DJ Hairy Larry Presents Joe Lee Singing Lazy Gal Blues
From the Archives Of Something Blue 2025-07-13
Joe Lee At Jazz Thursday
Thanks Marty. Today we’re going to hear Papa Joe sing his hit, “Lazy Gal Blues”, recorded at KASU Jazz Thursday.
So I had this idea about starting Jazz Thursday with a featured act and then a musician participation act I called The Little Big Band that would read original charts and arrangements. This was a lot of fun and sometimes we had five horns playing in The Little Big Band.
On May 27, 2010, we had three horns, a crack trumpet section featuring Ron Horton, Craig Baker, and John Bartelt. In the rhythm section we had Shane Chastain, piano; Craig Collison, vibes; David Eckert, bass; and I’m on guitar.
All of these musicians were living in the Jonesboro area at the time of the show.
But the highlight of the evening was when Joe Lee sat down at the piano and sang “Lazy Gal Blues”, a song he wrote that gained substantial popularity when he released it on Alley Records.
On this podcast I try to present great Arkansas music and I work hard to get all the details right, knowing that this could be one of the few times that this particular show is covered. Sometimes I get to recover a lost gem.
And that’s how I feel today. Buried in the middle of the set was Papa Joe singing “Lazy Gal Blues”. The performance was great but the mix wasn’t that good. Usually I would skip past it and hope to record it again later.
But Joe Lee is gone and this was my one opportunity to preserve this song with this band.
I remember Craig Baker scratching out the arrangement before the show. Joe played the first solo and then Ron Horton took the second. This might be the only time Ron Horton played this song.
On the recording Joe’s voice was too quiet and the horns were too loud. This is not the first time this has happened with live recordings. Fortunately the arrangement has full band stops for every vocal line so after radical EQ and then boosting the vocal one phrase at a time I got Joe’s voice on top. I fixed a few other things and it’s not the best repair I’ve ever done but it’s the best I could do on this song. I think you will enjoy it. It puts a smile on my face.
So now, recorded at KASU Jazz Thursday on May 27, 2010, here’s Joe Lee singing “Lazy Gal Blues”.
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The Little Big Band At Jazz Thursday May 27, 2010
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And that’s Joe Lee singing his own song, “Lazy Gal Blues”, at KASU Jazz Thursday. Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00, to hear more from The Little Big Band, Billy Cobham, and Bob James.
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This is Hairy Larry inviting you to enjoy Something Blue every Saturday night at ten. This week we’re featuring Billy Cobham, Bob James, and The Little Big Band. For more about the show visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.
Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM Central, at kasu.org.
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