"Gumbo Ya Ya" The Cosimo Matassa Story Volume 2 - CD4

"It Will Stand". Song by The Showmen. It could also be the title of this music collection from Cosimo Matassa.
In a nutshell-this is a fine companion to the first box set of Cosimo Matassa's recording work from this period in New Orleans. This second volume begins essentially where the first set ends. Like all box sets from the Proper label, each disc slips into a cardboard sleeve, with the tracks listed on the backside. The 31 page booklet is informative (as always) with information on the artists and the music. And everything fits into a substantial cardboard slipcase. Also included is complete recording data for each track. The sound is pretty good-again similar to the first set of Matassa's work. This is somewhere between 4 and 5 "stars" depending on how you view (and hear) this music. Sometimes for me, the music is so overwhelmingly great that I feel it rates a "5", but I'm trying to stay objective here...

...All the well known names from New Orleans during this period (mid 1950's to early 1960's) are here. Artists like Fats Domino, Bobby Marchan, Little Richard, Huey "Piano" Smith, Lee Allen, Art Neville, Frankie Ford, Mac Rebennack, Professor Longhair, and a few others. But it's the inclusion of the relatively lesser known artists like Dave Bartholomew, Lloyd Price, Smiley Lewis, Sugar Boy Crawford, Paul Gayten, Jimmy Clanton, Earl King, Lee Dorsey, Joe & Ann, Chris Kenner, and a number of other regional or (sometimes) national artists, that give this collection it's depth, and add even more excitement.
The bands were all hot-there's no other way of describing them. There's plenty of honking horns (Herb Hardesty, Lee Allen, etc.), pounding piano, and that great rhythm (thanks in great part to Earl Palmer on drums on many tracks), that run all through this music. You'll notice that a number of the featured artists play on many of these tracks by other artists. This had the effect of tightening the sound, and creating some incendiary sounding arrangements. Genres include r&b and r'n'r, plus that "something" found only in New Orleans-listen to Dave Bartholomew's "Shrimp And Gumbo" or Smiley Lewis' "Mama Don't Like It" for that real period New Orleans sound and feel.
Special mention for the instrumentals sprinkled throughout the set-like Lee Allen's honking/electric guitar tune "Creole Alley", a mid-tempo dance tune featuring Allen's tenor sax, and Justin Adams' stuttering guitar. Or "Snake Eyes" by Red Tyler & The Gyros, with Tyler on baritone sax. Or how about Mac Rebennack's "Storm Warning", with Rebennack (who would morph into Dr. John) on guitar before he was forced to switch to the keyboard, and with both Allen and Tyler on saxes. These are great examples of period instrumentals.
This second collection is even more proof (as if it's needed) that Cosimo Matassa had that certain "something" when it came time to record these seminal sides of "New Orleans' style" music. He more often than not set the controls in the studio and then rarely touched them when recording. He liked a live sound and feel to the music and tried to stay true to that sound. Tunes like "Four Winds" (Dave Bartholomew), "Bo Weevil" (Fats Domino), "Miss Ann' (Little Richard), "Walkin' With Mr. Lee" (Lee Allen), "Java" (Allen Toussaint), "Just A Dream" (Jimmy Clanton), "Sea Cruise" (Frankie Ford), "I Won't Cry" (Johnny Adams), "Ooh Poo Pa Doo" (Pt. 1 & 2)" (Jessie Hill), "Cry On" (Irma Thomas), and so many others are here. If anything, this set may (arguably) be even better than the first collection of Matassa's music. Listen to Joe Tex, whose "You Little Baby Face Thing" is primal r'n'r at it's most basic. And then listen to "Cha-Dooky-Doo", by Art Neville, with it's smooth r&b vocal with a primal, distorted guitar underneath it all. These are two more treasures found in this collection, and in these songs you can hear music morphing into something new right in front of you.
An example of a great song from an unknown performer is Diamond Joe's "Moanin' and Screamin', Pts 1 & 2". He's backed by the band Allen Toussaint used for much of his studio work, and some great background vocals. This late night sounding lament is a combination of soul music and the blues. Joe's pleading, lonely vocals are combined with some heartbreaking lyrics, with everything coming together to make a great, atmospheric little gem. After this song Joe never again gained any notoriety and disappeared. But what a song. What a performance.
Fans who own the first box set will probably find this a worthy addition. And if you're new to this music, this set (and the first collection) are well worth checking into. There's so much great music that picking highlights is pretty much impossible. This is one of those collections that's all killer no filler. Yes, there's a number of tunes that will be familiar, and that you probably already own. But hearing all this music in one nice little package is both exciting and revelatory-all this music from one man who was an engineer-not a music producer. Much of this music forms a large part of all the music that came afterwards. It's both important and it's hot rocking r&b/r'n'r. How can you beat that? (Stuart Jefferson, The R&B Monthly)

trax:
1. Even Though (Reality) - Aaron Neville 2. My Girl Josephine - Fats Domino 3. Cry On - Irma Thomas 4. I Like It Like That - Chris Kenner 5. But I Do - Clarence "Frogman" Henry 6. Te-Ta-Te-Ta-Ta - Ernie K-Doe 7. You Always Hurt The One You Love - Clarence "Frogman" Henry 8. Lonely Street - Clarence "Frogman" Henry 9. Peanut Vendor - Alvin "Red" Tyler & The Gyros 10. Junk Village - Alvin "Red" Tyler & The Gyros 11. Let The Four Winds Blow - Fats Domino 12. It's Too Soon To Know - Irma Thomas 13. Let's Live - Aaron Neville 14. Something You Got - Chris Kenner 15. I Cried My Last Tear - Ernie K-Doe 16. A Certain Girl - Ernie K-Doe 17. Moanin' And Screamin' (Parts 1 & 2) - Diamond Joe 18. New Kind Of Love - Willie Harper 19. I'm A Fool To Care - Joe Barry 20. Ya Ya - Lee Dorsey 21. It Will Stand - The Showmen 22. Country Fool - The Showmen 23. Everything Happens At Night - Joe (Mr.G) August 24. Do-Re-Mi - Lee Dorsey 25. Always Naggin' - The Del Royals 26. Oogsey Moo - Jessie Hill 27. I Know - Barbara George 28. Something You Got - Barbara George
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