joe's blues blog january 2015

We would like to wish everyone a Happy, Healthy, Safe, and Prosperous New Year and hope that all enjoyed a Merry Christmas!

The Answer to the December Blues Question: the bluesman we were looking for is Thomas Andrew “ Tom “ Dorsey. He was also known as “Barrelhouse Tommy”, “Georgia Tom”, “Memphis Jim”, “Railroad Bill”, “George Ramsey”, “Smokehouse Charley”, or “Texas Tommy”, at different times, most likely due to recording contracts, during his career. He played guitar and/or piano to accompany his singing or preaching. He was born July 1st. 1899 in Villa Rica, Georgia. His father was a Baptist minister; his mother was an organist. His first performances were at age 5, in a church choir, after the family had moved to Atlanta. After attending Morehouse College for a short period, he moved to Chicago in 1916, where he attended The College of Composition and Arranging. Shortly thereafter he toured with his own “Wildcats Jazz Band” in a Ma Rainey show, working the

TOBA (Theater Owners Booking Association) circuit throughout the midwest and south. He performed and/or recorded as an accompanist to many of the big names in blues, hokum blues, and jazz bands/performers of the time period, up to 1932, when he left the blues field. With some foresight he had opened/founded The Thomas A. Dorsey Gospel Songs Music Publishing Company, which is the field in which he started performing in 1932, and in which he stayed up into the 1980’s. His company was started in 1930. He passed away January 23rd., 1993, in Chicago, of Alzheimer’s Disease.

Some January Blues Births: 

• January 1, 1888-- Frank Stokes
• January 15, 1930-- Earl Zebedee Hooker ( cousin of John Lee Hooker & Joe Hinton )
• January 27, 1918— Elmore “Elmo”/ “Joe Willie “ James.

January 2015 Blues Trivia: Normally, I change to a totally different artist for this section of the blog. This time, however, I’m going to digress and stay with “Georgia Tom”. A large percentage of blues performers started off their musical careers in church choirs or performing spirituals. He was no different. When he moved north in 1916, he performed in the blues/ jazz fields up until 1932. At that point he went back to his beginnings. In the first part of his musical career, he toured and recorded in many cities and on many labels, all over the U.S.A.. When he went into religious and church music, he went the same way, but added the areas of Mexico, North Africa, and Europe. There is no small amount of trivia about this man! He worked as a music demonstrator in music stores in Chicago. He worked as a music arranger for the Vocalion Record Company. He worked as a talent scout and music arranger for Brunswick Records. He recorded with Tampa Red and Frankie “Half-Pint” Jaxon as “The Black Hillbillies”. He worked as the choral director at the Pilgrim Baptist Church in Chicago. He founded The National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, Inc., of Chicago. He served as Dean of Evangelistic Musical Research and Ministry of Church Music. He served as Assistant Pastor of the Pilgrim Baptist Church. He toured as a speaker for schools, churches, clubs, and other organizations all over the U.S.A. up into the 1980’s. He was awarded with an honorary degree of Doctor of Gospel Music by The Simmons Institute of South Carolina. He won the American Music Conference National Music Award of 1976. Oh, by the way, he is the one who coined the phrase “Gospel Song”, in the 1920’s, and he also wrote poetry!

The January 2015 Blues Question: This bluesman is another Texas-born performer. Interested in music at an early age, after the death of his parents, as he was raised by another family. He taught himself guitar at 12 years of age, went on to also play cymbals, drums, and harmonica. He toured /performed all over the U.S.A., Europe, England, Germany, and Switzerland. He was /is considered first, a writer, second, a composer, and lastly, a performer. Any idea who this man is /was?

Some January Blues Passings:

• January 2, 1973-- Rufus G. Perryman, aka “Tampa Red”( brother of “Speckled Red”)
• January 15,1998-- Amos “Junior” Wells
• January 31, 1976-- Buster Brown, famous for the song “Fannie Mae”
  

   In closing: Hope you stayed with me - this was a long one! I try to present information on the early blues men and women, those who laid the foundation for the music we enjoy today. Without these people forging the base of all American music, where would our music be today? Would we have/ had blues, jazz, country, bluegrass, folk, big band, rhythm & blues, soul, pop, rock and roll, and, yes, even rap (check out “Speckled Red” as he started that one!) and hip-hop??  Stay tuned, look backward to see forward!