I do the things I think is good...

It's records like this that got me interested in collecting 45's in the first place. Yeah, I'm sure you can find it on a comp somewhere, but to actually be able to hold such an out-there record in your hands puts the listening experience on a totally different plane altogether. At least it does for me.

While I'm on the subject, let me say that if this blog was only about the music, I'd be posting selections from my digital library, regardless of where they come from. To me, the search for vinyl copies is a good 30% of the story I'm trying to tell [such as it is].

Lee Bates is a fairly obscure artist outside of New Orleans. All told, he had over 20 singles and an album issued on him. Few, if any of which, "traveled". It's still hard for me to understand that his version of "Wishing, Waiting, Hoping" wasn't a big national hit. There was a copy at my grandmothers house which used to get played regularly.

To this day, playing "Wishing, Waiting, Hoping" is a sure-fire way to get my mom and dad to dance real close. If you think I didn't pay close attention to that action as a kid then you're foolin' yourself. I made doubly sure it got played at my own wedding reception.

There are three very different versions of "I Do Things Naturally"...the first is on the flip-side of a Pitter Pats' record.....the second is this version....the third is the more loosely related title cut on Jessie Hill's "Naturally" album.

Hope ya'll enjoy the wildest of the three....