Hour #4 of this week’s Blues Before Sunrise settles firmly into the electric blues tradition, with recordings that span Texas, Chicago, and the broader postwar blues scene. It is a muscular, guitar-driven hour, filled with hard-edged performances, strong personalities, and musicians who helped shape the sound of modern blues.

The hour begins with Melvin Daniels and “Boogie in the Moonlight,” an appropriate opening for a set that quickly moves into some of the most recognizable names in electric blues. T-Bone Walker follows with three recordings: “I’m in an Awful Mood,” “T-Bone Jumps Again,” and “She’s Going to Ruin Me.” Walker’s sophisticated guitar style helped establish the vocabulary of electric blues guitar, influencing countless players who followed.

Lowell Fulson continues the Texas-to-West-Coast blues connection with “My Baby Can’t Be Found,” “Mama Bring Your Clothes Back Home,” and “Midnight & Day.” Fulson had a distinctive ability to combine the directness of traditional blues with the harder, more polished sound of postwar rhythm and blues.

Lester Williams follows with “Don’t Leave Me Baby,” before Buster Pickens contributes “Mountain Jack Blues.” Pickens was an important Houston pianist whose playing represents the piano-driven side of Texas blues.

Peppermint Harris brings the hour back toward rhythm and blues with “My Blues Have Rolled Away,” followed by Frankie Lee Simms and “I Done Talked & I Done Talked.” Simms was another Houston-area musician whose recordings reveal the close relationship between blues, R&B, and the emerging rock-and-roll sound of the 1950s.

Mance Lipscomb offers “Sugar Babe,” providing a more traditional acoustic flavor before the Big Three Trio delivers two sides: “If the Sea Was Whiskey” and “I Ain’t Gonna Be Your Monkey Man.” The trio, which included Willie Dixon, was an important link between Chicago blues, vocal harmony, and the developing postwar R&B scene.

Johnny Fuller follows with “Roughest Place in Town,” bringing another strong West Coast blues voice into the hour. King Solomon contributes “Mr. Badluck” and “S.K. Blues,” continuing the parade of lesser-known blues artists whose recordings are exactly the sort of material that makes the BBS library so interesting.

Al King closes the hour with “On My Way.” Like many of the recordings heard here, it is a reminder that the history of the blues extends well beyond the handful of names that usually dominate compilations and histories.

Taken as a whole, Hour #4 is a tour through several important branches of electric blues. T-Bone Walker represents the sophisticated Texas guitar tradition; Lowell Fulson brings together Texas roots and West Coast R&B; the Houston musicians add their own regional flavor; and the Chicago connections emerge through the Big Three Trio. The result is a set that feels both familiar and exploratory.

This is the kind of blues listening that Blues Before Sunrise does especially well: established artists alongside musicians who deserve another listen, all connected by the sound and spirit of the blues.

Playlist

BOOGIE IN THE MOONLIGHT — MELVIN DANIELS
I’M IN AN AWFUL MOOD — T-BONE WALKER
T-BONE JUMPS AGAIN — T-BONE WALKER
SHE’S GOING TO RUIN ME — T-BONE WALKER
MY BABY CAN’T BE FOUND — LOWELL FULSON
MAMA BRING YOUR CLOTHES BACK HOME — LOWELL FULSON
MIDNIGHT & DAY — LOWELL FULSON
DON’T LEAVE ME BABY — LESTER WILLIAMS
MOUNTAIN JACK BLUES — BUSTER PICKENS
MY BLUES HAVE ROLLED AWAY — PEPPERMINT HARRIS
I DONE TALKED & I DONE TALKED — FRANKIE LEE SIMMS
SUGAR BABE — MANCE LIPSCOMB
IF THE SEA WAS WHISKEY — BIG THREE TRIO
I AIN’T GONNA BE YOUR MONKEY MAN — BIG THREE TRIO
ROUGHEST PLACE IN TOWN — JOHNNY FULLER
MR. BADLUCK — KING SOLOMON
S.K. BLUES — KING SOLOMON
ON MY WAY — AL KING