Wynonie Harris

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Wynonie Harris
Born September 24, 1915(1915-09-24)
Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.
Died July 4, 1969 (aged 53)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genre(s) Blues, Jump blues, R&B
Instrument(s) Guitar
Years active 1935–1969

Wynonie "Mr. Blues" Harris (August 24, 1915 [1] -June 14, 1969), born in Omaha, Nebraska, was an American blues shouter and rhythm and blues singer of upbeat songs featuring humorous, often ribald lyrics. He had 15 Top 10 hits between 1946 and 1952 and is generally recognized as one of rock and roll’s forerunners, with an early influence on Elvis Presley. He was the subject of a 1994 biography by Tony Collins.[2]

Contents

[edit] Early life

Harris' mother, Mallie Hood Anderson, was fifteen at the time of his birth and unmarried. Harris' father's identity is uncertain, though Harris' wife, Olive E. Goodlow, and daughter, Patricia Vest, say that Harris' father was a Native American named Blue Jay. There was no father figure in the house until Mallie married Luther Harris, fifteen years her senior, in 1920.

In 1931 (aged 16), while in ninth grade, Harris dropped out of school in North Omaha, and the following year his first child, daughter Micky, was born to Naomi Henderson. Only ten months later, Harris' second child, son Wesley, was born to Laura Devereaux. Both children were raised by their mothers. Wesley became a singer in The Five Echoes and The Sultans, and later became the singer/guitarist in Preston Love's band.

[edit] Early career

With dance partner Velda Shannon, Harris formed a dance team in the early 1930s. The team performed around North Omaha's flourishing entertainment community, and by 1934 were a popular regular attraction at The Ritz Theatre. It wasn't until 1935, however, that Harris was able to earn his living as an entertainer. It was while performing at the new Jim Bell's Harlem nightclub with Velda Shannon that Harris really began to sing the Blues.

He began travelling frequently to Kansas City where he paid close attention to the great Blues shouters of the time, including Jimmy Rushing and Big Joe Turner. Harris became a local celebrity during the depths of the Depression (1935) and attracted the attention of sixteen-year-old Olive E Goodlow of neighbouring Council Bluffs, Iowa[3]. Olive snuck across the Missouri River and into Jim Bell's Harlem nightclub to watch the then 20-year-old Harris perform. The two started dating, and on May 20, 1936, Ollie gave birth to daughter Pattie (Adrianne Patricia). On December 11, 1936, they married and for a time they lived in the now demolished Logan Fontenelle projects in North Omaha. Ollie worked as a barmaid and nurse; Wynonie sang in clubs as well as taking on some odd jobs. Apparently Wynonie's mother was Pattie's main caretaker.

In 1940, Wynonie and Ollie moved to Los Angeles, leaving Pattie with her grandmother in Omaha. At that time Central Avenue in LA was becoming a center for musical performance. Harris' big break in Los Angeles was at a nightclub owned by Curtis Mosby called the Club Alabam. It was here that Harris became known as "Mr. Blues".

[edit] With Lucky Millinder

Due to the wartime embargo on shellac, Harris was unable to pursue a recording career at that time. Instead, he relied on personal appearances. Performing almost continuously, in late 1943 he appeared at the Rhumboogie Club in Chicago. Harris was spotted by Lucky Millinder who asked him to join his band's tour. Harris joined on March 24, 1944, while the band was in the middle of a week-long residency at the Regal in Chicago. They moved on to New York, and on April 7 Harris took the stage with Millinder's band for his debut at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem. It was during this performance that Harris first publicly performed "Who Threw the Whiskey in the Well" (a song recorded two years earlier by Doc Wheeler's Sunset Orchestra).

After the band's stint at the Apollo, they moved on to their regular residency at the Savoy Ballroom (in Harlem). Here, Preston Love, Harris' childhood friend, joined Millinder's band replacing alto saxophonist Tab Smith.

On May 26, 1944, Harris made his recording debut with "Lucky Millinder and His Orchestra". Entering a recording studio for the first time, Harris sang on two of the five cuts that day, "Hurry, Hurry" and "Who Threw the Whiskey in the Well", for the Decca Records label. Although lessening, the shellac embargo had not yet been removed, and release of the record was delayed.

Harris' success and popularity grew as Millinder's band toured the country, but he and Millinder had a falling out over money. In September 1945 while playing in San Antonio, Texas Harris quit Millinder's band. Three weeks later, upon hearing of Harris' separation from the band, a Houston promoter refused to allow Millinder's band to perform. Millinder called Harris and agreed to pay Harris' asking price of one-hundred dollars a night. The promoter re-instated the date, but it would be the last time Harris and Millinder would work together. Ben "Bull Moose" Jackson replaced Harris as vocalist of the band.

