V/A - T-Bird Party! A Swangin' Slew of Greasy R&B - 1957-64

Label: Lido (Official?); Year: 1995; Format: Vinyl LP

Not too long ago I took a short bus trip to a relatively new record store in the suburbs of Buffalo, NY and returned home with a nice haul of interesting records, one of them being the compilation reviewed today. First and foremost though I learned that T-Bird is a colloquial for Fort Thunderbird, a personal luxury card entering the market in 1955. Considering the fact that the songs contained on this LP are all from 1957 through 1964 my guess is that a T-Bird Party would involve a drive-in restaurant where people gathered around their cars and fast food being served by girls on roller skates. It would also make sense that people attending those parties came up with ideas to start bands, after all it was the beginning of the Rock'N'Roll era and excitement was in the air. Unfortunately as with many of these compilations there is absolutely zero information provided about the artists featured, which is a big shame as this record seriously kicks ass and is still widely available on vinyl as well as on all streaming platforms. I really don't know whether Lido was actually a real record label, and I seriously doubt it. Regardless, the little information I have been able to find, mainly through discogs, is all I have and it will have to do. "A Swangin' Slew of Greasy R&B" actually describes all the songs fairly accurately as each one of them will take you on a wild trip to a time that in my imagination must have been much more exciting in many ways as the modern world we know and live in was just starting to take shape and music was part of that whole evolution. By the Mid-50s Rhythm and Blues has contributed to the development of Rock'N'Roll and the seventeen songs on this record highlight how exciting it must have been to be part of such an incredibly important period in our more recent history. Some of my favorite tracks to be found on this platter are 'Chewing Gum' by Danny Brown, 'The Kangaroo' by Charles Sheffield or 'The Chase' by Davey Jones. If you are interested in finding out how modern music has evolved over time, do yourself a favor and pick up this record or many others in this vein as they will not only enrich you musically but also culturally when it comes to the rich and vast history of African-American artists.