Juke In The Back
205 episodes - English - Latest episode: 7 days ago - ★★★★★ - 39 ratingsAt the end of the Second World War, economics forced the big bands to trim their once great size and thus, the Jump Blues combo was born. Between 1946-1954, rhythm and blues laid the tracks for what was to become Rock n’ Roll. So how come, 75 years later, this vibrant and influential music is still so unknown to so many? Matt The Cat is going to change that with the radio program, “Juke In The Back.” These were the records that you couldn’t hear on the jukebox in the front of the establishment. To hear all this great 1950s rhythm & blues, you had to go to “Juke In The Back.”
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Episodes
Episode #734 – The Midnighters, Pt. 2 – 1954-56
May 26, 2024 16:16 - 54 MBAir Week: May 27-June 2, 2024 The Midnighters, Pt. 2 – 1954-56 This week, the “Juke In The Back” continues a 3 show look at The Midnighters, one of early R&B’s most successful groups. Before they topped the R&B charts with “Work With Me Annie” in 1954, The Midnighters were known as The Royals, a […]
Episode #733 – The Midnighters, Pt. 1 – 1952-54 (The Royals)
May 19, 2024 17:57 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: May 20-26, 2024 The Midnighters, Pt. 1 – 1952-54 (The Royals) This week, the “Juke In The Back” begins a 3 show look at The Midnighters, one of early R&B’s most successful groups. Before they topped the R&B charts with “Work With Me Annie” in 1954, The Midnighters were known as The Royals, […]
Episode #732 – Lowell Fulson
May 12, 2024 15:14 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: May 13-19, 2024 Lowell Fulson This week, the “Juke In The Back” spotlights Lowell Fulson, one of the blues’ most versatile and vastly underrated talents. In the late 1940s, Fulson stormed the charts with his first hit “Three O’Clock Blues,” a song that B.B. King would take to the top of the charts […]
Episode #731 – Jesse Belvin
May 05, 2024 15:13 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: May 6-12, 2024 Jesse Belvin “Juke In The Back” is proud to dedicate an entire show to Jesse Belvin, one of greatest talents to come out of LA in the 1950s. Belvin was born in Texas, but raised near Central Avenue in Los Angeles, where he soaked up the local R&B scene. After […]
Episode #730 – Elmore James: 1951-55
April 28, 2024 19:22 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: April 29-May 5, 2024 Elmore James: 1951-55 Elmore James never tried to have crossover success. He was a bluesman through and through; an ambassador of the Mississippi Delta Blues with a modern, 1950s electric twist. Elmore’s blues was as pure as his ambitions when starting out as a sideman for now legendary blues […]
Episode #729 – The R&B of RCA
April 21, 2024 14:31 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: April 22-28, 2024 The R&B of RCA It is a popular belief that the seeds of Rhythm & Blues, Rock n’ Roll and even Jazz were planted by the small independent labels and that the major labels exhaustively played catch-up as the music grew in popularity. That is simply not true. The major […]
Episode #728 – Groove Records
April 14, 2024 15:41 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: April 15-21, 2024 Groove Records In late 1953, RCA Victor launched a new subsidiary to focus on the Rhythm & Blues market, called Groove Records. They intended for Groove to compete with the independent labels like Chess, Atlantic and Vee-Jay that were dominating the genre. RCA treated Groove as an indie by setting […]
Episode #727 – Lil Greenwood
April 07, 2024 14:05 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: April 8-14, 2024 Lil Greenwood This week, the “Juke In The Back” pays tribute to a very dynamic, soulful and often passed over R&B female vocalist: Lil Greenwood. Today, Lil Greenwood is best remembered as a vocalist for Duke Ellington during the late ’50s and early ’60s, but it’s her R&B recordings from […]
Episode #726 – Percy Mayfield: 1949-60
March 31, 2024 17:57 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: April 1-7, 2024 Percy Mayfield: 1949-60 Some songwriters and singers just know how to tap into deepest regions of sadness, passion and truth. Such is the musical prowess of Percy Mayfield, the “Poet Laureate Of The Blues.” Mayfield was born in rural Louisiana in 1920 and found he had a knack for writing […]
