1897 Sonny Boy Williamson II*
1932 Little Richard*
1938 J.J. Cale*
1969 James „Stump“ Johnson+
2004 Big Boy Henry+
Bobby Slim James*
Happy Birthday
Little Richard *05.12.1932
Little Richard (* 5. Dezember 1932 in Macon, Georgia als Richard Wayne Penniman) ist ein amerikanischer Rock-’n’-Roll-Sänger, -Pianist und -Songwriter.
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Während der erfolgreichsten Phase seiner Karriere bei Specialty Records Mitte der 1950er Jahre kombinierte der afroamerikanische Musiker Stilelemente aus Blues, Gospel sowie Rhythm and Blues unter der neuen Genrebezeichnung „Rock ’n’ Roll“ und überführte sie damit in den musikalischen Mainstream. Nach hohen Platzierungen in den von schwarzen Interpreten dominierten Rhythm-and-Blues-Charts gelang ihm der Crossover in den genre-unabhängigen amerikanischen Popmarkt. Sein schnelles und kraftvolles Pianospiel, sein lauter und überdrehter Gesang sowie seine energiereichen Konzerte inspirierten viele namhafte Musiker. Nach einem mehrjährigen Rückzug für religiöse Studien begann Little Richard in den 1960er Jahren ein Comeback, für das er seinen Sound in Richtung Soul und Funk weiterentwickelte. Ohne an seine früheren Verkaufserfolge anknüpfen zu können, steigerte er die Extravaganz seiner Bühnenauftritte durch Selbstinszenierung und Elemente der Travestie. Seit den 1980er Jahren steht Little Richard nur noch sporadisch im Aufnahmestudio oder auf der Bühne. Aufgrund seiner genreprägenden und vielgecoverten Songs und deren Charterfolge gehört Little Richard zu den Wegbereitern und Hauptvertretern des Rock ’n’ Roll, weshalb er 1986 als einer der ersten Musiker in die Rock and Roll Hall of Fame aufgenommen wurde.
Richard Wayne Penniman (born December 5, 1932), known by his stage name Little Richard, is an American recording artist, songwriter, and musician. He has been an influential figure in popular music and culture for over six decades. Penniman's most celebrated work dates from the mid-1950s where his dynamic music and charismatic showmanship laid the foundation for rock and roll. His music also had a pivotal impact on the formation of other popular music genres, including soul and funk. Penniman influenced numerous singers and musicians across musical genres from rock to rap.
Penniman has been honored by many institutions, including inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is the recipient of Lifetime Achievement Awards from The Recording Academy and the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. Penniman's "Tutti Frutti" (1955) was included in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry in 2010, claiming the "unique vocalizing over the irresistible beat announced a new era in music."
Penniman has been honored by many institutions, including inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is the recipient of Lifetime Achievement Awards from The Recording Academy and the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. Penniman's "Tutti Frutti" (1955) was included in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry in 2010, claiming the "unique vocalizing over the irresistible beat announced a new era in music."
read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Richard
Little Richard - Long Tall Sally
Sonny Boy Williamson II *05.12.1897
Sonny Boy Williamson II. war ein unehelicher Sohn von Millie Ford. Er übernahm dann den Nachnamen seines Stiefvaters Jim Miller. Um 1920 brachte er sich selbst das Mundharmonikaspielen bei. Später galt er als einer der inspirierendsten Mundharmonikaspieler des Blues. In den 30er Jahren heiratete er Mary Burnett, die Schwester von Chester Burnett, der sich später Howlin' Wolf nannte. In dieser Zeit spielten die beiden ab und zu zusammen. Ansonsten spielte Williamson ein paar Wochen oder Monate mit Musikern wie Elmore James, Willie Love oder Robert Johnson zusammen. Der wichtigste Partner aus dieser Zeit war allerdings Robert Lockwood, genannt Robert Junior. Sie traten das erste Mal 1931 zusammen auf und tourten ab 1938 zusammen durch die Südstaaten der USA.
Am 19. November 1941 hatte das Duo seinen ersten Auftritt im Radio. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt legte sich Sonny Boy Williamson auch seinen Künstlernamen zu. Da es schon einen bekannten Bluesmusiker namens Sonny Boy Williamson gab, ist er als „Sonny Boy Williamson II.“ bekannt. Im Jahre 1951 nahm er das Stück Eyesight to the blind auf, welches er später in Chicago unter dem Namen Born blind nochmals aufnahm. Dieses Stück findet sich auch auf dem Album Tommy von The Who wieder. In den nächsten vier Jahren nahm er weitere neun Alben auf. Ab 1954 lebte seine Frau in Milwaukee, während er in Chicago mit Tampa Red und in Detroit mit Baby Boy Warren Aufnahmen machte. Später kam er, genauer gesagt sein Vertrag, zu Chess Records. Einen großen Hit hatte Sonny Boy im Jahre 1955 mit Don´t start me talkin. Auf dieser Aufnahme sind auch Musiker wie Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, Otis Spann, Jimmy Rogers und Fred Below zu hören. Bei Chess traf er auch wieder auf Robert Lockwood, mit dem er die nächsten fünf Jahre weitere Aufnahmen machte. Danach legte er eine Schaffenspause ein.
