Hawkins, Screamin' Jay
The Night And Day Of...
Music shouldnt shoulder or force its way into the album racks of any population, rather the population should induce itself to enjoy music and develop a personal taste, every soul should make up its own mind, a passion is all the greater if it has grown out of a cross selection of experiences. Generally, if a certain 'thing' becomes a great success, that success is made greater by the mass persuasive mouth of the press, by some standards the more pop and the more publicised, as the more immoral. The popularity of popular music has opened up a gap that allows second rate material to introduced, this is unfortunate for I believe that bad music is much much worse than no music at all. Popularity sometimes frightens me because it tends to endorse bad music. Just look around at what people are praising in the arts, weigh up how much is incomprehensible with how much is pretended to be understood. Bach is, popular in a minority on his own merits, not by an infectious trend, that's how Id like it with me. Many can sing in tune, few (less even) can scream. Jay Hawkins was and is unique, he enjoyed his monopoly which straddled the fence of Rhythm and Blues. He was young, and screamin' was means to an end, this album isn't the end, nor the beginning of. It is one side of Mr. Hawkins, his night and day.