New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Before Jimi Hendrix, before Elvis Presley, there was Big Jay McNeely honking and squealing on his saxophone, wowing audiences with a stellar, energetic live show that often found him writhing around on his back or jumping into the middle of his enthusiastic audience, all while never missing a single beat! McNeely is truly the last of a generation of blues/R&B musicians who inspired the early rock pioneers, and are still around to remind us where popular music came from. Now, McNeely has teamed with
Cleopatra Records to present this special album of 5 brand new recordings plus a handful of classics from the '50s & '60s called Blowin' Down The House - Big Jay's Greatest & Latest. This collection will be released on the
Cleopatra Blues imprint
September 30 on both CD and vinyl!
Big Jay McNeely's incredible career began in the '40s and saw him play with several major R&B and blues legends of the late '40s and early '50s such as
Little Richard, B.B. King,
Etta James and Jr. Wells. He scored his first major hit with the 1949 smash hit instrumental "Deacon's Hop" and scored again with a R&B vocal ballad "There's Something On Your Mind" featuring
Little Sonny Warner. He pioneered the flamboyant playing style called "honking" and is widely acknowledged as one of the first musical entertainers to make showmanship an important element of the live concert experience. His music continues to be an important signifier for that early era, earning McNeely gigs at major festivals both here and abroad as well as having his music featured in the 2013 Sean Penn film Gangster
Squad starring and last year's biopic Trumbo starring Bryan Cranston. This year, Big Jay partnered with producer Jürgen Engler for a set of new recordings in his classic style such as the Motown-esque "Love Will Never Fail" and the bluesy "I've Been Mistreated." These songs demonstrate that even at 89 years of age, Big Jay McNeely can still blow them all away!
Those in need of a refresher about Big Jay's history can watch this short promotional documentary film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whAxAIR2MD4
Catch Big Jay performing live at the Record Parlour on
September 24!
Track List:
1. Love Will Never Fail
2. Love Is Stronger Than Hurt
3. My Love Never Ended
4. I've Been Mistreated
5. You Don't Have To Go Home
6. Party
7. Big Jay's Hop
8. Blow Blow Blow
9. Willie The Cool Cat
10. Rock Candy
11. Nervous Man Nervous
12. Get On Up & Let's Boogie
Buy the CD: https://flyt.it/BigJayMcNeelyCD
Buy the Vinyl: https://flyt.it/BigJayMcNeelyLP
Buy the digital version: https://flyt.it/BigJayMcNeelyDig
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