Am 12. Januar 1963 kehrte Sonny Boy nach einer längeren Pause wieder in die Chess-Studios zurück. Dort entstand der Song Help Me. Die B-Seite Bye bye bird wurde von John Mayall und den Bluesbreakers in ihr Programm aufgenommen. Dank dieses Erfolges ging er auf eine ausgedehnte Tournee durch Europa, wo er unter anderem mit Chris Barber, den Yardbirds, den Animals, Jimmy Page und Brian Auger auftrat. Mit den Yardbirds und den Animals nahm er dabei jeweils ein Live-Album auf. Er musste aber, als sein Visum auslief, wieder in die USA zurückkehren. 1965 reiste Sonny Boy Williamson II. nach Helena, um dort aufzutreten. Während dieses Auftrittes beobachtete sein Gitarrist Robbie Robertson, dass er ständig Blut ins Taschentuch spuckte. Am 25. Mai 1965 wurde er tot in seinem Bett aufgefunden und in Tutwiler, Mississippi, beigesetzt.
Er wurde 1980 posthum in die Blues Hall of Fame aufgenommen.
Alex Miller (possibly December 5, 1912[2] – May 25, 1965),[3][5] known professionally as Sonny Boy Williamson, was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, from Mississippi.[6] He is acknowledged as one of the most charismatic and influential blues musicians, with considerable prowess on the harmonica and creative songwriting skills. He recorded successfully in the 1950s and 1960s, and had a direct influence on later blues and rock performers.
His head stone found in or near Tutwiler, Mississippi, lists his name as Aleck Miller, his birth date as March 11, 1908 and his date of death as June 23, 1965.
Biography
Year of birth
Born Alex Ford (pronounced "Aleck") on the Sara Jones Plantation in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, his date and year of birth are a matter of uncertainty. He claimed to have been born on December 5, 1899, but Dr. David Evans, professor of music and an ethnomusicologist at the University of Memphis,[7] claims to have found census record evidence that he was born around 1912, being seven on February 2, 1920, the day of the census.[8][9] His gravestone, set up by record company owner Lillian McMurry twelve years after his death, gives his date of birth as March 11, 1908,[10] but the birth date on that stone is most likely incorrect.[5]
Early years
He lived and worked with his sharecropper stepfather, Jim Miller, whose last name he soon adopted, and mother, Millie Ford, until the early 1930s. Beginning in the 1930s, he traveled around Mississippi and Arkansas and encountered Big Joe Williams, Elmore James and Robert Lockwood, Jr., also known as Robert Junior Lockwood, who would play guitar on his later Checker Records sides. He was also associated with Robert Johnson during this period. Miller developed his style and raffish stage persona during these years. Willie Dixon recalled seeing Lockwood and Miller playing for tips in Greenville, Mississippi in the 1930s. He entertained audiences with novelties such as inserting one end of the harmonica into his mouth and playing with no hands. At this time he was often known as "Rice" Miller — a childhood nickname stemming from his love of rice and milk[11] — or as Little Boy Blue.[12]
In 1941 Miller was hired to play the King Biscuit Time show, advertising the King Biscuit brand of baking flour on radio station KFFA in Helena, Arkansas with Lockwood.
It was at this point that the radio program's sponsor, Max Moore, began billing Miller as Sonny Boy Williamson, apparently in an attempt to capitalize on the fame of the well known Chicago-based harmonica player and singer Sonny Boy Williamson (birth name John Lee Curtis Williamson, died 1948). Although John Lee Williamson was a major blues star who had already released dozens of successful and widely influential records under the name "Sonny Boy Williamson" from 1937 onward, Aleck Miller would later claim to have been the first to use the name, and some blues scholars believe that Miller's assertion he was born in 1899 was a ruse to convince audiences he was old enough to have used the name before John Lee Williamson, who was born in 1914 (see year of birth section above).
Whatever the methodology, Miller became commonly known as "Sonny Boy Williamson," (universally distinguished by blues fans and musicians as "Sonny Boy Williamson number two" or "Sonny Boy Williamson the second") and Lockwood and the rest of his band were billed as the King Biscuit Boys.
Radio show in Memphis
In 1949 he relocated to West Memphis, Arkansas and lived with his sister and her husband, Howlin' Wolf. (Later, for Checker Records, he did a parody of Howlin' Wolf entitled "Like Wolf.") Sonny Boy started his own KWEM radio show from 1948 to 1950 selling the elixir Hadacol.
Sonny Boy also brought his King Biscuit musician friends to West Memphis, Elmore James, Houston Stackhouse, Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup, Robert Nighthawk and others to perform on KWEM Radio.
In the 1940s Williamson married Mattie Gordon, who remained his wife until his death.
Recording career
Trumpet Records
Williamson's first recording session took place in 1951 for Lillian McMurry of Jackson, Mississippi's Trumpet Records, three years after the death of John Lee Williamson, which for the first time allowed some legitimacy to Miller's carefully worded claim to being "the one and only Sonny Boy Williamson". McMurry later erected Williamson's headstone, near Tutwiler, Mississippi, in 1977.
Checker Records
When Trumpet went bankrupt in 1955, Sonny Boy's recording contract was yielded to its creditors, who sold it to Chess Records in Chicago, Illinois. Sonny Boy had begun developing a following in Chicago beginning in 1953, when he appeared there as a member of Elmore James's band. It was during his Chess years that he enjoyed his greatest success and acclaim, recording about 70 songs for Chess subsidiary Checker Records from 1955 to 1964. Sonny Boy's first LP record was titled Down and Out Blues and was released by Checker Records in 1959.
