An exciting and expressive jazz-influenced blues vocalist, Arbee Stidham also plays alto sax, guitar and harmonica. His father Luddie Stidham worked in Jimme Lunceford's orchestra, while his uncle was a leader of the Memphis Jug Band. Stidham formed the Southern Syncopators and played various clubs in his native Arkansas in the '30s. He appeared on Little Rock radio station KARK and his band backed Bessie Smith on a Southern tour in 1930 and 1931. Stidham frequently performed in Little Rock and Memphis until he moved to Chicago in the '40s. Stidham recorded with Lucky Millinder's Orchestra for Victor in the '40s for Victor. He did his own sessions for Victor, Sittin' In, Checker, Abco, Prestige/Bluesville, Mainstream, and Folkways in the '50s and '60s, and appeared in the film The Bluesman in 1973. Stidham also made many festival and club appearances nationwide and internationally. He did occasional blues lectures at Cleveland State University in the '70s.
Big John Greer (November 21, 1923 – May 12, 1972) was an American blues tenor saxophonist and vocalist, best known for his recordings from 1949 to 1955, which included "Got You On My Mind" and "Bottle It Up And Go."
Born John Marshall Greer in Hot Springs, Arkansas, United States, he was a friend of Henry Glover from childhood, and both attended college at Alabama A&M together. Glover was playing in Lucky Millinder's band when Bull Moose Jackson left the group in 1948; Glover suggested that Greer be chosen as Jackson's replacement. Greer played with Bob Shad and appeared on Millinder's RCA recordings until 1950, when Millinder signed to King Records. Greer stayed with RCA and played with Wynonie Harris and Jackson among others. He sang lead vocals on his biggest hit, 1952's "Got You On My Mind". In 1954 he switched to Groove Records, but did not make much impact on the American record charts there. In October of that year, he released "We Want To See Santa Do The Mambo", a Christmas hit to this day. In 1955, he finally signed with King, but only recorded for them for about a year. Greer also worked with Hal Singer and Bill Doggett.
By 1957, Greer had developed extended troubles with alcoholism, and he moved back to his home town of Hot Springs, Arkansas, where he died in 1972 at age 48
Johnnie Harrison Taylor (May 5, 1934 – May 31, 2000) was an American vocalist in a wide variety of genres, from rhythm and blues, soul, blues and gospel to pop, doo-wop and disco.
Johnnie Taylor was born in Crawfordsville, Arkansas. As a child, he grew up in West Memphis, Arkansas and performed in gospel groups as a youngster. As an adult, he had one release, "Somewhere to Lay My Head", on Chicago's Chance Records label in the 1950s, as part of the gospel group Highway QCs, which had been founded by a young Sam Cooke. His singing was strikingly close to that of Sam Cooke, and he was hired to take Cooke's place in the latter's gospel group, the Soul Stirrers, in 1957.
A few years later, after Cooke had established his independent SAR Records, Taylor signed on as one of the label's first acts and recorded "Rome Wasn't Built In A Day" in 1962. However, SAR Records quickly became defunct after Cooke's death in 1964.
In 1966, Taylor moved to Stax Records in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was dubbed "The Philosopher of Soul". Whilst there he recorded with the label's house band, Booker T. & the MGs. His hits included "I Had a Dream", "I've Got to Love Somebody's Baby" (both written by the team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter) and most notably "Who's Making Love", which reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 1 on the R&B chart in 1968. "Who's Making Love" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.
During his tenure at Stax, he became an R&B star, with over a dozen chart successes, such as "Jody's Got Your Girl and Gone", which reached No. 23 on the Hot 100 chart, "Cheaper to Keep Her" (Mack Rice) and record producer Don Davis's penned "I Believe in You (You Believe in Me)", which reached No. 11 on the Hot 100 chart. "I Believe in You (You Believe in Me)" also sold in excess of one million units, and was awarded gold disc status by the R.I.A.A. in October 1973. Taylor, along with Isaac Hayes and The Staple Singers was one of the label's flagship artists. He appeared in the documentary film, Wattstax, which was released in 1973
After Stax folded in the mid 1970s, Taylor switched to Columbia Records, where he made his best known hit, "Disco Lady", in 1976. It spent four weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and six weeks on the Billboard R&B chart in the U.S. It peaked at #25 in the UK Singles Chart in May 1976. "Disco Lady" was the first certified platinum single (two million copies sold) by the RIAA.
