul Gayten.

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Air Week: March 10-16, 2025

“Juke In The Back” continues a behemoth, multi-part series on Chess Records. The Chicago record label, founded by 2 Polish immigrant brothers, Leonard and Phil Chess, proved to be one of the most influential and important labels in not only Blues, but also Rhythm & Blues and its contribution to the birth of Rock n’ Roll. Chess was the musical home of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, The Moonglows, The Flamingos and countless other giants of 20th Century music. In part 8, Matt The Cat spends more time in 1956 as it was a very fruitful year for Chess. Paul Gayten was working full time for the company as a New Orleans talent scout and producer and he’s the reason Clarence “Frog Man” Henry’s “Ain’t Got No Home” was issued on Chess’ Argo subsidiary. That was a huge crossover hit in early 1957. The Blues was still strong at the end of ’56 and into ’57 with stellar releases from Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson II and Little Walter. Leonard Chess continued to ramp up vocal group releases and scored more hits with the Moonglows, but also added Lee Andrews & The Hearts, The Ravens and the Pastels to the Chess roster. We wind down our special series on Chess with part 8 as R&B and Rock n’ Roll start to become synonymous in 1957. Chess continued to release groundbreaking hit records well into the 1960s from Etta James, Buddy Guy, The Ramsey Lewis Trio, Ahmad Jamal, Chuck Berry, Fontella Bass and their roster of classic Blues artists. Leonard and Phil sold Chess to GRT in early 1969, but the Chess magic can still be felt today and we hope you felt it during Matt The Cat’s 8 part series on this influential label. 

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Air Week: March 3-9, 2025

“Juke In The Back” continues a behemoth, multi-part series on Chess Records. The Chicago record label, founded by 2 Polish immigrant brothers, Leonard and Phil Chess, proved to be one of the most influential and important labels in not only Blues, but also Rhythm & Blues and its contribution to the birth of Rock n’ Roll. Chess was the musical home of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, The Moonglows, The Flamingos and countless other giants of 20th Century music. In part 7, Matt The Cat finishes up 1955 with a few stragglers and kicks off 1956 with a bang! This was the year of Chuck Berry as he charted 4 singles (5 songs) and we present them in a special Chuck Berry Hits Collage to demonstrate his chart prowess. 1956 was also a solid year for Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf as each released career classics like “Trouble No More” (Muddy) and “Smoke Stack Lighning” (Wolf). We are introduced to future legends, Bobby Charles with “Later, Alligator,” Billy Stewart with “Billy’s Blues Pt. 2” and the Four Tops’ “Could It Be You.” The Moonglows continue to surge while the Flamingos finally score their first of many hits after years of trying on other Chicago Labels. So grab some nickels and get your fix of 1956 in part 7 of our series on Chess Records on this week’s “Juke In The Back.”

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Air Week: February 24-March 2, 2025

“Juke In The Back” continues a behemoth, multi-part series on Chess Records. The Chicago record label, founded by 2 Polish immigrant brothers, Leonard and Phil Chess, proved to be one of the most influential and important labels in not only Blues, but also Rhythm & Blues and its contribution to the birth of Rock n’ Roll. Chess was the musical home of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, The Moonglows, The Flamingos and countless other giants of 20th Century music. In part 6, Matt The Cat takes a close look at all the significant Chess and Checker releases from 1955. Little Walter scores another R&B #1 and the biggest record of his career with “My Babe,” while the Moonglows show that they have staying power when “Most Of All” makes the R&B top 5. Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf continue to turn out the finest Chicago blues, but change is in the air. On March 2, 1955, Ellas McDaniel lays down a hambone beat, calls himself Bo Diddley and the Rock n’ Roll Revolution is on its way. Then this new music is cemented in July when Chess releases Chuck Berry’s first record, “Maybellene” and in August it hits #1 and stays there through the fall. 1955 was a monumental year for Chess Records and the rest of the music world as Rhythm & Blues was beginning to really break into the mainstream. Matt The Cat gets hep to the new scene and spins the best of Chess and Checker from 1955 on this week’s “Juke In The Back.” 

