5) Fats Domino: ‘This Is Fats’

Listening to Fats Domino is like slipping into bed on a cold winters evening. He is relaxing, provides warmth, and gives that overall feeling of safety. ‘Blueberry Hill’ epitomizes this completely; it’s a song for young and old alike. In fact, the majority of Domino’s songs follow in a similar vein, there is not much to dislike about Fats.

He is the most popular exponents of the classic New Orleans R&B sound, selling more than any other black R&B star throughout the 1950s. He may not have been as innovative as Chuck Berry or charismatic as Little Richard, yet he is certainly one of the grandfathers of rock and roll and made his mark on music history with his distinctive 12/8 piano led boogie woogie sound. Indeed his 1949 single, ‘The Fat Man’, is consistently mentioned as candidate for the first rock and roll record. Domino’s sound was tried and tested in New Orleans and never really changed throughout his entire career. However, far from being a hindrance, between 1955 and 1963 Fats racked up 35 top 40 singles influencing countless of other musicians along the way, including; the Rolling Stones and The Beatles.

So, therefore, for anyone interested in the early origins of rock n’ roll Fats Domino is a must and this album is a great place to start as it gives an overall feel for his work. The steady beats, the thumping piano, the crooning vocals, and the saxophone solos are all present in this repetitive, albeit distinctive, style. Domino didn't change the world with his music but he sure did make pleasant music to listen to, and dance to for that matter.

Three songs give a great feel for the Fats Domino sound: ‘Blueberry Hill’, ‘Honey Chile’, and ‘Blue Monday’; all of which are classic sounds of the 1950s and a great place to start to get introduced to Domino. However, it’s some of the other tracks here which provide the highlights of this album. The ‘Fat Man’s Hop’ plays like a blues jam session and clearly demonstrates Domino’s piano prowess which is always understated in many of his well known songs. ‘Trust in Me’ is a fantastic rock n’ roll number which just makes you want to dance. The R&B track ‘You Done Me Wrong’ is undoubtedly one of the best tracks here with its 12 bar blues and call and answer structure, all underpinned with a swinging rhythm, it’s fantastic.

Stand-out tracks: ‘Blueberry Hill’, ‘You Done Me Wrong’ ‘Trust In Me’, ‘Blue Monday’

Rating: 7/10