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Juke In The Back

Atlantic Records, Pt. 12 - 1957 Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n" Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The

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Juke In The Back: #805 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 12 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/10/06

Atlantic Records, Pt. 12 - 1957Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The

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Juke In The Back: #804 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 11 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/09/29

Atlantic Records, Pt. 11 - 1956Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The

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Juke In The Back: #803 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 10 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/09/22

Atlantic Records, Pt. 10 - 1955-56Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In

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Juke In The Back: #802 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 9 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/09/15

Atlantic Records, Pt. 9 - 1955Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The

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Juke In The Back: #801 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 8 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/09/08

Atlantic Records, Pt. 8 - 1954, Pt. 2Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke

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Juke In The Back: #800 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 7 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/09/01

Atlantic Records, Pt. 7 - 1954, Pt. 1Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke

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Juke In The Back: #798 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 5 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/08/18

Atlantic Records, Pt. 5 - 1952-53Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In

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Juke In The Back: #797 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 4 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/08/11

Atlantic Records, Pt. 4 - 1952Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The

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Juke In The Back: #794 - Atlantic Records, Pt. 1 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/07/21

Atlantic Records, Pt. 1 - 1947-49Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In

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Juke In The Back: #793 - Varetta Dillard - July...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/07/14

Varetta DillardVaretta Dillard might be a footnote in R&B and Rock n' Roll history, having only scored 3 R&B charting records, but her body of recorded work speaks for itself. She was more than just a Ruth Brown impersonator, though she could sound a lot like her idol. Dillard was also part of pop culture, having waxed a tribute record to the recently deceased Johnny Ace ("Johnny Has Gone" in 1955) and making the top 10 with it. She scored 2 R&B shuffle hits with "Easy Easy Baby" in '52 and "Have

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Juke In The Back: #792 - Tiny Bradshaw - July 7-13, 2025

Juke In The Back ·

2025/07/07

Tiny BradshawTiny Bradshaw put in his time, spending 16 years of making music with various big bands, including his own, without ever scoring a national hit. But when things turned around for the drummer, pianist, composer and bandleader, his star began to rise. He scored a #2 R&B smash with "Well Of Well" in 1950, just as he was beginning his 9 year association with Cincinnati's King Records. This would be his biggest hit and best seller, but not his best remembered. That distinction would go to

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Juke In The Back: #791 - 4th of July: Summertime,...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/06/30

4th of July: Summertime, Travel, Food and Baseball!The Juke In The Back jumps into summer by spotlighting THE summertime holiday, the 4th of July. We're diggin' the 4th in song with tunes about summertime and the foods enjoyed in summer by Sam Cooke, Chuck Berry, The Basin Street Boys, Chris Powell (hot dog) and John Brim (ice cream). We'll also focus on America's pastime with R&B songs about Baseball, honoring some of the top players who crossed over from the Negro Leagues into the Major Leagues

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Juke In The Back: #790 - Lloyd Price: The Specialty...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/06/23

Lloyd Price: The Specialty SidesLloyd Price would become one of the great hit-makers of early Rock n Roll, but this is the story of the soul that came BEFORE Rock n Roll. Lloyd was just a kid when bandleader and talent scout, Dave Bartholomew brought him to Cosimo Matassa's J&M Studio in early 1952 to make a record of a tune he had heard Lloyd singing. "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" hit #1 during the summer of '52, becoming an instant classic and contributing to the R&B foundation that would eventually lead

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Juke In The Back: #789 - Julia Lee - June 16-22, 2025

Juke In The Back ·

2025/06/16

Julia LeeDuring the 1920s, Kansas City was the heart of Jazz and the epicenter of American Music. George E. Lee and His Novelty Singing Orchestra was one of the most popular bands in that town at that time. At the center of the band, playing piano and singing was Julia Lee, the sister of bandleader George E. Lee. Julia was a fantastic singer with a powerful voice. We begin this week's program, dedicated to Julia Lee, with one of her earliest records, "He's Tall, Dark And Handsome," which was

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Juke In The Back: #788 - Johnny Otis - June 9-15, 2025

Juke In The Back ·

2025/06/09

Johnny OtisThis week, the Juke In The Back is proud to honor the late, great Johnny Otis. He was a true renaissance man. Otis was a singer, songwriter, drummer, bandleader, talent scout, record label owner and radio / TV show host and that's not everything he did. He was the son of Greek immigrants, growing up in a mostly Black section of Vallejo, CA during the 1920s and 30s. He not only absorbed Black Culture, he became a part of it, changing his last name to Otis in order to sound more black. He

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Juke In The Back: #786 - The Larks, Pt. 2 - 1952-55 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/05/26

The Larks, Pt. 2 - 1952-55The Larks are one of the most influential and best sounding vocal groups of the early 1950s and yet, they are never remembered quite as well as many of their contemporaries. Last week in part 1 of our 2 part series, we showcased The Larks' early recordings from 1950-52, including their only 2 charting singles, "Eyesight To The Blind" and "Little Side Car." This week, as we pick it back up in 1952, the original Larks group disintegrates and members go off on their own

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Juke In The Back: #785 - The Larks, Pt. 1 - 1950-52 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/05/19

The Larks, Pt. 1 - 1950-52The Larks are one of the most influential and best sounding vocal groups of the early 1950s and yet, they are never remembered quite as well as many of their contemporaries. That might be because they only had 2 charting singles and neither record sold well after its initial release. But don't let the numbers fool you, the Larks were a top-notch group with outstanding leads provided by Eugene Mumford, Allen Bunn and David McNeil, who occasionally sang a solid bass lead

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Juke In The Back: #784 - Amos Milburn, Pt. 2 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/05/12

Amos Milburn, Pt. 2 - 1950-56Amos Milburn was the complete package. He could play boogie woogie piano with the best of 'em, having been influenced by the great Pete Johnson. He sang the smoky R&B ballad almost as well as his buddy Charles Brown and he could shout the blues alongside Roy Brown and Wynonie Harris. Milburn's delivery was indeed a hit with the public as his Aladdin Records releases spawned 4 #1 R&B records and a total of 16 charting singles (3 of them double-sided hits). This week in

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Juke In The Back: #783 - Amos Milburn, Pt. 1 -...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/05/05

Amos Milburn, Pt. 1 - 1946-49Amos Milburn was the complete package. He could play boogie woogie piano with the best of 'em, having been influenced by the great Pete Johnson. He sang the smoky R&B ballad almost as well as his buddy Charles Brown and he could shout the blues alongside Roy Brown and Wynonie Harris. Milburn's delivery was indeed a hit with the public as his Aladdin Records releases spawned 4 #1 R&B records and a total of 16 charting singles (3 of them double-sided hits). However, he

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Juke In The Back: #782 - Unsung Ladies of R&B - April...

Juke In The Back ·

2025/04/28

Unsung Ladies of R&BThis week, the "Juke In The Back" solutes the Unsung Ladies of R&B! We'll dig deep into a stack of shellac from some women you know, like Varetta Dillard, Ann Cole and The Cookies, as well as from some that you may not know, such as Gwen Johnson and Bonita Cole. Matt The Cat will also feature an audition tape by the seldom heard Olive Brown, which was never issued at the time. None of the chanteuses on this week's program have catalogs deep enough to be main features, so we've

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