(Vocals, 1935–84) Esther Mae Washington was born in Galveston, Texas. She moved to the Los Angeles area at the age of five and in 1949 was discovered by Johnny Otis. Her first recording with Otis, ‘Double Crossing Blues’, was a number-one R&B hit in 1950. In that year the pair had two more number ones on the R&B ...
(Piano, vocals, 1906–85) Eurreal Wilford Montgomery was born in Louisiana and taught himself piano, dropping out of school to work functions and juke joints. He first recorded for Paramount in 1930 (‘Vicksburg Blues’/‘No Special Rider’) and then for Bluebird and ARC in 1935–36. Often featured with traditional jazz bands in addition to his primary work as a soloist ...
(Harmonica, vocals, 1930–68) Marion Walter Jacobs was born in Marksville, Louisiana. He taught himself harmonica at the age of eight and was working the New Orleans streets by the time he was 12. He worked in Helena, Arkansas (where he met Rice Miller) and St. Louis before arriving in Chicago in 1946. He was encouraged by guitarists ...
(Harmonica, vocals, 1932–71) Herman Parker Jr. was born in Bobo, Mississippi and worked with Howlin’ Wolf as early as 1949 in West Memphis. Parker was associated with B.B. King, Bobby Bland and Johnny Ace in the Memphis scene of the early 1950s. He recorded for Sun with his own group, the Blue Flames, in ...
(Guitar, vocals, 1934–2005) Born to sharecroppers in Inverness, Mississippi, the country music Milton Campbell heard in radio broadcasts from the Grand Ole Opry shaped his soulful sound as much as gospel and blues. After regional success, he signed to the Chess Records subsidiary Checker in 1961 and cut the classics ‘If Walls Could Talk’, ‘Feel So ...
(Vocals, b. 1920) West Virginia-born James Cecil Dickens was a long-time fixture on the Grand Ole Opry and is best known for the novelty hits he released in the late 1940s and early 1950s, including ‘Sleepin’ At The Foot Of The Bed’, ‘I’m Little But I’m Loud’ and ‘Take An Old Cold Tater And Wait’. Dickens was inducted into ...
First performed in Brno on 6 November 1924, this opera, based on a story by Rudolf Tešnohlídek, centres around a little vixen known as ‘Sharp-ears’. Janáček’s music is colourful, evocative, playful, full of Moravian folk references and often very moving, combining ballet, mime, vocalization without text, orchestral interludes, a chorus ...
(Vocals, 1937–68) Arkansas-born William Edgar John, who moved to Detroit as a child, was signed to King Records from 1955. A string of US R&B Top 20 hits followed, several of which crossed over to the US pop chart. He is said to have influenced many major soul singers of the 1960s, and his best-known hits ...
(Piano, vocals, b. 1932) Georgia-born Richard Penniman, who combines frantic vocals with uninhibited pianistics, was one of 12 children. Raised in a religious family, he started recording for RCA in 1951 after winning a talent contest. Chart success followed his signing with Specialty Records, where Bumps Blackwell produced a series of classic rock’n’roll tracks between ...
(Vocals, 1943–2003) One of pop’s fairy tales. Eva Boyd was baby-sitting for Gerry Goffin and Carole King when they asked her to demo a new dance-craze song, ‘The Loco-Motion’. It was a 1962 worldwide No. 1, later covered by Kylie Minogue. Follow-up ‘Keep Your Hands Off My Baby’ also charted. The Crystals’ Goffin-King single ‘He Hit Me (And ...
(Vocal group, 1971–present) Renowned for their eclectic blend of styles, incorporating rhythm and blues, country, rock’n’roll and jazz rock, Little Feat was founded by two ex-members of Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention, guitarist and singer Lowell George and bassist Roy Estrada. They were joined by Richard Hayward (drums) and Bill Payne (keyboards, vocals). After ...
(Vocal group, 1978–83, 1987–present) The Belfast outfit, comprising Jake Burns (guitar, vocals), Henry Clunie (guitar), Ali McMordie (bass) and Brian Falloon (drums) converted to punk on seeing The Clash in 1977. With lyrics by journalist Gordon Oglivie, Fingers’ early material, particularly the debut album Inflammable Material (1979), expressed anger at the troubles in Northern Ireland. ...
(Guitar, 1923–2004) Barney Kessel took inspiration from his fellow Oklahoman, guitarist Charlie Christian, and developed an electric-guitar style that straddled swing and bop in effective fashion. He was featured in the Oscar-nominated short film Jammin’ The Blues (1944), and recorded with Charlie Parker in 1947. A stint with the Oscar Peterson Trio in 1952–53 led to recordings as ...
(Bandleader, singer-songwriter, b. 1921) Of Greek parentage, California-born John Veliotes topped the US R&B chart twice in 1950 with ‘Double Crossing Blues’ and ‘Mistrustin’ Blues’, both credited to The Johnny Otis Orchestra. After moving from Berkeley to Los Angeles, he supposedly discovered such notable R&B vocalists as ‘Little’ Esther Phillips, Willie Mae ‘Big Mama’ Thornton, ...
(Drums, vibes, vocals, b. 1921) John Alexander Veliotes, born in Vallejo, California, started as a drummer and formed a big band in 1945. By 1947, Otis had switched to a seven- or eight-piece group. This was one of the earliest R&B combos to tour; the Johnny Otis Rhythm & Blues Caravan included vocalists Little ...
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