Larry Grisham is a survivor, plain and simple. Both personally and professionally, he has overcome obstacles most people will never face. Time and again he not only met these challenges, but rose to them and came out the other side stronger for the experience. But isn't that what the Blues is all about?
Larry was born in southern Indiana in 1953 and moved about much as a child, attending sixteen different schools before graduating from high school. He did, however, spend several formative years in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky living with his grandmother (whose first cousin happened to be legendary Country/Blues guitarist Merle Travis). This is where young Larry started to soak up the music. Not only was he exposed to the area's indigenous Bluegrass, Blues, Gospel and Soul Music, but like most kids his age he was taken with the new sound of Elvis, The Everly Brothers and later The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Stax and Motown. Soon Larry learned to play drums, and enough guitar to start fooling around with trying to write his own songs. He went off to Lander University in South Carolina on a basketball scholarship but moonlighted playing drums with various Rock and Soul bands. Like a lot of young musicians in the late 1960s Larry discovered the Blues. It was a powerful force and by the time he left university the die was cast. He'd decided to pursue music as a career.
He went back to his hometown of Evansville, Indiana and formed a Rock band called The Phonz in the late 1970s. Between 1980 and 1984 the group recorded two 45s and an EP for the small independent Limp Dog record label. The Phonz were a regional success but had run their course when Larry met Blues guitarist Tommy Stillwell and joined his band Stillwell in 1985, playing mostly Blues standards. By 1986 Larry and Tommy had decided to get serious about the music business and formed The Beat Daddys to showcase their original material. The band quickly became a success, toured the mid southern states and opened concerts for touring acts like Johnny Winter and Koko Taylor. In 1988 the group signed with Camelot Records and their debut album "Houserocking Rhythm & Blues" was released the following year. The record garnered substantial radio airplay and sold respectably enough to attract the attention of the most powerful Blues record company in the South.
The Beat Daddys signed with Malaco Records and in 1992 released the critically acclaimed album "No, We Ain't From Clarksdale" on the Waldoxy subsidiary imprint, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound studio. The record was an instant success and began a whirlwind of activity for the band. They toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with artists as diverse as B.B. King, Foghat, Mighty Sam McClain, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets, Omar & The Howlers, 38 Special, Tower Of Power, Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop and James Cotton. Needless to say, The Beat Daddys had a broad appeal and a bright future ahead. They followed up with the album "South To Mississippi" in 1994, on which the group is augmented by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The following year Tommy Stillwell decided to leave the band and was replaced by Britt Meacham, the legendary Muscle Shoals studio guitarist who played lead on Bob Seger's multi million seller "Old Time Rock & Roll". They also added original Wet Willie drummer Lewis Ross and recorded their "Live" album in 1997. Larry Grisham had a franchise to look after and was not about to let the Beat Daddys falter.
By the mid 1990s Larry was firmly entrenched in the Malaco family. He co-wrote with George Jackson ("Down Home Blues", "One Bad Apple", "Old Time Rock & Roll") and A.D. Prestage ("Shade Tree Mechanic", "I'm A Blues Man") and Larry's songs were recorded by Little Milton ("Love Of A Woman"), Dorothy Moore ("I'll Always Love You" and "Blues In The Night" which was used as the theme song of a television show of the same name in Sweden) and One Eyed Cat ("Train In The Distance", "Ruby's Blues"). He also played harmonica on recording sessions at Malaco, most notably on Bobby "Blue" Bland's Grammy nominated hit record "I'm A Blues Man". The Beat Daddys recordings were also featured on several Malaco compilations, including the incredible box set "The Last Soul Company". By the late 1990s Larry was living in Pass Christian, Mississippi and the band was going strong. At the turn of the century The Beat Daddys recorded "Delta Vision" at Kingsnake Studio in Florida with the aid of Allman Brothers Band keyboard player Johnny Neel (the album also featured a guest vocal by Sonny Rhodes). The record was released in 2001 and the band continued its relentless working schedule. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for the Beat Daddys.
Then, in 2005, tragedy struck.
Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it completely wiped out the coast of Mississippi. Larry Grisham lost everything. Everything, that is, but his will to survive. Survive? Hell no! He found the strength to rise again even stronger. He lived in a FEMA trailer for the next eight months, trying to regroup and decide his next move. Out of all this turmoil came one of Larry's finest works. The album "Five Moons" was recorded in Nashville and released in 2006. It contains some of Larry Grisham's finest, most heartfelt songwriting. Wanting to put the Katrina nightmare behind him, Larry decided to relocate to the Nashville area, settling on a small farm outside of the city. The group continued to tour and released their second live album "Live At The Quincy Blues Fest" in 2007. Logistics were becoming an increasing problem for the group, however, as Larry was now living hundreds of miles from his Gulf Coast based musicians. Something had to give.