After a brief stint at Beverly Glen Records, Taylor signed with Malaco Records after the label's founder Tommy Couch and producing partner Wolf Stephenson heard him sing at blues singer Z. Z. Hill's funeral in the spring of 1984.
Backed by members of The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section as well as in-house veterans like former Stax keyboardist Carson Whitsett and guitarist/bandleader Bernard Jenkins, Malaco gave Taylor the type of recording freedom that Stax had given him in the late 1960s and early 1970s, enabling him to record ten albums for the label in his sixteen-year stint.
In 1996, Taylor's eighth album for Malaco, Good Love!, reached number one on the Billboard Top Blues Albums chart (#15 R&B), and was the biggest record in Malaco's history. With this success, Malaco recorded a live video of Taylor at the Longhorn Ballroom in Dallas, Texas in the summer of 1997. The club portion of the "Good Love" video was recorded at 1001 Nightclub in Jackson, Mississippi.
Taylor's final song was "Soul Heaven", in which he dreamed of being at a concert featuring deceased soul music icons Otis Redding, Jackie Wilson, Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke, and MGs drummer Al Jackson, Jr., among others. In one verse, Taylor sang, "I didn't want to wake up/I was havin' such a good time".
Taylor died of a heart attack at Charlton Methodist Hospital in Dallas, Texas, on May 31, 2000, aged 66. Stax billed Johnnie Taylor as "The Philosopher of Soul". He was also known as "the Blues Wailer". He was buried beside his mother, Ida Mae Taylor, at Forrest Hill Cemetery in Kansas City, Missouri.
Richard Broadnax was born in 1948 in the small town of Vellie, a community just outside of the city of Camden, Arkansas in the USA. Home to his four brothers and one sister was a farm operated by his parents, Elmer and Nettie. In addition to managing their farm, raising six children, and taking on extra work wherever they could, his parents were also active members of their local church. Elmer was the Deacon and Nettie assumed the responsibility of Church Mother.Richard_film.jpg
Every Sunday and some weekdays too - the entire family would walk together to church to attend services. The older brothers and sisters would help carry the children who were too young to walk the entire distance. God, church, and Gospel Music were the foundation and motivation of this family’s life. When Richard was only five years old, he was asked to recite a poem before the congregation. Because of the manner in which Richard recited the poem at such a young age, the congregation was so emotionally touched, they rose to their feet for a rousing and enthusiastic standing ovation.
To this day, Richard can recall the feeling and thoughts that overcame him at that moment. "...The applause rang like music in my ears and the feeling of knowing that I had done something wonderful for the people, filled my heart." It was only beginning to become clear then, that Richard had a natural gift for passing on the Gospel Spirit.
Constantly, Richard would sing, entertain, and amuse his parents and siblings around the Broadnax home. Nettie Broadnax recognized his singing talents, and signed him up for a music performance at church to be presented on Children’s Day. Richard was just eight years old then, and had already given his first solo part. "...Again, there was this wonderful applause and another standing ovation! I knew then that the Lord had given me a very special gift the talent to sing and speak to the people!" From that day onward, Richard enthusiastically involved himself in nearly every charitable event that took place at the local school or church.
Richard remembers how his father, Elmer, loved by the church congregation and also a great singer, became his biggest inspiration. "My father was my hero. Both my parents were sources of constant encouragement. Later on in my life, I was also inspired by The Father of Gospel Music - the Reverend Thomas A. Dorsey - who said that gospel music is a message, it must be understood... a dissertation should touch the congregation in a special way. Gospel Music is good news!"
As singing became more and more a part of Richard’s life, he began travelling with a gospel choir and appeared at many churches throughout Arkansas. Later on, the group extended their tours to include Texas, Arizona and California. A variety of radio and television appearances followed. Richard continued to find inspiration through great Gospel singers such as Mahalia Jackson, Shirley Caesar, The Clara Ward Singers, Dorothy Norwood, Aretha Franklin and the Reverend James Cleveland, just to name a few. Singing the Gospel was now Richard’s life.
jacksonsingers.jpgIn the early 1970’s, Richard came to Germany and became Assistant Program Director for Recreation and Activities at the Landstuhl Army Medical Center. He joined the Frankfurt Gospel Choir and thus began performing for the military community throughout Western Europe. In 1990, Richard met Robert D. Jackson, founder of the Jackson Gospel Singers. For six years, he toured throughout Europe with this group. During this period, they appeared on many German television broadcasts (including ZDF, ARD, 3SAT), and produced six CD’s.
