In June 1928, pianist-singer Leroy Carr & guitarist Scrapper Blackwell made their 1st records together in Indianapolis. Their breakthrough, “How Long—How Long Blues,” established them as one of prewar blues’ most influential partnerships. Nearly a century later, Indianapolis musicians Christopher Wyze & the Tellers bring that music home with Naptown Blues, an 11- track salute to their hometown’s two greatest bluesmen. Recorded and mixed at Postal Recording in Indianapolis, about 2.5 miles from the duo’s first recording site, the album features ten Carr-Blackwell songs plus “Birthday in Jail,” Christopher Wyze’s reimagining of their 1929 recording “Christmas in Jail—Ain’t That a Pain.”
With vocals, harmonica, guitars and acoustic bass, the Tellers preserve the music’s acoustic warthm while giving it a contemporary voice.
Includes CD, six-panel wallet and illustrated 24-page booklet featuring the Carr-Blackwell story, Indianapolis history, rare images, track notes, lyrics and recording details.
Naptown Blues follows two acclaimed Christopher Wyze & the Tellers releases. Their debut, Stuck in the Mud, earned Best New Artist Debut Album honors at the 2025 Blues Blast Music Awards. It and LIVE in CLARKSDALE also placed the band as the only artists with two releases in Roots Music Report’s Top 100 Blues Albums of 2025.
Track List
- I’m Going Back to Tennessee
- Naptown Blues
- How Long—How Long Blues
- The Truth About the Thing
- My Own Lonesome Blues
- Midnight Hour Blues
- Kokomo Blues
- Tired of Your Low Down Ways
- You Got to Reap What You Sow
- Prison Bound Blues
- Birthday in Jail
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