The legendary Chess Records is best known as a home to important blues, soul, and gospel records from the postwar years – but back in the 50s, the label also did a pretty great job with the harder side of the rock and roll spectrum too! Maybe that's no surprise, given that the Chess Brothers always had a great ear for new and unusual music – to a point where they sometimes issued work that wasn't recorded in their Chicago studios, which is the case with a fair bit of the cuts on this collection – many of which hail from points farther south, from territory that was bristling with new energy from rockabilly pioneers at the time! There's a few more familiar Chess artists mixed in here with more obscure artists who only issued singles for the label – and the massive 33 track package comes with very detailed notes on all the tracks within. Titles include "Run Rose" by Billy Miranda, Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" by Don & Bob, "The Story Of My Life" by Big Al Downing, "So Long Goodbye" by JC Hill, "Baby Bye Bye" by Dickie & The Gees, "Make Believe Wedding Bells" by Dick Glasser, "I Found My Girl" by The Kents, "6:15" by The Galaxies, "I Am Ready" by Bobby Dean, "See You Soon Baboon" by Dale Hawkins, "No More" by Bobby Charles, and That's All You Gotta Do" by Jack Ford. CD

An essential collection of Chuck Berry material for Chess Records – 71 songs in all, including some unreleased numbers! (Soul, Rock) CD

Raucous, rumbling and hard-charging Chess rhythms, rock and roll by Chuck Berry – his legendary After School Session – and possibly his greatest album ever! It features not only some of Chuck Berry's most famous material, but some of the best early rock songs, period –particularly the revolutionary "Brown Eyed Handsome Man" – plus"Berry Pickin", "Deep Feeling"," School Day", "Too Much Monkey Business", "Roly Poly", and "No Money Down". 3 bonus tracks on the CD: The fierce"Thirty Days", "You Can't Catch Me" and the uber-legendary "Maybelline". (Soul, Rock) CD

A double-helping of Chuck Berry brilliance from his early years on Chess Records – music that always has way way more to offer than you might think! Sure, some of Chuck's hits are very familiar – and sure, the man could later be a bit of a parody of himself – but there's no denying the power of this early material, and the revolutionary way Chuck had of playing guitar – rooted in blues, paving the way to rock, and also opening the door to lots more funky soul in years to come! The guitar work alone is worth the price of admission, but the songs and vocals are wonderful too – and the CD features 26 titles that include "Down The Road A Piece", "Mad Lad", "Sweet Little Rock & Roller", "Anthony Boy", "Little Queenie", "Oh Baby Doll", "Confessin The Blues", "Almost Grown", "Jo Jo Gunne", "Wee Wee Hours", "Too Much Monkey Business", and "Brown Eyed Handsome Man". (Soul, Rock) CD

20 tracks including "Roll Over Beethoven", "Maybellene", "Thirty Days", "Havana Moon", "Reelin' and Rockin", "Beautiful Delilah", "School Day", and "Johnny B. Goode". (Soul, Rock) CD

(Soul, Rock) CD

Chuck Berry is definitely on top with this classic Chess Records set – an album that shows that Berry always had a lot more to offer than some of his oldies rocker contemporaries! Sure, there's a few hits here, but the overall quality of the music is more in the mode of Chess blues of the time – lots of raw backings that are as heavy on piano lines and romping rhythms as they are Chuck's own searing lead guitar – a sound that definitely sets the tone for generations to come, and which is always heard best here in its early hoke-free setting. The whole album's wonderful, and even familiar hits sound newly brilliant in this context – a smoking lineup that includes "Jo Jo Gunne", "Around & Around", "Hey Pedro", "Anthony Boy", "Sweet Little Rock & Roller", "Almost Grown", "Roll Over Beethoven", and "Maybellene". (Soul, Rock) CD

