L.A. Blues
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L.A. Blues is the Los Angeles strand of West Coast blues: urbane, studio-polished, horn-friendly, and closely tied to jump blues and rhythm and blues. Its sound features clean electric guitar, cocktail piano, small horn sections, relaxed swing, cool vocals, and arrangements built for clubs, jukeboxes, and independent-label singles.
History
Los Angeles became a postwar blues capital through wartime migration, Central Avenue nightlife, and labels including Modern, Aladdin, Specialty, Imperial, Swing Time, and Combo. T-Bone Walker's L.A. recordings set the electric guitar standard, while Charles Brown's smooth after-hours blues, Johnny Otis's bandleading, Roy Milton's jump-R&B, Pee Wee Crayton's guitar instrumentals, and Amos Milburn's boogie hits defined the city's blues ecosystem. L.A. Blues shaped early rock and roll, West Coast R&B, smooth blues singing, and later revival bands who prized the city's sophisticated charts.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- Arnold Shaw, Honkers and Shouters
- Johnny Otis, Listen to the Lambs
- AllMusic
- The Blues Foundation