Ace Records
One single, "Boppin' With Sonny" b/w "No Nights By Myself" was released with Ace Records in 1955.[13]
1960s European tours
In the early 1960s he toured Europe several times during the height of the British blues craze backed on a number of occasions by The Authentics (see American Folk Blues Festival), recording with The Yardbirds (see album: Sonny Boy Williamson and The Yardbirds) and The Animals, and appearing on several TV broadcasts throughout Europe. During this time Sonny was quoted as saying of the backing bands who accompanied him, "those British boys want to play the blues real bad, and they do". According to the Led Zeppelin biography Hammer of the Gods, while in England Sonny Boy set his hotel room on fire while trying to cook a rabbit in a coffee percolator. The book also maintains that future Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant purloined one of the bluesman's harmonicas at one of these shows as well. Robert Palmer's "Deep Blues" mentions that during this tour he allegedly stabbed a man during a street fight and left the country abruptly.
Sonny Boy took a liking to the European fans, and while there had a custom-made, two-tone suit tailored personally for him, along with a bowler hat, matching umbrella, and an attaché case for his harmonicas. He appears credited as "Big Skol" on Roland Kirk's live album Kirk in Copenhagen (1963).[14] One of his final recordings from England, in 1964, featured him singing "I'm Trying To Make London My Home" with Hubert Sumlin providing the guitar. Due to his many years of relating convoluted, highly fictionalized accounts of his life to friends and family, upon his return to the Delta, some expressed disbelief upon hearing of Sonny Boy's touring across the Atlantic, visiting Europe, seeing the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben, and other landmarks, and recording there.
Return to the U.S. and death
Upon his return to the U.S., he resumed playing the King Biscuit Time show on KFFA, and performed in the Helena, Arkansas area. As fellow musicians Houston Stackhouse and Peck Curtis waited at the KFFA studios for Williamson on May 25, 1965, the 12:15 broadcast time was closing in and Sonny Boy was nowhere in sight. Peck left the radio station to locate Williamson, and discovered his body in bed at the rooming house where he had been staying, dead of an apparent heart attack suffered in his sleep the night before.
Williamson is buried on New Africa Rd. just outside Tutwiler, Mississippi at the site of the former Whitman Chapel cemetery. His headstone was provided by Mrs. Lillian McMurry, owner of Trumpet Records; the death date shown on the stone is incorrect.[5]
Legacy
Recording anthology
Some of his better known songs include "Don't Start Me To Talkin'" (his only major hit, it reached the #3 position on the national Billboard R&B charts in 1955),"Fattenin' Frogs for Snakes", "Keep It To Yourself", "Your Funeral and My Trial", "Bye Bye Bird", "Nine Below Zero", "Help Me", "Checkin' Up on My Baby", and the infamous "Little Village", with dialogue 'unsuitable for airplay' with Leonard Chess. His song "Eyesight to the Blind" was performed by The Who as a key song in their rock opera Tommy (the only song in that opus not written by a band member) and it was later covered on the Aerosmith album Honkin' on Bobo.[15] His "One Way Out", reworked from Elmore James and recorded twice in the early 1960s, became popularized by The Allman Brothers Band in the early 1970s. In interviews in The Last Waltz, roots-rockers The Band recount jamming with Miller prior to their initial fame as Bob Dylan's electric backing band, and making never-realized plans to become his backing band. Many of his most famous recordings appeared on The Essential Sonny Boy Williamson and His Best.
Musical influence
Williamson's output of recordings, both issued and unissued, for Lillian McMurray's Trumpet label, can be found on Arhoolie, Alligator, Purple Pyramid, Collectables, plus a handful of other domestic and import imprints, while his years as a resident of the Chess/Checker house appear on various compilations on MCA/Chess. His European recordings reside on Alligator, Analogue Productions, Storyville, and others.
Williamson had an influence on modern day blues and blues rock artists, as is shown by the number of his songs that were covered, including
Muddy Waters – "Nine Below Zero"
Canned Heat – "Nine Below Zero" and "Help Me"
Junior Wells – "Help Me"
Howlin' Wolf – "Cool Disposition"
B. B. King – "Eyesight to the Blind"
Mose Allison – "Eyesight to the Blind"
John Mayall's Bluesbreakers – "Help Me", "Checkin' Up on My Baby"
Led Zeppelin – "Bring It On Home"
Van Morrison – "Take Your Hands Out of My Pocket", "Help Me" – both on the 1974 live
album It's Too Late to Stop Now. Morrison has often sung "Help Me" in live performances
throughout his long career.
The Allman Brothers Band – "One Way Out"
New York Dolls – "Don't Start Me Talkin'"
Ten Years After – "Help Me"
The Who – "Eyesight to the Blind"
Aerosmith – "Eyesight to the Blind"
Gary Moore – "Eyesight to the Blind", "Don't Start Me To Talkin'"
The Blues Brothers – "From the Bottom"
Lester Butler – "I Cross My Heart"
Rory Gallagher – "My Baby, She Left Me", and "Don't Start me Talkin"; on the Defender
Nine Below Zero took their band name from his song.
The Downchild Blues Band, also known as "Downchild", took their name from his song,
"Mister Downchild".[16]
John Popper of Blues Traveler notes Sonny Boy Williamson as a strong influence on his
harmonica playing.
