In July 1942, Walker recorded "Mean Old World" and "I Got a Break, Baby" as one of the first artists for the Los Angeles-based record company. Music writer Bill Dahl described the songs as "the first sign of the T-Bone Walker that blues guitar aficionados know and love, his fluid, elegant riffs and mellow, burnished vocals setting a standard that all future blues guitarists would measure themselves by". Shortly thereafter, his recording career was interrupted by the 1942–44 musicians' strike and the diversion of shellac (a key material used in the manufacture of the then-standard ten-inch 78 rpm phonograph record) for the U.S. war effort during World War II. By 1946, Walker signed with producer Ralph Bass and Black & White Records. Although there is conflicting information regarding the recording date, "Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)" was released as a single in November 1947.