Episode #725 – Guitar Slim
March 24, 2024 16:38 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: March 25-31, 2024 Guitar Slim Eddie Jones grew up in Hollandale, MS, pickin’ cotton and dreaming of a better life when ambition and musical talent plucked him from his situation, christened him Guitar Slim and made him a star. After moving to New Orleans and befriending Huey “Piano” Smith, the two became a […]
Episode #724 – The Cleftones
March 17, 2024 15:34 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: March 18-24, 2024 The Cleftones This 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 […]
Episode #723 – Slim Gaillard
March 10, 2024 16:15 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: March 11-17, 2024 Slim Gaillard This 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 […]
Episode #722 – Duke & Peacock Records
March 03, 2024 17:13 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: March 4-10, 2024 Duke & Peacock Records This 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 […]
Episode #721 – Lucky Millinder
February 25, 2024 16:16 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: February 26-March 3, 2024 Lucky Millinder The “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 […]
Episode #720 – The Ray-O-Vacs
February 18, 2024 16:56 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: February 19-25, 2024 The Ray-O-Vacs It’s staggering, the number of R&B groups that have been left out of the history books and off radio station playlists just because they don’t fit into an accepted category of “cool.” The Ray-O-Vacs is one of those groups. Though they made the R&B charts 3 times, that […]
Episode #719 – The Hollywood Flames
February 11, 2024 17:24 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: February 12-18, 2024 The Hollywood Flames The Hollywood Flames recorded for nearly 20 different record labels and had numerous personnel changes over their 18 year history, but they always remained popular in their native Southern California. Formed in 1949 at a local talent show, David Ford was the only member of the group […]
Episode #718 – R&B Influences: Lionel Hampton
February 04, 2024 16:41 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: February 5-11, 2024 R&B Influences: Lionel Hampton Lionel Hampton’s big band was a training ground for so many of the all-time great musicians: Dizzy Gillespie, Charles Mingus, Dexter Gordon, Joe Morris, Dinah Washington, Wes Montgomery, Little Jimmy Scott and Clifford Brown. His musical education began on drums and piano while attending the Holy […]
Episode #717 – James Brown: 1956-58
January 28, 2024 16:35 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: January 29-February 4, 2024 James Brown: 1956-58 This week, the Juke In The Back features one of R&B and Rock n’ Roll’s greatest acts, James Brown. Born into a poor community in South Carolina, James Brown worked his way to the very top in the entertainment business, but it wasn’t without a struggle. […]
Episode #716 – R&B Influences: Delta Rhythm Boys
January 21, 2024 17:28 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: January 22-28, 2024 R&B Influences: Delta Rhythm Boys The “Juke In The Back” takes a deep look at The Delta Rhythm Boys, one of R&B’s early influences. Bass singer Lee Gaines assembled the original quartet while at Langston University in Oklahoma. After they all transferred to Dillard in New Orleans, things started to […]
Episode #715 – The “5” Royales
January 14, 2024 18:11 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: January 15-21, 2024 The “5” Royales This week, the “Juke In The Back” features a rhythm & blues vocal group from Winston-Salem, NC that not only influenced James Brown, but quite possibly the entire soul movement of the late ’50s into the 1960s; The “5” Royales. They began their career as a six […]
Episode #711 – Cool Yule: R&B Christmas, Pt. 2
December 17, 2023 21:30 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: December 18-24, 2023 Cool Yule: R&B Christmas, Pt. 2 The “Juke In The Back” presents part 2 of our 2 part vintage Christmas Rhythm & Blues extravaganza that Matt The Cat is calling “Cool Yule.” Louis Armstrong presents the title song with a backing group that is often overlooked and we spin a […]
