Kathleen Loves Music

Tom Pomposello > Honest Tom Pomposello

Produced by Fred Seibert

Original LP. Click the titles to play.
1. Tommy’s Jump
2. Old Joe Clark
3. Jesus Died on the Cross (To Save the World)
4. Movin’ Too Fast
5. Supreme Court Breakdown
6. Amazing Grace
7. Meeting You
8. St. Louis Blues
9. (I’m) Watchin’ The T.V.
10. Hey Little Girl (Who Made Your Dress?)

Oblivion Records OD-6

Click here to read some of the stories behind this album.

And click here for covers, photographs, and other printed ephemera.

CREDITS, from the original LP cover:

1. TOMMY’S JUMP (3:20)
(By H.T. Pomposello)
Tom. electric mandolin
Michael Altshuler. Guitar
Bruce Kapler. tenor saxophone
Michael “Kid” Avanzini. Bass
David Longworth. Drums
Recorded 9.3.75

2. OLD JOE CLARK (3:23)
(Traditional; arranged by H.T.P.)
Tom. Dulcimer
Kid Avanzini. Bass
Nicholas “Nick” K. Moy. pitch pipe
Recorded 10.6.73

3. JESUS DIED ON THE CROSS (TO SAVE THE WORLD) (2:20)
(Traditional; arranged by H.T.P./Special thanks to John Fahey)
Tom. bottleneck-dobro
Michael Altshuler. Guitar
Kid Avanzini. Bass
David Longworth. drums
Recorded 7.4.74

4. MOVIN’ TOO FAST (6:04)
(By Roosevelt Sykes / H.T. Pomposello)
Tom. vocal & electric mandolin
Michael Altshuler.guitar
Bruce Kapler. tenor saxophone
Kid Avanzini. bass
David Longworth. drums
Recorded 9.3.75

5.SUPREME COURT BREAKDOWN (4:57)
(By H.T. Pomposello)
Tom. bottleneck-dobro & harmonica
Bob Aponte. Bass
Bobby “Professor Six Million” King. rigged snare drum.
Recorded 12.11.74

6. AMAZING GRACE (1:35)
(Traditional; arranged by H.T.P.)
Dedicated to Mississippi Fred McDowell
Tom. bottleneck-dobro
Recorded 11.8.73

7. MEETING YOU (3:38)
(By H.T. Pomposello)
Tom. vocal & electric mandolin / Michael
Altsuler . guitar / Bob Aponte. bass / David
Longworth. drums / John Marshall. horn
arrangements and trumpet / Jeff Sheloff.
tenor saxophone
Recorded 9.4.74

8. ST. LOUIS BLUES (4:33)
(By W.C. Handy; Handy Bros. Music Co.)
Tom. bottleneck-dobro
Bob Aponte. guitar
Recorded 1.28.74

9.(I’M) WATCHIN’ THE T.V. (8:02)
(By H.T. Pomposello / Special thanks to Michael Altshuler)
Tom. electric & acoustic harmonicas
Michael Altshuler. guitar
Bob Aponte. bass
David Longworth. drums
Recorded 9.4.74

10. HEY LITTLE GIRL (WHO MADE YOUR DRESS?) (5:47)
(By Fred McDowell)
Misssissippi Fred McDowell. vocal & electric bottleneck guitar (right)
Tom. Electric bottleneck guitar (left)
Recorded 11.9.71

All music By Full Co, BMI unless otherwise noted.

…..
Back Cover:

File under: Suburban Blues

American music didn’t get its start in Huntington, Long Island, and nothing suggests it will die there (or anywhere else). But American music did pass through town so it could shake hands with Honest Tom Pomposello.

Tom’s still shaking.

The music hasn’t stopped, either. In a country where people spread out and grow up so fast you hardly know them, events like Tom’s historic meeting with the music can’t be undervalued. See, people make the music, and we were strewn long before there were any ways to collect what every person is capable of hearing.

Pomposello’s a collector by nature. He likes to shake hands, too. (He earned the name “Honest Tom” during a hometown political campaign. But we’re here to discuss more successful ventures).

Tom knows that the blues got him started. He wanted bottleneck guitar lessons from Mississippi Fred McDowell, but Fred wanted him to be his bass player, apprentice, and friend. Playing night after night with a master Delta bluesman taught Tom more than any teacher. (You can hear them together on Oblivion Records OD-11, Mississippi Fred McDowell: Live in New York).

Over the years, he’s performed on bass guitar with bluesman Louisiana Red, Larry Johnson, Lefty Dizz, and the late Charles Walker. But in recent times, Tom’s mixed in some of the other regional strains of music. He’s added dobro, mandolin, dulcimer, and harmonica to incorporate the traditions of country, Appalachian, rock, rhythm & blues, and city music.

Tom’s first record presents some of the musical friends his winning ways have made him during the past three years. Since American music lives and grows in Tom all the time expect the album to sound very much like Tom’s band today.

Alan Goodman
Crawdaddy
…..

Produced by Fred Seibert
Mastering: Harry N. Fein. CBS
Pressing: Wakefield Manufacturing. Phoenix, Arizona
Art Direction, Design & Illustration: Lisa Lenovitz
Photography: Michael Bifulco
…..

Special thank yous are in order for these people. If we’ve forgotten anyone please forgive us, but it wasn’t on purpose. Thanks.
Tom and Fred.

Chrisie & Travis Pomposello
Ken Berkman
Janet Pomposello
Rob Witter
Michael Bifulco
Dave & Patty Jones
The Blue Goose, the prime mover
Peter Kropotkin
Nick Moy
Peter Wharton
David Izenzon
Rodney Johnson
Paul Jeffrey
Sonny Terry
Joe Mondello
Paul Hodes
Barbara & Bob Altsuler
Richard H. Pennington, Jr.
Mark Seiden
Mandolin Bros.
John Pierson
Jimmy D’Aquisto
John Monteleone
Ed “Dobro” Dopera
Ron Lazar
Fred Seibert — There’s no way to say thanks because this record belongs to you, too – Tom
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Oblivion Records are distributed independently. Should this disk be unavailable in your local superior record store, send to: OBLIVION RECORDS, incorporated
P.O. BOX X. ROSLYN HEIGHTS, NY. 11577
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©(P) 1975 Oblivion Records, Inc. Printed in U.S.A.

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I’m posting many of my out-of-print record productions from the 1970s. Travis Pomposello and I are the owners of these master recordings.