Eskew Reeder, Jr. (November 20, 1935 or 1938 – October 23, 1986), usually known by the stage name Esquerita, and occasionally as S.Q. Reeder or The Magnificent Malochi, was an American R&B singer, songwriter and pianist, known for his frenetic performances. He has been credited with influencing
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...
South Carolina
)'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
, he was the son of Elizabeth and Eskew Reeder, and attended Sterling High School in Greenville from 1947 to 1950. Though most reliable sources give his birth name as Eskew Reeder, Jr., some give the name Stephen Quincy Reeder. Although most sources give the year of his birth as 1935, other reliable sources, and his social security records, state 1938.
Career
1950s–1960s
Reeder was a self-taught piano player whose roots were in gospel music. His music career started as a teenager, when he dropped out of high school and joined the gospel group "Heavenly Echoes" based in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. Little is known about Reeder's early career as a secular
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...
piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...
player. As Esquerita, he often wore heavy makeup, sunglasses, and two wigs, piling his pompadour high on his head.
Reeder's first solo studio recordings came about when Paul Peek got him to record some demos at a Greenville radio station (WESC) around 1958. At that time, Peek was a member of the rockabilly group The Blue Caps, led by manic performer
Gene Vincent
Vincent Eugene Craddock (February 11, 1935 – October 12, 1971), known as Gene Vincent, was an American musician who pioneered the styles of rockabilly and rock and roll. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, " Be-Bop-a-Lula ...
. Peek even co-wrote "The Rock-Around" with Reeder, and Reeder played piano on the 1958 recording that launched the NRC ( National Recording Corporation) label. From these contacts and Paul Peek's influence with Capitol Records came a record contract for Reeder;
Cub Koda
Michael "Cub" Koda (born October 1, 1948 – July 1, 2000) was an American rock and roll singer, guitarist, songwriter, disc jockey, music critic, and record compiler. ''Rolling Stone'' magazine considered him best known for writing the song " ...
described the results as "some of the most untamed and unabashed sides ever issued by a major label." At this point, Eskew Reeder, Jr. adopted the stage name ''Esquerita''.
The ensuing years found Reeder cutting several singles with various backing musicians in studios in Nashville,
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, New Orleans and
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
. Capitol Records released the LP ''Esquerita'' in 1959, his only album in the traditional sense (that is, not a compilation of earlier singles, or re-issues). In 1962, he cut an iconic cover of the 1956 hit,
“Green Door”. Some of the musicians he recorded with during this era included Jimi Hendrix,
Dr. John
Malcolm John Rebennack Jr. (November 20, 1941 – June 6, 2019), better known by his stage name Dr. John, was an American singer and songwriter. His music encompassed New Orleans blues, jazz, funk, and R&B.
Active as a session musician from ...
The Jordanaires
The Jordanaires were an American vocal quartet that formed as a gospel group in 1948. Over the years, they recorded both sacred and secular music for recording companies such as Capitol Records, RCA Victor, Columbia Records, Decca Records, Vocal ...
(
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
's backup singers). His best known songs from this time include: "Hey Miss Lucy", "Get Back Baby", "Getting’ Plenty of Lovin’", "Rockin’ the Joint", and "Oh Baby". In 1963, he recorded a session for
Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., is a retired American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record l ...
's Motown Records but those recordings were never released. In late 1967, Reeder changed his name to Magnificent Malochi and signed with
Brunswick Records
Brunswick Records is an American record label founded in 1916.
History
From 1916
Records under the Brunswick label were first produced by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, a company based in Dubuque, Iowa which had been manufacturing prod ...
.
In 1968, for that label, he co-wrote Little Richard's adaptation of Bessie Smith's 1936 “I got what it takes “ , as “Stingy Jenny (Got what it takes but it breaks my heart to give it away)”.
1970s–1980s
Esquerita started the 1970s in a positive way, contributing “Dew Drop Inn” and a co-write on “Freedom Blues”, to Little Richard's acclaimed comeback album for Reprise Records, “The Rill Thing”. Both tunes did well as Richard's first top 40 Soul and Top 50 Pop hit since the 1950s, “Freedom Blues”, the A side . He played keyboards on "Takin' Care Of Business" by John Hammond in 1970. Shortly after this, he began to fade from the music scene, but
Linda Hopkins
Linda Hopkins (December 14, 1924 – April 10, 2017) was a Tony-winning American actress and blues and gospel singer. She recorded classic, traditional, and urban blues, and performed R&B and soul, jazz, and show tunes.
