Tracks: 1) Blueberry Hill; 2) Honey Chile; 3) Whatʼs The Reason Iʼm Not Pleasing You; 4) Blue Monday; 5) So Long; 6) La La; 7) Troubles Of My Own; 8) You Done Me Wrong; 9) Reeling And Rocking; 10) The Fat Manʼs Hop; 11) Poor Poor Me; 12) Trust In Me.
REVIEW
This is an interesting release in that it essentially functions as one huge A-Side contrasted with one huge B-Side: most of the truly important and interesting songs are placed on the first side of the vinyl, while most of the throwaways and rewrites are nested on the second. Essentially, this is just a collection of several of Fatsʼ hit singles from late 1956 — with the B-side padded out from a bunch of songs that go all the way back to the early Fifties.
At the very least, it may be clearly seen that in late ʼ56, Fats was in top form and well willinʼ to compete in the general entertainment field, even as his chief inspiration was still coming from the past rather than the future — ʽBlueberry Hillʼ, the best known song from this album, dates back to at least 1940 and had already been popularized by Louis Armstrong himself, yet somehow it took Fatsʼ unhurrying piano waves and the familiar New Orleanian backbeat of his band to turn the song into an undying classic. Perhaps Elvisʼ cover from 1957 also contributed to this, but there is no denying that it was Fats and nobody else who made it a truly popular standard.
And this time, it is truly all about the music rather than personality — one might even argue that Fatsʼ predictably cheerful, imperturbable delivery does not agree perfectly well with the songʼs lovestruck-serenade nature, as he tells his tale of faded romance with about as much outside passion as youʼd expect from a recollection of a childhood trip to Coney Island or something. No, what really matters is that it took the «simplistic» innovations of Fiftiesʼ rockʼnʼroll to bring out the true earworm potential of the tune — something that used to be loose, squishy, meandering, hard-to-focus-on because of the general melodic conventions of the era, suddenly found its way into the deepest levels of your brain just because it became anchored to a concise, if repetitive piano riff and a toe-tappable rhythmic foundation. Yes, it was always a good song with an intelligent, well-constructed rise-and-fall build-up, but millions of people had to wait until Fats to see it. So thanks, Fats.
On the other hand, the difference between Fatsʼ version of ʽBlue Mondayʼ and the 1953 original recording by Smiley Lewis should probably be ascribed to personality — Lewisʼ vocal delivery is pretty standard R&B fare for the times, barely distinguishable from the average jump-blues wailer, whereas Fats gets into his role with seductive ease, ever so slightly varying his vocal timbre for each day of the week mentioned in the song, going from tiredness and depression to joy and relief and back without ever leaving the closed circle of his generally reserved and nonchalant attitude. The whole thing just sounds so much more powerful and, well, important than the original that there is no doubt about it — what we are witnessing is a major step forward in the development of rhythm and blues, making it so much fuller, deeper, modern-sounding than Big Joe Turner and Wynonie Harris (no offense toward either).
Other highlights on the first side include ʽHoney Chileʼ, which begins as a variation on the superior ʽIʼm In Love Againʼ, but still manages to find its own direction due to its somewhat odd stop-and-start structure; and ʽSo Longʼ, easily Fatsʼ best song on the issue of leaving it all behind — a short and decisive musical goodbye that teaches you, in two minutes flat, how itʼs no use crying over spilled milk more effectively than any advanced seance of psychotherapy.
Unfortunately, the second side of the vinyl, as I already said, is largely useless — most of it is drawn from early post-ʽFat Manʼ singles, when Fats was not yet fully free from old school conventions and felt no qualms whatsoever about rewriting himself to the left and to the right. Arguably the only track of interest there is ʽThe Fat Manʼs Hopʼ, a somewhat messy and overproduced instrumental in which the bass, the piano, and the brass section seem to play three different parts more or less independent of each other, leading to barely controlled chaos (with the drummer so confused that he mostly confines himself to cymbals for some reason) — however, Fats plays some really cool rolls all over it, showcasing excellent technique which he usually kept out of his hit singles. On the whole, though, the only point of the second side, if it was needed in the first place, is to show you how much more exciting R&B had become over the brief span of 3-4 years.
The A-side is pretty darn great. Well, "What's The Reason I'm Not Pleasing You" and "La-La" are not exactly standouts (but still entertaining), but you can't go wrong with a side that offers "Blue Monday," "Blueberry Hill," and "So Long!" Actually, I think I read somewhere that "Blue Monday" was the song Fats was most proud of, and I think I get why: while most Fats Domino lay down their main attraction from the get-go, that song's main magic comes from the climax at the "Saturday morning" verses, where that buildup to that point is just marvelous! I also love "So Long", those opening piano fills are wonderful (they strongly remind me of Amos Milburn's opening piano in "Bad Bad Whiskey", a song that I think Fats could have really covered quite nicely!).
Another point: why was "I'm In Love Again" not included on the actual LP? "Honey Chile" is a fun rewrite, but like you said, "I'm In Love Again" is a much stronger song (probably because it actually has a much stronger vocal hook that the groove can revolve around). I would have even liked to see "My Blue Heaven" make it onto the LP rather than some of the weaker. Ah well, it's a solid LP anyways. I don't mind the B-side since Fats's friendly charisma makes the songs still quite nice background music, but obviously nothing to get too excited about or attached to. Really, I agree that Fats's LP discography really is disappointing since after his first LP he really didn't put out another start-to-finish enjoyable album. Still, all of those LPs he made in his prime are still quite listenable, which is more than I can say about lesser artists of the era.