Arthur Prysock was an US R&B/jazz, singer, renowned for his mellifluous baritone voice, which many people likened to that of Billy Eckstine. Born in 1924 and hailing from the Carolinas, he worked in the aircraft industry in Connecticut during Word War Two, before becoming vocalist with Buddy Johnson’s band in 1944.

Prysock sang on several of Johnson’s hits on Decca Records including They All Say I’m The Biggest Fool (1946), Jet (My Love) (1947), I Wonder Where Our Love Has Gone (1948), and later Because (1950). In 1952 Prysock went solo and  signed with Decca, who marketed him as a younger rival to Eckstine, and recorded the No.5 R&B hit, I Didn’t Sleep A Wink Last Night, with Sy Oliver’s orchestra. Over the years Prysock gained a reputation as an emotive balladeer and as one of the most popular acts on the Chitlin’ Circuit. In the 1960s, joined Old Town Records for a R&B cover of Ray Noble’s ballad The Very Thought Of You (1960).

This 2CD collection comprises selected A & B sides of his Decca recordings with The Buddy Johnson Orchestra and his subsequent solo singles for the Decca, Peacock, Mercury, Wing and Old Town during this era. The singer received a Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1995 and in his later years lived in Bermuda, before he died in 1997.

According to his obituary in The New York Times, “his heavy, deep voice projected a calm, reassuring virility” and this 50-track set is a worthy showcase that gives an insight into the talents of a much-ignored entertainer during the key formative era of his career.

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