Richard’s motivational talents were not overlooked in the film industry either. In 1995, he was cast in the film Le Nouveau Monde (James Gandolfini & Alicia Silverstone) by French film director, Alain Corneau. Performing the role of an American army chaplain, Richard was given free hand to interpret the performed sermons and gospel music for his scenes in this screen production. Richard’s own composition entitled Meet Me In Zion a very inspirational gospel song, is featured in this film as well as on the CD soundtrack of the same film.
In 1996, Richard participated in The 3rd International Gospel and Negro Spiritual Festival in Paris with The Jackson Singers, and shortly thereafter toured for several weeks throughout Switzerland. Together with The Jackson Singers, he appeared at the Notre Dame, Lausanne, the Tonhalle of St. Gallen, The Kongresshaus in Zurich. They were a part of one of the greatest gospel events in German history, which was after the coming down of the Berlin Wall. They were the first gospel group invited to the cities of the former east block countries such as Chemnitz, Leipzig, Dresden, Halle, Erfurt and others.
In 1997, he appeared in the Gospel Choir of Celine Dion’s Swiss Tour performance at the Letzigrund Stadium in Zurich. That same year, Richard formed The Zion Gospel Singers, his own Gospel Choir. The Zion Gospel Singers and band are made up of different religions, cultures and ethnic backgrounds; from USA, Switzerland, Barbados and Mauritius. Continuing to spread "the good news" with his new formation, he performed at various events and concerts throughout Switzerland.
The following year, when he appeared as guest star for the Bo Katzman 1998-1999 tour with an estimated overall audience of 40,000 it was clear that Richard’s popularity was well in demand. The release of his own CD Save A Moment For Me brought Richard Broadnax and The Zion Gospel Singers further acclaim with appearances on Swiss televisions’s popular show Risiko and coverage on the local Zurich television programs.
montreux.jpgThe Montreux Jazz Festival was honored with his appearance in 1999 when he appeared aboard the Gospel Boat for a Gospel concert on the waters of Lake Geneva. Another memorable appearance that same year was at the Karlovy Vary Jazz Festival in the Czech Republic. Other highlights included the Swissair Christmas Party in Zurich with an audience of over 6,000.
Numerous private events and weddings that year kept Richard Broadnax’s agenda very full right on into the year 2000 where other highlights included the Blue Balls Festival, Luzern, the annual Open-Air Concert Zell, Luzern, and a special trip back to the United States to appear in his home town of Camden, Arkansas, for an honorary concert entitled Home Boy, Come Home. Upon his return to Switzerland, he was immediately swept into a busy road show for the Orange company’s Box Tour with ten appearances throughout Switzerland, closing out the year of 2000 at the St. Francois, Palais de Beaulieu in Lausanne.
By the year 2001, Richard Broadnax was back in the studio recording the single CD Gospel, Joy, and Blues with the Zion Gospel Singers. He returned to the United States for a concert in El Paso, Texas at the Greater Mt. Olive Baptist Church where Dr. H.B. Johnson (Pastor) celebrated the new release with him. Enlightened and inspired, Richard returned to Switzerland and began performing his new and motivational self-composed song The Power of Gospel, delighting audiences at events such as The Marriot Hotel Gospel Brunch, the annual Christmas concert at The Hirschen in Obererlinsbach, and a special concert at the landmark Fraumünsterkirche in Zurich. Not only the spirit of Christmas, but also the spirit of Richard’s Gospel performance warmed the minus-zero temperatures and the crowd at the Open Air Frick, Aargau, Switzerland. A happy and successful ending of the season came with his concert at the Ramschwagsaal in Nenzing, Austria.
2002 was filled with the spirit of Gospel. The Gospel Fire Tour was underway and successfully launched from the celebrations of Expo in Yverdon and Biel in Switzerland. Continuing in full form through Stuttgart, Germany, and later on to the Jazz am Burg Festival in Dreieich, Germany, Richard Broadnax brought audiences to their feet with enthusiastic applause.
