Slim Harpo (born James Isaac Moore; January 11, 1924 – January 31, 1970) was an American blues musician, a leading exponent of the

swamp blues Swamp blues is a type of Louisiana blues that developed in the Black communities of Southwest Louisiana in the 1950s.Malone, Evelyn Levingston, "Swamp Blues: Race And Vinyl From Southwest Louisiana" (2016). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertation ...

style, and "one of the most commercially successful blues artists of his day". He played guitar and was a master of the

blues harmonica The Richter-tuned harmonica, or 10-hole harmonica (in Asia) or blues harp (in America), is the most widely known type of harmonica. It is a variety of diatonic harmonica, with ten holes which offer the player 19 notes (10 holes times a draw and ...

, known in blues circles as a "harp". His most successful and influential recordings included " I'm a King Bee" (1957), " Rainin' in My Heart" (1961), and "

Baby Scratch My Back "Baby Scratch My Back" is a 1965 rhythm and blues song by blues singer Slim Harpo. It is mostly an instrumental piece with occasional monologue and harmonica fills by Harpo. Although it had some success with rock audiences (reaching number 16 ...

" (1966), which reached number one on ''Billboard'''s R&B chart and number 16 on its broader Hot 100 singles chart.

Life and career

Moore was born in Lobdell, Louisiana, the eldest child in his family. After his parents died he worked as a longshoreman and construction worker in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Jimmy Reed Mathis James Reed (September 6, 1925 – August 29, 1976) was an American blues musician and songwriter. His particular style of electric blues was popular with blues as well as non-blues audiences. Reed's songs such as "Honest I Do" (1957), " ...

, he began performing in

Baton Rouge 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 countie ...

bars using the name "Harmonica Slim", and also accompanied his brother-in-law Lightnin' Slim in live performances. He started his recording career in March 1957, working with the A&R man and

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

J. D. "Jay" Miller in

Crowley, Louisiana Crowley (Local pronunciation: ) is a city in, and the parish seat of, Acadia Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. At the 2020 United States census, Crowley had a population of 11,710. Crowley is the principal city of the Crowley micropolitan ...

. To differentiate himself from another performer called

Harmonica Slim Travis Leonard Blaylock (December 21, 1934 – June 16, 1984), better known as Harmonica Slim, was an American blues harmonicist, singer and songwriter. He had some commercial success in the 1950s; recordings of two songs he wrote, "Mary Helen" ...

he took his wife's suggestion and adopted the name Slim Harpo. His first solo release, for

Excello Records Excello Records was an American blues independent record label, started by Ernie Young in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, in 1953 as a subsidiary of Nashboro, a gospel label. History It recorded such artists as Lonnie Brooks, Lightnin' Sli ...

, based in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

, was " I'm a King Bee", backed with "I Got Love If You Want It" in 1957. Harpo played guitar in his live shows, but he usually used other guitarists when recording. The record was a regional hit, but failed to make the national charts. He followed up with several more singles for Excello before having his first chart hit, "Rainin' in My Heart", in early 1961. The record reached number 17 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'''s

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

and number 34 on its Hot 100, and it was followed soon after with an album of the same name and additional singles. Many of his songs were co-written with his wife, Lovelle Moore, although she never received credit. Never a full-time musician, Harpo owned a trucking business during the 1960s. According to writer Ryan Whirty, "Harpo and his band needed to tour constantly and play as much as possible; times were frequently lean financially, and the men had to scrape up whatever they could get." But, by 1964, several of his songs had been released on albums and singles in the UK, and British rock bands began to include versions of his songs in their early repertoires. British

Merseybeat Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a British popular music genre that developed, particularly in and around Liverpool, in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The genre melded influences from American rock and roll, rhythm and blues, skiffl ...

/ R&B group

The Moody Blues The Moody Blues were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1964, initially consisting of keyboardist Mike Pinder, multi-instrumentalist Ray Thomas, guitarist Denny Laine, drummer Graeme Edge and bassist Clint Warwick. The group c ...

reportedly took their name from an instrumental track of Slim's called "Moody Blues". Critic

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 " ...

wrote of his appeal: He had his biggest commercial success in 1966, when the predominantly instrumental "

