Released in Cowtown but unmistakably Big D in spirit is the new Dallas Blues Society Lost Recordings, a treasure trove of mostly Dallas musicians captured nearly 40 years ago.
While most albums are titled “lost recordings” for marketing reasons, these recordings actually disappeared.
Financed by the Dallas Blues Society in 1989 at the famed Sumet-Bernet Studios, the album centers on the late Doyle Bramhall (1949-2011), the West Dallas singer-songwriter and drummer who joined Jimmie and Stevie Ray Vaughan in the great Dallas-to-Austin migration at the dawn of the ’70s. As Bramhall became heavily involved with Antone’s Records in Austin, the Dallas album was shelved for contractual reasons.
A few years later, DBS decided to finally release the record. But the master tapes had vanished and the project gradually faded into memory.
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When DBS founder Chuck Nevitt died in 2015 at age 59, his vast music collection went to his blues-loving running mate, Scott Ferris. After years of combing through it, Ferris discovered a pristine Digital Audio Tape (DAT) copy of the ’89 recording sessions.
Now, with help from Fort Worth’s historic Record Town store and label, Ferris has finally brought the album to light. The 11-song vinyl LP features blues classics and originals by Dallas musicians including Bramhall’s son Doyle Bramhall II — Eric Clapton’s longtime guitar partner — and the late Denny Freeman, best known for his guitar work with Bob Dylan.
“After you wait 37 years and finally hear it, it’s like, ‘Wow! What a recording!’” Ferris said recently on YouTube’s Time Signatures With Jim Ervin.
Details
Dallas Blues Society Lost Recordings is available for $28.98 at recordtowntx.com or Record Town, 120 St. Louis Ave., Suite 105, Fort Worth.
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