Harris eventually returned to Los Angeles. He and Ollie moved their daughter Pattie, his mother and her husband from Omaha to Los Angeles. Harris resumed working at the Club Alabam.

It wasn't exactly the end of Harris and Millinder's relationship however. In April 1945, a year after it was recorded, Decca released "Who Threw the Whiskey in the Well" by Lucky Millinder and His Orchestra. It became the group's biggest hit; it went to number one on the R&B charts on July 14 and stayed there for eight weeks[4][5]. It remained on the charts for almost five months, also becoming popular with white audiences[6], an unusual feat for a black musician of that era.

Now back in California, the success of "Who Threw the Whiskey in the Well" opened doors for Harris. Since the contract with Decca was with Millinder (meaning Harris was a free agent of sorts), Harris was not contract-restricted and could freely choose from the record deals with which he was now presented.

[edit] Solo career

Harris signed with Philo, a label owned by brothers Leo and Edward Mesner, in July 1945. Harris' band was assembled by Johnny Otis, and the group cut the two-sided 78 rpm record "Around the Clock". Although not a chart topper, the song became popular and was covered by many artists, including Jo Jo Adams, Willie Bryant, and even two of Harris' early heroes, Jimmy Rushing and Big Joe Turner.

In January 1946 he performed in Omaha for the first time since 1940. In late 1946 a performance was arranged at the Apollo (in Harlem), and he and Ollie moved to New York.

Harris went on to record sessions for other labels, including Apollo, Bullet and Aladdin. His greatest success came when he signed for Syd Nathan's King label, where he enjoyed a series of big hits on the US R&B chart in the late 40's and early 50's. These included a 1948 cover of Roy Brown's original 1947 anthemic "Good Rocking Tonight"[7], "Good Morning Judge", "Bloodshot Eyes", and "All She Wants To Do Is Rock".

[edit] Later career

Harris transitioned between several recording contracts between 1954 and 1964. In 1960 he cut six sides for Roulette Records that included a remake of his hit Bloodshot Eyes as well as Sweet Lucy Brown, Spread the News, Saturday Night, Josephine and Did You Get the Message [8]. He also became more indebted and was forced to live in less glamorous surroundings. In 1964 he resettled for the last time in Los Angeles. His final recordings were three sides which he did for the Chess label (in Chicago) in 1964: The Comeback, Buzzard Luck and Conjured[9]. His final large-scale performance was at the Apollo (in New York) in November 1967, where he performed with Big Joe Turner, Big Mama Thornton, Jimmy Witherspoon and T-Bone Walker.

[edit] Death

On June 14, 1969, aged fifty-four, Harris died of esophageal cancer at the USC Medical Center Hospital in Los Angeles.

[edit] Resurgence

Since the end of the twentieth century, there has been a resurgence of interest in his music. Some of his recordings are being reissued and he has received recognition posthumously:

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ The W Harris Profile quotes his birth date as August 24, 1913. As the profile goes on to say that, due to "indifference to learning", "he abandoned school permanently" in 1931, it is more likely he would have done this at age 16 than age 18. The 1915 birthdate seems more likely and is supported by all other sources quoted.
  2. ^ Tony Collins, Rock Mr. Blues: The Life & Music of Wynonie Harris (Big Nickel Publications, 1995).
  3. ^ On the east bank of the Missouri River across from Omaha.
  4. ^ R&B number-one hits of 1945 (USA)
  5. ^ List of number-one rhythm and blues hits (United States)
  6. ^ "Who Threw the Whiskey in the Well" also reached #7 on the US Pop charts.
  7. ^ Harris rerecorded Brown's hit in 1948, after Brown wrote and recorded it in 1947. It was later rerecorded by Elvis Presley in 1954, with later versions by Jerry Lee Lewis, Ricky Nelson, Buddy Holly, Pat Boone and Paul McCartney, amongst others.
  8. ^ CD: Various Artists: Roulette Rock & Roll, Vol. 2: Everybody's Gonna (1994) Castle/Sequel
  9. ^ CD: Various Artists: Shoutin', Swingin' & Makin' Love(1991) MCA
  10. ^ Harris was amongst the 40 inaugeral inductees to the Omaha Black Music Hall of Fame in 2005.

[edit] Bibliography

[edit] External links


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