Biography
Born Me ...
released a song written by Reeder called "Seven Days and Seven Nights" in 1973. Around this time, Esquerita formed a new group, consisting of Charles Neville (the saxophone player of The Neville Brothers) who then resided in Brooklyn, New York, and drummer Jerry Katz of Queens, New York. They and a few other musicians played a steady gig at Tommy Smalls Night Club on 50th Street and 8th Avenue in New York City. Several months later the group disbanded.He gained notoriety but his own hit was still a dream.
According to an interview with Billy Miller and
Miriam Linna
Miriam Linna (born October 16, 1955 in Sudbury, Ontario) is a Canadian-American drummer who has run the Brooklyn-based independent record label Norton Records since 1986, originally with her husband, the late producer and singer-songwriter B ...
in the
ReSearch
Research is " creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...
clubs under the name Fabulash during the 1970s. He was eventually tracked down by a writer for ''Kicks Magazine'' in 1983 or 1984, who found him performing in second-rate New York City clubs. On October 17, 1984, Esquerita made an appearance with Little Richard, at the Red Parrott disco, in Manhattan, New York, at the Crown Publishing book launch for the biography written by BBC's Charles “Dr. Rock” White and Richard, “The Life and Times of Little Richard”, covered by NBC TV, who captured an impromptu “Thank You, Jesus”, Richard singing and Esquerita playing. According to an article ("Who Was Esquerita?") by music historian Johnny Carter in an international oldies magazine, music maven Bill Lowery (who originated National Recording Corporation and was involved in the Peek sessions for NRC) was approached by Esquerita on the street in New York in 1985 after a conference at
Broadcast Music, Inc.
Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is a performance rights organization in the United States. It collects blanket license fees from businesses that use music, entitling those businesses to play or sync any songs from BMI's repertoire of over 20.6 milli ...
Lowery confirmed that Esquerita was down on his luck and was working as a parking lot attendant but was still as flamboyant as ever.
Later years and death
A few months before his death he was seen washing car windshields for tips at an intersection in Brooklyn. In this same article, Esquerita's father, Eskew Reeder Sr., said that his son had died of complications brought on by AIDS in 1986. Esquerita's father (who was born on March 25, 1907) died in February 1989, a little over two years after his son's death. Eskew Sr.'s last known residence was Simpsonville,
South Carolina
)'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
.
Posthumous releases
On March 13, 2012, it was announced that
Norton Records
Norton Records, is an independent record label founded by musicians Miriam Linna and Billy Miller in 1986. The label concentrates on rock, rockabilly, primitive music, punk, garage rock and early rhythm and blues.Little Richard (Richard Penniman) (see below); his look and style were in a very similar vein, although Esquerita was much more flamboyant in the 1950s and his music played more wildly than the contemporary music of Little Richard. Reeder did not record until after Little Richard's initial early 1950s recordings for the RCA and Peacock labels and the later hits on Specialty. However, early Little Richard recordings made at WGST Radio Station in
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
do not show the style that was to make him famous. According to Richard, Esquerita did influence him and taught him to play the piano. In an interview segment of the South Bank Show documentary in 1988 when the book ''The Quasar Of Rock'' was published, Richard states that he saw Esquerita getting off a bus at the Macon, GA Greyhound bus station, but doesn't say which year, presumably in the early 1950s. There's a hint of a sexual connection between the two, but Richard also states that he was inspired by Reeder, and moreover, Reeder was inspired by Richard to go into show business.
Little Richard also had not intended to use what came to be his (and Esquerita's) characteristic style during his first
Specialty Records
Specialty Records was an American record label founded in Los Angeles in 1945 by Art Rupe. It was known for rhythm and blues, gospel, and early rock and roll, and recorded artists such as Little Richard, Guitar Slim, Percy Mayfield, and Lloyd Pr ...
