Roosevelt Sykes
Next time someone voices the opinion that blues music is simply too depressing to embrace, expose them to a heady dose of Roosevelt Sykes. There was absolutely nothing downbeat about this effervescent pianist, whose lengthy career spanned the pre-war and postwar eras. Sykes' romping boogies and hilariously risqué lyrics on songs like "Dirty Mother for You," "Ice Cream Freezer," and "Peeping Tom" characterize his monumental contributions to the blues idiom. He was a pioneering piano pounder responsible for the seminal pieces "44 Blues," "Driving Wheel," and "Night Time Is the Right Time."
Sykes began playing while growing up in Helena. At age 15 he hit the road, developing his rowdy barrelhouse style around the blues-fertile St. Louis area. He began recording in 1929 for OKeh and was signed to four different labels the next year under four different names (he was variously billed as Dobby Bragg, Willie Kelly, and Easy Papa Johnson). Sykes signed to Decca Records in 1935, where his popularity blossomed. After relocating to Chicago, Sykes inked a pact with Bluebird in 1943 and recorded prolifically for the RCA subsidiary with his combo the Honeydrippers, scoring a pair of R&B hits in 1945 (covers of Cecil Gant's "I Wonder" and Joe Liggins' "The Honeydripper"). The following year, he scored one more national chart item for the Victor logo, the lowdown blues "Sunny Road." He also often toured and recorded with singer St. Louis Jimmy Oden, the originator of the classic "Going Down Slow."
In 1951, Sykes joined Chicago's United Records, cutting more fine sides over the next couple of years. A pair of Dave Bartholomew-produced 1955 dates for Imperial in New Orleans included a rollicking version of "Sweet Home Chicago" that presaged all the covers that would surface later on. A slew of albums for Bluesville, Folkways, Crown, and Delmark kept Sykes on the shelves during the '60s (a time when European tours began to take up quite a bit of the pianist's itinerary). He settled in New Orleans during the late '60s, where he remained a local treasure until his death. Precious few pianists could boast the thundering boogie prowess of Roosevelt Sykes.
© Bill Dahl /TiVo
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Rock it
Blues - Erschienen bei Wolf Records International GmbH am 19.06.1998
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Roosevelt Sykes Vol. 4 (1934-1936)
Blues - Erschienen bei Document Records am 12.04.2005
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The Honeydripper's Duke's Mixture (Album Version)
Jazz - Erschienen bei Universal Music Division Decca Records France am 01.01.1971
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The Honey Dripper
Blues - Erschienen bei Copyright Group am 21.09.2006
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The Country Blues Piano Ace 1929-1932
Blues - Erschienen bei Roots am 01.01.2000
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Sings the Blues
Blues - Erschienen bei ACE RECORDS am 28.09.1998
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Jazz Figures / Roosevelt Sykes, (1931 - 1933), Volume 3
Jazz - Erschienen bei Collector Records Greece am 16.12.2011
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Hard Drivin' Blues
Blues - Erschienen bei Delmark Records am 18.07.1995
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Mr Sykes Blues 1929 - 1932
Blues - Erschienen bei Roots am 01.01.2000
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Barrelhouse Blues
Blues - Erschienen bei Dobre Records am 04.05.2011
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Numero Uno Blues
Blues - Erschienen bei Excess Music am 09.05.2020
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Jazz Figures / Roosevelt Sykes, (1931 - 1933), Volume 3
Jazz - Erschienen bei Collector Records Greece am 16.12.2011
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Jazz Figures / Roosevelt Sykes, (1936 - 1939), Volume 5
Jazz - Erschienen bei Collector Records Greece am 16.12.2011
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The Roosevelt Sykes Collection 1929-47, Vol. 2
Blues - Erschienen bei ACROBAT am 09.06.2014
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Roosevelt Sykes Vol. 3 (1931-1933)
Blues - Erschienen bei Document Records am 12.04.2005
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Roosevelt Sykes the Honey Dripper, Vol. 2: 1944-1950 (Blues Collection Historic Recordings)
Blues - Erschienen bei EPM am 10.07.2001
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