Joe Bonamassa – "Your Funeral and My Trial"
Dr. Feelgood – "Checking Up On My Baby" on their live album, Stupidity
The Doobie Brothers – "Don't Start Me To Talkin'" from their album "Toulouse Street"
Joan Osborne – "Bring It On Home"
Johnny Winter - "Help Me"
http://mattizwoo.blogspot.de/2013/08/sonnny-boy-williamson-ii.html
J.J. Cale (* 5. Dezember 1938 in Oklahoma City,[1] Oklahoma, als John Weldon Cale; † 26. Juli 2013 in San Diego, Kalifornien) war ein US-amerikanischer Musiker und Komponist. Er zählt zu den Begründern des Tulsa-Sounds, stilistisch zwischen Rockabilly, Blues, Jazz und Country einzuordnen. Er spielte oftmals alle Instrumente seiner Aufnahmen selbst.
Cale wuchs in Tulsa im US-Staat Oklahoma auf.[2] Der Name J.J. (ohne Leerzeichen und häufig auch ohne Punkte geschrieben) war ein Künstlername, der ihm in seinen Anfangsjahren als Musiker von einem Clubbesitzer des „Whisky a Go Go“ in Los Angeles gegeben wurde, da es bereits den Musiker John Cale (ex-Velvet Underground) gab. Fälschlicherweise wird selbst in seriösen Quellen (zum Beispiel im All Music Guide to the Blues) der Geburtsname von J.J. Cale mit „Jean Jacques“ angegeben. Diesen Namen hatte ein französischer Journalist ins Spiel gebracht, worauf er dann in einigen Biografien von J.J. Cale genannt wurde.
J.J. Cale war mit der Gitarristin Christine Lakeland verheiratet, die an den meisten seiner Touren als Bandmitglied teilnahm.[3]
Typisch für Cale sind kurze, eher sparsam instrumentierte Songs. Die Texte sind oft lakonisch und wurden ohne jedes Pathos vorgetragen, so dass seine Musik für typischen Rock zu ruhig ist. Dafür sind die Details der Musik sehr sorgfältig ausgearbeitet. Eric Clapton beschrieb in einem Interview diesen Stil: “… really, really minimal…, it’s all about finesse.” (etwa „… wirklich sehr minimalistisch; das Wesentliche sind die Feinheiten.“)[4]
Cale ließ sich für die Produktion einer Platte oft mehrere Jahre Zeit und hat in seiner Musik den sogenannten Laid-back-Stil (zurückgelehnt, entspannt) geprägt. Das bedeutet, dass er seine wohldosierten Soli immer leicht hinter dem eigentlichen Beat des jeweiligen Stückes spielte. Der Laid-back-Stil erinnert an den Stil von Billie Holiday, die ihn nach Cales eigenen Aussagen inspirierte.
J.J. Cale und Eric Clapton veröffentlichten im November 2006 das gemeinsame Album The Road to Escondido, das 2008 mit einem Grammy als Best Contemporary Blues Album (Bestes zeitgenössisches Bluesalbum) ausgezeichnet wurde. Christine Lakeland spielt auf diesem Album Gitarre.
Am 26. Juli 2013 starb J.J. Cale in La Jolla, San Diego, nach einem Herzinfarkt.
Rezeption
J.J. Cale, der die Öffentlichkeit eher mied und nur einen eigenen großen Hit hatte (Cocaine, 1977 Nr. 22 in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Nr. 2 in der Schweiz, Nr. 5 in Österreich), ist in Musikerkreisen wegen seiner Kompositionen hoch angesehen. Das Instrumentalstück Okie wurde als Erkennungsmelodie im damaligen SWF3-Radioclub mit Frank Laufenberg verwendet. J.J. Cale wurde insbesondere durch zahlreiche Interpretationen seiner Songs durch andere Musiker bekannt, wie die Coverversionen von After Midnight und Cocaine durch Eric Clapton.
2014 erschien das Album The Breeze – An Appreciation of JJ Cale, das eine Hommage von Eric Clapton & Friends ist.
Cale wuchs in Tulsa im US-Staat Oklahoma auf.[2] Der Name J.J. (ohne Leerzeichen und häufig auch ohne Punkte geschrieben) war ein Künstlername, der ihm in seinen Anfangsjahren als Musiker von einem Clubbesitzer des „Whisky a Go Go“ in Los Angeles gegeben wurde, da es bereits den Musiker John Cale (ex-Velvet Underground) gab. Fälschlicherweise wird selbst in seriösen Quellen (zum Beispiel im All Music Guide to the Blues) der Geburtsname von J.J. Cale mit „Jean Jacques“ angegeben. Diesen Namen hatte ein französischer Journalist ins Spiel gebracht, worauf er dann in einigen Biografien von J.J. Cale genannt wurde.
J.J. Cale war mit der Gitarristin Christine Lakeland verheiratet, die an den meisten seiner Touren als Bandmitglied teilnahm.[3]
Typisch für Cale sind kurze, eher sparsam instrumentierte Songs. Die Texte sind oft lakonisch und wurden ohne jedes Pathos vorgetragen, so dass seine Musik für typischen Rock zu ruhig ist. Dafür sind die Details der Musik sehr sorgfältig ausgearbeitet. Eric Clapton beschrieb in einem Interview diesen Stil: “… really, really minimal…, it’s all about finesse.” (etwa „… wirklich sehr minimalistisch; das Wesentliche sind die Feinheiten.“)[4]
Cale ließ sich für die Produktion einer Platte oft mehrere Jahre Zeit und hat in seiner Musik den sogenannten Laid-back-Stil (zurückgelehnt, entspannt) geprägt. Das bedeutet, dass er seine wohldosierten Soli immer leicht hinter dem eigentlichen Beat des jeweiligen Stückes spielte. Der Laid-back-Stil erinnert an den Stil von Billie Holiday, die ihn nach Cales eigenen Aussagen inspirierte.