In early 2009 The Beat Daddys rhythm section quit en masse. Larry and Britt soldiered on for a few months using pickup musicians, when Larry contacted his old friend, bass player Jeff "Stick" Davis. Davis had played with the group for a while in the late 1980s and was happy to help out. Jeff had been a founding member of the Amazing Rhythm Aces as well as a veteran sideman with artists like B.B. King, Al Green, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Ron Wood, Memphis Slim, Otis Rush and Jesse Winchester to name but a few. When Larry laid out his concerns for the future of The Beat Daddys, Jeff suggested a couple of his Nashville pals. Guitarist/songwriter/producer (and a recording artist in his own right) Fred James soon came on board as Britt Meacham bowed out. Fred had also played with the Amazing Rhythm Aces and handled guitar chores for artists as diverse as The Sam Lay Blues Band, Tommy Tutone, Frank Frost & The Jelly Roll Kings, Dr. Hook and Billy Joe Shaver. His songs have been recorded by Johnny Winter, Koko Taylor, Charlie Musslewhite, Son Seals and Junior Wells & Bonnie Raitt. He's produced albums for Homesick James, Roscoe Shelton, The Delta Jukes, David Olney, Johnny Jones and many others. To complete his "wish list" rhythm section, Davis chose drummer Waldo LaTowsky. Waldo had played with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (appearing on his Grammy nominated Alligator Records release "No Looking Back") and Bo Diddley, as well as recording with Frank Frost, Homesick James, Al Garner, The Roadrunners, Johnny Neel, and Mary-Ann Brandon. He had also toured and recorded with Chet Atkins and Country Music chanteuse Suzy Bogguss. The Beat Daddys suddenly had a powerhouse, all-star lineup.
The newly revamped band is hard at work touring and writing songs for their next Malaco release. You've really got to hand it to Larry Grisham. Thanks to his unwavering dedication, The Beat Daddys have risen up yet again just when it seemed the odds were irretrievably against them. The future looks mighty bright for the group, but one thing you can be sure of......no matter where or when you encounter The Beat Daddys.......Larry Grisham will be at that drivin' wheel.
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Stammering, 8-year old Carson Diersing mustered up every ounce of guts he had to tell his harmonica teacher, Indiana music legend Tony Cooley, that “Skip To My Lou” (his first assignment) was not his style. Mr. Cooley looked Carson straight in the eye and proclaimed, “You’re 8 years old. You don’t have a style.” Two weeks later Tony encouraged Carson’s family to go to The Bean Blossom Blues Fest and enter young Carson in his first harmonica contest. Carson did—playing “Skip to My Lou,” naturally.
However, Carson was stunned when he was announced the first-place winner. He walked onto the huge stage at the Bill Monroe Campground—and from that point his life changed: “Looking out at that huge crowd that day did something to me—the energy was astounding!” Carson recalls. He never looked back—deciding there that he would make his life making music.
Carson began playing as much as he could, and continually sitting in with other artists—and his life became a whirlwind. By 12, he was featured on “Yoke’s Easy” from Bobby Hayden’s Broadway Project with Ozzy Osborne’s late drummer, Randy Costillo, and Meatloaf’s original bassist, Rick Bozzo. At 13, he became the youngest harmonica player in history to be endorsed by Hohner Harmonicas. Just this year, he won the 2012 Honeyboy Edwards Fund for the Blues at The National Blues Museum, and will attend a master class in Clarksdale, MS. Along the way he picked up an endorsement from Shaker Microphones, was photographed by world-renowned rock photographer Robert M. Knight (in Indianapolis, and on Memphis’ Beale Street)—all while notching shows at The International Blues Challenge (Memphis), The Super Bowl Village, The Indianapolis 500 Hall of Fame, NHRA Nationals, The Hard Rock Café (Chicago & Memphis), and BB King’s in Memphis.
