Legendary jump blues band, Roomful of Blues, heard here on their 2nd album, Let's Have A Party, released in 1979 on the Room-Tone Records label. This was the 2nd (and, unfortunately, last) Roomful record to include founding member Duke Robillard, the heart and soul of the band during its early years. As the title implies, this is truly a PARTY album, the kind that makes you want to get up and DANCE! So many great, great songs on this album! The Band Members: Duke Robillard- guitar/vocals John Rossi- drums Rich Lataille- Alto/Tenor Sax Greg Piccolo- Tenor Sax Doug James- Baritone Sax Preston Hubbard- Bass Al Copley- Piano 1. It's Later Than You Think 2. Okie Dokie Stomp 3. Travelin' Mood 4. Let's Have A Party 5. Jambalaya 6. Lookout 7. Stickin' With You 8. The Chill Is On 9. My Tears 10. Big Horn 11. Give And Take To learn more about Roomful during this era, check out this insightful article: http://rubbercityreview.com/2010/10/duke-robillard-and-roomful-of-blues/ In 1977, I’d just landed in Athens, Ohio, to begin my junior year of college at Ohio University. But more important, I started working at a record store uptown – a great opportunity to fill out my collection with plenty of free vinyl. Unfortunately, it was slim pickings for this unreconstructed blues hound. Guitar-slinger Freddie King had passed away at the end of ’76, and aside from Muddy Waters’ great comeback album “Hard Again” (which earned its title when a first listen gave Muddy a chub in his chinos), there really wasn’t much new stuff to get excited about. So I kept mining the old stuff – mostly on Chess and whatever label John Lee Hooker or Lightnin’ Hopkins decided to sign up with for a few extra bucks. I really didn’t know much about Kansas City jazz and had yet to discover the many joys of jump blues artists like Buddy Johnson and Louis Jordan. So I was completely floored when I came across the first album by a mighty blues and swing band from Rhode Island called Roomful of Blues, with Duke Robillard on vocals and guitar. Roomful of Blues, first albumThe album was produced by the legendary songwriter Doc Pomus (Save the Last Dance for Me, This Magic Moment, Little Sister, Viva Las Vegas) with able assistance from Joel Dorn, another guy who had already lived the dream – producing more than a few hit records at Atlantic during the late ‘60s and early ‘70s for artists like Roberta Flack and Les McCann. If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say that Pomus and Dorn felt like a couple of love-struck teenagers when they first came across Roomful – a gang of sharp-looking, road-tested hipsters who were completely over the moon for records that rarely made it past the 78 RPM format. Even Count Basie was a fan, calling them “hottest blues band I’ve ever heard” after sitting in with them in ’74.