John Lee Hooker's brief association with the Specialty label doesn't immediately come to mind as do his recordings for, say, Modern, Chess, Vee Jay, or ABC/Bluesway.
In 1954 the founder of Los Angeles-based Specialty Records, Art Rupe, bought 35 Hooker tunes, several of which had been cut in Detroit four years earlier.
Rupe issued one single to test the market: "I'm Mad" backed with "Everybody's Blues." The record sales were disappointing and the tapes remained in the can until surfacing in 1970.
Like so many John Lee Hooker compositions, over the years these songs were re-recorded, sometimes with different titles, and then slapped on one of the many albums released by a mixed bag of labels.
However, these 14 tracks represent a composite of those raw early sides, featuring both solo Hooker (with his guitar and stompin' foot) and fronting a raucous juke joint combo.
As an extra bonus, the Specialty Profiles series includes a sampler that showcases R&B gems by Specialty acts of the era, including Little Richard, Sam Cooke, Larry Williams, Roy Milton, Lloyd Price, Percy Mayfield, Don & Dewey, Joe Liggins, Jesse & Marvin, and Guitar Slim.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Burnin' Hell | John Lee Hooker | Play | 02:43 | 6 MB | 10 MB |
| 2 | Odds Against Me (ala Backbiters and Syndicators) | John Lee Hooker | Play | 03:07 | 7 MB | 16 MB |
| 5 mins | 14 MB | |||||
| 5 mins | 27 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Abbey Anna | Project Assistant |
| 2 | Rikka Arnold | Project Assistant |
| 3 | Bill Belmont | Project Assistant |
| 4 | Bernard Besman | Producer |
| 5 | Eddie "Guitar" Burns | Harmonica |
| 6 | Chris Clough | Project Assistant |
| 7 | Sam Cooke | Primary Artist |
| 8 | Don & Dewey | Primary Artist |
| 9 | Colin Escott | Compilation Producer, Liner Notes |
| 10 | John Griffith | Piano |
| 11 | Guitar Slim | Primary Artist |
| 12 | Terri Hinte | Project Assistant |
| 13 | John Lee Hooker | Composer, Guitar, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 14 | John Hooks | Sax (Tenor) |
| 15 | Jesse & Marvin | Performer, Primary Artist |
| 16 | Stuart Kremsky | Project Assistant |
| 17 | Joe Liggins | Primary Artist |
| 18 | Little Richard | Primary Artist |
| 19 | Percy Mayfield | Composer, Primary Artist |
| 20 | Roy Milton & His Solid Senders | Primary Artist |
| 21 | Cheryl Pawelski | Compilation Producer |
| 22 | Lloyd Price | Primary Artist |
| 23 | Jamie Putnam | Art Direction |
| 24 | Theophilus Roosevelt | Bass |
| 25 | Lawrence Shustak | Photography |
| 26 | Deb Sibony | Design |
| 27 | Joe Siracuse | Producer |
| 28 | Joe Tarantino | Mastering, Remastering |
| 29 | Johnny Vincent | Producer |
| 30 | Thomas Whitehead | Drums |
| 31 | Larry Williams | Primary Artist |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |