The multi-talented writer/cartoonist/singer
Shel Silverstein's most durable legacy has been his work as a children's book author, but beginning in the late '50s, he released a variety of albums, dabbling in multiple genres (jazz, folk, country, rock) and penning many memorable tunes. This 1959 debut features trad jazz quartet
the Red Onions, who frequently played in humorist
Jean Shepherd's variety nightclub act, backing
Silverstein's singing and poetry.
Silverstein's vocal style was still developing at this early stage, and he strikes a curious pose halfway between a beat poet and a drunken
Bessie Smith tribute act. Still, his vocals are surprisingly spot-on, and fans of his later work will love this passionate, outré outing through double entendre blues numbers such as "Broken Down Mama," "Go Back Where You Got It Last Night," and "Kitchen Man."