" reached number one on the R&B chart and number 16 on the broader chart. Harpo described it as "an attempt at rock & roll for me" and was again produced by Miller. However, disagreements with Miller and a change in the record company's ownership led to two follow-ups, "Tip On In" and "Tee-Ni-Nee-Ni-Nu", being recorded in Nashville with new producer Robert Holmes. Both made the R&B charts. He recruited Lightnin' Slim for his touring band in 1968, and toured widely in the late 1960s, mainly reaching rock audiences. With his first scheduled tour of Europe and recording sessions already planned, "one of the cleanest living bluesmen of his era" died suddenly of a heart attack in Baton Rouge in January 1970 just 20 days after his 46th birthday. He was buried in Mulatto Bend Cemetery in

Port Allen, Louisiana Port Allen is a city in, and the parish seat of, West Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States. Located on the west bank of the Mississippi River, it is bordered by Interstate 10 and US Highway 190. The population was 5,180 at the 2010 cen ...

Influence

Music critic Cub Koda noted that his songs "also proved to be quite adaptable for white artists on both sides of the Atlantic, including the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

, Yardbirds, Kinks,

Dave Edmunds David William Edmunds (born 15 April 1944) is a Welsh singer-songwriter, guitarist and record producer. Although he is mainly associated with pub rock and new wave, having many hits in the 1970s and early 1980s, his natural leaning has alway ...

with Love Sculpture,

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in ...

with

Them Them or THEM, a third-person plural accusative personal pronoun, may refer to: Books * ''Them'' (novel), 3rd volume (1969) in American Joyce Carol Oates' ''Wonderland Quartet'' * '' Them: Adventures with Extremists'', 2003 non-fiction by Wels ...

, Sun rockabilly singer Warren Smith, Hank Williams, Jr., and 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 Recor ...

". The Slim Harpo Music Awards, awarded annually in Baton Rouge, are named in his honor. Proceeds from the awards benefit the "Music in the Schools" outreach program. A biography, titled ''Slim Harpo: Blues King Bee of Baton Rouge'', by UK blues scholar Martin Hawkins was published in 2006.

David Fricke David Fricke is an American music journalist who serves as the senior editor at '' Rolling Stone'' magazine, where he writes predominantly about rock music. One of the best known names in rock journalism, his career has spanned over 40 years. ...

of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

'' magazine described the book as "a passionate, encyclopedic triumph, bringing the enigmatic Harpo to life and tracing his remarkable mainstream ascensionfrom the rich central-Louisiana blues scene to gigs at the Fillmore Eastwith deep local research and detailed portraits of the singer's peers, sidemen and record-business associates."

Discography

Singles

* 1957 - " I'm a King Bee" / "I Got Love if You Want It" ( Excello 2113) * 1958 - "Wondering and Worryin'" / "Strange Love" (Excello 2138) * 1959 - "You'll Be Sorry One Day" / "One More Day" (Excello 2162) * 1960 - "Buzz Me Babe" / "Late Last Night" (Excello 2171) * 1960 - "Blues Hangover" / "What a Dream" (Excello 2184) * 1961 - " Rainin' in My Heart" / "Don't Start Cryin' Now" (Excello 2194) - R&B chart #17, US pop chart #34 * 1963 - "I Love the Life I'm Living" / "Buzzin'" (Excello 2239) * 1964 - "I Need Money (Keep Your Alibis)" / "My Little Queen Bee (Got a Brand New King)" (Excello 2246) * 1964 - "Still Rainin' in My Heart" / "We're Two of a Kind" (Excello 2253) * 1964 - "Sittin' Here Wondering" / "What's Goin' on Baby" (Excello 2261) * 1964 - "Harpo's Blues" / "Please Don't Turn Me Down" (Excello 2265) * 1966 - "

" / "I'm Gonna Miss You (Like The Devil)" (Excello 2273) - R&B chart #1, US pop chart #16 * 1966 - " Shake Your Hips" / "Midnight Blues" (Excello 2278) * 1966 - "I'm Your Bread Maker, Baby" / "Loving You (The Way I Do)" (Excello 2282) * 1967 - "Tip On In (Part 1)" / "Tip On In (Part 2)" (Excello 2285) - R&B chart #37 * 1967 - "I'm Gonna Keep What I've Got" / "I've Got To Be With You Tonight" (Excello 2289) * 1968 - "Te-Ni-Nee-Ni-Nu" / "Mailbox Blues" (Excello 2294) - R&B chart #36 * 1968 - "Mohair Sam" / "I Just Can't Leave You" (Excello 2301) * 1968 - "That's Why I Love You" / "Just For You" (Excello 2305) * 1968 - "

Folsom Prison Blues "Folsom Prison Blues" is a song by American singer-songwriter Johnny Cash. Written in 1953, it was first recorded in 1955 for his debut studio album ''Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar!'' (1957), appearing as the album's eleventh track. Th ...

