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In our first issue of 2026 we conclude the chronicle of Ruth Brown’s activities during 1954, now covering the months of July thru December. Her short run of records with disappointing sales came to an end here as Ruth bounced back with two successive No. 1 smashes. ‘Oh What a Dream’, a lovely blues ballad written by Atlantic stable-mate Chuck Willis, hit big in July; and this was followed by the catchy latin-tinged ‘Mambo Baby’ in October, this number written by the talented team of Charlie Singleton and Rose Marie McCoy. These successes confirmed that Ruth continued to be one of the most popular, if not the most popular, songstress in the rhythm and blues field. Indeed, readers of magazine The Cash Box voted her the best female R & B artist of 1954 whilst Down Beat's readers chose her as the number one personality in that same category.
The Ruth Brown feature fills 42 pages and is followed by the story of the legendary Memphis musician Joe Hill Louis. Born in Shelby County, TN in 1917 he died tragically young from tetanus in hospital in Memphis in August 1957. Among his ‘claims to fame’ Joe Hill Louis will be remembered as being the first artist to have a record issued by Sam Phillips, this in 1950 on Sam's short lived label ‘It’s The Phillips’, a joint venture with DJ Dewey Phillips (who was not related), Joe had a slew of further releases including on Modern and Meteor but of particular note is his one release on Sun – ‘We All Gotta Go Sometime’/‘She May Be Yours’ (Sun 178) from 1953, a record that was much more than a foot note in the history of the label. He worked for various radio stations including WDIA and made personal appearances through the south. Both articles are in our acclaimed day-by-day format and lavishly illustrated with old pictures, ads, label scans and articles from contemporary magazines and papers. Of particular note are the great photos which accompany the Joe Hill Louis story.
Then as the icing on the cake we pay homage to ‘Blues Unlimited’, a very important and influential UK blues magazine founded in 1963; with this packed issue being finally rounded-off with a small review section. Stay tuned to February and our exciting feature on Jerry Lee Lewis and his activities during 1958.
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ABOUT THE MAGAZINE
American Music Magazine is published by the Swedish Rock 'n' Roll Club. We are a non profit organisation devoted to the 1950s rock 'n' roll music and our intention is to document, as far as possible, the early years of rock-a-billy, rock 'n' roll and its related artforms. The text of the magazine is in Swedish and English. Each issue is full of original photographs and discographies.
AM works in co-operation with the "Tales From The Woods" Roots Music Social Networking Group in the U.K. The aim is to collaborate to keep rock ‘n' roll, its history, and its many talented artists and musicians alive for posterity and future generations – this through sharing articles that have appeared in our magazines over the years, helping each other with publicity and generally spreading the word not just to the converted, but also to those yet to share our enthusiasm.
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American Music Magazine är producerad av 1950s fans för fans och är en svensk tidning med både svensk och engelsk text. Tidningen utkommer med tolv nummer om året och handlar företrädesvis om 50-tals rock 'n' roll, och relaterade musikformer som exempelvis hillbilly/country och rhythm ’n’ blues. American Music Magazine drivs helt ideelt utan ekonomisk vinning.
American Music Magazine samarbetar med "Tales From The Wood - Roots Music Social Networking Group" som är ett namnkunnigt engelskt nätverk med bred verksamhet inom vår musik. Syftet är att gemensamt arbeta för att hålla rock 'n' rollmusiken, dess historia och dess många talangfulla artister och musiker levande för eftervärlden och kommande generationer - detta genom att dela artiklar som publicerats i våra respektive tidningar genom åren, hjälpa varandra med publicitet och sprida det glada budskapet inte bara till de redan frälsta utan också till sådana som ännu inte delar vår entusiasm och passion för denna musik.
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