Episode #710 – Hey! Santa Claus: R&B Christmas, Pt. 1
December 10, 2023 18:00 - 59 minutes - 54.1 MBAir Week: December 11-17, 2023 Hey! Santa Claus: R&B Christmas, Pt. 1 The “Juke In The Back” begins a 2 part Holiday Music Extravaganza with a tribute to Santa Claus. This week, we find the “man in red” doing the boogie woogie, the mambo and just plain ol’ rockin’ his way into song. We’ll pour […]
Episode #709 – T-Bone Walker
December 03, 2023 19:02 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: December 4-10, 2023 T-Bone Walker Drop a nickel in the ol’ Rockola Juke to hear one of the best selling and most influential bluesmen and guitarists of all-time, T-Bone Walker. This week’s show looks at how T-Bone’s immense guitar talent developed from his first recordings in the early 1940s to his breakthrough after […]
Episode #708 – Earl Lewis & The Channels
November 26, 2023 14:43 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: November 27-December 3, 2023 Earl Lewis & The Channels The “Juke In The Back” is proud to feature The Channels, one of New York City’s finest and most influential vocal groups of the mid-1950s. At only 15 years, Earl Lewis fronted the group who recorded one of Doo Wop’s most classic tunes, the […]
Episode #707 – Van “Piano Man” Walls
November 19, 2023 20:21 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: November 20-26, 2023 Van “Piano Man” Walls Harry Vann began playing piano in Beulah’s Church in Charleston, WV around the age of 10, but thanks to hearing Jay McShann records on the radio, he was bitten by the blues bug while in his teens. After settling in Columbus, Ohio in the late-1940s, Vann […]
Episode #706 – Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson
November 12, 2023 16:55 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: November 13-19, 2023 Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson This week, the “Juke In The Back” honors one of the greatest blues shouters of all-time, Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson. He burst on the scene in 1944 with a cover of the Joe Turner classic, “Cherry Red Blues” as the vocalist for the Cootie Williams Orchestra. He remained […]
Episode #705 – Big Mama Thornton
November 05, 2023 16:06 - 58 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: November 6-12, 2023 Big Mama Thornton Willie Mae Thornton was a trailblazer, who in making her own rules paved the way for other groundbreaking female artists like Janis Joplin and Madonna. Known as “Big Mama,” Thornton scored her only hit record in early 1953 when “Hound Dog” topped the national Rhythm & Blues […]
Episode #704 – Rosco Gordon
October 29, 2023 22:09 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: October 30-November 5, 2023 Rosco Gordon This week, the “Juke In The Back” spotlights the “Prince of Primitive Cool,” Rosco Gordon. His mostly self-penned tunes, feature his unique blend of mid-tempo shuffle with a slightly behind-the-beat rolling barrelhouse piano line. He was a master at making his recordings sound rough, but there was […]
Episode #703 – Spooky Halloween Rhythm & Blues
October 22, 2023 19:53 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: October 23-39, 2023 Spooky Halloween Rhythm & Blues Halloween has always been a frightfully good time of the year for the “Juke In The Back.” This year, Matt The Cat, along with Miss Rosie and Bobby The Bobcat bring you a cauldron of ghoulishly spooky tunes from the 1940s and ’50s. The program […]
Episode #702 – Lavern Baker, Pt. 2 – 1954-56
October 15, 2023 21:49 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: October 16-22, 2023 Lavern Baker, Pt. 2 – 1954-56 This week, the “Juke In The Back” looks at how one of R&B’s greatest voices, LaVern Baker, got her start. It’s part two of a two part feature on the early career of LaVern Baker. In part two, we’ll dig on Baker’s prime recording […]
Episode #701 – Lavern Baker, Pt. 1 – 1949-54
October 08, 2023 16:34 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: October 9-15, 2023 Lavern Baker, Pt. 1 – 1949-54 This week, the “Juke In The Back” looks at how one of R&B’s greatest voices, Lavern Baker, got her start. It’s part one of a two part feature on the early career of Lavern Baker. In part one, we’ll dig on Baker’s first recordings […]
Episode #700 – Open The Door, Richard!