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Air Week: February 17, 2025

“Juke In The Back” continues a behemoth, multi-part series on Chess Records. The Chicago record label, founded by 2 Polish immigrant brothers, Leonard and Phil Chess, proved to be one of the most influential and important labels in not only Blues, but also Rhythm & Blues and its contribution to the birth of Rock n’ Roll. Chess was the musical home of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, The Moonglows, The Flamingos and countless other giants of 20th Century music. In part 5, Matt The Cat takes a close look at all the significant Chess and Checker releases from 1954. Little Walter continues his hit streak with 4 more top 10 R&B single from “You’re So Fine” in January to “Last Night” in December. However, the year belongs to Muddy Waters as he scores his biggest selling single with the Willie Dixon-penned “I’m Your Hoochie Cooche Man.” That would have been enough, but Muddy comes back strong with “Just Make Love To Me” and “I’m Ready.” All three remain some of his most enduring tunes. Waters had always been a solid seller, but in 1954, he became the biggest artist on the Chess roster. That will change as Rock n’ Roll hits the mainstream in the near future. Leonard Chess always had a soft-spot for signing established bluesmen and 1954 was no different as Lowell Fulson and Jimmy Witherspoon come to the label and continue to record great sides. Finally, in 1954, Chess signs a major vocal group when DJ Alan Freed brings them The Moonglows. Their first release hits #1 and spawns a #1 pop cover after numerous solid, but slow selling releases on their former label, Chance Records. 1954 was a monumental year in establishing Chess Records as a blues/R&B powerhouse and Matt The Cat brings all the fantabulous 78 RPM records straight to you, through the “Juke In The Back.” 

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Air Week: February 10-16, 2025

“Juke In The Back” continues a behemoth, multi-part series on Chess Records. The Chicago record label, founded by 2 Polish immigrant brothers, Leonard and Phil Chess, proved to be one of the most influential and important labels in not only Blues, but also Rhythm & Blues and its contribution to the birth of Rock n’ Roll. Chess was the musical home of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, The Moonglows, The Flamingos and countless other giants of 20th Century music. In part 4, Matt The Cat takes a close look at all the significant Chess and Checker releases from 1953. Willie Mabon scored 2 #1 hits for Chess in ’53 with “I Don’t Know” and “I’m Mad,” while Little Walter continued to rack up the hits for the Checker subsidiary with “Blues With A Feeling” and the double-sided hit, “Off The Wall” b/w “Tell Me Mama.” Vocal groups begin to make a stronger showing in ’53 with The Blue Jays and a charting record from The Coronets that features an interesting songwriting story. Leonard Chess loved recording blues artists that had already made a name for themselves, whether or not he had the right to do so and in ’53, he released singles on Elmore James and the legendary Memphis Minnie. Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf continued to make stellar records for the label as Chess continued to grow in popularity and influence. Grab those nickels as the “Juke In The Back” presents part 4 of Chess Records. 

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Air Week: February 3-9, 2025

“Juke In The Back” continues a behemoth, multi-part series on Chess Records. The Chicago record label, founded by 2 Polish immigrant brothers, Leonard and Phil Chess, proved to be one of the most influential and important labels in not only Blues, but also Rhythm & Blues and its contribution to the birth of Rock n’ Roll. Chess was the musical home of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, The Moonglows, The Flamingos and countless other giants of 20th Century music. In part 3, Matt The Cat focuses on the important Chess releases from 1952. The year was front-heavy with releases that Leonard Chess bought off of Sam Phillips in Memphis. Phillips was getting close to starting his own label, Sun Records, but at this time, Chess was his best customer for recordings from his roster of talent in Memphis. It began with Phillips’ early Ike Turner (Jackie Brenston), Howlin’ Wolf and Roscoe Gordon recordings, but soon blossomed into stellar offerings from Harmonica Frank, Rufus Thomas and Doctor Ross. In April of ’52, Chess launched its first subsidiary by introducing the Checker label. By the end of the year, Checker had its own star, Little Walter. Muddy’s old blues harp player was now sitting on top of the R&B charts with “Juke,” soon following up with “Sad Hours” b/w “Mean Old World.” Chess Records was really rollin’ in ’52 and on part 3 of our series, the “Juke” brings it all to you!

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Air Week: January 27-February 2, 2025

“Juke In The Back” continues a behemoth, multi-part series on Chess Records. The Chicago record label, founded by 2 Polish immigrant brothers, Leonard and Phil Chess, proved to be one of the most influential and important labels in not only Blues, but also Rhythm & Blues and its contribution to the birth of Rock n’ Roll. Chess was the musical home of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, The Moonglows, The Flamingos and countless other giants of 20th Century music. In part 2, Matt The Cat focuses on the important Chess releases from 1950 and ’51. With Phil and Leonard together running the company, they would change Aristocrat Records to Chess in June, 1950. The brothers were short of cash to fund their fledgling label, but thanks to strong sellers from Gene Ammons, Al Hibbler and Jimmy Rogers, the label stayed afloat and scored its first R&B #1 with “Rocket 88.” This Ike Turner session that the brothers issued as by Jackie Brenston & His Delta Cats was recorded by Sam Phillips down at the Memphis Recording Service and purchased by Chess. Chess had a nice deal going with Phillips before he started his own label, Sun Records, in early ’52. They would also buy some demos and a contract with Howlin’ Wolf, which would pay dividends over the next 15 years. We’ll also hear the important releases from Muddy Waters during this time as we feature the 2nd part in our series on Chess Records on this week’s “Juke In The Back.”

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