J.J. Cale und Eric Clapton veröffentlichten im November 2006 das gemeinsame Album The Road to Escondido, das 2008 mit einem Grammy als Best Contemporary Blues Album (Bestes zeitgenössisches Bluesalbum) ausgezeichnet wurde. Christine Lakeland spielt auf diesem Album Gitarre.
Am 26. Juli 2013 starb J.J. Cale in La Jolla, San Diego, nach einem Herzinfarkt.
Rezeption
J.J. Cale, der die Öffentlichkeit eher mied und nur einen eigenen großen Hit hatte (Cocaine, 1977 Nr. 22 in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Nr. 2 in der Schweiz, Nr. 5 in Österreich), ist in Musikerkreisen wegen seiner Kompositionen hoch angesehen. Das Instrumentalstück Okie wurde als Erkennungsmelodie im damaligen SWF3-Radioclub mit Frank Laufenberg verwendet. J.J. Cale wurde insbesondere durch zahlreiche Interpretationen seiner Songs durch andere Musiker bekannt, wie die Coverversionen von After Midnight und Cocaine durch Eric Clapton.
2014 erschien das Album The Breeze – An Appreciation of JJ Cale, das eine Hommage von Eric Clapton & Friends ist.
John Weldon Cale[1] (December 5, 1938 – July 26, 2013), known as JJ Cale or J.J. Cale, was an American singer-songwriter and musician who was one of the originators of the Tulsa Sound, a loose genre drawing on blues, rockabilly, country, and jazz influences. Cale's personal style has often been described as "laid back".
Songs written by Cale that have been covered by other musicians include "After Midnight" by Eric Clapton, Phish and Jerry Garcia, "Cocaine" by Eric Clapton, "Clyde" by Waylon Jennings and Dr. Hook, and "Call Me the Breeze" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, John Mayer, Johnny Cash, Bobby Bare and Eric Clapton. In 2008 he was a Grammy Award winner, jointly with Clapton.
Life and career
Cale was born on December 5, 1938, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.[1] He was raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and graduated from Tulsa Central High School in 1956. Along with a number of other young Tulsa musicians, Cale moved to Los Angeles in the early 1960s, where he first worked as a studio engineer.[2] Finding little success as a recording artist, he later returned to Tulsa and was considering giving up the music business until Clapton recorded Cale's "After Midnight" in 1970. His first album, Naturally, established his style, described by Los Angeles Times writer Richard Cromelin as a "unique hybrid of blues, folk and jazz, marked by relaxed grooves and Cale's fluid guitar and laconic vocals. His early use of drum machines and his unconventional mixes lend a distinctive and timeless quality to his work and set him apart from the pack of Americana roots music purists."[3] In 2013 Neil Young remarked that of all the musicians he had ever heard, J.J. Cale and Jimi Hendrix were the two best electric guitar players.[4]
Some sources incorrectly give his real name as "Jean-Jacques Cale".[5] In the 2005 documentary, To Tulsa and Back: On Tour with J.J. Cale, Cale talks about Elmer Valentine, co-owner of the Sunset Strip nightclub Whisky a Go Go, who employed him in the mid-1960s, being the one that came up with the "JJ" moniker to avoid confusion with the Velvet Underground's John Cale. Rocky Frisco tells the same version of the story mentioning the other John Cale but without further detail.[6]
In this 2005 documentary J.J. Cale's style is also characterized by Eric Clapton as "...really, really minimal..." and he states precisely: "...it's all about finesse".
His biggest U.S. hit single, "Crazy Mama", peaked at #22 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1972. In the 2005 documentary film To Tulsa and Back Cale recounts the story of being offered the opportunity to appear on Dick Clark's American Bandstand to promote the song, which would have moved it higher on the charts. Cale declined when told he could not bring his band to the taping and would be required to lip-sync the words.[7]
Cale often acted as his own producer, engineer and session player. His vocals, sometimes whispery, would be buried in the mix. He attributed his unique sound to being a recording mixer and engineer, saying; "Because of all the technology now you can make music yourself and a lot of people are doing that now. I started out doing that a long time ago and I found when I did that I came up with a unique sound."[8]
In live performances, Cale played with minimal stage lighting.
His catalogue is published for the World excluding North America by independent music publishers Fairwood Music (UK) Ltd.
Cale died of heart failure in July 2013, at the age of 74, in La Jolla, California.[9][10][11]
Covers
Songs written by Cale that have been covered by other musicians include "After Midnight" and "Cocaine" by Eric Clapton ("Cocaine" also was covered by Nazareth), "Call Me The Breeze" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, Johnny Cash, and Eric Clapton, "Clyde" by Waylon Jennings and Dr. Hook, "I Got the Same Old Blues" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Ride Me High" and "Travelin' Light" by Widespread Panic, "Bringing It Back" by Kansas, and "Magnolia" by Poco.
In 1974 Captain Beefheart covered the song "Same Old Blues" on his album Bluejeans & Moonbeams.
Santana covered "The Sensitive Kind" on their 1981 album Zebop!