October 01, 2023 20:17 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: October 2-8, 2023 Open The Door, Richard! This week, for the 700th episode of “Juke In The Back,” Matt The Cat digs deep into the racks n’ stacks o’ shellac to bring you a solid hour on that catch phrase craze and cultural phenomenon, “Open The Door, Richard!” In early 1947, you couldn’t […]
Episode #699 – Red Robin Records
September 24, 2023 16:13 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: September 25-October 1, 2023 Red Robin Records This week, the “Juke In The Back” salutes one of R&B’s greatest unsung labels, Red Robin Records. Bobby Robinson started Robin Records in 1952 as a way to expand the business in his Harlem record store, Bobby Record Shop. He was a natural-born entrepreneur with a […]
Episode #698 – Chuck Willis, Pt. 2 – 1954-58
September 17, 2023 19:27 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: September 18-24, 2023 Chuck Willis, Pt. 2 – 1954-58 “Juke In The Back” completes its 2 part special on the great Chuck Willis. This week, in part 2, we focus on Chuck’s amazing crossover success in the late 1950s with huge pop hits like “C. C. Rider,” “Betty And Dupree,” “What Am I […]
Episode #697 – Chuck Willis, Pt. 1 – 1951-54
September 10, 2023 18:32 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: September 11-17, 2023 Chuck Willis, Pt. 1 – 1951-54 This week, the “Juke” features part 1 of a 2 part special on the great and much underrated Chuck Willis. Most cats n’ chicks know Chuck’s 1957 smash “C. C. Rider,” but many are unfamiliar with the great records Chuck cut in the early […]
Episode #696 – Willie Mabon
September 03, 2023 16:56 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: September 4-10, 2023 Willie Mabon Willie Mabon scored 2 #1 R&B records with “I Don’t Know” and “I’m Mad” in 1952 and ’53 respectively. Having 2 #1s ensured that he would never be forgotten, BUT Matt The Cat believe that this piano playing, harp-blowin’ blues cat should be better remembered and respected. This […]
Episode #695 – The Du-Droppers
August 27, 2023 17:09 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: August 28-September 3, 2023 The Du-Droppers Matt The Cat presents another highly underrated R&B vocal group from the 1950s: The Du-Droppers. They didn’t sound like the stereotypical “doo wop” groups of the era and they weren’t your standard rhythm group either. The Du-Droppers had a sound that was all their own. Their leader, […]
Episode #694 – Five Keys, Pt. 2 – 1954-57
August 20, 2023 16:50 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: August 21-27, 2023 Five Keys, Pt. 2 – 1954-57 The Five Keys were undoubtedly one of the finest vocal groups of both the R&B and Rock n’ Roll eras. They didn’t score as many hits as say the Dominoes or the Clovers, but like The Orioles and The Ravens before them, they were […]
Episode #693 – Five Keys, Pt. 1 – 1951-54
August 13, 2023 16:43 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: August 14-20, 2023 Five Keys, Pt. 1 – 1951-54 The Five Keys were undoubtedly one of the finest vocal groups of both the R&B and Rock n’ Roll eras. They didn’t score as many hits as say the Dominoes or the Clovers, but like The Orioles and The Ravens before them, they were […]
Episode #692 – Faye Adams
August 06, 2023 16:16 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: August 7-13, 2023 Faye Adams This week’s “Juke In The Back” highlights the short, but important career of Faye Adams. DJ Alan Freed called her “The little gal with the big voice” and she scored an impressive 3 #1 R&B hits in just a little over a year (1953-54). Surprisingly, she only had […]
Episode #684 – Rhythm & Booze: Hey, Bartender!