Back in Switzerland, The Gospel Fire Tour was a highlight performance in many communities throughout the country including the Saalbau-Aargau, Gemeindesaal Buel-Unterengstringen, Hotel Marriot-Zurich, The Jazz Club-Buelach and the historical Salzhaus in Brugg. The popular Altes Kino Mels was host to Richard Broadnax’s powerful performance as was the Hotel Hirschen-Hinwil, Schlossgutsaal-Munsingen and more. The tour neared an end at the Schadausaal Thun (BE), where Richard Broadnax teamed up with the Blues master Philipp Fankhauser for a memorable performance. Richard wrapped up the season with a heart-warming performance at the Grosse reformierte Church in Lyss-Bern.
With the new year of 2003, came the preparations for a new tour and a new CD recording. With the unexpected and tragic death of his sister, Erma Jean Broadnax Walter, the preparations for the recording took on a new turn and a new meaning. Enpowered by his faith and moved by his loss, Richard Broadnax puts together an inspiring and emotional collection of Gospel songs like never before. The CD is entitled You’re Gonna Live and it moves up on the list among Gospel’s greatest.
The Gospel Plane Tour for 2003 is underway and Richard never ceases to be grateful for the support he gets from his band and choir. "I work with a great team whose talents and dedication help me deliver a message of hope, understanding and peace."
bobbyjones2.jpg2004/2005: The Year 2004 started off with a special surprise: Richard Broadnax was contacted by Grammy Award winner, Ambassador Dr. Bobby Jones (www.bobbyjonesgospel.com) Gospel Artist Show case to come to USA Nashville TN, the Tennessee State University Performing Arts Center to appear on Word Television, 40 million viewers to sing a song from his first released CD Save a Moment For Me. Dr. Jones contacted Richard Broadnax in Switzerland after the show aired, to thank him for his outstanding performance.
Shortly after returning back to Switzerland, Richard Broadnax & The Zion Gospel Singers and band were invited to sing at a private event at the St. Peter’s church in Zurich. After the service he was greeted by our beloved and legendary Tina Turner to tell him personal how much she enjoyed the program and that she 'was singing every song'.
2004 Richard Broadnax & The Zion Gospel Singers sang with pop star Meat Loaf on the Benissimo-Show on Television SF1 and were invited back to sing again with Phil Collins on the Benissimo-Show SF1, and again back on the Benissimo-Show SF 1 to sing with R&B No 1 Artist Craig David on the same show, it was truly a pleasure and a unforgettable evening. 2004 Richard Broadnax & The Zion Gospel Singers were asked to do a gospel workshop for the Herrliberg School, 60 students from the sixth classes to realize a benefit concert to help building a school in Tobe Benin West Africa for the underprivileged children.
ZionsJoeCocker.jpg2006/2007 Richard Broadnax & The Zion Gospel Singers are filled with excitement with private and public events and concerts. 2007 Richard Broadnax & The Zion Gospel Singers start the year off with an interesting musical project: Gospel and brassband. Switzerlands top 25 members brass band MG Rickenbach play special gospelsong arrangements, directed by Corsin Tuor. Eine Gospel-Nacht im Kubus on 26th, 27th and 28th January 2007 in Rickenbach Lucerne.
Bringing the gospel to the people is the passion and goal of Richard Broadnax. The opportunity to experience Richard Broadnax & The Zion Gospel Singers is there for your unforgettable moments.
2007 Richard Broadnax had the privilege to sing with Joe Cocker (a music legend) preforming his latest hit song Hymn For My Soul on the Benissimo-Show SF1. He was filled with joy to celebrate the Zion Gospel Singers and band 10 years anniversary together. Closing out the year with a Live concert on Konsum TV, SF2.
RichardChildren.jpgStarting the year 2008 off with a gospel workshop for the Primarschule Wildberg Kinder Singen Für Kinder to support the childrens hospital of Zürich, the concert will take place at the St. Peter Kirche of Zürich, breathing new life into the hearts and mind of many young people, who are hungry for this gospel experience.This year is filled with new opportunities for me to bring the gospel to the people, both young and old alike.
2009 was a very exciting year with many great weddings, private events and concerts. I was invited to be a part of the 19th Jazz Festival in Langenthal, Switzerland.
