Freddie Slack - Mr. Five By Five: The Singles Collection 1940-49 (2022)

Freddie Slack was a boogie-woogie pianist and swing bandleader who started out with Jimmy Dorsey’s band in the 1930s and subsequently racked up a string of hits in the 1940s, first with the Will Bradley Orchestra and then leading his own band, some of them with the fine singers Ella Mae Morse and Margaret Whiting on vocals. This 49-track 2-CD collection begins with his hits with the Will Bradley Orchestra on Columbia, and then comprises selected A & B sides from his releases on Decca and Capitol through to the time he left the label, and did not release any records for another five years. It features all his chart entries with Will Bradley, including the Top 10 hits “Beat Me Daddy Eight To The Bar”, “Down The Road Apiece”, “Scrub Me Mama With A Boogie Beat” and “There I Go”, plus all his career pop and R&B hits with his own band, including the Top 10 successes “Cow-Cow Boogie”, “Mister Five By Five”, “That Old Black Magic”, “Riffette” and “The House Of Blue Lights”. Along with hits that feature Ella Mae Morse, Margaret Whiting and Liza Morrow, it features his hit with Johnny Mercer, “I Lost My Sugar In Salt Lake City”. Other featured vocalists are David Street and Charlotte Blackburn, and there are also notable recordings accompanying blues singers Big Joe Turner and T-Bone Walker. It’s a highly entertaining showcase for the range of his music, especially his renowned boogie-woogie piano.
Tracklist
CD1

01. Will Bradley & His Orch - Beat Me Daddy Eight To The Bar
02. Will Bradley & His Orch - Celery Stalks At Midnight
03. Will Bradley Trio - Down The Road A Piece
04. Will Bradley & His Orch Feat. Ray Mckinley - Scrub Me Mama, With A Boogie Beat
05. Will Bradley & His Orch Feat. Ray Mckinley - There I Go
06. Will Bradley & His Orch - High On A Windy Hill
07. Joe Turner & Freddie Slack - Rocks In My Bed
08. Joe Turner & Freddie Slack - Goin' To Chicago Blues
09. Freddie Slack & His 8 Beats - Pig Foot Pete
10. Freddie Slack & His 8 Beats - Strange Cargo
11. Joe Turner & Freddie Slack - Sun Risin' Blues
12. Joe Turner & Freddie Slack - Blues On Central Avenue
13. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Cow Cow Boogie
14. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Here You Are
15. Johnny Mercer With The Freddie Slack Orchestra - The Air Minded Executive
16. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Doll Dance
17. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Mr. Five By Five
18. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - The Thrill Is Gone
19. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Wreck Of The Old '97
20. Johnny Mercer with, Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - I Lost My Sugar In Salt Lake City
21. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Hit The Road To Dreamland
22. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - That Old Black Magic
23. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Riffette
24. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Get On Board, Little Children

CD2

01. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Old Rob Roy
02. T-Bone Walker with Freddie Slack, Piano - I Got A Break, Baby
03. T-Bone Walker with Freddie Slack, Piano - Mean Old World
04. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Silver Wings In The Moonlight
05. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Ain't That Just Like A Man?
06. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Swinging On A Star
07. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Cuban Sugar Mill
08. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - A Kiss Goodnight
09. Freddie Slack With Ella Mae Morse And Don Raye - The House Of Blue Lights
10. Ella Mae Morse With Freddie Slack - Hey, Mr Postman
11. Ella Mae Morse With Freddie Slack - Your Conscience Tells You So
12. Freddie Slack 8 Beats - Rib Joint
13. Freddie Slack 8 Beats - Behind The Eight Beat
14. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Southpaw Serenade
15. Freddie Slack’s Eight Beats By Four - A Cat’s Ninth Life
16. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Kitten On The Keys
17. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Beverly Boogie
18. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Is I Gotta Practise, Ma?
19. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Boogie Minor
20. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Strollin'
21. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Ooh, Ooh, Baby
22. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Steal Away, Easy, Baby
23. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Be-Bop Boogie
24. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Mister Freddie’s Boogie
25. Freddie Slack And His Orchestra - Whatever Happened To Ol' Jack