(Soul, Rock) CD

A famous date that showcases the Chess Records influence on the sound of the Brit rock scene – one that has a number of key players "giving back" to the label, and working on a special date with Howlin Wolf! Wolf's rough vocals are in the lead on all tracks, and he also plays a bit of harmonica and guitar as well – and other artists include Steve Winwood on piano and organ, Eric Clapton on guitar, Bill Wyman on bass, and Charlie Watts on drums – all players who are respectful of the original bluesy sound of Chess, and who clearly dig the opportunity to show off their chops in the setting. Titles include "I Ain't Superstitious", "Poor Boy", "Do The Do", "Red Rooster", "Built For Comfort", "What A Woman", "Highway 49", "Who's Been Talking", and "Rocking Daddy". (Blues, Rock) CD

Includes the songs "Maybellene", "30 Days", "You Can't Catch Me", "Too Much Monkey Business", "Brown-Eyed Handsome Man", "Roll Over Beethoven", "Havana Moon", "School Days", "Rock And Roll Music", "Oh Baby Doll", "Reelin' & Rockin'", "Sweet Little Sixteen", "Johnny B. Goode", "Around And Around", "Carol", "Beautiful Delilah", "Memphis", "Sweet Little Rock And Roller", "Little Queenie", "Almost Grown", "Back In The USA", "Let It Rock", "Bye Bye Johnny", "I'm Talking About You", "Come On", "Nadine", "No Particular Place To Go", and "I Want To Be Your Driver". (Soul, Rock) CD

Great early work from the enigmatic Wayne Cochran – a whiter-than-white cat who's most famous for his late 60s run of surprisingly great funk and soul records for Chess and King – heard here on the complete tracks recorded for a variety of different labels in the runup to those years! Some of these tracks have Cochran coming across with more of the rockabilly style you'd expect from his famous coiffure – but there's also plenty of early strands of soul music too – served up in that special blend that always made Wayne Cochran such a popular live act on a variety of different stages throughout the south! The package does great justice to these early years of Cochran – complete with a huge illustrated booklet of notes and details on the singles – material originally issued on labels that include Gala, Confederate, Bethlehem, and Scottie – plus key material recorded for King and Mercury as well. The 2CD package features 42 tracks in all - and titles include "No Return", "Liza Jane", "Think", "You Left The Water Running", "The Coo", "Harlem Shuffle", "Last Kiss", "Little Orphan Annie", "Dreams", "Linda Lu", "Cindy Marie", "Funny Feeling", "Money", "Lights Out", "A-Ok", "Get Down With It", "Somebody Please", and "To Make Me A Man". CD

Hey, don't hold Wayne Cochran's hair against him – because he's one massively soulful dude, despite a high white pompadour – and really knew how to rock the clubs back in the 60s! Cochran's a really unique figure – working with a look that was whiter-than-white, but coming across with a groove that was right up there in the best funky soul mode of the time! Wayne played for the same sort of crowds that went to see Baby Huey & The Babysitters – blending together soul and R&B influences with a really party-oriented groove laid down by his legendary CC Riders backup group – and crossing countless borders along the way, all in pursuit of a socking soul sound! This wonderful set is the best we've ever seen on his music – and features tracks pulled from his sessions for King, Chess, and Mercury – plus a full never-issued live album for King, titled The Wayne Cochran Show. There's more than a few covers here of other 60s soul tunes, but Wayne somehow manages to make most of them sound even better than the originals – bringing in funky arrangements that weren't even used on the hits, and making us wish we'd had a chance to catch his cooking show back in the day. 38 tracks in all – with titles that include "Dance To The Music", "Hold On I'm Coming", "Fa Fa Fa Fa Fa (Sad Song)", "I Can't Turn You Loose", "Hard To Handle", "Chopper 70", "Everybody", "Let Me Come With You", "My Machine", "Get Ready", "Which One Should I Choose", "I'm In Trouble", "The Peak Of Love", "Somebody Please", "I'm Leaving It Up To You", and "Big City Woman". (Soul, Rock) CD

A wonderful little record that sounds nothing like Kansas City or something you might expect from a group with "jammers" in their name – as there's a sweet harmony style to the whole album that's a lot more like Cali work of the time! The trio harmonize together beautifully, and they mix acoustic and electric instrumentation in a nicely lean mode – yet with a quality that's still well-produced for such a small label indie release at the time! We might make an obvious comparison to CSNY, but the song themes are very different, as is the mood – and these guys are much more down to earth in a really great way! Titles include "For A Sign". "Live In Harmony", "Messiah", "For Father" "Chess Piece", "Hairy Tongued Turtle", "Midnight Watch", "Fall", "Fingers Foot & Fade", and "For Marti". 2CD edition features a full bonus disc – 14 more rare tracks from the time, a great expansion to the too-small legacy of the group! CD