. The session producer,
Robert "Bumps" Blackwell
Robert Alexander "Bumps" Blackwell (May 23, 1918 – March 9, 1985) was an American bandleader, songwriter, arranger, and record producer, best known for his work overseeing the early hits of Little Richard, as well as grooming Ray Charles ...
had been unhappy with Penniman's initial songs on the session, so, taking a break from recording, he went with Richard to a local cafe, where Richard jumped on a piano and began singing an X-rated version of "
Tutti Frutti
Tutti frutti (from Italian ''tutti i frutti'', "all fruits"; also hyphenated tutti-frutti) is a colorful confectionery containing various chopped and usually candied fruits, or an artificial or natural flavouring simulating the combined flavou ...
", in true Esquerita fashion. Blackwell felt that a cleaned-up version of the song with the same style of presentation would be just what his boss Art Rupe was looking for, and this song launched Little Richard's career in 1955.
Mick Jones (of
The Clash
The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the w ...
) wrote and recorded a song called "Esquerita" with his band Big Audio Dynamite which appeared on the group's '' Tighten Up Vol. 88'' album from 1988. Alternative rock band
Lyres Yoke lutes, commonly called lyres, are a class of string instruments, subfamily of lutes, indicated with the code 321.2 in the Hornbostel–Sachs classification.
Description
Yoke lutes are defined as instruments with one or more strings, arrange ...
recorded their own version of Esquerita's song "Gettin' Plenty Lovin'" which was released on
Norton Records
Norton Records, is an independent record label founded by musicians Miriam Linna and Billy Miller in 1986. The label concentrates on rock, rockabilly, primitive music, punk, garage rock and early rhythm and blues.zydeco
Zydeco ( or , french: Zarico) is a music genre that evolved in southwest Louisiana by French Creole speakers which blends blues, rhythm and blues, and music indigenous to the Louisiana Creoles and the Native American people of Louisiana. Al ...
performer Lynn August, who played drums for Esquerita in the early 1960s. At the age of 12, August was playing drums for Fats Junior who happened to be opening a show for Esquerita, who let August play a couple of songs with him. After Esquerita spoke with August's mom, he was hired as Esquerita's drummer and played with Esquerita for three years, mostly around
. August said that Esquerita was playing an organ with pedals and only carried a drummer because he was such a great entertainer. Esquerita also encouraged August to take up piano. Lynn August later became known for his accordion playing. When Esquerita left New Orleans around 1963, August joined Jay Nelson's band from
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counties ...
. August later recorded his own version of Esquerita's song "Undivided Love" which appears on his ''Creole Cruiser'' album from 1992.
The
Adam Ant
Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...
and
Marco Pirroni
Marco Francesco Andrea Pirroni (born 27 April 1959, London, England) frequently credited simply as Marco, is a British guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He has worked with Adam Ant, Sinéad O'Connor, Siouxsie and the Banshees and man ...
song "Miss Thing", off their 1985 album ''
Vive Le Rock
''Vive Le Rock'' is the third solo album by Adam Ant, released in September 1985.
Production
Producer Tony Visconti, famous for his 1970s work with Ant's heroes Marc Bolan and David Bowie, commented on his work with Ant on ''Vive Le Rock'': ...
'' was about Esquerita.
Discography
Solo singles
*"Oh Baby"/"Please Come Home" (Capitol #4007) (1958)
*"Rockin' The Joint"/"Esquerita And The Voola" (Capitol #4058) (1958)
*"Laid Off"/"Just Another Lie" (Capitol #4145) (1959)
*"Hey Miss Lucy"/"Battie Over Hattie" (Capitol #1075) (promo) (1959)
*"Green Door"/"I Waited Too Long" (Minit #648) (1962) (as Eskew Reeder)
*"Never Again"/"We Had Love" (Minit #658) (1962) (as Eskew Reeder)
*"The Flu"/"Undivided Love" (Instant # 3258) (1963) (as Eskew Reeder Jr.)
*"I Woke Up This Morning"/"I Woke Up This Morning Part Two" (Instant #3268) (1963) (as Eskew Reeder Jr.)