June 11, 2023 20:33 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: June 12-18, 2023 Rhythm & Booze: Hey, Bartender! The “Juke In The Back” continues our sporadic series Rhythm & Booze with a tribute to bartenders, juke joints and barrel houses as well as a salute to beer and beer drinkin’ women. This installment is called “Hey! Bartender” and it’s sure to take away […]
Episode #683 – Rhythm & Booze: Bad, Bad Whiskey!
June 04, 2023 16:54 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: June 5-11, 2023 Rhythm & Booze: Bad, Bad Whiskey! The “Juke In The Back” once again raises a glass in our Rhythm & Booze series. This time, the entire program is dedicated to that Bad, Bad Whiskey. For some, whiskey ruined their happy home, but for others, a Half-Pint-A Whiskey set the stage […]
Episode #682 – Rhythm & Booze: Wine! Wine! Wine!
May 28, 2023 16:08 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: May 29-June 4, 2023 Rhythm & Booze: Wine! Wine! Wine! Raise you glasses as we toast Rhythm & Booze: Wine, Wine, Wine on this week’s “Juke In The Back.” The entire program features the greatest wine R&B drinking songs of the 1940s and ’50s. We’ll dig on some Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee, Cherry Wine, Alligator […]
Episode #681 – Sister Rosetta Tharpe
May 21, 2023 22:24 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: May 22-28, 2023 Sister Rosetta Tharpe The “Juke In The Back” is proud to salute Sister Rosetta Tharpe, one of the most important and influential musical figures of the 20th Century. Tharpe, who was born Rosetta Nubin, was popular immediately after her first Decca Recordings in 1938. She gained even more exposure while […]
Episode #680 – Story of the Signifying Monkey
May 14, 2023 21:35 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: May 15-21, 2023 The Story Of The Signifying Monkey This week, Matt The Cat loads the “Juke In The Back” with a musical history of the old African folktale about The Signifying Monkey. We’ll trace this tale’s journey to America on slave ships from Africa as it became threaded into African-American culture in […]
Episode #679 – Johnny Bragg
May 07, 2023 16:08 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: May 8-14, 2023 Johnny Bragg This week, Matt The Cat features the incredible story of Johnny Bragg. It’s one of the greatest stories in all of Rhythm & Blues and early Rock n’ Roll. At age 17, Johnny Bragg is sentenced to 594 years in prison on six counts of rape. He possesses […]
Episode #678 – Floyd Dixon
April 30, 2023 17:32 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: May 1-7, 2023 Floyd Dixon This week, “Juke In The Back” features another unsung hero of early Rhythm & Blues, Floyd Dixon. He’s often overlooked or labeled as a Charles Brown sound-alike, but Dixon was a prolific songwriter who made a great contribution to the R&B foundation of Rock n’ Roll. After meeting […]
Episode #677 – Fortune Records
April 23, 2023 19:09 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: April 24-30, 2023 Fortune Records Matt The Cat and the “Juke In The Back” feature Fortune Records, another small, independent record label that made a sizable contribution to Rhythm & Blues and early Rock n’ Roll. Fortune was a Detroit original, started in late 1946, it paved the way for future greatness. We’ll […]
Episode #676 – The Clovers, Pt. 3 – 1956-58
April 16, 2023 19:09 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: April 17-23, 2023 The Clovers, Pt. 3 – 1956-58 The Clovers were the most successful rhythm & blues vocal group from 1951 to 1955, racking up 16 top 10 R&B singles during that time-frame. Three of those singles went to #1. Though they didn’t have a huge career defining hit, like The Dominoes […]
Episode #675 – The Clovers, Pt. 2 – 1953-56
April 09, 2023 13:12 - 59 minutes - 54 MBAir Week: April 10-16, 2023 The Clovers, Pt. 2 – 1953-56 The Clovers were the most successful rhythm & blues vocal group from 1951 to 1955, racking up 16 top 10 R&B singles during that time-frame. Three of those singles went to #1. Though they didn’t have a huge career defining hit, like The Dominoes […]