Gene Taylor (July 2, 1952 – February 20, 2021) was an American pianist best known for his boogie woogie style. Over a career spanning more than 50 years he accompanied many great musicians, produced several solo albums and was briefly part of

Canned Heat Canned Heat is an American band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1965. The group is noted for its efforts to promote interest in blues music and its original artists and rock music. It was founded by two blues enthusiasts Alan Wilson and Bob ...

Early life

Taylor began his musical training as a drummer at age eight but two years later he had picked up both the guitar and his initial piano skills from boogie-woogie pianist-neighbours. By the age of 16 he was an orphan and was essentially forced to fund himself - his receding hairline disguising his remarkable youth. He soon found himself working with some of the big names in the West Coast blues scene including

Big Joe Turner Joseph Vernon "Big Joe" Turner Jr. (May 18, 1911 – November 24, 1985) was an American singer from Kansas City, Missouri. According to songwriter Doc Pomus, "Rock and roll would have never happened without him." His greatest fame was due to ...

and

T-Bone Walker Aaron Thibeaux "T-Bone" Walker (May 28, 1910 – March 16, 1975) was an American blues musician, composer, songwriter and bandleader, who was a pioneer and innovator of the jump blues, West Coast blues, and electric blues sounds. In 2018 ''Roll ...

, aided by the fact that he "was cheap" and had a driver's license and was thus able to not only add piano parts but also make sure that the musicians reached their gigs.

Harman and Canned Heat

In the mid-seventies he joined the

James Harman James Gary Harman (June 8, 1946 – May 23, 2021) was an American blues harmonica player, singer, and songwriter. The music journalist Tony Russell described Harman as an "amusing songwriter and an excellent, unfussy blues harp player". Biograp ...

Band and had a stint as pianist for boogie group

between November 1974 and May 1976. There are no known recordings of Taylor playing with Canned Heat during this period but ten songs were later recorded with part of the band, Taylor playing piano with

Larry Taylor Samuel Lawrence Taylor (June 26, 1942 – August 19, 2019) was an American bass guitarist, best known for his work as a member of Canned Heat from 1967. Before joining Canned Heat he had been a session bassist for The Monkees and Jerry Lee Le ...

and

Fito de la Parra A unit prefix is a specifier or mnemonic that is prepended to units of measurement to indicate multiples or fractions of the units. Units of various sizes are commonly formed by the use of such prefixes. The prefixes of the metric system, such a ...

. According to Canned Heat historian,

Walter de Paduwa Walter de Paduwa (aka Dr Boogie, born 1 February 1953) is a Belgian radio DJ, musician and rock'n'roll historian best known for his association with Canned Heat. Rock career Walter de Paduwa was active in the Belgian rock scene of the early 1970s ...

, Taylor's abrupt departure from the band came in 1976 when an apparently banal spat over a pizza at a restaurant in the south of France turned into a full blown argument. Taylor returning to Long Beach, California, then, two years later relocating to Toronto. He would remain based in Canada, on and off, until 1993, often playing with his friend

Morgan Davis Morgan Davis is a Canadian blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He was born and spent his childhood in Detroit, Michigan, before relocating to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1968. He moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 2001.Chris MartinWhat's in t ...

and the

Downchild Blues Band The Downchild Blues Band is a Canadian blues band, described by one reviewer as "the premier blues band in Canada". The band is still commonly known as the Downchild Blues Band, though the actual band name was shortened to "Downchild" in the ea ...

1980s and 1990s

From 1981 to 1984 he first toured with

The Blasters The Blasters are an American rock band formed in 1979 in Downey, California, by brothers Phil Alvin (vocals and guitar) and Dave Alvin (guitar), with bass guitarist John Bazz and drummer Bill Bateman. Their self-described " American Music" i ...

