BILLY LA MONT, "COUNTRY BOY" C/W "CAN'T mAKE IT BY MYSELF," OKEH 7125 (REL. 10/1959)

Today’s single sat, ignored, in a time-worn cardboard box in a record shop far across town. It had been there for years, unloved, unnoticed and a magnet for dust. Out of said box I plucked a copy of the greatest 45 by The “5” Royales, “Don’t Let it Be in Vain” c/w “The Slummer The Slum” several years back. Somehow, I missed the 1959 Okeh 45 that is saluted in today’s post. Everyone else overlooked it as well. The record itself is a sad example of Columbia Records’ devotion to styrene for their seven-inch discs. Its grooves are grey and its fragile paper labels frayed at the edges. It does not look like it will play.

My friend Paul and I rummaged through a couple of boxes of what we call “chud”—unsleeved, unorganized records that the store’s proprietors deemed unworthy of any concern. I found a few great things amidst the rubbish, and as I checked them on the store’s turntable, Paul tapped me on the shoulder. Did I know anything about this record?

I’d read about “Country Boy” by Billy La Mont and heard it before. “I’ve been looking for that one,” I blurted out. Kind soul that he is, Paul ceded it to me. I still owe him one for that, and I do look out for record he’s mentioned he’d like to get. I have, in turn, brought great records to his attention that he’s enjoyed. Because that’s what it’s all about: the love of music, and to use one’s knowledge to point out worthy records that don’t appear to be. As a mis-typed title on a Bo Diddley single says, A Book By Its Cover You Can’t Judge.

It took a good deal of fussing to get good sound from this war-torn disc, but it still had some oomph. An EQ filter helped lift the music from its muddy rut on the record’s surface. I was surprised by the results and am glad to share them with you today.

Billy La Mont was a stage name of Ray P. Denson, born in 1930 in North Carolina. All that’s known about him was derived from a 2001 interview he granted the publishers of Blues & Rhythm magazine. Denson’s family migrated to New Jersey, where the racism of the deep South was more subdued. Young Denson first distinguished himself as a dancer but had been singing and writing songs on the side.

He got his musical break when a singer failed to appear for a concert. La Mont went over well with the crowd, and he parlayed this debut into a contract with Savoy Records, a jazz label that delved into r&b with excellent results. None of La Mont’s first few singles did anything, but they’re excellent records and it was clear this young singer could make hay somewhere.

In 1959, La Mont, backed by Little Richard’s band The Upsetters, cut a pair of songs for the small 3-D label, which used the same manufacturer as Columbia—cruddy styrene and tell-tale fonts on the label—and someone at the plant apparently passed on a copy to a Columbia employee. That occasioned a reissue on Columbia’s Okeh imprint, which got it some airplay and popularity with listeners. This wasn’t enough to break it on a national level and get it on the pop charts, but it filled a need for a vicious burst of rock ‘n’ roll, coupled with a churchy ballad.

“Country Boy” is the side Okeh might have pushed with better results. With the powerhouse backing of The Upsetters, Denson/La Mont tells the first-person narrative of a rural lad who’s in the big city with a pocketful of loot, in search of a good time. We see the sights through his excitable eyes, as he ogles the wild joys of urban life.

La Mont does a good screech as he embodies this hormonal hayseed on the loose, and his Southern accent gives the song added oomph. Now hailed as a stellar Black rocker, in 1959 it was a B-side of promise that got radio play but didn’t have sufficient shoulder behind it to breach the Hot 100.

>>> Hear it HERE! <<<

Two thumbs-up from Billboard and Cash Box.

“Can’t Make it By Myself” displays the wear and tear of this record. Though EQ helped bring the sound out of its hiding place, a ghost-sheen of disc damage hangs over this performance. It’s a fine r&b ballad with a femme chorus that evokes the contemporary recordings of Gene Allison (whom we’ve heard here several times).

Spoiler alert: it has a fake ending—always a delight, and more so on a ballad. This side was more chart-friendly, but not as distinctive as “Country Boy.” If only Okeh had used vinyl! So many fine Black artists had their music belittled by this el cheapo material—a sad example of profit’s triumph over quality in the corporate world.

>>> Hear it HERE! <<<

La Mont made several other singles, including a bizarre appearance on a single he shared with New Orleans singer Chris Kenner. When the latter’s “I Like it Like That” hit big, singer/entrepreneur Lloyd Price dusted off an older track by the artist but didn’t have a B-side. Thus, he dropped La Mont’s “The Right Kind of Girl” on the underlid with no artist or composer credit. It does give the listener a chance to hear La Mont on good quality vinyl. Thus: bonus track!

Hidden on its webpage (black type on a black background), you can highlight the Billy La Mont story here: https://tims.blackcat.nl/messages/billy_lamont.htm

It’s worth a read!

Tomorrow: the Lawn Guyland sounds of Sugar ‘n’ Spice via another battered styrene disc from RCA’s Groove imprint. Tuff chicks from 1964!