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Larry Darnell was a young R&B singer from Ohio, who nevertheless became an important and influential early pioneer in framing the distinctive New Orleans style of R&B during the early 1950s. He left home at 15 to join a travelling burlesque troupe, and ended up as a solo performer in New Orleans at the legendary Dew Drop Inn. Spotted and signed by Fred Mendelsohn of the New Jersey-based Regal label, he had R&B hits with his first two releases, with “For You My Love” going to No. 1. His powerful and passionate voice helped to inspire the trend towards that style as the decade progressed and was an early contributor to the development of rock ‘n’ roll. This 48-track 2-CD collection comprises most of the A & B sides of his singles on the Regal, Okeh, Savoy, DeLuxe, Map, Warwick, and Anna/Argo labels from this era. It features his R&B No. 1 “For You My Love”, and his Top 10 R&B hits “I’ll Get Along Somehow”, “Lost My Baby”, “I Love My Baby”, and “Oh Babe”, and includes performances with the bands of Paul Gayten, Leroy Kirkland and Howard Biggs. He was a distinctive and stylish performer, very much of his era, and this is an entertaining showcase for his talents.
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