2010 I released a new DVD project Children Sing for Children. The new song written by me: The Power of Gospel. Other cover songs: Bridge Over Troubled Water (Paul Simon), Yes We Can Can (Pointer Sisters). All posted on Youtube for your listen pleasure.
The Goldtooth Blues Band
2011/2012 New music director. New Gospel & Blues Program with plenty of excitement and joy. Music for all my gospel and blues fans, for old and young.
Widely acclaimed as one of the best drummers in the blues, Sam Carr was born Samuel Lee McCollum in 1926 outside of Marvell, Arkansas. His father was the influential blues guitarist and vocalist Robert Lee McCollum, who recorded under the names Robert Lee McCoy and Robert Nighthawk, but Carr didn’t meet him until he was seven years old. About a year and half after his birth, Sam’s mother, Mary Griffin McCollum, left Sam to the care of the Carr family, who adopted him and raised him on their farm near Dundee, Mississippi.
Carr’s first instruments were the harmonica and "Jew’s harp," and around age 16 he moved to Helena, his father’s then residence, where he collected money at the door during his father’s performances at the river city’s thriving clubs. During this time Carr also worked as a chauffeur and played bass for his father, who was already an established professional musician.
Between 1937 and 1940, McCollum recorded twenty-six songs under the name "Robert Lee McCoy" for the Decca and Bluebird labels, including the song "Prowling Night Hawk," whose popularity lended him the artist name "Robert Nighthawk." During this period he also appeared as a sideman on many records by artists including Sonny Boy Williamson 1, Big Joe Williams, Peetie Wheatstraw, Walter Davis and Speckled Red. On all these recordings he played acoustic guitar, but by 1942, Carr recalled, Nighthawk was playing electric guitar with a slide, an approach later documented on recordings for labels including Chess. Nighthawk (1909-1967) is relatively unheralded today, but was very influential in shaping the guitar styles of artists including B.B. King and Muddy Waters.
In 1946, when Carr was 20, he married his wife Doris and took up sharecropping in Arkansas. After a heated argument with the agent for the plantation owner, the Carrs packed their belongings on a bicycle, crossed the river by ferry, and took off for Chicago by train. They soon moved to St. Louis to live with Carr’s mother, and Carr began playing bass with harmonica player Tree Top Slim. He formed his own band, Little Sam Carr and the Blue Kings, which initially featured Nighhawk’s wife Early Bea on drums before Carr decided to take on that role.
In St. Louis, Carr played mostly in "low-class clubs" in poor neighborhoods, and in 1956 began working regularly with Frank Frost, who then played both harmonica and guitar. The pair backed Sonny Boy Williamson II for a while, and continued to perform together after they moved to Mississippi in the early ‘60s. In Helena, Arkansas they sometimes backed Williamson, Houston Stackhouse, and Robert Nighthawk.
In 1962 Clarksdale-based guitarist Big Jack Johnson joined Carr and Frost, and for several years Doris sang in front of the band. Later that year the trio made recordings under the name Frank Frost and the Night Hawks for producer Sam Phillips in Memphis, and recorded an album, Hey Boss Man, on his new Phillips International label. One of the songs they recorded for that album was "Jelly Roll King," which inspired a name the trio later occasionally performed and recorded under, the Jelly Roll Kings.
In 1966 the group returned to the studio, this time in Nashville, where they cut several singles under Frost’s name for the Jewel label. They scored a minor hit with "My Back Scratcher," a take off on Slim Harpo’s earlier hit "Baby, Scratch My Back." Although it is often assumed that the Jewel recordings featured Frost on harmonica, it was actually their frequent collaborator, Arthur Lee Williams.
The Jelly Roll Kings did not enter the studio again for over a decade, and while the group continued to play together throughout the ‘60s and the ‘70s the three men often worked outside of music. Carr drove a tractor near his home in Lula, Johnson drove an oil truck, and the famously laid-back Frost did as little as possible.
In the mid-‘70s Chicago-based blues fan Michael Frank encountered the Jelly Roll Kings playing at the Black Fox Club, owned by Big Jack, and in 1978 he recorded the group. The following year he issued the Jelly Roll King's LP Rockin' the Juke Joint Down as the debut release on his Earwig label. That album effectively introduced the group to the blues market, but didn’t generate enough attention or demand to keep the group together regularly as a unit.