*"A Tear"/"Johnny Little" (Everest #2025) (1963) (as Eskew Reeder)
*"Stubborn Old Me" (Motown) (1963) (unreleased)
*"I Want To Know"/"Just In Time" (Okeh #7239) (1966) (as S. Q. Reeder)
*"Tell The World About You"/"Two Ton Tessie" (Okeh #7254) (1966) (as S. Q. Reeder)
*"Dew Drop Inn"/"You Better Believe In Me" (Cross-Tone #1007) (1967) (as Eskew "Esque-Rita" Reeder)
*"Mama Your Daddy's Come Home"/"As Time Goes" By (Brunswick #55359) (4/1968) (as Magnificent Malochi)
*"Hey Miss Lucy"/"Hole In My Heart" (Capitol #81382) (Germany) (1973)
*"Hey Miss Lucy"/"Gettin' Plenty Lovin’" (Capitol #C006-81-709) (Old Rock New Roll Volume 5 Series) (France)
*"Dew Drop Inn"/"Rockin’ The Joint" (Norton #014) (1991)
*"You Better Believe Me"/"What Was Wrong" (Norton #149) (2009)
*"Hittin' On Nothing"/" Letter Full Of Tears" (Norton #170) (2012)
Main albums
*''Esquerita'' (Capitol #1186) (1959)
*''Vintage Voola'' (Norton #202) (1987)
*''Sinner Man: The Lost Session'' (Norton #ED-281) (2012)
Compilations and re-issues
*''Capitol Collectors Series'' (Capitol) (1990)
*''I Never Danced Nowhere!'' (Charly #CD-224) (1990)
*''Chart Scrapers'' (Century CD-10976) (1994)
*''Sock It to Me Baby'' (Bear Family #BCD-15504) (1994)
*''Believe Me When I Say Rock & Roll Is Here to Stay'' (Collectables) (1998)
*''Rockin' the Joint'' (Collectables) (1998)
Piano appearances by Esquerita
*"Didn't It Rain"/"Your God Is My God" (Baton #216) (1955) (The Heavenly Echoes)
*"The Rock Around"/"Sweet Skinny Jenny" (NRC #001) (1957, 1987) (Paul Peek)
*"Mexican Rock 'n' Roll (Instrumental)"/"Mexicali Baby" (Capitol #3884) (2/1958) (The Rio Rockers)
*"Love Is A Many Splendored Thing"/"Southern Style" (Hermitage #776) (1962) (The Eskerettes)
*"I Trusted In You"/"Southern Style" (Hermitage #10545-H-306) (1962) (Willie B.) (backup vocals by The Eskerettes)
*"Good Golly Miss Molly" (Vee Jay) (12/1964) (Little Richard)
*"Slippin' And Slidin'" (Vee Jay) (12/1964) (Little Richard)
*''The Explosive Little Richard'' (Okeh #14117) (1/1967) (Little Richard)
*"Stingy Jenny" (Brunswick) (6/1968) (Little Richard) (co-wrote)
*"Freedom Blues"/"Dew Drop Inn" (Reprise #0907) (4/1970) (Little Richard) (co-wrote both sides)
*"Greenwood Mississippi" (Reprise #942) (1970) (Little Richard) (co-wrote)
*"Takin' Care Of Business" (CBS) (1970) (John Hammond) (from the album ''Source Point'')
Unconfirmed claims
*"Didn't It Rain Part 1" / "Didn't It Rain Part 2" (1959?) (The Clovertones & Rev. Willie Green). Enrica 122, reissued on Eagle Records CD, EA-R 90421 (2001), and recently reissued on vinyl (posing as Enrica 122 again) (the Esquerita link appears only on the back of the Eagle CD; there is no mention of him elsewhere)
*"Touch Of The Spirit" (Evangelist Rosa Shaw). Rae-Cox 103 (1962), reissued on Eagle Records CD, EA-R 90420 (2001). The original single credits Robert Banks as keyboardist – organ, presumably – but nothing is mentioned about Esquerita.
*"Hour Of Prayer" (Evangelist Rosa Shaw). Rae-Cox 103 (1962), reissued on Eagle Records CD, EA-R 90420 (2001). The claim on the back of the Eagle CD is that Esquerita appears on piano; however, this track ("Hour of Prayer") is only vocal; there is no instrumental backing.
*"Didn't It Rain" / "I Hear Voices" (by Screamin' Jay Hawkins) (Norton #127) (2005). Reissue of two tracks from the Eagle CDs (EA-R 90420 and EA-R 90421, see above).