Rare Memphis Slim Album Signed by Four Blues Legends

$

179

You are bidding on a rare French release (Presence Mondiale label) of Memphis Slim's "World's Foremost Blues Singer" originally released by Strand Records in 1961. There is no date on the record and information on this release is hard to come by due to the rarity of the item. We can surmise that this copy was most likely released in '61 - '63. On its own this would be a collector's dream -- But this album also has the signatures of four of America's foremost Blues legends!

Sonny Boy Williamson, Memphis Slim, Matt "Guitar" Murphy, and Billy Stepney -- They all toured together in Europe during 1962 and '63 on the American Blues Festival" tour and someone was lucky enough to get their autographs. Sadly, three of the four artists are no longer alive -- Sonny and Billy having passed away over 40 years ago and Slim over 20 yrs ago -- and these signatures are getting tougher to find all the time -- I have NEVER seen them together. The autographs are clear and distinct with no smudges of fading. The cover is in good condition with a very small rip on the open edge (pictured), the original liner is in great shape, the record shows minor wear but no bad scratches. I don't have the proper tools to clean records, so I figure I'll ship it a little dusty rather than take the chance of scratching it up with a hack cleaning job. I will ship worldwide but please calculate your shipping before you bid.

Aleck "Rice" Miller (March 11, 1908 - May 25, 1965) was a blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter. He was also known as Sonny Boy Williamson, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Willie Williamson, Willie Miller, Little Boy Blue, The Goat and Footsie. Rice Miller, "Sonny Boy II", began his association with Chess Records in 1955, when he was already at least 45 years old. His exuberant yet dynamic and intricate playing brought the harmonica from the Delta to Chicago, influencing every harp blower since. Miller was one of the major blues artists at Chess Records in the 50s, alongside Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf, and probably the best harmonica player the blues has even seen.

Memphis Slim (September 3, 1915 – February 24, 1988) was an American blues pianist, singer, and composer. He led a series of bands that, reflecting the popular appeal of jump blues, included saxophones, bass, drums, and piano. A song he first cut in 1947, "Every Day I Have the Blues", has become a blues standard, recorded by many other artists. He made over 500 recordings.

Matt "Guitar" Murphy (December 29, 1929, Sunflower, Mississippi) played with Howlin' Wolf in 1948; harpist Little Junior Parker was also in the band at the time. By 1952, Murphy was in Chicago, where he began his long association with Memphis Slim by playing on his dates for United Records and Vee-Jay Records, including the album, At The Gate of Horn (1959). Murphy did not have a band of his own until 1982, but played with many famous bands. Among them (more or less chronologically):

Howlin' Wolf
Little Junior Parker
Ike Turner
Memphis Slim
James Cotton
Otis Rush
Etta James
Sonny Boy Williamson II
Chuck Berry
Joe Louis Walker
The Blues Brothers

He played with some of these bands for many years (for example, 20 years in a row with Memphis Slim), while others were just sessions during his work at Chess Records. Murphy can be seen in the films The Blues Brothers and Blues Brothers 2000, where he plays Aretha Franklin's hen-pecked husband. Work thereafter with The Blues Brothers turned him into one of the best-known blues guitarists in the United States.

Billy Stepney was born January 16, 1930 in Grenada, MS,  - Died 1968. Stepney was a legendary Chicago drummer who worked with Odie Payne, Luther Tucker, Lafayette Leak, Robert Jr. Lockwood, Louis and David Myers, Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Little Brother Montgomery, Buddy Guy and Magic Sam. Stepney was the drummer for both Williamson and Slim while touring Europe.