In 1978 Frost moved to Greenville, where he played with musicians including Willie Foster and T-Model Ford, and was sometimes joined by Carr, who continued to live in Lula. Back in the Clarksdale area, Carr continued to play with Johnson, often in clubs owned by the latter.
The trio was united formally on various special occasions, including for Frank Frost’s 1988 Earwig album, Midnight Prowler, Big Jack Johnson’s 1991 Earwig album Daddy When Is Mama Comin’ Home, and the 1996 PBS film documentary River of Song. The same year the trio recorded an album, Off Yonder Wall, as the Jelly Roll Kings for the Fat Possum label, and in 1998 Carr and Frost recorded the album Jelly Roll Kings for the HMG label. Carr also contributed drums to albums by Delta artists including T-Model Ford, Asie Payton, Robert "Bilbo" Walker, Paul "Wine" Jones, and Lonnie Shields.
Following Frank Frost’s death in 1999, Carr has lent his drum skills to various bands in the region, guested on albums including Buddy Guy’s award-winning Sweet Tea, and led his own group, the Delta Jukes, often with Dave Riley on guitar and vocals. The group has recorded a number of albums, including Working for the Blues (2002, Black Magic), Down in the Delta (2004, Bluesland), and Let the Good Times Roll (2007, Blue Label).
In the last decade Carr’s skills have achieved wide acclaim, with annual nominations for best drummer for Handy Awards (now Blues Music Awards) a Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts from the state of Mississippi in 2007, and multiple awards from Living Blues magazine.
Carr died on Sept. 21, 2009, after a long illness.
-Scott Barretta
Frank Frost (April 15, 1936 — October 12, 1999 (aged 63) was one of the foremost American Delta blues harmonica players of his generation.
Frost was born April 15, 1936 in Auvergne, Arkansas. Frost began his musical career at a young age by playing the piano for his family church. At the age of 15, Frost left for St. Louis, where he became a guitarist. At the age of 18, Frost began touring with drummer Sam Carr and Robert Nighthawk. Soon after touring, he toured again with Sonny Williamson for several years, who helped teach him how to play the harmonica.
While playing with guitarist Big Jack Johnson, Frost attracted the interest of the record producer Sam Phillips, founder of Sun Records. Some recordings of note that followed included "Hey Boss Man" and "My Back Scratcher". Frost also recorded for the Jewel label, four years later. The Sun Records and Jewel Records material was re-released on one CD by Charly Records of London, England.
Album cover of "Hey Boss Man".
In the late 1970s, Frost was re-discovered by a blues enthusiast, Michael Franks, who began releasing albums on his Earwig Music Company label by the trio, now called The Jelly Roll Kings, after a song from Hey Boss Man.
Frost appeared in the films Deep Blues: A Musical Pilgrimage to the Crossroads and Crossroads.
In more recent years, Frost's health decreased, yet he continued to play. Four days before his death, Frost made an appearance with Carr at the King Biscuit Blues. He died of cardiac arrest in Helena, Arkansas in 1999
Jerome Louis "J.J." Jackson [AKA "Leo Robinson" in Brasil] (born November 8, 1942, Gillett, Arkansas) is an American soul/R&B singer, songwriter, and arranger. His singing style is as a belter.
Jackson started out as a songwriter and arranger for "Brother" Jack McDuff, Jimmy Witherspoon, and the Shangri-Las, among others. He also composed the Pretty Things' 1966 hit single, "Come See Me." He is perhaps best known for the bombastic soul hit "But It's Alright", which after its 1966 release became one of the best known dance music tunes of the decade.
The single was recorded in the United Kingdom, featuring some of Britain's top jazz musicians of the day, including Terry Smith on guitar, Dick Morrissey on tenor sax and John Marshall on drums, and who would later make up his backing band for the following two albums.
Jackson currently lives in Jacksonville, Florida.
Amina Claudine Myers (born March 21, 1942) in Blackwell, Arkansas; (a small community on US 64 in western Conway County) is an American jazz pianist, organist, vocalist, composer, and musical arranger
Myers started singing and playing the piano and organ as a child in church choirs in the Dallas/Fort Worth area in Texas, where she grew up, and directed choirs at an early age. She graduated in concert music and music education at Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas in the early 1960s. After graduation, Myers moved to Chicago where she taught music, attended classes at Roosevelt University and worked with musicians such as Sonny Stitt and Gene Ammons. In 1966 she joined the AACM in Chicago, focusing on vocal compositions and arrangements, and recording her first jazz album with Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre in 1969.
