Leroy Roscoe Garnett, known professionally as Blind Leroy Garnett (August 6, 1897 – January 3, 1933) was an American

boogie-woogie Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, developed in African-American communities since 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually extended from pian ...

and

ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that flourished from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers such as Scott ...

pianist and songwriter. His two solo recorded compositions were "Louisiana Glide" and "Chain 'Em Down", although scant details of his life and career are known.

Life and career

Garnett was born in

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, United States, to parents Charles and Mattie Garnett (née Georapy), who both hailed from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. By 1910, all of the family had relocated to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, where he remained until at least 1930. In 1918, Garnett was described as a "piano player, not employed", short, stout and "totally blind". His playing style incorporated both boogie-woogie and ragtime, often termed 'barrelhouse'. Certainly "Louisiana Glide" was described as a "good example of the barrelhouse style wherein melodic treble work is combined with a thunderous, driving boogie-type bass". He recorded a total of eight tracks for

Paramount Records Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Early years Paramount Records was formed in 19 ...

in 1929 and 1930. These included two piano solos; "Louisiana Glide" and "Chain 'Em Down", and on the rest he provided piano backing to

James "Boodle It" Wiggins James "Boodle It" Wiggins was an American blues singer and musician. His best known recordings were "Keep Knockin' An You Can't Get In", a precursor of both "Keep A-Knockin'" and "I Hear You Knocking"; plus his versions of "Corrine, Corrina" an ...

(four) and Marie Griffin (two tracks). It is known that two of his Paramount Records sides were recorded with Wiggins in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, in October 1929. Garnett and Wiggins, the latter both a vocalist and pianist of some note, worked jointly around

East Chicago East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,698 at the 2010 census. The city is home of the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, an artificial freshwater harbor characterized by industrial and manufacturing act ...

, and about which Wiggins sang on the song " Shave 'Em Dry". "Shave 'Em Dry" gained more notoriety when performed by

Lucille Bogan Lucille Bogan (born Lucile Anderson; April 1, 1897August 10, 1948) was an American classic female blues singer and songwriter, among the first to be recorded. She also recorded under the pseudonym Bessie Jackson. Music critic Ernest Borneman note ...

in 1935. Garnett died of an

intracerebral hemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into Intraparenchymal hemorrhage, the tissues of the brain, into its Intraventricular hemor ...

Cook County Hospital The John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County (formerly Cook County Hospital) is a public hospital in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is part of the Cook County Health and Hospital System, along with Provident Hospital of Cook County and ...

, Chicago, in January 1933, aged 35. He was interred in

Burr Oak Cemetery Burr Oak Cemetery is a cemetery located in Alsip, Illinois, United States, a suburb southwest of Chicago, Illinois. Established in 1927, Burr Oak was one of the few early Chicago cemeteries focused on the needs of the African-American community, ...

Alsip, Illinois Alsip is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 19,063 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. Alsip was settled in the 1830s by German and Dutch farmers. The village is named after Frank Al ...

References

External links

Discography at Discogs

"Louisiana Glide" recording on YouTube

"Chain 'Em Down" recording on YouTube
1897 births 1933 deaths Boogie-woogie pianists Ragtime pianists Songwriters from Indiana Musicians from Indianapolis Blind musicians 20th-century pianists Burials at Burr Oak Cemetery {{US-musician-stub