The 1992 track "Run" on Spiritualized's debut album, Lazer Guided Melodies, is essentially a cover of Cale's "Call Me the Breeze" with some additional lyrics. Cale is given songwriting credit on the album.
George Thorogood & The Destroyers covered "Devil In Disguise" on their 2003 album Ride 'Til I Die.
As well as "After Midnight" on his self-titled debut album in 1970 and "Cocaine" on Slowhand in 1977, Eric Clapton has covered Cale's "I'll Make Love To You Anytime" on his 1978 album Backless. Other Clapton covers of Cale originals include "Travelin' Light" on his 2001 album Reptile, "River Runs Deep" and "Everything Will Be Alright" on his 2010 self-titled album Clapton, and "Angel" on his 2013 album Old Sock.
In 2014 Eric Clapton & Friends released the tribute album The Breeze: An Appreciation of JJ Cale. Here Cale's tunes are covered by Clapton with Tom Petty, Mark Knopfler, John Mayer, Don White, Willie Nelson, Christine Lakeland and others. In the video version of Call Me The Breeze for this album, Clapton declares of Cale He was a fantastic musician. And hew was my hero.
Songs written by Cale that have been covered by other musicians include "After Midnight" by Eric Clapton, Phish and Jerry Garcia, "Cocaine" by Eric Clapton, "Clyde" by Waylon Jennings and Dr. Hook, and "Call Me the Breeze" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, John Mayer, Johnny Cash, Bobby Bare and Eric Clapton. In 2008 he was a Grammy Award winner, jointly with Clapton.
Life and career
Cale was born on December 5, 1938, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.[1] He was raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and graduated from Tulsa Central High School in 1956. Along with a number of other young Tulsa musicians, Cale moved to Los Angeles in the early 1960s, where he first worked as a studio engineer.[2] Finding little success as a recording artist, he later returned to Tulsa and was considering giving up the music business until Clapton recorded Cale's "After Midnight" in 1970. His first album, Naturally, established his style, described by Los Angeles Times writer Richard Cromelin as a "unique hybrid of blues, folk and jazz, marked by relaxed grooves and Cale's fluid guitar and laconic vocals. His early use of drum machines and his unconventional mixes lend a distinctive and timeless quality to his work and set him apart from the pack of Americana roots music purists."[3] In 2013 Neil Young remarked that of all the musicians he had ever heard, J.J. Cale and Jimi Hendrix were the two best electric guitar players.[4]
Some sources incorrectly give his real name as "Jean-Jacques Cale".[5] In the 2005 documentary, To Tulsa and Back: On Tour with J.J. Cale, Cale talks about Elmer Valentine, co-owner of the Sunset Strip nightclub Whisky a Go Go, who employed him in the mid-1960s, being the one that came up with the "JJ" moniker to avoid confusion with the Velvet Underground's John Cale. Rocky Frisco tells the same version of the story mentioning the other John Cale but without further detail.[6]
In this 2005 documentary J.J. Cale's style is also characterized by Eric Clapton as "...really, really minimal..." and he states precisely: "...it's all about finesse".
His biggest U.S. hit single, "Crazy Mama", peaked at #22 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1972. In the 2005 documentary film To Tulsa and Back Cale recounts the story of being offered the opportunity to appear on Dick Clark's American Bandstand to promote the song, which would have moved it higher on the charts. Cale declined when told he could not bring his band to the taping and would be required to lip-sync the words.[7]
Cale often acted as his own producer, engineer and session player. His vocals, sometimes whispery, would be buried in the mix. He attributed his unique sound to being a recording mixer and engineer, saying; "Because of all the technology now you can make music yourself and a lot of people are doing that now. I started out doing that a long time ago and I found when I did that I came up with a unique sound."[8]
In live performances, Cale played with minimal stage lighting.
His catalogue is published for the World excluding North America by independent music publishers Fairwood Music (UK) Ltd.
Cale died of heart failure in July 2013, at the age of 74, in La Jolla, California.[9][10][11]
Covers
Songs written by Cale that have been covered by other musicians include "After Midnight" and "Cocaine" by Eric Clapton ("Cocaine" also was covered by Nazareth), "Call Me The Breeze" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, Johnny Cash, and Eric Clapton, "Clyde" by Waylon Jennings and Dr. Hook, "I Got the Same Old Blues" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Ride Me High" and "Travelin' Light" by Widespread Panic, "Bringing It Back" by Kansas, and "Magnolia" by Poco.
In 1974 Captain Beefheart covered the song "Same Old Blues" on his album Bluejeans & Moonbeams.
Santana covered "The Sensitive Kind" on their 1981 album Zebop!
The 1992 track "Run" on Spiritualized's debut album, Lazer Guided Melodies, is essentially a cover of Cale's "Call Me the Breeze" with some additional lyrics. Cale is given songwriting credit on the album.
George Thorogood & The Destroyers covered "Devil In Disguise" on their 2003 album Ride 'Til I Die.
As well as "After Midnight" on his self-titled debut album in 1970 and "Cocaine" on Slowhand in 1977, Eric Clapton has covered Cale's "I'll Make Love To You Anytime" on his 1978 album Backless. Other Clapton covers of Cale originals include "Travelin' Light" on his 2001 album Reptile, "River Runs Deep" and "Everything Will Be Alright" on his 2010 self-titled album Clapton, and "Angel" on his 2013 album Old Sock.