In 1976 Myers relocated to New York City, where she intensified her compositional work and expanded it into the realm of Off-Broadway productions. She also continued performing and recording as a pianist and organist. In 1985 she joined Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra. Notable collaborations also include recordings with Bill Laswell, Marian McPartland, the Art Ensemble of Chicago, Archie Shepp, David Murray, Arthur Blythe, Frank Lowe, Leroy Jenkins, Jim Pepper and Ray Anderson. |
source: liner notes of Sunnyland KS 101 |
King Biscuit Time is the longest-running daily American radio broadcast in history. The program is broadcast each weekday from KFFA in Helena, Arkansas, and has won the George Foster Peabody Award for broadcasting excellence.
The first broadcast of King Biscuit Time was on November 21, 1941 on KFFA in Helena, and featured the African-American blues artists Sonny Boy Williamson II (Rice Miller) and Robert Lockwood, Jr. Williamson and Lockwood played live in the studio and were the key musicians in the original studio band, the King Biscuit Entertainers. Other musicians who joined the original band were Pinetop Perkins on piano and James Peck Curtis on drums. Williamson left the program in 1947 but returned for a stint in 1965 just prior to his death.
The 30-minute long live radio program is broadcast at 12:15 every weekday and was named after the local flour company, King Biscuit Flour. The local grocery distributor financed the show at the behest of Williamson in exchange for endorsements and naming rights. KFFA was the only station that would play music by African-Americans, and it reached an audience throughout the Mississippi Delta region and inspired a host of important blues musicians including B.B. King, Robert Nighthawk, James Cotton, and Ike Turner. The show's 12:15 time slot was chosen to match the lunch break of African-American workers in the Delta.
King Biscuit Time celebrated its 16,000th broadcast on June 22, 2010. KBT has more broadcasts than the Grand Ole Opry and American Bandstand. Since 1951 the program has been hosted by the award winning "Sunshine" Sonny Payne who opens each broadcast with "pass the biscuits, cause its King Biscuit Time!" Before Payne, the show was hosted by Hugh Smith from 1943-1951. Over the years the biggest names in blues have been associated with the program, and important blues artists continue to perform live.
John R. "Johnny" Cash (February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author who was considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Although he is primarily remembered as a country music icon, his songs and sound spanned other genres including rockabilly and rock and roll—especially early in his career—and blues, folk, and gospel. This crossover appeal won Cash the rare honor of induction in the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.
Cash was known for his deep, distinctive bass-baritone voice,[a] for the "boom-chicka-boom" sound of his Tennessee Three backing band; for a rebelliousness, coupled with an increasingly somber and humble demeanor; for providing free concerts inside prison walls; and for his dark performance clothing, which earned him the nickname "The Man in Black".[b] He traditionally began his concerts with the phrase "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash."[c], followed by his standard "Folsom Prison Blues".
Much of Cash's music echoed themes of sorrow, moral tribulation and redemption, especially in the later stages of his career. His best-known songs included "I Walk the Line", "Folsom Prison Blues", "Ring of Fire", "Get Rhythm" and "Man in Black". He also recorded humorous numbers like "One Piece at a Time" and "A Boy Named Sue"; a duet with his future wife, June Carter, called "Jackson"; and railroad songs including "Hey, Porter" and "Rock Island Line".During the last stage of his career, Cash covered songs by several late 20th-century rock artists, most notably "Hurt" by Nine Inch Nails.
In 1997, Cash was diagnosed with the neurodegenerative disease Shy-Drager syndrome, a form of multiple system atrophy. The diagnosis was later altered to autonomic neuropathy associated with diabetes. This illness forced Cash to curtail his touring. He was hospitalized in 1998 with severe pneumonia, which damaged his lungs. The albums American III: Solitary Man (2000) and American IV: The Man Comes Around (2002) contained Cash's response to his illness in the form of songs of a slightly more somber tone than the first two American albums. The video that was released for "Hurt", a cover of the song by Nine Inch Nails, fits Cash's view of his past and feelings of regret. The video for the song, from American IV, is now generally recognized as "his epitaph," and received particular critical and popular acclaim.
