Lowell Fulson (March 31, 1921March 7, 1999)
was an American
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 ...
guitarist and songwriter, in the
West Coast blues
West Coast blues is a type of blues music influenced by jazz and jump blues, with strong piano-dominated sounds and jazzy guitar solos, which originated from Texas blues players who relocated to California in the 1940s. West Coast blues also ...
tradition. He also recorded for contractual reasons as Lowell Fullsom and Lowell Fulsom. After
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 ...
, he was the most important figure in West Coast blues in the 1940s and 1950s.
Early life
Fulson was born on a
Choctaw
The Choctaw (in the Choctaw language, Chahta) are a Native American people originally based in the Southeastern Woodlands, in what is now Alabama and Mississippi. Their Choctaw language is a Western Muskogean language. Today, Choctaw people are ...
reservation in
Atoka, Oklahoma
Atoka is a city in and the county seat of Atoka County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,107 at the 2010 census, an increase of 4.0 percent from the figure of 2,988 in 2000.
The city was settled by the Choctaw and named in 1867 by ...
, to Mamie and Martin Fulson. He stated that he was of
Cherokee
The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...
ancestry through his father but also claimed Choctaw ancestry. His father was killed when Lowell was a child, and a few years later, he moved with his mother and brothers to live in
Clarita and attended school at
Coalgate.
Career
At the age of eighteen, he moved to
Ada, Oklahoma
Ada is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,481 at the 2020 United States Census. The city was named for Ada Reed, the daughter of an early settler, and was incorporated in 1901. Ada is ...
, and joined
Alger "Texas" Alexander for a few months in 1940,
but later moved to California, where he formed a band which soon included a young
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...
and the tenor saxophone player
Stanley Turrentine
Stanley William Turrentine (April 5, 1934 – September 12, 2000) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He began his career playing R&B for Earl Bostic and later soul jazz recording for the Blue Note label from 1960, touched on jazz fusion dur ...
. Fulson was
drafted in 1943 and served in the U.S. Navy until 1945.
Fulson recorded for
Swing Time Records
Swing Time Records was a United States-based record label active in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The label was founded by Jack Lauderdale in 1947 as Down Beat Records and was headquartered in Los Angeles, California. In approximately October ...
in the 1940s,
Chess Records
Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and roll ...
(on the
Checker label) in the 1950s,
Kent Records
Kent Records was a Los Angeles-based record label, launched in 1958 by the Bihari brothers. It was subsidiary of Crown Records Corporation. Kent was a follow-up to Modern Records which ceased operations in 1958. The label reissued Modern's singles, ...
in the 1960s, and
Rounder Records
Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by Al ...
(Bullseye) in the 1970s. He wrote "
3 O'Clock Blues" (
B.B. King
Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...
's first hit), "
Reconsider Baby
"Reconsider Baby" is a blues song written and recorded by Lowell Fulson in 1954. Performed in the West Coast blues style, it was Fulson's first record chart hit for Checker Records, a subsidiary of Chess Records. With memorable lyrics and a dri ...
" (a
blues standard
Blues standards are blues songs that have attained a high level of recognition due to having been widely performed and recorded. They represent the best known and most interpreted blues songs that are seen as standing the test of time. Blues ...
), and "
Tramp
A tramp is a long-term homeless person who travels from place to place as a vagrant, traditionally walking all year round.
Etymology
Tramp is derived from a Middle English verb meaning to "walk with heavy footsteps" (''cf.'' modern English ''t ...
" (co-written with
Jimmy McCracklin
James David Walker Jr. (August 13, 1921 – December 20, 2012), better known by his stage name Jimmy McCracklin, was an American pianist, vocalist, and songwriter. His style contained West Coast blues, Jump blues, and R&B. Over a career tha ...
and recorded by several artists). His 1965 song "Black Nights" was his first hit in a decade, and "Tramp" did even better, restoring him to R&B stardom.
A show entitled ''California Blues: Swingtime Tribute'' opened in 1993 at the
Paramount Theatre in Oakland, California, with Fulson,
Johnny Otis
Johnny Otis (born Ioannis Alexandres Veliotes; December 28, 1921 – January 17, 2012) was an American singer, musician, composer, bandleader, record producer, and talent scout. He was a seminal influence on American R&B and rock and roll. He ...
