Junker Blues is a

piano blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

song first recorded in 1940 by

Champion Jack Dupree William Thomas "Champion Jack" Dupree (July 23, 1909 or July 4, 1910 – January 21, 1992) was an American blues and boogie-woogie pianist and singer. His nickname was derived from his early career as a boxer. Biography Dupree was a New Orleans ...

. It formed the basis of several later songs including the 1949 " The Fat Man" by

Fats Domino Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American pianist, singer and songwriter. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New O ...

and the 1952 "

Lawdy Miss Clawdy "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" is a song by New Orleans singer/songwriter Lloyd Price that "grandly introduced '' The New Orleans Sound''". It was first recorded by Price in 1952 with Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew during his first session for Art Rupe ...

" by

Lloyd Price Lloyd Price (March 9, 1933May 3, 2021) was an American singer-songwriter, record executive and bandleader, known as "Mr. Personality", after his 1959 million-selling hit, "Personality". His first recording, "Lawdy Miss Clawdy", was a hit for Spe ...

. The song is about a drug user's conflict with life and the law, makes references to

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

, " needles", " reefers", and life in the penitentiary, and contains admonishments against the use of hard drugs.

History

The song was written sometime in the 1920s by Willie Hall, known as "Drive 'em Down" Hall, a

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

and

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 pi ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

from

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

. Hall never recorded nor received credit for the song. In 1940, Champion Jack Dupree, an American pianist who referred to Hall as his "father", recorded the song for the first time on Okeh Records (OKeh 06152). In 1958, a different version of this song, Junker's Blues, penned by Dupree himself, and which focuses on the allure of hard drugs, appeared on Dupree's first album, ''

Blues from the Gutter ''Blues from the Gutter'' is the first album by blues musician Champion Jack Dupree. In addition to a four-star rating, ''The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings'' awarded the album a “crown”, indicating that the authors considered it an except ...

'', featuring

Larry Dale Larry Dale (born Ennis L. Lowery, January 7, 1923 – May 19, 2010) was an American blues singer, guitarist and session musician. Life and career He was born in Hungerford, Texas, United States. During the early 1950s he took initial inspiration o ...

on guitar, Wendell Marshall on double bass, Willie Jones on drums and Pete Brown on alto saxophone.

Covers

Fats Domino attracted national attention to the song (Junker Blues) by varying the tune, changing the lyrics and calling it " The Fat Man". Domino recorded the song for

Imperial Records Imperial Records is an American record company and label started in 1947 by Lew Chudd. The label was reactivated in 2006 by EMI, which owned the label and back catalogue at the time. Imperial is owned by Universal Music Group. Early years to ...

Cosimo Matassa Cosimo Vincent Matassa (April 13, 1926 – September 11, 2014) was an American recording engineer and studio owner, responsible for many R&B and early rock and roll recordings. Life and career Matassa was born in New Orleans in 1926.Komorowsk ...

's J&M studio on

Rampart Street Rampart Street (french: rue du Rempart) is a historic avenue located in New Orleans, Louisiana. The section of Rampart Street downriver from Canal Street is designated as North Rampart Street, which forms the inland or northern border of the Fr ...

in New Orleans, Louisiana on Saturday, 10 December 1949. The song, an example of early

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

, features a rolling piano with Domino doing " wah-wah" vocalizing over a fat

back beat In music and music theory, the beat is the basic unit of time, the pulse (regularly repeating event), of the ''mensural level'' (or ''beat level''). The beat is often defined as the rhythm listeners would tap their toes to when listening to a p ...

. The recording sold over a million copies, and is widely regarded as the first rock and roll record to do so. According to some sources, the original version, Junker Blues, served as a template for the 1951 song, "

Junco Partner "Junco Partner", also known as "Junco Partner (Worthless Man)", is a blues song first recorded by James Waynes in 1951.

". Other sources however claim that "

Junco Partner "Junco Partner", also known as "Junco Partner (Worthless Man)", is a blues song first recorded by James Waynes in 1951.

" was the 'national anthem' of the Louisiana State Penitentiary at

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

; and that with each inmate being required, as a rite of passage, to contribute, there are more than 3,000 verses to "

Junco Partner "Junco Partner", also known as "Junco Partner (Worthless Man)", is a blues song first recorded by James Waynes in 1951.

". Lloyd Price used the melody of "Junker Blues" in 1952 for his song, "

", as did Professor Longhair in 1953 for "

Tipitina "Tipitina" is a song written and made famous by Professor Longhair. The song has been widely covered, and the Professor Longhair version was recorded in 1953 for Atlantic Records. "Tipitina" was first released in 1953. A previously unreleased ...

", for Atlantic Records that same year. A newer recording of Professor Longhair's "

", was later released on his album, ''New Orleans Piano'', in 1972.

Smiley Lewis A smiley, sometimes referred to as a smiley face, is a basic ideogram that represents a smiling face. Since the 1950s it has become part of popular culture worldwide, used either as a standalone ideogram, or as a form of communication, such a ...

's "Tee-Nah-Nah" was yet another close copy. In 1990,

Willy DeVille Willy DeVille (born William Paul Borsey Jr.; August 25, 1950 – August 6, 2009) was an American singer and songwriter. During his thirty-five-year career, first with his band Mink DeVille (1974–1986) and later on his own, DeVille created ori ...

recorded Dupree's 1958 "Junker's Blues" for his ''

Victory Mixture ''Victory Mixture'' is a 1990 album by Willy DeVille. The album consists of cover versions of New Orleans R&B and soul classics by DeVille’s musical idols. Trouser Press said about the album, “A rootsy covers collection, ''Victory Mixture'' ...

'' album. English actor and vocalist

Hugh Laurie James Hugh Calum Laurie (; born 11 June 1959) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and musician. He first gained recognition for his work as one half of the comedy double act Fry and Laurie with Stephen Fry. The two men acted together in ...

covered "Junker's Blues" on his 2013 album, ''

Didn't It Rain "Didn't It Rain", sometimes given as "Oh, Didn't It Rain", is a spiritual about Noah's flood. In 1919 it appeared as sheet music in an arrangement for voice and piano by Henry Thacker Burleigh (1866–1949). Modern versions * The Galilee Sing ...

''.

References

{{Authority control Blues songs Okeh Records singles

History

Covers

See also

References