Lonnie Mack - Memphis Wham! (1999 Ace) @ Flac

 

Review by Richie Unterberger

At first glance, this might seem like nothing more than a retread of the classic The Wham of That Memphis Man, as the disc includes all 14 songs from that album. This is a quality upgrade/supplement to that record, though, adding 11 more tracks of 1963-1967 vintage from both rare singles and previously unreleased outtakes. This is hardly filler that only collectors will care about; it's good stuff, sometimes ace stuff, that's almost all on the same level of The Wham. "Oh, I Apologize," a cover of an obscure Barrett Strong track, is white soul singing on par with Mack's best vocal efforts, while "Cry, Cry, Cry" is a great instrumental version of a Bobby "Blue" Bland number; both of these cuts, unbelievably, were not released prior to this CD. The singles "Say Something Nice to Me" and "Save Your Money" (from 1964 and 1967) are more filet of white soul, and "Tension Pts. 1 & 2" (a 1966 single) another cool roadhouse instrumental. Some of the rare add-ons are less essential than others (like the instrumental reading of the Beatles' "From Me to You"), but taken together it's certainly the best Mack collection, enhanced by Bill Millar's informative liner notes. By the way, in one of those inexplicable occurrences bound to cause collectors to run around in circles, the song titled "Farther on Down the Road" on The Wham of That Memphis Man recording is here titled "Farther on up the Road" and listed as previously unreleased, although in fact it seems to be the same track as the one given a different title on the LP. 

 

Lonnie Mack - Memphis Wham! (1999 Ace) 

Mack is considered a pioneer of virtuoso rock guitar soloing[5] and a key stylistic forerunner of the blues rock and Southern rock guitar genres, for his fast-paced instrumental solos, including his 1963 hit singles, "Memphis" and "Wham!", both of which are on this album.

01. Lonnie Mack - Memphis 

 02. Lonnie Mack - Where There's A Will 

 03. Lonnie Mack - Wham 

 04. Lonnie Mack - I'll Keep You Happy 

 05. Lonnie Mack - The Bounce 

 06. Lonnie Mack - Baby, What's Wrong 

 07. Lonnie Mack - Down And Out 

 08. Lonnie Mack - Satisfied 

 09. Lonnie Mack - Suzie Q 

 10. Lonnie Mack - Why 

 11. Lonnie Mack - Down In The Dumps 

 12. Lonnie Mack - Rockin' Pneumonia And The Boogie Woogie Flu 

 13. Lonnie Mack - Gee Baby 

 14. Lonnie Mack - Chicken Pickin' 

 15. Lonnie Mack - Oh, I Apologize 

 16. Lonnie Mack - Say Something Nice To Me 

 17. Lonnie Mack - From Me To You 

 18. Lonnie Mack - Turn On Your Love Light 

 19. Lonnie Mack - The Freeze 

 20. Lonnie Mack - Farther On Up The Road 

 21. Lonnie Mack - Cry, Cry, Cry 

 22. Lonnie Mack - Save Your Money 

 23. Lonnie Mack - Tension (Part 1) 

 24. Lonnie Mack - Tension (Part 2) 

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