,
Charles Brown,
Jay McShann
James Columbus "Jay" McShann (January 12, 1916 – December 7, 2006) was an American jazz pianist, vocalist, composer, and bandleader. He led bands in Kansas City, Missouri, that included Charlie Parker, Bernard Anderson (trumpeter), Bernard A ...
,
Jimmy Witherspoon
James Witherspoon (August 8, 1920 – September 18, 1997) was an American jump blues singer.
Early life, family and education
Witherspoon was born in Gurdon, Arkansas. His father was a railroad worker who sang in local choirs, and his mot ...
,
Jimmy McCracklin
James David Walker Jr. (August 13, 1921 – December 20, 2012), better known by his stage name Jimmy McCracklin, was an American pianist, vocalist, and songwriter. His style contained West Coast blues, Jump blues, and R&B. Over a career tha ...
and Earl Brown. Fulson's last recording was a duet of "Every Day I Have the Blues" with
Jimmy Rogers
Jimmy Rogers (June 3, 1924December 19, 1997) was an American Chicago blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player, best known for his work as a member of Muddy Waters's band in the early 1950s. He also had a solo career and recorded several pop ...
on the latter's 1999
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...
release, ''The Jimmy Rogers All-Stars: Blues, Blues, Blues''.
Death
Fulson died in Long Beach, California, on March 7, 1999, at the age of 77. His companion, Tina Mayfield said that the causes of death were complications from kidney disease, diabetes, and congestive heart failure. He was the father of four and grandfather of thirteen. Fulson was interred in
Inglewood Park Cemetery, in Inglewood, California.
Awards and recognition
* 1993: Induction into the
Blues Foundation Hall of Fame
* 1993: Blues Foundation Hall of Fame, Classics of Blues Recording – Singles or Album Tracks, for "Reconsider Baby"
* 1993:
Blues Foundation Blues Music Award, Traditional Album of the Year, for ''Hold On''
* 1993:
Rhythm and Blues Foundation
The Rhythm and Blues Foundation is an independent American nonprofit organization dedicated to the historical and cultural preservation of rhythm and blues music.
The idea for the foundation came in 1987 during discussions about royalties with en ...
, Pioneer Award
* 1995:
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
s, nomination as Best Traditional Blues Album of the Year, for ''Them Update Blues''
* 1995:
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and othe ...
, "Reconsider Baby" included in the "500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll"
* 2010: Blues Foundation Hall of Fame, Classics of Blues Recording – Albums, for ''Hung Down Head''
Partial discography
Charting singles
Selected albums
With
John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker (August 22, 1912 or 1917 – June 21, 2001) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. The son of a sharecropper, he rose to prominence performing an electric guitar-style adaptation of Delta blues. Hooker often ...
*''
I Feel Good!
''I Feel Good!'' is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker that was recorded in France in 1969 and originally released by the French Carson label before being released in the US on the Jewel label in 1971.
Reception
Bruce Eder
AllMusic ...
'' (Carson, 1970)
*''
I Wanna Dance All Night
I, or i, is the ninth letter and the third vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''i'' (pronounced ), plural ...
'' (America, 1970)
References
External links
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Fulson, Lowell
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fulson, Lowell
1921 births
1999 deaths
People from Atoka County, Oklahoma
African-American guitarists
American blues guitarists
American male guitarists
American blues singer-songwriters
Blues musicians from Oklahoma
Kent Records artists
Jewel Records artists
People from Ada, Oklahoma
Texas blues musicians
West Coast blues musicians
Soul-blues musicians
Checker Records artists
Burials at Inglewood Park Cemetery
20th-century American guitarists
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Singer-songwriters from Oklahoma
Guitarists from Oklahoma
Guitarists from Texas
Black & Blue Records artists
African-American male songwriters
20th-century African-American male singers
United States Navy personnel of World War II
Deaths from kidney failure
Deaths from diabetes
African Americans in World War II
African-American United States Navy personnel