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Sophie Tucker was one of the innovative female stars of the early recording era, a Russian-born immigrant who became a hugely popular singer, comedian, actress and radio personality, and was a natural on the vaudeville stage. She became a movie actress, as well as building a parallel career in the UK, and remained active and visible well into the post-war decades. She became famous for her risqué material and performed extrovert songs that brought her the nicknames of “Red Hot Mama” and “Last Of The Red Hot Mamas”. 

This 49-track 2-CD collection comprises all her twenty career hits, plus selected releases on the Okeh, Columbia, Columbia UK, Vocalion UK ‘Broadcast Twelve’ series, Parlophone  and Decca labels from this era. It features her classic best-known hit “Some Of These Days”, along with “Red Hot Mama”, “My Yiddishe Momme”, “I’m The Last Of The Red-Hot Mamas”, “After You’ve Gone”, “I Ain’t Got Nobody”, “The Man I Love” and “The Lady Is A Tramp” – those hits obviously include early versions of songs that became enduring standards, and there are plenty more of those in the set as well. 

She was a highly distinctive larger-than-life personality and this collection is an entertaining showcase for the qualities that made her such a popular artist across several decades.

Tracks

CD 1
1. THAT LOVIN' RAG Sophie Tucker (Edison 10360) 1910 
2. THAT LOVIN' TWO-STEP MAN Sophie Tucker (Edison 10411) 1910 
3. THAT LOVIN' SOUL KISS Sophie Tucker (Edison 10493) 1911 
4. SOME OF THESE DAYS Sophie Tucker (Edison Amberol 691) 1911 
5. KNOCK WOOD Sophie Tucker (Edison Amberol 852) 1912 
6. HIGH BROWN BLUES Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4565) 1922 
7. JIG WALK Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4590) 1922 
8. PICK ME UP AND LAY ME DOWN IN DIXIELAND Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4590) 1922 
9. BLUE BIRD WHERE ARE YOU Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4617) 1922 
10. YOU'VE GOT TO SEE MAMA EVERY NIGHT (OR YOU CAN'T SEE MAMA AR ALL) Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4817) 1923 
11. AGGRAVATIN' PAPA (DON'T YOU TRY TO TWO-TIME ME) Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4817) 1923 
12. SEVEN OR ELEVEN (MY DIXIE PAIR OF DICE) Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4818) 1923 
13. VAMPING SAL (THE SHEBA OF GEORGIA) Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4837) 1923 
14. DOWN BY THE RIVER Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4837) 1923 
15. PAPA BETTER WATCH YOUR STEP Sophie Tucker (Okeh 4839) 1923 
16. THE ONE I LOVE BELONGS TO SOMEBODY ELSE Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40054) 1924 
17. HULA LOU Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40068) 1924 
18. I'VE GOT A CROSS-EYED PAPA (BUT HE LOOKS STRAIGHT GTO ME) Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40068) 1924 
19. RED HOT MAMA Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40129) 1924 
20. SOME OF THESE DAYS  Ted Lewis & His Band (Columbia 826D) 1927 
21. ONE SWEET LETTER FROM YOU Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40813) 1927 
22. FIFTY MILLION FRENCHMEN CAN'T BE WRONG Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40813) 1927 
23. AFTER YOU'VE GONE Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40837) 1927 
24. I AIN'T GOT NOBODY (AND NOBODY CARES FOR ME) Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40837) 1927 
25. BLUE RIVER Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40895) 1927 

CD 2
1. THERE'LL BE SOME CHANGES MADE Sophie Tucker (Okeh 40921) 1928 
2. THE MAN I LOVE Sophie Tucker (Okeh 41010) 1928 
3. CAUSE I FEEL LOW DOWN Sophie Tucker (Okeh 41058) 1928 
4. HE'S TALL AND DARK AND HANDSOME Sophie Tucker (Okeh 41249) 1928 
5. MY YIDDISHE MOMMA PARTS 1 & 2 Sophie Tucker (Columbia UK 4962) 1928 
6. I'M DOIN' WHAT I'M DOIN' FOR LOVE Sophie Tucker (Victor 21993) 1929 
7. HE'S A GOOD MAN TO HAVE AROUND Sophie Tucker (Victor 21994) 1929 
8. I'M THE LAST OF THE RED HOT MAMAS Sophie Tucker (Victor 21994) 1929 
9. I DON'T WANT TO GET THIN Sophie Tucker (Victor 21995) 1929 
10. MOANIN' LOW Sophie Tucker (Victor 22049) 1929 
11. SOME OF THESE DAYS Sophie Tucker (Victor 22049) 1929 
12. THAT'S WHERE THE SOUTH BEGINS Sophie Tucker (Vocalion UK Broadcast Twelve 5186) 1930 
13. HOLLYWOOD WILL NEVER BE THE SAME Sophie Tucker (Vocalion UK Broadcast Twelve 657) 1930 
14. FOLLOW A STAR Sophie Tucker (Vocalion UK Broadcast Twelve 5195) 1930 
15. WASHIN' THE BLUES FROM MY SOUL Sophie Tucker (Vocalion UK Broadcast Twelve 5208) 1930 
16. MAKIN' WICKY WACKY DOWN IN WAIKIKI Sophie Tucker (Vocalion UK Broadcast Twelve 3001) 1931 
17. ON A LITTLE BALCONY IN SPAIN Sophie Tucker (Vocalion UK Broadcast Twelve 3042) 1931 
18. EGYTPIAN ELLA Sophie Tucker (Vocalion UK Broadcast Twelve 3062) 1934 
19. SOPHISTICATED LADY Sophie Tucker (Parlophone R1852) 1934 
20. LIFE BEGINS AT FORTY Sophie Tucker (Parlophone F621) 1937 
21. WHEN A LADY MEETS A GENTLEMAN DOWN SOUTH Sophie Tucker (Parlophone F621) 1937 
22. IF YOU CAN'T SING IT YOU'LL HAVE TO SWING IT Sophie Tucker (Parlophone F622) 1937 
23. THE LADY IS A TRAMP Sophie Tucker (Decca 1472) 1937