Roosevelt Sykes         1906-1983

 

Next time someone voices the goofball opinion that blues is simply too depressing to embrace, sit 'em down and expose 'em to a heady dose of Roosevelt Sykes. If he doesn't change their minds, nothing will.  There was absolutely nothing downbeat about this roly-poly, effervescent pianist (nicknamed "Honeydripper" for his youthful prowess around the girls), whose lengthy career spanned the pre-war and postwar eras with no interruption whatsoever. Sykes's romping boogies and hilariously risqué lyrics (his double-entendre gems included "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."  --It is from All-Media Guide.

 

Sykes career as a Blues pianist started in the lumber and turpentine camps of the rural South in the late 1920s and stretched through three major schools of Blues, with extended stays in St.Louis and Chicago, before settling for good in the city of New Orleans. His recording career started in 1929 and lasted until his death in 1983. During this time he recorded over 200 sides on 78rpm and dozens of LPs during the microgroove era. He was responsible for composing such Blues classics as 44 Blues, Highway 61, Big Leg Ida Blues, Night Time Is The Right Time, Mistake In Life, Hospital-Heaven or Hell, West Helena Blues, 47th St Jive Bobby Sox Blues, and Sunny Road.   --It is from Blues Before Sunrise.