45 RPMs 103: Bill Doggett ~ Honky Tonk Pt. 1 & 2

  ~    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today is the birthday of one of my favorite 50's composers, Bill Doggett. Born on Wednesday, February 16, 1916, in Philadelphia, he was an American pianist and organist. 

 

Doggett and Shep Shepard wrote one of my favorite songs to dance to, Honky Tonk, when I was in my mid-teens in junior high school (that's what it was called back then). It is a moderately paced tune that, depending on your mood and who you're dancing with, can be slow or fast danced to. And of course, Clifford Scott sends me out of this world with his incredible sax work.      

 

The year previously Doggett did an instrumental version of What A Diff'rence A Day Made that he completely knocked out of the park. While he played keyboard he is accompanied by a terrific sax (don't know if it was Scott). Where Dinah Washington sings it slow and dreamy, Doggett rocks it out. And rock hadn´t even been invented yet!          

 

Bill Doggett began his career playing swing music then went into rhythm and blues; he was a pioneer of rock and roll and is known for his instrumental compositions Honky Tonk and Hippy Dippy, He worked with some of the great musicians of the period: the Ink Spots, Johnny Otis, Wynonie Harris, Ella Fitzgerald, and Louis Jordan were some of them.              

 

He continued to play and arrange until he died when he was 80 from cancer on November 13, 1996, in New York City.       

 

 

 

Bill Doggett - Honky Tonk 

45 RPM record 

photo by Styrous® 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bill Doggett - Honky Tonk. parts 1 & 2 

45 RPM record 

photo by Styrous® 

 

 

 

        

Tracklist:

Side 1:

A - Honky Tonk (Part 1) - 2:40

Side 2:

B - Honky Tonk (Part 2) - 2:32

Companies, etc.

    Published By – Billace

 Credits:

 

      Written-By – Doggett*, Butler*, Scott*, Shepherd*

 

Notes:

Label variant "High" not italicized
Slightly shorter writers credit line
Runouts are etched

(Billace-BMI)

Instrumental

High Fidelity

Barcode and Other Identifiers        

         

    Rights Society: BMI
    Matrix / Runout (A-side - label): 45—K8767
    Matrix / Runout (B-side - label): 45—K8768
    Matrix / Runout (A-side runout, variant 1): K-45-8767-1
    Matrix / Runout (B-side runout, variant 1): K-45-8768-2
    Matrix / Runout (A-side runout, variant 2): K-45-8767-1
    Matrix / Runout (B-side runout, variant 2): K-45-8768-1
    Matrix / Runout (A-side runout, variant 3): K-45-8767-2
    Matrix / Runout (B-side runout, variant 3): K-45-8768-2

Bill Doggett – Honky Tonk
Label: King Records (3) – 45-4950
Format: Vinyl, 7", Single, 45 RPM
Country: US
Released: 1956
Genre: Funk / Soul, Blues
Style: Rhythm & Blues, Instrumental

        

        

        

        

Viewfinder links:       

        

Billy Butler        

Bill Doggett        

Ella Fitzgerald         

Wynonie Harris               

The Ink Spots        

Louis Jordan         

Johnny Otis       

Clifford Scott         

Shep Shepard       

Dinah Washington            

 

 

        
         

     
Net links:       

         

         

         

        
     
YouTube links:      
        
        

Bill Doggett ~ Honky Tonk Pt. 1 & 2         

      
        
         

        

        

Styrous® ~ Monday, February 16, 2026 

~

45 RPMs Archive
MAIN MENU - Blog Articles
~

      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20,000 vinyl LPs 322: Hellen Miller & Linda Hopkins ~ Inner City

 ~  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

             Linda Hopkins ~  

        Inner City
      vinyl LP front cover detail 

 detail photo by Styrous®

 

Inner City was an album cover purchase; I bought it because of the cover graphics. I would do that a lot when purchasing an album. I was not disappointed; it was how I discovered Linda Hopkins.            

