Freddie Slack Mr. Five By Five - The Singles Collection 1940-49 (2-CD)

Freddie Slack was a boogie-woogie pianist and swing bandleader who started out with Jimmy Dorsey’s band in the 1930s and subsequently racked up a string of hits in the 1940s, first with the Will Bradley Orchestra and then leading his own band, some of them with the fine singers Ella Mae Morse and Margaret Whiting on vocals. This 49-track 2-CD collection begins with his hits with the Will Bradley Orchestra on Columbia, and then comprises selected A & B sides from his releases on Decca and Capitol through to the time he left the label, and did not release any records for another five years. It features all his chart entries with Will Bradley, including the Top 10 hits “Beat Me Daddy Eight To The Bar”, “Down The Road Apiece”, “Scrub Me Mama With A Boogie Beat” and “There I Go”, plus all his career pop and R&B hits with his own band, including the Top 10 successes “Cow-Cow Boogie”, “Mister Five By Five”, “That Old Black Magic”, “Riffette” and “The House Of Blue Lights”. Along with hits that feature Ella Mae Morse, Margaret Whiting and Liza Morrow, it features his hit with Johnny Mercer, “I Lost My Sugar In Salt Lake City”. Other featured vocalists are David Street and Charlotte Blackburn, and there are also notable recordings accompanying blues singers Big Joe Turner and T-Bone Walker. It’s a highly entertaining showcase for the range of his music, especially his renowned boogie-woogie piano.