, with whom he formed one of his most lasting and important collaboration that would eventually yield three albums. In 1986 Taylor finally recorded his first solo

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

, ''Handmade''. His '' The Return of the Formerly Brothers'', recorded with

Amos Garrett Amos Garrett (born November 26, 1941) is an American-Canadian blues and blues-rock musician, guitarist, singer, composer, and musical arranger. He has written instructional books about music and guitar. Garrett holds dual citizenship and was rai ...

and

Doug Sahm Douglas Wayne Sahm (November 6, 1941 – November 18, 1999) was an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in San Antonio, Texas. Sahm is regarded as one of the main figures of Tex-Mex music, and as an important per ...

in 1987, won a

Juno Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

the following year for Best Roots & Traditional Album. In 1993, Taylor relocated from Canada to Austin, Texas. Here he began to play with

The Fabulous Thunderbirds The Fabulous Thunderbirds are an American blues band formed in 1974. Career After performing for several years in the Austin, Texas blues scene, the band won a recording contract with Takoma/Chrysalis Records and later signed with Epic Records ...

, a partnership which would last until 2006 and included two 'solo' albums with the band's leader

Kim Wilson Kim Wilson (born January 6, 1951) is an American blues singer and harmonica player. He is best known as the lead vocalist and frontman for the Fabulous Thunderbirds on two hit songs of the 1980s, " Tuff Enuff" (which was the group's only Top 40 ...

. In 2002, he also found time to join the tours and recordings for the “Original Blasters Reunion”. He recorded an eponymous second solo album for Pacific Blues in 2003 partly accompanied by James Harman and Bill Bateman. This album included a version of "

Pinetop's Boogie Woogie "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie" is a song initially recorded on December 29, 1928 in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It was released on March 1, 1929 by Clarence "Pinetop" Smith on Vocalion Records, a piano rag that cemented boogie-woogie as the nam ...

Belgium

From 2007, Taylor was often based in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, playing and recording with Fried Bourbon, CC Jerome's Jet Setters,

Dave Alvin David Albert Alvin (born November 11, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. He is a former and founding member of the roots rock band the Blasters. Alvin has recorded and performed as a solo artist since the late 1980s a ...

and Jo' Buddy. He toured as the Gene Taylor Trio, with drummer Nico Vanhove, and the guitarist Bart De Mulder. He played at the Brussels Boogie-Woogie Festival of 2012, which took place at the Théâtre St Michel on November 24. Shortly after his death, the ''

Dr Boogie Walter de Paduwa (aka Dr Boogie, born 1 February 1953) is a Belgian radio DJ, musician and rock'n'roll historian best known for his association with Canned Heat. Rock career Walter de Paduwa was active in the Belgian rock scene of the early 1970s ...

'' show on Belgium's

Classic 21 Classic 21 is a Belgian public FM radio station, part of the RTBF broadcasting organisation. The station, based in Mons, was the only Classic rock radio in Belgium until 2008 when they switched to adult-contemporary and pop. The station plays pre ...

radio commemorated Taylor with an hour of programming and cited him as 'almost Belgian'.

Death

On February 20, 2021, Taylor's housemate - the filmmaker Monty McMillan - found him dead in his bed in their home in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

. The cause of death was confirmed by the Taylor family to be hypothermia, due to the house having been without heat in the dead of winter during the statewide power outages caused by the

2021 Texas power crisis In February 2021, the state of Texas suffered a major power crisis, which came about during three severe winter storms sweeping across the United States on February 10–11, 13–17, and 15–20. The storms triggered the worst energy infr ...

Discography (selection since 1981)

* 2017: ''It's Too Late Now'' (with Chris Ruest) * 2013: ''Roadhouse Memories'' (solo) * 2010: ''Let Me Ride In Your Automobile'' (with CC Jerome's Jetsetters) * 2009: ''Introducing...'' (with CC Jerome's Jetsetters) * 2008: ''605 Boogie!'' (Gene Taylor Blues Band featuring

) (live) * 2007: ''James Harman's Bamboo Porch'' (with

) * 2007: ''Hell Can Wait'' (with

Carlos Guitarlos Carlos Guitarlos (born Carlos Daniel Ayala, March 18, 1950) is an American guitarist. He first gained attention in Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs. ''The Encyclopedia of Popular Music'' remarked of Guitarlos that his career in music "has taken in cult ...

) * 2007: ''Boogie Blend Blues'' (with Fried Bourbon) * 2005: ''Painted On'' (with

) * 2005: ''Live'' (with

) * 2004: ''Come On In'' (with The

), winner at the 2005

Maple Blues Awards The Maple Blues Awards are Canada’s blues awards, "honouring the finest in Canadian blues". They are the only comprehensive national best in blues awards program. The program's goal is to promote blues music across Canada, and to recognize outs ...