 

Today is her birthday. Linda Hopkins is a blues and gospel singer who was born Melinda Helen Matthews on December 14, 1924, in New Orleans, Louisiana. When she was performing at the Slim Jenkin's Night Club on 7th Street, in the West Oakland area (link below), she met Johnny Otis as well as Little Esther Phillips who created her stage name, "Linda Hopkins".                 

 

 

Linda Hopkins  

photo by Sue Story  

 

During the 1970s, Matthews (Hopkins) performed in the Broadway musical, Purlie, with Sammy Davis Jr. for nine months. In addition, she performed at President Jimmy Carter's 1977 inaugural ball.      

 

Miller had a love of rhythm and blues music and in 1971, she collaborated with poet and lyricist Eve Merriam to write an R&B-influenced score for the musical Inner City, which was conceived by Tom O'Horgan who had previously directed Hair and Jesus Christ Superstar.. Based on Merriam's widely banned book, The Inner City Mother Goose, the show had a successful run of 97 performances on Broadway. It was described as "the musical that rocked Broadway with its distinctly untraditional take on modern urban life," with Matthews's music being compared to that of The Chi-Lites. In 1972 she was awarded a Tony and Drama Desk Award for her performance in Inner City.               

 

Matthews (Hopkins) first saw Bessie Smith perform Empty Bed Blues at The New Orleans Palace Theatre in 1936. She greatly admired Smith and later won critical plaudits for her rendition of Smith in the 1959 theatrical presentation Jazz Train. In 1974 she starred in Me and Bessie, a one-woman show paying homage to the blues icon, conceived and written by Hopkins and Will Holt.        

 

 

 

Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP front cover
Cover Artwork – Lenny Meyer

photo of cover by Styrous®

 

 

Hellen Miller wrote the music for Inner City and some of the songs were sung by Hopkins. One of those tunes is the absolutely beautiful Deep In The Night; my favorite song of the show (link below).  

          

Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP front cover detail
Cover Artwork – Lenny Meyer

detail photo of cover by Styrous®

Hoplins goes back to her gospel roots with the song It’s My Belief a bouncey, gentle tune with a fine piano and horn backup.            

Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP back cover
Cover Artwork – Lenny Meyer

photo of cover by Styrous®

 

 

 

The album cover is a gatefold with a lot of good photographs of the production by Bert Andrews included in it.         

Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP inner gatefold
photos by Bert Andrews

photo of inner gatefold by Styrous®

 

Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP inner gatefold detail
photos by Bert Andrews

detail photo of inner gatefold by Styrous®

Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP inner gatefold detail
photos by Bert Andrews

detail photo of inner gatefold by Styrous®

Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP inner gatefold detail
photos by Bert Andrews

detail photo of inner gatefold by Styrous®

Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP inner gatefold detail

detail photos of inner gatefold by Styrous®

 

 Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP, side 1

photo by Styrous®

 Hellen Miller ~ Inner City

vinyl LP, side 2

photo by Styrous®

  

Tracklist:

Side 1:

A1 - Fee Fi Fo Fum/Now I Lay Me    1:12
A2 - Hushaby/My Mother Said    2:50
A3 - Nub Of The Nation    1:47
A4 - Urban Mary/City Life/One Misty Moisty Morning    2:42
A5 - If Wishes Were Horses    2:07
A6 - Deep In The Night    4:56
A7 - Jeremiah Obadiah/Riddle Song    2:58

Side 2:

A8 - Shadow Of The Sun - 3:00
A9 - Boys And Girls Come Out To Play/Lucy Locket/Wisdom/The Hooker (“You Make It Your Way”) - 3:53
B1 - Law And Order - 3:07
B2 - The Dealer (“You Push It Your Way”) - 2:40
B3 - Kindness/As I Went Over/Apartment House/There Was A Little Man/Who Killed Nobody? - 6:17
B4 - It’s My Belief - 3:43
B5 - Street Sermon - 6:02
B6 - The Great If/On This Rock/The Great If (Reprise) - 4:44

Companies, etc.

