Juke In The Back With Matt The Cat

02/11/2025

The SPIDERS – New Orleans is not known for its R&B vocal groups. In a city where jazz, blues and zydeco thrive, one vocal group rose to the top: The Spiders. In two short years, the Spiders landed enduring hits like "I Didn't Want To Do It," "I'm Slippin' In" and "Witchcraft," led by brothers Chuck and Chick Carbo. They were produced by the legendary Dave Bartholomew and recorded at Cosimo Matassa's J&M Studios with the cream of New Orleans' session musicians. When the hits stopped coming, Chuck Carbo left the group for a solo career, thus ending their time in the spotlight. Matt The Cat explores The Spiders' story on this week's "Juke In The Back." You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://exchange.prx.org/p/594273

New Orleans is not known for its R&B vocal groups. In a city where jazz, blues and zydeco thrive, one vocal group rose to the top: The Spiders. In two short years, the Spiders landed enduring hits like "I Didn't Want To Do It," "I'm Slippin' In" and "Witchcraft." Matt The Cat explores The Spiders' s...

26/10/2025

HALLOWEEN RHYTHM & BLUES - Matt The Cat experiences some paranormal rhythms coming out of his “Juke In The Back” as we celebrate the truly spooky, sinister and down-right crazy sounds of a vintage rhythm & blues Halloween. Eugene Fox meets the devil, The Hollywood Flames take us to Frankenstein’s Den and Bill Doggett throws a Monster’s Party. It’s a treat, not a trick to hear an alternate take of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ 1956 classic, “I Put A Spell On You,” with EXTRA screaming and a killer sax solo payed by Sam “The Man” Taylor. So clear your voodoo calendar and dig the sounds from the outer bounds on this week’s Halloween edition of the “Juke In The Back.” You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://exchange.prx.org/p/593626

Matt The Cat celebrates Halloween with the scariest, spookiest and most sinister vintage rhythm & blues records ever made! It's the disembodied "soul that came before rock n' roll" on this week's "Juke In The Back."

20/10/2025

Thanks to Delmarva Public Media for interviewing me for their latest radio mag.

This month, we go behind the mic with Matt the Cat, host of Juke in the Back on WESM and WSDL.

19/10/2025

ATLANTIC RECORDS, Pt. 14 – CAT RECORDS - Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The Back" present this behemoth, 14 part series celebrating the first 10 years of Atlantic's existence: 1947-57. This week in part fourteen, Matt The Cat focuses on Atlantic's first subsidiary label, Cat Records. Atlantic set Cat up to be their Rock n’ Roll label, but after only a year and a half and 18 single releases, they decided to dissolve it in favor of ATCO Records. During those 18 78s and 45s, Cat issued some smokin’ Rhythm & Blues, jivin’ vocal groups as well as a few pop and novelty records. Cat Records only enjoyed one national hit, “Sh-Boom” by The Chords, but what a spectacular hit it was. It topped out at #2 on the R&B chart and crossed-over to an impressive #5 Pop. R&B greats Floyd Dixon, Jimmy Lewis, Margie Day and songwriter Rose Marie McCoy all stopped by Cat for one or two releases AND the first Mickey & Sylvia record was issued on Cat in 1954. This is the final installment in our 14 part series on the history of Atlantic Records, so buckle in for another audio adventure with the "Juke In The Back." You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://exchange.prx.org/p/592512

Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the b...

12/10/2025

TERRY JOHNSON of the Whispers, Flamingos and Starglows (just to name a few groups) died on Wednesday, October 8th in Las Vegas at the age of 86. I was fortunate enough to interview Terry during my time at XM Radio and he was not only a true gentleman, but also a wealth of information on The Flamingos, whom he joined in late 1956, and the vocal group happenings of the 1950s and 60s. "Are You Sorry" on Gotham from 1955 remains a vocal group classic as does his work with the Flamingos, "Ladder of Love," "Lovers Never Say Goodbye" and of course "I Only Have Eyes For You," which Terry arranged. He was a giant in the vocal group world and he will sorely be missed. RIP "Buzzy"!
David Hinckley does a great, concise job pulling Terry's story together.

Ask any collector of 1950s rhythm and vocal group music for his or her favorite artists, and every list will include the Flamingos.

