Ramsey Lewis - Hang On Ramsey! (1965)/Wade In The Water (1966)

UK Import

Because when you see a Ramsey Lewis BGO two-fer in the clearance bin for $3 you don't ask questions.

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HANG ON RAMSEY! (1965)
9 tracks, 45 minutes

Lewis was following up his #5 hit The 'In' Crowd with this live set of mostly pop covers recorded October 14-17, 1965 at The Lighthouse in Hermosa Beach, California.

The rear exterior of The Lighthouse as seen in the 2016 film La La Land.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #15
• Billboard R&B: #4
• CashBox: #14

Tracks: The lead track, a cover of The Beatles' A Hard Day's Night, peaked at #29 on the pop chart and the final track, a cover of Hang On Sloopy, peaked at #11 so there was some success in repeating the same formula (they both sound very similar to The 'In' Crowd and who could blame him?). The cover of And I Love Her is very tasty as well. But there's other styles here as Ramsey mixes it up with some traditional piano trio jazz tunes (Satin Doll) and one Lewis original. The sequencing and variety means you can just slip this disc in the tray, set it and forget it. It also makes me want to travel back to Hermosa Beach ca. 1965.

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WADE IN THE WATER (1966)
10 tracks, 33 minutes

This is a slightly different animal from the album above. While the overall groove remains the same, here we're treated to big band arrangements in addition to the piano trio. The credits go to Ramsey Lewis not the Ramsey Lewis Trio. Also, a drummer named Maurice White had joined the group.

CashBox, September 3, 1966, p. 60

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #16
• Billboard R&B: #2
• CashBox: #18

Tracks: The title track peaked at #19 on the pop chart in the fall of '66 while Hold It Right There (track 16 on this compilation) won a Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Group Performance - Vocal or Instrumental. Also good are the covers of Ain't That Peculiar, Uptight (Everything's Alright), Day Tripper, and Hurt So Bad. Oddly, the tune that doesn't quite work was written by Bacharach. Go figure.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Tequila Mockingbird (1977)