    Published By – Sunbeam Music Inc.
    Recorded At – RCA Studio C
    Copyright © – RCA Records

Credits:

    Arranged By [Vocals] – Helen Miller
    Artwork [Cover] – Lenny Meyer
    Directed By – Tom O'Horgan
    Edited By – Don Miller
    Engineer – Bob Simpson
    Lyrics By – Eve Merriam
    Music By – Helen Miller
    Orchestrated By, Arranged By, Conductor – Gordon Harrell
    Photography By – Bert Andrews
    Producer [Associate] – Harvey Milk (2), John M. Nagel
    Sleeve Notes – Eve Merriam
    Stage Manager – Nicholas Russiyan
    Technician – Gus Mossler, Pat Martin
    Vocals – Allan Nicholls (3), Carl Hall, Delores Hall, Florence Tarlow, Fluffer Hirsch, Joy Garrett, Larry Marshall*, Linda Hopkins, Paulette Ellen Jones
    Written-By [story] – Eve Merriam

Notes:

Musical based on "The Inner City Mother Goose" by Eve Merriam
Gatefold sleeve contains notes and production photos.

Dynaflex vinyl.

 
Helen Miller, Eve Merriam – Inner City (The Original Broadway Cast Recording)
Label: RCA Victor – LSO-1171
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Gatefold
Country: US
Released: 1972
Genre: Funk / Soul, Blues, Pop, Stage & Screen
Style: Soul, Funk, Piano Blues, Musical
   

         

Viewfinder links:        

         

Sammy Davis, Jr.           

Linda Hopkins        

Harold “Slim” Jenkins         

Tom O'Horgan         

Johnny Otis        

Esther Phillips         

Bessie Smith         

        

Net links:        

        

         

        

        

         

        

        

YouTube links:        

        

Linda Hopkins ~    

            Deep In the Night          

            Deep In the Night (live) (1970)                

            It’s My Belief          

            It’s My Belief (live) (1972)               

        

         

         

        

 

        

         

        

        

        

        

Styrous® ~ Tuesday, December 14, 2021       
       

~

20,000 Vinyl LPs Archive
MAIN MENU - Blog Articles
~

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Johnny Otis articles/mentions

~     
     
     
     
mentions:            

Hellen Miller & Linda Hopkins ~ Inner City   
Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams    
     
     
     
     
     
     

Johnny Otis 

photo by Billy Vera

     

    

    

     

      

     

      

  

Viewfinder links:       

        

~

Music People
MAIN MENU - Blog Articles
~

      

20,000 vinyl LPs 250: Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams

~       

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP front cover 

album design by Mike Salisbury 

cover Illustration by W. T. Vinson

photo of album cover by Styrous®

Today is the birthday of Ike Turner who was born in 1931 in Clarksdale, Mississippi to Creole parents. When Turner applied for his first passport in the 1960s, he discovered that his name was registered as Ike Wister Turner. By then both of his parents were deceased, so he could not verify the origin of his name.             

In 1957, Turner met Ann Bullock (Tina Turner) at Club Manhattan in East St. Louis, Illinois. Turner and Bullock eventually began having an affair and she became pregnant in January 1960. Following the formation of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue and the birth of their son Ronnie in October 1960, they were married in Tijuana in 1962.         

 

 

Ike & Tina Turner - 1968 

photographer unknown
 

 

In his 1999 autobiography, Turner claimed that he was still legally married to Alice Bell when he married Tina; Turner states that he located Bell in Chicago and divorced her. Turner claimed on more than one occasion that he had never been officially married to Tina. They divorced in March, 1978. Tina retained songwriter royalties from songs she had written, but Ike got the publishing royalties for his compositions and hers. She also kept her two Jaguar cars, furs and jewelry along with her stage name. Tina gave Ike her share of their Bolic Sound recording studio, publishing companies, and real estate, and he kept his four cars.      