In 2014 Eric Clapton & Friends released the tribute album The Breeze: An Appreciation of JJ Cale. Here Cale's tunes are covered by Clapton with Tom Petty, Mark Knopfler, John Mayer, Don White, Willie Nelson, Christine Lakeland and others. In the video version of Call Me The Breeze for this album, Clapton declares of Cale He was a fantastic musician. And hew was my hero.
JJ Cale, Eric Clapton (After Midnight & Call me the Breeze)
Bobby Slim James *05.12.
https://www.facebook.com/bobby.s.james/photos_albums?lst=100002257761834%3A100000643089389%3A1480777349
In 1968 Bobby wrote and recorded his first record titled I Really Love You which became a major hit in England in the 1970’s. Bobby met O.V. Wright in the early 70’s while appearing at The Burning Spear. Recognizing his talent Mr. Wright invited Bobby to tour with him on the 'chitlin circuit' which proved to be an invaluable experience. Bobby had also taught himself to play the guitar and in 1973 he put his first band together. As guitarist and lead vocal Bobby began appearing at various clubs throughout the 1980's. Bobby performances continued throughout the 90's with club dates and venues such as pre-game entertainment for the Champion Chicago Bulls where he performed before audiences of thousands with his signature R&B style. In 1991 Bobby was featured in a stage production at ETA Theatre titled If Blues Was a Dolla. His character's name was "'Slim" and thereafter he became known as Bobby "Slim" James. In 1997 Bobby met Songwriter, Promoter and Publisher Bob Jones. In collaboration with Mr. Jones Bobby completed his CD Beyond the Blues. This new release contains a re-recording of the hit song I Really Love You along with other hot tunes. One of the biggest shows Mr. Jones booked was the First Blues Show of the Century. Also on this show was Bobby "Blue" Bland, Little Milton, Peggy Scott-Adams Mel Waiters and, of course, Bobby "Slim" James. Bobby has performed around Chicago with his Variety Blues Band. Some of the venues are: Blue Chicago on Clark; Kingston Mines; Buddy Guy’s Legends; 2002 Chicago Blues Fest; 2007 Chicago Blues Fest; Blue Chip Casino as well as numerous other clubs. Additionally, he has performed in many out-of-state events. Bobby also performs at a variety of private functions (i.e., retirement/birthday parties) by special requests. Bobby recently recorded a new CD in collaboration with Bob Jones. The CD titled Brand New Man has been released and is receiving rave reviews. Included on the CD is a song titled The Real Story which is autobiographical. This CD expresses my feelings about life which is optimism and a positive mental attitude which is expressed in the song Got To Believe. If your mind can conceive it, if deep down in your heart you believe it, do the work and achieve it. Aside from his many achievements in music, Bobby has established a reputation among his peers and audiences for his commitment, steadfastness and expertise to his profession.
Chicago Blues Festival 2011 Bobby "Slim" James Band
James "Stump" Johnson (January 17, 1902 – December 5, 1969)[1] was an American blues pianist and singer from St. Louis.
Biography
James "Stump" Johnson was the brother of Jesse Johnson, "a prominent black business man," who around 1909[2] had moved the family from Clarksville, Tennessee, to St. Louis, where he ran a music store and was a promoter.[3] James, a self-taught piano player,[4] made a career playing the city's brothels.[5] He had an instant hit with the "whorehouse tune"[2] "The Duck's Yas-Yas-Yas," "a popular St. Louis party song."[6] The song's title is explained by quoting the lyrics more fully: "Shake your shoulders, shake 'em fast, if you can't shake your shoulders, shake your yas-yas-yas."[2]
He made a number of other recordings (some mildly pornographic) under various pseudonyms.[7] One of the more obscene tunes was a version of "Steady Grinding", which he recorded with Dorothea Trowbridge on August 2, 1933;[8] the song has the "defiant, sexually aggressive lyrics" early blueswomen were noted for,[9] "grind" being slang for copulating.
Biography
James "Stump" Johnson was the brother of Jesse Johnson, "a prominent black business man," who around 1909[2] had moved the family from Clarksville, Tennessee, to St. Louis, where he ran a music store and was a promoter.[3] James, a self-taught piano player,[4] made a career playing the city's brothels.[5] He had an instant hit with the "whorehouse tune"[2] "The Duck's Yas-Yas-Yas," "a popular St. Louis party song."[6] The song's title is explained by quoting the lyrics more fully: "Shake your shoulders, shake 'em fast, if you can't shake your shoulders, shake your yas-yas-yas."[2]
He made a number of other recordings (some mildly pornographic) under various pseudonyms.[7] One of the more obscene tunes was a version of "Steady Grinding", which he recorded with Dorothea Trowbridge on August 2, 1933;[8] the song has the "defiant, sexually aggressive lyrics" early blueswomen were noted for,[9] "grind" being slang for copulating.
