BUDDY MOSS 78 RPM OKEH Record Oh Lordy Mama Jinx Man Blues 1941
Buddy Moss on a 1941 78 RPM Okeh Record
Oh Lordy Mama Jinx Man Blues
Okeh label, released in 1941.
Buddy Moss was often called one of the most influential blues musicians of the 1930s.
Buddy Moss recorded both of these songs earlier in 1934 for the Melotone label. Moss made a few more singles for Melotone and a few other labels through 1935, until something happened. He murdered his wife. And was sent to prison.
Moss was released in 1941 for good behavior. And for another reason: two record companies promised they would monitor his parole if they let him out.
For the next few months in 1941, his recording career started taking off, and he recorded more singles for Columbia and Okeh. Then, in December, something else happened: Pearl Harbor. Now the US plunged into the world war. Rationing quickly started. Food and a number of other materials had to be rationed for the war effort. And that included shellac. Record companies needed shellac to make records. Lots of shellac. After all, people loved buying records to play on their phonographs. At least, until 1941.
So, record companies made changes: focus only on the popular bands (Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, etc.) and stopped making niche records. That included blues. Blues already had a waning audience in 1941, so record companies were motivated to stop making those records anyway.
And THAT was the end of Buddy Moss's recording career.
Now, this particular record is a re-release of an earlier Melotone label with the same two songs. It is NOT a 1941 original. It was likely added to help pad out the number of recordings he was releasing in 1941.
And since Moss's 1930s records are seldom available, this gives the listener a chance to hear one of his earlier recordings. Played back on an actual 78 RPM record.
Given the relative shortness of Buddy Moss's recording career, this record is a rare one.
This record grades at VG+ due to wear. Both sides show groove wear. Jinx Man side plays with light surface noise and mostly clearly. Oh Lordy side plays with heavier surface noise and more distortion as if it had been played a lot. Still very enjoyable to listen to, though.
Aside from wear, it has some scratches and smudges.