       

 

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP back cover 

photo by Styrous®

He has been hailed as a "great innovator" of rock and roll by contemporaries such as Little Richard and Johnny Otis. Rolling Stone magazine editor David Fricke ranked Turner No. 61 on his list of 100 Greatest Guitarists and noted, "Turner was one of the first guitarists to successfully transplant the intensity of the blues into more-commercial music." Turner won five Grammy Awards, including two competitive awards and three Grammy Hall of Fame Awards. Turner was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Tina Turner in 1991. He is also inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame, the Clarksdale Walk of Fame, the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame, the Blues Hall of Fame, and the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame.       

 

 

Ike Turner, Grammy Award - 1972 

photographer unknown 

Bad Dreams is a studio album by musician Ike Turner released on United Artists Records in 1973. The album cover was illustrated by W. T. Vinson and designed by Mike Salisbury who also created the cover for the Ike & Tina Turner album Live! The World of Ike & Tina.        

 

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP back cover detail 

detail photo by Styrous®

 

 

As with every album I like, I have a favorite song; on this one it is Don't Hold Your Breath which starts out fairly quietly with him humming; it's a moderate speed tempo that builds to a driving beat. 

  

       

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP back cover detail 

detail photo by Styrous®

 

 

Rats is a strange song; the music is fast and staccato but Turner speaks the lyrics as opposed to sing them. I believe he is talking about people, actually.       

 

 

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP back cover detail 

detail photo by Styrous®

 

 

On December 10, 2007, Turner told Falina Rasool that he believed he was dying and would not live until Christmas. As he predicted, he died two days later, on December 12, at the age of 76, at his home in San Marcos, California, near San Diego.           

 

 

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP, side 1 

photo by Styrous®

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP label, side 1 

photo by Styrous®

 

 

 

 

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP, side 2 

photo by Styrous®

Ike Turner ~ Bad Dreams 

vinyl LP label, side 2 

photo by Styrous®

   

Tracklist:

Side 1:

A1 - These Dreams - 2:53
A2 - That's How Much I Love You - 2:52
A3 - One Nite Stand - 3:27
A4 - Don't Hold Your Breath - 3:45
A5 - (You Can Have) The City - 3:42

Side 2:

B1 - Flockin' With You - 2:50
B2 - Take A Walk With Me - 3:26
B3 - Later For Baby -     2:37
B4 - Rats - 4:00
B5 - I Love The Way You Love - 2:42

Notes:
 

Produced By Ike Turner, Warren Dawson & Soko Richardson.
Arranged By Ike Turner.
Engineers: Ike Turner, Barry Keene & John Mills.
Recorded At Bolic Sound, Inglewood, California. March 1973.
Cover Illustration By Mike Salisbury.
Album Design By Mike Salisbury.

Ike Turner ‎– Bad Dreams
Label: United Artists Records ‎– UA-LA087-F
Format: Vinyl, LP, Stereo
Country: US
Released: 1973Little Richard
Genre: Funk / Soul, Blues

 

 

   

         

Viewfinder links:        

        

Little Richard         

Johnny Otis       

Ike Turner        

Tina Turner        

        

Net links:        

        

Mike Salisbury        

W. T. Vinson        

        

YouTube links:        

       

Ike Turner ~ 

       Bad Dreams Pt. 1             

       Bad Dreams Pt. 2            

Ike Turner ~ Don't Hold Your Breath         

       Rats       

       Interview                

        

        

         

 

“I believe I was ahead of my time.” 

                 ~ Ike Turner

 

         

        

        

        

Styrous® ~ Thursday, November 5, 2020       
       

~

20,000 Vinyl LPs Archive
MAIN MENU - Blog Articles
~