June Carter Cash died on May 15, 2003, at the age of 73. June had told Cash to keep working, so he continued to record, completing 60 more songs in the last four months of his life, and even performed a couple of surprise shows at the Carter Family Fold outside Bristol, Virginia. At the July 5, 2003, concert (his last public performance), before singing "Ring of Fire", Cash read a statement about his late wife that he had written shortly before taking the stage:
The spirit of June Carter overshadows me tonight with the love she had for me and the love I have for her. We connect somewhere between here and heaven. She came down for a short visit, I guess, from heaven to visit with me tonight to give me courage and inspiration like she always has.
Driftin' Slim (February 24, 1919 – September 15, 1977) was an African American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player.
Born Elmon Mickle in Keo, Arkansas, he not only recorded as Driftin' Slim, but also as Model 'T' Slim and under his real name. His recordings were released on the - amongst others - Modern, RPM, Blue Horizon, Styletone, Milestone, Kent, and Flyright record labels.
By the turn of the 1970s, ill health had forced Slim to retire from the music industry and when he died, a chapter of American music — that of the one-man band — had virtually died with him. Slim died in Los Angeles, California, in September 1977.
SUNNYLAND CHARLES: (T.J.) One of the few living old Chicago bluesmen.....80 + years and still going strong...He played with the likes of Snooky Pryor; Homesick James and Jimmy Reed...Inclued in his band at different times, were female drummer and vocalist,Johnnie Mae Dunson;harmonica players,Big Walter Horton;Gene Dennis and John T. Colman; drummer,Ray Scott;guitar player Luther"Guitar Jr." Johnson. Although he never recorded, he was well known and respected through out Chicago by blues fans and other blues musicians as an out standing guitar player..SUNNYLAND CHARLES.. by way of Dumas,Arkansas,Chicago,Illinois and West Crossett,Arkansas
Calvin H. Frazier (February 16, 1915 – September 23, 1972) was an American Detroit blues and country blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. Despite leaving a fragmented recording history, both as a singer and guitarist, Frazier was an associate of Robert Johnson, and recorded alongside Johnny Shines, Sampson Pittman, T.J. Fowler, Alberta Adams, Jimmy Milner, Baby Boy Warren, Boogie Woogie Red, and latterly Washboard Willie. His early work was recorded by the Library of Congress (now preserved by the National Recording Registry) prior to the outbreak of World War II, although his more commercial period took place between 1949 and 1956
Frazier was born in Osceola, Arkansas, and originally performed with his own brothers. Befriending Johnny Shines, in 1930 they jointly travelled to Helena, Arkansas where they met Robert Johnson. The threesome moved on to Detroit, Michigan, performing hymns on local radio stations. Frazier and Johnson returned south where they played along with the drummer, James 'Peck' Curtis.
In 1935 Frazier was involved in dispute in Memphis, Tennessee where he was wounded and another man was shot dead. Frazier returned to Detroit, and married a cousin of Shines. He played guitar as an accompanist to Big Maceo Merriweather, Sonny Boy Williamson II and Baby Boy Warren before being recorded in 1938 by the folklorist Alan Lomax for the Library of Congress. His recordings included "Lily Mae", a revised version of Johnson's "Honeymoon Blues"; and "Highway 51", another variant, this time of Johnson's track, "Dust My Broom".
His unique style combined slide guitar work with unusual lyrics, and a vocal phrasing that was difficult to decipher. He released three singles under his own name in 1949 and 1951 on the Alben and New Song labels, including "Got Nobody To Tell My Troubles To", which he recorded in Toledo, Ohio in 1951. Between 1951 and 1953, Frazier was a recording member of T.J. Fowler's jump blues combo, then recorded with Warren in 1954, whilst his final sessions in the studio appear to be in 1956 backing Washboard Willie. Without any tangible success on record or otherwise, Frazier nevertheless performed around Detroit until his death.
Calvin Frazier died in Detroit of cancer in September 1972, at the age of 57.
His most notable work was "This Old World's in a Tangle"; both the title of the first song he recorded, and of the compilation album issued by Laurie Records in 1993, which included some of his earliest work. Nine of his full length original recordings were included in the JSP Records 2005 compilation, Detroit Blues: Blues from the Motor City 1938–1954.
In 2009, the Detroit Blues Society instigated an appeal to raise monies to mark Frazier's previously unmarked grave with a headstone. By December that year a granite slab was in place
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