Two-CD, 45-song compilation covers
Fulson's Chess years, which spanned 1954 to 1963.
Fulson didn't have a great deal of commercial success at Chess (the big exception being "Reconsider Baby," which leads off this set), and his jazzy West Coast form of R&B/blues was considerably more polished than the electrified Delta blues for which Chess is most renowned. Most of this, in fact, was recorded not in Chicago, but in Los Angeles, where
Fulson could work with combos more sympathetic to his style. You'd have to consider this
Fulson's peak, however, and the two discs' worth of material is not excessive, due to the consistency of his material and vocal confidence throughout the decade. It's not without its weird moments of rawness, either, as in "Blues Rhumba," the
Bo Diddleyesque guitar that opens "Please Don't Go,"
Willie Dixon's classic dirge moaning blues "Tollin' Bells," and the (deliberately?) out of tune guitar licks that open "K.C. Bound" with a bang. "Smokey Room" and "Be on Your Merry Way" were previously unreleased in the U.S.; "Father Time" and the alternate takes of "Lonely Hours" and "Check Yourself" were previously unreleased anywhere. ~ Richie Unterberger