“Signs Of The Highway”
Eddie Deas and the Boston Brownies; Eddie Deas, vocal
October 22, 1931 (Victor 22841-A)
“Jes Shufflin'”
Eddie Deas and the Boston Brownies; Eddie Deas, vocal
October 22, 1931 (Victor 22841-B)
Eddie Deas was a drummer who led an all-black territory band based out of New England. The band only recorded four sides, all of them in this October 22, 1931 recording session for Victor. The other two sides from the session were “(Everyone In Town Loves)Little Mary Brown” and “All I Care About Is You” – both of which can be heard on Radio Dismuke.
“Signs of the Highway” cleverly weaves advertising slogans from the era’s billboards into song lyrics. The song was composed Texas-based bandleader Sunny Clapp in 1929. Sunny Clapp and His Band O’ Sunshine made a recording of the song in a June, 1929 San Antonio field recording session for the Okeh label – but, unfortunately, it was never issued.
“Jes Shufflin'” is nice and jazzy – and makes one wish that additional recording sessions could have been possible for the band. But given the hard times and slow sales faced by the record industry in 1931, we should probably be grateful for the two records that they did make.