Big Boy Henry +05.12.2004
Born Richard Henry, this North Carolina country blues artist enjoyed a unique niche in his later life as a folk festival and club performer, bringing great pleasure to blues fans in a period when many older artists in this genre were passing away. He grew up on the North Carolina coast in the '20s and '30s, an era when bluesmen still played on street corners and juke joints were hopping at night with live music. The South Carolinian bluesman Fred Miller was one of his first big musical influences, and Henry assumed the traditional apprentice role in the country blues relationship, meaning he would "go around" with Miller to various functions where a few coins would be made and some blues would be sung. Henry quickly took over the vocal duties since his partner's singing abilities was in direct contrast to his excellent guitar technique. Miller moved to New York and Big Boy Henry began a series of journeys to the city in order to continue their relationship. This led to meetings with other Piedmont bluesmen such as the whooping harmonica player Sonny Terry and his sidekick Brownie McGhee. In 1951, Henry got the opportunity to record with backup from this famous duo, the blues equivalent of getting Rembrandt and Cezanne to help decorate. In a typical development in American blues recording history, these tracks were canned rather than released, although a release was finally arranged decades later. A defeated Henry limped back to his coastal digs in New Bern and decided to give up playing blues.
In the '50s and '60s, he worked on fishing and oystering crews and also ran a grocery store. He also did a touch of preaching in local churches, perhaps following the advice of fellow bluesman Son House as expressed in the song "Preachin' Blues": "I'm gonna become a Baptist preacher/And then I won't have to work." In 1971, he moved back to his first family home in Beaufort, not realizing that this would lead to a group of younger local musicians recognizing him. All it took was a little bit of their subsequent encouragement and he was ready to return to playing. As he got older, the guitarist's abilities were naturally hampered because of arthritis, but he still picked inventive single-string blues lines, tinkering with rhythms and bar-line blues structures with as much freedom as Lightnin' Hopkins. Younger North Carolina blues players such as the harmonica virtuoso Chris Turner and guitarist Billy Hobbs enjoyed the challenge of following the older man, who never failed to set the powerful musical mood known as "deep blues feeling." His vocal style was considered as powerful as ever in his senior years as he created his own inventive versions of blues standards and wrote his own songs as well, often touching on current events. The powerful song "Mr. President," written as an angry response to social welfare cuts undertaken by Ronald Reagan in the '80s, won him a W.C. Handy Award from the Blues Foundation. In 1995, he received the North Carolina Arts Council Folk Heritage award.
Henry's involvement with music goes well beyond performing. He has been actively involved with older members of his community in attempts to maintain and record one of the important coastal traditions, the work songs sung by himself and other African-Americans who fished on menhaden boats. His activities included organizing a group of retired fisherman into a singing group, the Menhaden Chantey Men.
http://www.allmusic.com/artist/big-boy-henry-mn0000758985/biographyIn the '50s and '60s, he worked on fishing and oystering crews and also ran a grocery store. He also did a touch of preaching in local churches, perhaps following the advice of fellow bluesman Son House as expressed in the song "Preachin' Blues": "I'm gonna become a Baptist preacher/And then I won't have to work." In 1971, he moved back to his first family home in Beaufort, not realizing that this would lead to a group of younger local musicians recognizing him. All it took was a little bit of their subsequent encouragement and he was ready to return to playing. As he got older, the guitarist's abilities were naturally hampered because of arthritis, but he still picked inventive single-string blues lines, tinkering with rhythms and bar-line blues structures with as much freedom as Lightnin' Hopkins. Younger North Carolina blues players such as the harmonica virtuoso Chris Turner and guitarist Billy Hobbs enjoyed the challenge of following the older man, who never failed to set the powerful musical mood known as "deep blues feeling." His vocal style was considered as powerful as ever in his senior years as he created his own inventive versions of blues standards and wrote his own songs as well, often touching on current events. The powerful song "Mr. President," written as an angry response to social welfare cuts undertaken by Ronald Reagan in the '80s, won him a W.C. Handy Award from the Blues Foundation. In 1995, he received the North Carolina Arts Council Folk Heritage award.
Henry's involvement with music goes well beyond performing. He has been actively involved with older members of his community in attempts to maintain and record one of the important coastal traditions, the work songs sung by himself and other African-Americans who fished on menhaden boats. His activities included organizing a group of retired fisherman into a singing group, the Menhaden Chantey Men.
Before his first marriage, he made a fair name for himself as a powerful singer and versatile guitarist on the thriving Carolina blues scene. In the Fifties he stopped playing music, and didn’t pick up a guitar again until thirty years later, encouraged by some young musicians who had heard tales of his early exploits. Throughout the 80s and 90s Big Boy appeared at prestigious festivals throughout the states and abroad and issued numerous self-produced cassettes and recordings with various labels.
Big Boy was the patriarch of the Carolina Blues. He was a saintly man, with tremendous compassion and patience for humanity. Big Boy weaves timeless parables into this his CD, “Beaufort Blues”. In “Old Bill” he points out the helplessness we all feel witnessing senseless sacrifice. In “John Henry” he rewrites an age old classic revealing this legend’s intimate character. And in “Vellevina” he lets us know what true love is all about. Big Boy passes the torch in this album to his son Luther who makes his debut singing an original song, giving us a glimpse of how Big Boy might have sounded in his prime.
Big Boy was the patriarch of the Carolina Blues. He was a saintly man, with tremendous compassion and patience for humanity. Big Boy weaves timeless parables into this his CD, “Beaufort Blues”. In “Old Bill” he points out the helplessness we all feel witnessing senseless sacrifice. In “John Henry” he rewrites an age old classic revealing this legend’s intimate character. And in “Vellevina” he lets us know what true love is all about. Big Boy passes the torch in this album to his son Luther who makes his debut singing an original song, giving us a glimpse of how Big Boy might have sounded in his prime.
Mr President - Big Boy Henry - Earliest Version - Acoustic Solo Studio Take
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