* 2003: ''Lonesome Moon Trance'' (with

) * 2003: ''Going Home'' (live, with

) * 2003: ''Gene Taylor'' (solo) * 2002: ''Trouble Bound'' (live, with

) * 2002: ''Testament'' (with

) * 2002: ''Bogart's Bounce'' (with

JW-Jones JW-Jones (born July 15, 1980) is a Canadian blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and band leader. He is a Juno Award nominee (2015), ''Billboard'' magazine Top 10 Selling artist, and winner of the International Blues Challenge for "Best Self-Produ ...

) * 2002: ''If I Had A Genie'' (with

Junior Watson Junior Watson is an American jump blues guitarist and singer. Career Watson is a West Coast blues guitarist. He was a founding member of the blues band The Mighty Flyers and, starting in the early 1980s, he performed with the band for a decade. ...

), Taylor plays on all but four tracks * 2000: ''Mo Na'kins, Please!'' (with

) * 1999: ''Kid Ramos'' (with

Kid Ramos Kid Ramos (born January 13, 1959) is an American electric blues and blues rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. Ramos has released four solo albums since 1995 on Black Top and Evidence Records. He has worked with James Harman, Roomful of Blue ...

) * 1998: ''Takin' Chances'' (with

) * 1996: ''Icepick's Story'' (with

) * 1995: ''That's Life'' (with

) * 1995: ''Roll Of The Dice'' (with

) * 1995: ''In My Time'' (with

Charlie Musselwhite Charles Douglas Musselwhite (born January 31, 1944) is an American electric blues harmonica player and bandleader, one of the white bluesmen who came to prominence, along with Mike Bloomfield, Paul Butterfield, and Elvin Bishop, as a pivotal f ...

) * 1995: ''Black & White'' (with

) * 1994: ''Tiger Man'' (with

) * 1994: ''Cards On The Table'' (with

) * 1993: ''Two Sides To Every Story'' (with

) * 1992: ''King King'' (live, with The Red Devils) * 1992: ''Bluesology'' (Pyramid Records compilation) * 1992: ''I Was Just Thinking That...'' (live album with

Jackson Delta Jackson Delta are a Canadian blues musical group from Peterborough, Ontario.Amos Garrett Amos Garrett (born November 26, 1941) is an American-Canadian blues and blues-rock musician, guitarist, singer, composer, and musical arranger. He has written instructional books about music and guitar. Garrett holds dual citizenship and was rai ...

, Gene Taylor Band) * 1990: ''Collection'' (with

) * 1989: ''Gone Fishing'' (with The

) * 1988: ''Extra Napkins'' (with James Harman) * 1987: ''Those Dangerous Gentlemen'' (with

) * 1987: ''The Return Of The Formerly Brothers'' (The

, Gene Taylor Band) * 1987: ''Pigus Drunkus Maximus'' (with Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs, actually recorded in 1981 but delayed 6 years before issue) * 1987: ''Nobody But You'' (with John Hammond) * 1987: ''It's Been So Long'' (with The

) * 1986: ''Handmade'' (solo) * 1986: ''Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.'' (with

Dwight Yoakam Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and film director. He first achieved mainstream attention in 1986 with the release of his debut album '' Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. Yoakam had considerab ...

) * 1985: ''Hard Line'' (with

) * 1984: ''Streets of Fire - Original Movie Soundtrack'' (two songs with The Blasters that featured in the movie of the same name) * 1983: ''Thank You Baby'' (with

) * 1983: ''Non-Fiction'' (with

) * 1982: ''Over There'' (live, with

) * 1981: ''This Band Just Won't Behave'' (with

) * 1981: ''The Blasters'' (with

)

References

External links

Gene Taylor's website
* * , (accompanying

) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Gene 1952 births 2021 deaths 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians American blues pianists American expatriate musicians in Canada American expatriates in Belgium American male pianists Blues musicians from New Orleans Boogie-woogie pianists Canned Heat members Juno Award winners Musicians from Los Angeles County, California Musicians from New Orleans People from Norwalk, California The Blasters members The Fabulous Thunderbirds members