Juke In The Back

The CleftonesThis week, Matt The Cat looks at one of the greatest Doo Wop groups, The Cleftones, through an archival interview with the late Herbie Cox. Cox was a founding member of this unique sounding vocal group from Queens, NY. Started in 1955, The Cleftones enjoyed two national top 10 R&B records with "Little Girl Of Mine" in 1956 and "Heart & Soul" in 1961 and were one of the few vocal groups to score hits in two decades. Matt The Cat was fortunate enough to have interviewed Herb Cox and

Slim GaillardThis week, we honor the "Prince Of Vout," Mr. McVouty himself, Slim Gaillard. He was a one-of-a-kind-o-reenee as he spoke 7 languages including his own language of Vout, played guitar, piano, drums and several other instruments, wrote off-beat tunes that were always drenched in rhythm and jive and appeared on TV and in several motion pictures. Slim Gaillard's beginnings are shrouded in mystery, but we know he burst on the scene with Slam Stewart in 1938 with the classic "Flat Feet

Duke & Peacock RecordsThis week, the entire "Juke In The Back" is loaded with records from the catalog of Duke/Peacock Records. Don Robey started Peacock in 1949 in order to record Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, whom he also managed. In 1953, Robey took over Duke Records (which was owned by David J. Mattis and Bill Fitzgerald) and a R&B empire was born. Matt The Cat shares the history and music, which features some of the greatest R&B talents of all-time, including: Bobby "Blue" Bland, Johnny Ace,

Lucky MillinderThe "Juke In The Back" is loaded this week with records by one of R&B's greatest and most underrated bandleaders, Lucky Millinder. He worked with vocalists as varied as Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Wynonie Harris, Annisteen Allen, Bull Moose Jackson and Big John Greer, but Lucky Millinder is mostly forgotten by today's audiences. Dizzy Gillespie actually played trumpet in Millinder's Band in the early 1940s for a brief time. Even though Lucky Millinder is not remembered well today, his