MickeyV | All About Blues Music

HELEN HUMES

Helen Humes was a fantastic Blues singer who made some very early recordings as a solo artist, became famous as the voice of the Count Basie Orchestra, toured Europe with the American Blues Festivals and made a formidable comeback after a ten year retirement. With a recording career lasting well over 50 years, Helen never…

NATHAN ABSHIRE

Zydeco and Cajun music are very closely linked: with the mélange of Blues, folk, French and country influences in common, and the shared feel for good-time dance music, the distinction is largely down to the skin-colour of the player. Nathan Abshire was a Creole speaking Cajun accordionist whose local reputation in the 30s was given…

CAL GREEN

Texan Cal Green was a talented and versatile guitarist who started out imitating his favourite local Blues players, then got a gig playing with one of the biggest R&B acts of the 50s, co-wrote a worldwide hit, then switched to Jazz in the 60s but returned to the Blues in later life. Cal was born…

LAZY LESTER

Lazy Lester plays that easy rolling Swamp Blues that always makes you want to move your feet. Blowing a mellifluous harp and occasionally strumming a guitar or even a washboard, his laid back vocal style meant that Leslie Johnson of Torres Louisiana was given the name Lazy Lester. Legend has it that, in around 1955,…

DON ROBEY

Don Robey was the owner of the Peacock, Duke and BackBeat labels that released some important R&B records in the 50s and were also the home of some of the best Gospel artists of the day. He was a tough man to deal with and made a lot of money by giving himself co-writing credits…

LEW CHUDD

Lew Chudd was one of the most prominent label owners of the 50s, who promoted the idea of cultural diversity not only by recording black artists, but by hiring black executives too. Always a shrewd businessman, he oversaw the recording career of Fats Domino during the period that made him a world star, and pioneered…

JACKIE BRENSTON

Jackie Brenston’s ‘Rocket 88’ is often cited as the first Rock’n’Roll record. Its phenomenal success in 1951 prompted Sam Phillips to set up Sun Records the following year, and then keep his ears open for a handsome white kid who could sing this rocking R&B like Jackie did. Although he never had another big solo…

GARY ‘US’ BONDS

In the late 50s R&B was in a strange place. The excitement generated by early Rock’n’Roll had drained away; traditional Blues was seen as old-fashioned in the post-war boom years; electric Chicago Blues was largely confined to the African-American community, and Soul, Motown and the British Invasion were still years away, so kids would dance…

SALLIE MARTIN

‘The Mother of Gospel Music’ may have preferred Sacred songs to ‘the Devil’s Music’, but her uninhibited and passionate vocal style had a lot in common with the best Blues singers of the day. As a famous exponent of the Rev. Thomas A Dorsey’s compositions in the 30s and a co-founder with him of The…

SARA MARTIN

Sara Martin was already 38 years old, with a long career behind her as a vaudeville singer, when she cut her first record for the Okeh label. Her big, rich voice; her stylish stage presence; her choice of some outstanding material and some shrewd publicity made her one of the most successful Blues Divas of…