Part of the intrigue surrounding Carson’s music is how effortlessly he honors the past—while unapologetically showing his youth. And the music world has noticed: “Once every decade or so I get the opportunity to work with a true prodigy. THANK GOD I lived long enough to hear Carson. At 13 this kid is better than most 40-year harp vest. The kid is the harp player of tomorrow, and he’s playing it today!” proclaims legendary Indianapolis music promoter Bill Levin. Carson is both self-confident—yet supremely humble. He knows exactly who he is musically—citing Jimi Hendrix, Howlin’ Wolf and Tony Cooley as his biggest influences. Yet, Carson is equally passionate about his guitar playing and singing—and is committed to making films about skateboarding (he’s also an avid skater).
For Carson, music is all about communication. “I want my music to tell stories and influence people. I want to write music and perform music that makes people want to hear more.” This was a dream he realized while playing at The Super Bowl Village in Indianapolis. Despite the rain, the huge crowd was extremely receptive—with everyone from toddlers to 80-year olds dancing along with his music. In short, Carson’s music is infectious, and transcends boundaries.
Donald Kinsey (born May 12, 1953, Gary, Indiana, United States) is an American guitarist and singer, best known as a member of The Wailers Band, the reggae backing group for Bob Marley & The Wailers.
Kinsey is one of three sons of the late Chicago blues performer, Big Daddy Kinsey. He is a member of The Kinsey Report, which he formed in 1984 with his brothers Ralph Kinsey and Kenneth Kinsey, plus Ron Prince. Previously he had toured and recorded with Albert King, Peter Tosh, Bob Marley & The Wailers and Roy Buchanan.
Charles Williams Higgins (born April 17, 1924 in Gary, Indiana; died September 14, 1999 in Los Angeles, California) was an American saxophonist. Higgins, who was noted for mixing elements of Latin Jazz with Blues, recorded in Los Angeles during the mid-fifties, notably for the Specialty, Combo and Doo-Tone labels, and is best remembered for the song "Pachuko Hop".
Higgins relocated from Gary to Los Angeles in his teens, where he played trumpet and went to school at the Los Angeles Conservatory. Later switching to saxophone, he penned the single "Pachuko Hop" (1952), which became popular among American Latinos on the West Coast. The "Pachuko Hop" single's B-side, "Motorhead Baby", was the inspiration for the nickname of musician Motorhead Sherwood, who played with Frank Zappa. The song "Pachuko Hop" is also referenced in the lyrics to the songs "Jelly Roll Gum Drop" on Zappa's album Cruising with Ruben & the Jets (1968) and "Debra Kadabra" by Frank Zappa and Captain Beefheart on their collaborative album Bongo Fury (1975). Zappa listed Chuck Higgins as a reference in his influence list accompanying his album Freak Out! (1966). The 1955 single, "Wetback Hop", became the subject of controversy because of the use of the derogatory term for Mexicans in the title. It was an attempt to associate the listener with the earlier success of "Pachuko Hop", which refers to Mexican zoot suiters of the 1940s. He died of lung cancer in 1999
Higgins also played as a sideman with Charlie Parker and The Orioles, among others, and Johnny "Guitar" Watson played in Higgins's band for a short time. He recorded for Aladdin Records, Caddy Records, Lucky Records, Specialty Records, and Dootone Records, achieving regional success into the 1960s. In the middle of the 1960s he left active performance to become a teacher, though in the 1970s he recorded a few songs in the disco style. Later that decade and into the 1980s he returned to 1950s-style R&B, touring California clubs as well as England. Some of Higgins's back catalogue was released on reissue labels in the 1990s and 2000s
Frederick Dewayne "Freddie" Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He was known primarily for playing in the bebop, hard bop and post bop styles from the early 1960s and on. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives for modern jazz and bebop
Hubbard started playing the mellophone and trumpet in his school band at Arsenal Technical High School in Indianapolis, Indiana. Trumpeter Lee Katzman, former sideman with Stan Kenton, recommended that he begin studying at the Arthur Jordan Conservatory of Music (now the Jordan College of the Arts at Butler University) with Max Woodbury, the principal trumpeter of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. In his teens Hubbard worked locally with brothers Wes and Monk Montgomery and worked with bassist Larry Ridley and saxophonist James Spaulding. In 1958, at the age of 20, he moved to New York, and began playing with some of the best jazz players of the era, including Philly Joe Jones, Sonny Rollins, Slide Hampton, Eric Dolphy, J. J. Johnson, and Quincy Jones. In June 1960 Hubbard made his first record as a leader, Open Sesame, with saxophonist Tina Brooks, pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Sam Jones, and drummer Clifford Jarvis.