12/10/2025

ATLANTIC RECORDS, Pt. 13 – ATCO RECORDS - Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The Back" present this behemoth, 14 part series celebrating the first 10 years of Atlantic's existence: 1947-57. This week in part thirteen, Matt The Cat focuses on Atlantic's most successful subsidiary label, ATCO Records. When Atlantic co-founder, Herb Abramson returned from his military duty in 1955, he found a very different company that had continued to grow without him. His partner, Ahmet Ertegun suggested starting a subsidiary that would be fully managed by Abramson and so ATCO was born. ATCO originally focused more on vocal groups than its parent company had. The first national hit for the label was by The Sensations, a Philly group that featured Yvonne Mills on lead. The Royal Jokers, The Pearls, The Castelles and The Ray-O-Vacs also released singles on ATCO, but by far the biggest vocal group on the label was The Coasters. They came over in a big deal that Atlantic struck with songwriter/producers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. Atlantic would buy Leiber/Stoller's Spark records and take on the two of them as staff songwriters/producers. Some of their signed artists were also included in the deal and that's what brought Carl Gardner and Bobby Nunn of the Robins over to Atlantic to form a new group called The Coasters. They scored ATCO's first #1 record with "Searchin'." So buckle in and prepare yourself for an in-depth look at the history of ATCO Records on this week's "Juke In The Back." You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://exchange.prx.org/p/591715

Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the b...

05/10/2025

ATLANTIC RECORDS, Pt. 12 – 1957 - Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The Back" present this behemoth, 14 part series celebrating the first 10 years of Atlantic's existence: 1947-57. This week in part twelve, we wrap up the focus on the parent label, Atlantic by looking at its major releases from the end of 1956 through 1957. Chuck Willis scores the biggest hit of his career with his rendition of the traditional tune, "C. C. Rider," a little over a year before his untimely death. LaVern Baker sails to the top of the chart as "Jim Dandy" crosses over into the Pop Chart, extending its mass appeal as Rock n' Roll becomes mainstream Pop Music. Atlantic takes advantage of Rock's mainstream appeal and begins to smooth out its rough R&B sound for a more poppy approach. Ray Charles continues to develop his sound, scoring more hits and even crossing over to Pop himself with his reinterpretation of Stephen Foster's whimsical look at slavery. The Bobbettes, Drifters and Penguins add some fantastic vocal group records to round out part twelve. Next week, we'll begin looking at Atlantic's successful subsidiary labels. So buckle in and prepare yourself for an in-depth, 14 part look at the history of Atlantic Records, which could also be described as a look at the history of American Music itself. You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://exchange.prx.org/p/590793

Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the b...

28/09/2025

ATLANTIC RECORDS, Pt. 11 – 1956 - Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The Back" present this behemoth, 14 part series celebrating the first 10 years of Atlantic's existence: 1947-57. This week in part eleven, we'll focus on 1956. It's the first year that Rock n' Roll was solidly placed in the mainstream of popular music. Atlantic began to soften and smooth out its rough R&B sound a bit during 1956 and onward, in order to appeal to the new Rock n' Roll audience. Joe Turner scored his only pop hit with "Corrine Corrina," which hit #41 Pop and #2 R&B and The Drifters continued to chart without Clyde McPhatter as "Ruby Baby" and "I Got To Get Myself A Woman" feature Johnny Moore handing the lead. Chuck Willis makes his Atlantic debut this year with "It's Too Late," while Ivory Joe Hunter scores his 4th and final #1 single as an Atlantic artist. His 3 previous chart-toppers were waxed for MGM and Pacific Records. Clyde McPhatter and Ray Charles also top the charts this year, while Ruth Brown has a very quiet 1956, chart-wise. So buckle in and prepare yourself for an in-depth, 14 part look at the history of Atlantic Records, which could also be described as a look at the history of American Music itself. You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://exchange.prx.org/p/589827

Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the b...

21/09/2025

ATLANTIC RECORDS, Pt. 10 – 1955-56 - Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The Back" present this behemoth, 14 part series celebrating the first 10 years of Atlantic's existence: 1947-57. This week in part ten, we'll focus on the last half of 1955 and the beginning of 1956. Clyde McPhatter officially left the Drifters in July of '55, but his first solo record, "Everyone's Laughing," was indeed a Drifters record from their last recording session together. McPhatter would have to wait until early 1956 to have his first solo hit with "Seven Days." Ruth Brown continued to rack up the hits, including one with her then flame, McPhatter called "Love Has Joined Us Together." During this time, Ray Charles scores another #1, giving him 3 #1 singles in just over a year. The Clovers, Joe Turner and LaVern Baker continue their hit-streaks, while Atlantic takes very few chances on new, unproven artists. They do groom The Cookies as backup singers to their stars as well as releasing singles on their own. "In Paradise" turns out to be a surprise hit of early 1956. They would soon embark on a new career singing backup for Ray Charles. So buckle in and prepare yourself for an in-depth, 14 part look at the history of Atlantic Records, which could also be described as a look at the history of American Music itself. You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://exchange.prx.org/p/589004

Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the b...

