Pee Wee Crayton learned his lessons well. Moving from Texas to California during the Depression, he slaved away in Navy shipyards until some buddies dragged him along to a T-Bone Walker show. Pee Wee was floored by T-Bone. He bought a guitar and literally made T-Bone teach him the tricks of the trade.

In the late 1940s, Pee Wee began recording for Modern and had an instant hit with his theme song, “Blues After Hours.” Throughout the ’40s, T-Bone and Pee Wee were the hottest names on the West Coast blues scene.

This reissue compiles Pee Wee’s Aladdin and Imperial sides of 1954-1955. His style is a bit more pop oriented than the Modern blues cuts, but these cuts ooze with suave sophistication and Pee Wee’s hot guitar lines. I can’t listen to these cuts enough.