" / "Mutual Friend" (Excello 2306) * 1968 - "I've Got My Finger on Your Trigger" / "The Price Is Too High" (Excello 2309) * 1969 - "Rainin' in My Heart" (reissue) / "Jody Man" (Excello 2316)

Albums

* 1960 - ''Tunes to Be Remembered'' (one track; various artists - Excello LPS-8001) * 1961 - ''Raining in My Heart'' (Excello LPS-8003) (CD release: Hip-O/MCA 40135, 1998 - with 3 bonus tracks) * 1963 - ''Authentic R & B'' (three tracks; various artists - UK

Stateside Stateside may refer to: * stateside, an informal adjective or adverb meaning "in the United States" **Stateside Puerto Ricans **Stateside Virgin Islands Americans Stateside Virgin Islands Americans are West Indian Americans who hold US citizens ...

SL-10068) * 1964 - ''The Real R & B'' (three tracks; various artists - UK Stateside SL-10112) * 1964 - ''A Long Drink of Blues'' (six tracks...all of side 2; compilation album shared with Lightnin' Slim - UK Stateside SL-10135) * 1966 - ''Baby Scratch My Back'' (Excello LPS-8005) * 1968 - ''Tip On In'' (Excello LPS-8008) * 1968 - ''Saturday Night Function: Rural Blues, Vol. 2'' (two tracks; various artists -

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texas ...

LM-94001) * 1969 - ''The Best of Slim Harpo'' (compilation album - Excello LPS-8010) * 1969 - ''The Real Blues'' (one track; various artists - Excello LPS-8011) * 1970 - ''Slim Harpo Knew the Blues'' (Excello LPS-8013) * 1970 - ''He Knew the Blues'' (Blue Horizon S7-63854; UK version of Excello LPS-8013 with two extra tracks: "Shake Your Hips" and "I'm Your Bread Maker Baby") * 1971 - ''Trigger Finger'' (UK Blue Horizon 2431 013) * 1972 - ''The Excello Story'' (three tracks; various artists - Excello LPS-8025) 2LP * 1976 - ''Slim Harpo...Knew the Blues (Vol. 2)'' (Excello/Nashboro 28030) 2LP/25 tracks compilation of LPS-8008, LPS-8013, and four singles: Excello 2301, 2305, 2306, 2309; plus one previously unreleased track: "Stick Your Chest Out Baby". * 1978 - ''Slim Harpo...He Knew the Blues'' (Sonet SNTF-769) single LP/14 tracks sampler of Excello 28030.

Compilation albums

* 1989 - ''Scratch My Back: The Best of Slim Harpo (The Original King Bee)'' (

Rhino A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species ...

70169) * 1989 - ''I'm a King Bee'' ( Flyright FLYCD-05) * 1993 - ''The Best of Slim Harpo'' ( Ace Records CDCHM-410) * 1994 - ''I'm a King Bee'' (Ace CDCHD-510) * 1995 - ''Hip Shakin': The Excello Collection'' (Excello/AVI 2001) 2CD * 1995 - ''Shake Your Hips'' (Ace CDCHD-558) * 1996 - ''Tip On In'' (Ace CDCHD 606) * 1996 - ''The Scratch: Rare and Unissued, Volume 1'' (Excello/AVI 3015) * 1997 - ''Sting It Then!'' (Ace CDCHD-658) -note: live recording from 1961. * 1997 - ''The Best of Slim Harpo'' ( Hip-O/MCA 40072) * 2003 - ''The Excello Singles Anthology'' (Hip-O/UMe B0000583 02) 2CD * 2011 - ''Slim Harpo Rocks'' (Bear Family BCD-17129) * 2015 - ''Buzzin' the Blues: The Complete Slim Harpo'' (Bear Family BCD-17339) 5-CD box set

Notes

References

External Links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harpo, Slim 1924 births 1970 deaths African-American guitarists American blues guitarists American male guitarists American blues singers American blues harmonica players Blues revival musicians Harmonica blues musicians Juke Joint blues musicians Louisiana blues musicians Electric blues musicians Swamp blues musicians Musicians from Baton Rouge, Louisiana Blues musicians from Louisiana 20th-century American guitarists Singers from Louisiana Guitarists from Louisiana People from West Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana Excello Records artists 20th-century African-American male singers