I Pity the Fool: The Duke Recordings, Vol. 1 (1992)

About this title: Everything the young Bland waxed for Duke between 1952 and the 1960 date that produced "Cry, Cry, Cry" and the R&B-laced "Don't Cry No More." From 1955 on, this is uniformly seminal stuff, Bland's vocal confidence growing by the session and buttressed by the consistently innovative riffs and solos of guitarists Clarence Hollimon, Wayne Bennett (he's amazing on a torrid "You Did Me Wrong"), Roy Gaines and Pat Hare. "Farther Up the Road," the exotic ballad "Hold Me Tenderly," "Little Boy Blue," and the title track are but few of the two-disc collection's many standouts. No blues fan should be ... read more

Tracks:

1. I.O.U. Blues [Mattis/Robey]
2. Lovin' Blues [Mattis/Robey]
3. No Blow, No Show [Mattis/Robey]
4. Wise Man's Blues [Mattis]
5. Army Blues [Mattis/Robey]
6. It's My Life, Baby [Robey/Washington]
7. Lost Lover Blues [Robey]
8. Honey Bee [Robey]
9. Time Out [Robey]
10. You or None [Alternate Take] [Clifton/Robey]
11. A Million Miles from Nowhere [Petty]
12. You or None [Clifton/Robey]
13. I Woke up Screaming [Headen]
14. I Can't Put You Down Baby [Robey]
15. You've Got Bad Intentions [Scott]
16. I Don't Believe [Robey]
17. I Learned My Lesson [Copeland]
18. Don't Want No Woman [Robey]
19. I Smell Trouble [Robey]
20. Sometime Tomorrow [Harper/Robey/Scott]
21. Farther up the Road [Robey/Veasey]
22. Teach Me (How to Love You) [Harper/Scott]
23. Bobby's Blues [Robey/Scott]
24. Loan Me a Helping Hand [Robey/Scott]
25. You Got Me (Where You Want Me) [Robey]
26. Last Night [Robey]
27. Little Boy Blue [Harper/Scott]
28. I Lost Sight of the World [LP Version] [Malone]
29. You Did Me Wrong [Malone]
30. I Lost Sight of the World [Single Version] [Malone]
31. I'm Not Ashamed [Robey/Scott]
32. Wishing Well [Robey]
33. Is It Real? [Malone]
34. That's Why [Koss]
35. Hold Me Tenderly [Malone]
36. Someday [Green]
37. I'll Take Care of You [Benton]
38. Cry Cry Cry [Malone]
39. Lead Me On [Malone]
40. I've Been Wrong So Long [Agee/Malone]
41. I Pity the Fool [Malone]
42. Close to You [Agee/Malone]
43. Two Steps from the Blues [Brown/Malone]
44. Don't Cry No More [Malone]

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.