As a portrait of the down-and-out, street-level life of a junkie in 1958, Blues From the Gutter must have had quite an appeal to the album-buying public of the beat poets’ era. Dupree’s moods actually range from grim to upbeat, but the emphasis is on drugs, illness, and impending death. Guitarist Larry Dale (Ennis Lowery), a key figure in postwar New York City blues, adds a level of electric intensity to Dupree’s already remarkable blues with his powerful guitar solos. Some tracks sound straight out of Dupree’s hometown of New Orleans, and ‘Junker’s Blues’ is a remake of the 1941 Dupree original that inspired Fats Domino’s ‘The Fat Man.’ This was the last record Dupree made in the U.S. before taking up residency in Europe in 1959.
1. Strollin’
2. T.B. Blues
3. Can’t Kick the Habit
4. Evil Woman
5. Nasty Boogie
6. Junker’s Blues
7. Bad Blood
8. Goin’ Down Slow
9. Frankie and Johnny
10. Stack-O-Lee
Recorded in New York City, Feb. 4, 1958. Released on LP as Atlantic 8019 in 1958; reissued on LP as Atlantic SD 8255; released on CD as Atlantic 82434, 1992.
–Jim O’Neal
www.stackhouse-bluesoterica.blogspot.com