35 songs from Norris Mims, Billy Adkinson, Mike Patterson & the Rhythm Rockers, Neal E Hemphill, Hank Chess, the Team Beats, Chuck Henderson, Pete Hardin, Chuck Miller, Don Ray, and more. CD

Stunning work from the great Dale Hawkins – a singer who made some of the hardest, fiercest rock and roll on Chess Records in the 50s! Dale hailed from Louisiana, where much of this music was cut – but he also worked with Chess up in Chicago, where he seems to have picked up some slight bluesy currents in his rhythms. Yet even on his own, and even on the early material recorded in Shreveport, Hawkins has a hell of a sound – a blend of R&B and rockabilly that was forged way down in the swamps, and came back bubbling up with a hell of a lot of power! CD features 20 tracks in all – including "Suzie Q", "Little Pig", "Tornado", "Juanita", "Baby Baby", "Four Letter Word", and "Ain't That Lovin You Baby". CD

Stunning work from the great Dale Hawkins – a singer you may only know from the title track of this collection, but one who made some of the hardest, fiercest rock and roll on Chess Records in the 50s! Dale hailed from Louisiana, where much of this music was cut – but he also worked with Chess up in Chicago, where he seems to have picked up some slight bluesy currents in his rhythms – especially on the tracks that feature musicians like Roy Buchanan on guitar and Lafayette Leake on piano! Yet even on his own, and even on the early material recorded in Shreveport, Hawkins has a hell of a sound – a blend of R&B and rockabilly that was forged way down in the swamps, and came back bubbling up with a hell of a lot of power! Songs include "Liza Jane", "Susie Q", "My Babe", "Yea-Yea (Class Cutter)", "Four Letter Word (Rock)", "Little Pig", "Boy Meets Girl", and more – 30 tracks total, including 8 unissued numbers! CD

The first-ever massive look at the female pop legacy of UK genius producer Joe Meek – a studio talent maybe best known for his work with instrumental groups, but one who also created some real magic with girl singers too! Joe's ear for twangy guitars, offbeat sounds, and otherworldly echo really works wonders here – as he takes more familiar styles of tunes and really gives them a great spin – bringing out some of the best quality in the female singers, many of whom never really cracked the charts that strongly in the 60s – and certainly never sounded as great as in the hands of Joe Meek! The package offers up very detailed notes on the singers, the songs, and Mee's special approach to the music – and the 3CD set features 88 tracks in all, with work from Valerie Masters, Lea & Chess, The Halos, Gunilla Thorn, Eve Boswell, Yolanda, Carol Jones, Pat Reader, Flip & The Dateliners, Diane & The Javelins, Glenda Collins, and others – including some unknown singers, and a number of unissued tracks too! CD

A totally wonderful batch of cuts from the early years of Liberty Records, and related labels – cuts that really bristle with the kind of energy that was exploding in all sorts of styles on the LA scene at the end of the 50s! Liberty may not have the cred as Sun or Chess Records, but the company was really at the crossroads of music on the west coast, and had both the ears and the studio talent to really turn out some great singles at the time – often the sort of material that was very different than the vocals and mood music on its full length LPs. If you don't know this side of Liberty's legacy, you'll really in for a surprise – and even if you do, you'll still discover some overlooked gems in this 37 track set – presented complete with detailed notes on all the artists too. Titles include "Lies" by Lee Ross, "Buddy" by Jackie Dee, "Willa Mae" by Al Casey, "Little Bit" by Bobby Lonero, "You've Done It Again" by Andy & The Live Wires, "Sweet Baby Doll" by Johnny Burnette, "Ain't That Somethin" by Larry O'Keefe, "She's So Fine' by Andy Caldwell, "Sally Let Your Bangs Hang Down" by Johnny Olenn, "Billy Billy" by Dee Dee Dorety, and "Hey Baby" by Bill Lawrence. CD