In the 1980s Hubbard was again leading his own jazz group - this time with Billy Childs and Larry Klein, among others, as members - attracting very favorable reviews, playing at concerts and festivals in the USA and Europe, often in the company of Joe Henderson, playing a repertory of hard-bop and modal-jazz pieces. Hubbard played at the legendary Monterey Jazz Festival in 1980 and in 1989 (with Bobby Hutcherson). He played with Woody Shaw, recording with him in 1985, and two years later recorded Stardust with Benny Golson. In 1988 he teamed up once more with Blakey at an engagement in Holland, from which came Feel the Wind. In 1990 he appeared in Japan headlining an American-Japanese concert package which also featured Elvin Jones, Sonny Fortune, pianists George Duke and Benny Green, bass players Ron Carter, and Rufus Reid, with jazz and vocalist Salena Jones. He also performed at the Warsaw Jazz Festival at which Live at the Warsaw Jazz Festival (Jazzmen 1992) was recorded.
Following a long setback of health problems and a serious lip injury in 1992 where he ruptured his upper lip and subsequently developed an infection, Hubbard was again playing and recording occasionally, even if not at the high level that he set for himself during his earlier career. His best records ranked with the finest in his field.
This guitarist covered much stylistic territory in his long and active career, starting out in wandering '30s territory bands such as Eddie Johnson's Crackerjacks and winding up smack in the middle of the disco era, playing an important part in the career of singer Loleatta Hollaway, whom he married. Smith's father was a drummer; the boy's entry to guitar was a ukulele and after switching up he went to the trouble of studying music theory in high school. During the late '30s the guitarist was a member of the Jeter-Pillars Orchestra and the Sunset Royal Orchestra as well as an outfit known as the Brown Skin Models. Prior to serving overseas during the second World War, Smith also flailed out chord changes behind bandleader Andy Kirk, doing a good enough job that this job was waiting for him when returned to civilian life.
Smith began leading his own groups, usually small configurations such as trios. The stepping stone toward his later musical productions was the kind of soul-jazz created by players such as organist Wild Bill Davis. During the early '60s Smith also worked with Bill Doggett, whose funky instrumental recordings became popular hits. A late-'60s profile on this guitarist in John Chilton's Who's Who in Jazz winds up with Smith playing in an Atlantic City duo with Hank Marr, but next on the agenda was starting his own label in Chicago and becoming the first producer to record Holloway, previously a gospel singer. ~ Eugene Chadbourne, Rovi
Sidney Catlett (January 17, 1910 – March 25, 1951), was a swinging jazz drummer often referred to as "Big Sid Catlett" because of his large frame.
Catlett was born in Evansville, Indiana, and started at piano, but switched to drums and entered formal study when his family moved to Chicago. His career began in Chicago in 1928 with Darnell Howard. In adulthood, he moved to New York City and worked with Benny Carter, Fletcher Henderson, Elmer Snowden, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Ben Webster, and others. In 1941, he joined Benny Goodman's band and after that joined Teddy Wilson's Sextet. In 1944, he did an album with pianist Harry Gibson. He also had his own band and played for Louis Armstrong's All Stars from 1947 to 1949 and became his drummer of choice. He played bop, dixieland, and other styles.
In early 1951, he began to suffer from pneumonia. In that same year, he died of a heart-attack while visiting friends backstage at a Hot Lips Page benefit concert in Chicago, Illinois.
In 1996, he was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame.
Bobby Lewis (born February 17, 1933 or 1925, Indianapolis, Indiana) is an African American rock and roll and R&B singer.
Lewis learned to play the piano by age six. Adopted at age twelve, he moved to a home in Detroit, Michigan. Growing up with the influences of the pioneer blues musicians until the advent of rock and roll, Lewis began to build a musical career in the 1950s, and in 1960 appeared at the Apollo Theatre in New York City.
In July 1961, his recording of "Tossin' and Turnin'" went to No.1 for seven weeks on the Billboard chart. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. Later that year, he had a second Top Ten song, "One Track Mind", his only other major hit record, at #9 Pop.
"Tossin' And Turnin'", composed by Ritchie Adams and Malou Rene, was featured in the soundtrack for the 1978 film, Animal House. The song was also covered by Steve Goodman, The Replacements, The Guess Who, Peter Criss, and Jimmy Sturr, among others. The Ivy League's UK hit 'Tossin' And Turnin',
