Jimmie Lee Land (November 11, 1936 – December 25, 1994), better known as Buddy Ace, was an American

Texas blues Texas blues is blues music from Texas. As a regional style, its original form was characterized by jazz and swing influences. Later examples are often closer to blues rock and Southern rock. History Texas blues began to appear in the early 1900 ...

singer, billed as the "Silver Fox of the Blues".

Biography

Born in

Jasper, Texas Jasper is a city in and the county seat of Jasper County, Texas, United States. Its population was 6,884 at the 2020 U.S. Census, down from 7,590 at the 2010 U.S. Census. Jasper is situated in the Deep East Texas subregion, about west of the Te ...

, he was raised in

Baytown Baytown may refer to: * Baytown, Texas, a city in the United States near Houston, Texas *Baytown culture, an archaeological culture in the United States *Operation Baytown Operation Baytown was an Allied amphibious landing on the mainland o ...

near

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, and began his career by singing

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

in a group that included

Joe Tex Yusuf Hazziez (born Joseph Arrington Jr.; August 8, 1935 – August 13, 1982), known professionally as Joe Tex, was an American singer and musician who gained success in the 1960s and 1970s with his brand of Southern soul, which mixed the style ...

. He joined up with other blues singers,

Bobby "Blue" Bland Robert Calvin Bland (born Robert Calvin Brooks; January 27, 1930 – June 23, 2013), known professionally as Bobby "Blue" Bland, was an American blues singer. Bland developed a sound that mixed gospel with the blues and R&B. He was descr ...

and

Junior Parker Herman "Junior" Parker (March 27, 1932November 18, 1971) Li ...

, before signing to

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

Peacock Records Peacock Records was an American record label, started in 1949 by Don Robey in Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United Stat ...

in 1955 and agreeing to be credited as "Buddy Ace", a name previously used by the late

Johnny Ace John Marshall Alexander Jr. (June 9, 1929 – December 25, 1954), known by the stage name Johnny Ace, was an American rhythm-and-blues singer. He had a string of hit singles in the mid 1950s. Alexander died of an accidental self-inflicted gunsh ...

's brother, St. Clair Alexander. He recorded a string of singles for the Duke label between 1956 and 1969. His hits included "Nothing in the World Can Hurt Me (Except You)", which reached number 25 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

in 1966. His second and last hit in the R&B chart was in the following year, "Hold On (To This Old Fool)", which made number 33. His other well-known tracks included "Root Doctor" and "Pouring Water on a Drowning Man". In the late 1960s, he moved to California, living in Los Angeles,

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

, and

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, and continuing to perform live shows. He also continued to record, for Paula, Evejim, and several smaller labels. He billed himself "The Silver Fox of the Blues" after his hair turned white in his forties. Buddy Ace died of a heart attack aged 58, while performing in

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the ...

, early on Christmas Day, 1994.

Selected discography

Singles

* "Screaming Please" / "What Can I Do" Duke 346 * "True Love Money Can't Buy" / "My Love" Duke 381 * "It's Gonna Be Me" / "Nothing in the World Can Hurt Me (Except You)" Duke 397 * "Love Of Mine" / "Don't Hurt No More" Blues-B-Us 2016

Albums

* ''Don't Hurt Me No More'' – Evejim Records 2018 (1994) Also issued under title ''Root Doctor'' * ''Buddy Ace, Silver Fox'' – Evejim Records 2040 (1994) * ''From Me To You'' – Evejim Records 2048 (1995) * ''The Real Thing'' – Jewel 5054 (1996)

Bibliography

*''Encyclopedia of The Blues''. Edition 2006, Edward Komara. Routledge,

References

1936 births 1994 deaths American blues singers Singers from Texas 20th-century American singers People from Jasper, Texas 20th-century American male singers {{US-singer-stub