14/09/2025

ATLANTIC RECORDS, Pt. 9 – 1955 - Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The Back" present this behemoth, 14 part series celebrating the first 10 years of Atlantic's existence: 1947-57. This week in part nine, we'll focus on 1955, one of the biggest years in Atlantic's storied history. Ruth Brown, Joe Turner and LaVern Baker continue to score solid hits, but the real story of 1955 is Ray Charles. He has two #1 records this year with "I've Got A Woman," heard at the end of last week's program and "A Fool For You," which topped the charts in early August. Brotha Ray was knocked out of the top spot by Chuck Berry's "Maybellene." We'll also hear some important vocal group records from The Clovers, The Cardinals and The Regals. So buckle in and prepare yourself for an in-depth, 14 part look at the history of Atlantic Records, which could also be described as a look at the history of American Music itself. You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://exchange.prx.org/p/588101

Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the b...

07/09/2025

ATLANTIC RECORDS, Pt. 8 – 1954, Pt. 2 - Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n’ Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the “Juke In The Back” present this behemoth, 14 part series celebrating the first 10 years of Atlantic’s existence: 1947-57. This week in part eight, we take a look at the last half of 1954, one of the biggest years in Atlantic’s storied history. It was during the last six months of the year that Ruth Brown scored her 4th and 5th #1 records with “Oh What A Dream” and “Mambo Baby” respectively. “Mambo Baby” would end up being Brown’s final #1, though she would still rack up hit records over the next 5 years. LaVern Baker and Ray Charles released career defining records at the very end of 1954 that would make an even greater impact in 1955, just as Rock n’ Roll was beginning to enter the mainstream. We’ll also dig on a killer New Orleans instrumental from Tommy Ridgley and Ivory Joe Hunter’s first release for Atlantic. So buckle in and prepare yourself for an in-depth, 14 part look at the history of Atlantic Records, which could also be described as a look at the history of American Music itself. You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.

https://www.jukeintheback.org/2025/09/07/episode-801-atlantic-records-pt-8-1954-pt-2/

31/08/2025

ATLANTIC RECORDS, Pt. 7 – 1954, Pt. 1 - Atlantic Records was the most influential, significant and important independent record label to come out of the late-1940s, during a time when there were many great, small indie labels being born. What gave Atlantic the advantage over Specialty, Chess, Modern, Vee-Jay, Exclusive, King, etc is the breadth of material, variety of music styles and the sheer number of hit records that led to the Rock n' Roll explosion of the mid-1950s. Matt The Cat and the "Juke In The Back" present this behemoth, 14 part series celebrating the first 10 years of Atlantic's existence: 1947-57. This week in part seven, we take a look at the first half of 1954, one of the biggest years in Atlantic's storied history. It was this year that Ray Charles scored his first hit for Atlantic with "It Should've Been Me." It was his first hit after a 2 year dry spell. The Clovers and Clyde McPhatter & The Drifters continued to rack up best-sellers while The Diamonds, Professor Longhair and Hal Paige should've had hits this year. Big Joe Turner took a somewhat risque jump blues called "Shake, Rattle & Roll" and turned it into an early Rock n' Roll anthem. At 43, Turner was the oldest Rock Idol. Next week, we'll look at the second half of Atlantic's great releases from 1954. So buckle in and prepare yourself for an in-depth, 14 part look at the history of Atlantic Records, which could also be described as a look at the history of American Music itself. You can stream "Juke In The Back" below OR on Spotify, TuneIn and AppleMusic. More info and a list of radio stations airing the program at jukeintheback.org.
https://www.jukeintheback.org/2025/08/31/episode-800-atlantic-records-pt-7-1954-pt-1/

Matt The Cat presents the soul that came before rock n’ roll: 1950s rhythm and blues. Each week, this underrated and rollicking music plays on that old Rockola Jukebox in the back.