Joseph Edward Baugh Jr. (July 25, 1932 – November 19, 1999), known as Smokey Joe Baugh or simply Smokey Joe, was an American

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and blu ...

and

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

singer and pianist.

Biography

Baugh was born in

Helena, Arkansas Helena is the eastern portion of Helena–West Helena, Arkansas, a city in Phillips County, Arkansas. It was founded in 1833 by Nicholas Rightor and is named after the daughter of Sylvanus Phillips, an early settler of Phillips County and the n ...

, and by the age of 14 had begun playing piano semi-professionally around

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

. Around 1952, he joined the Shelby Follin Band, where he met guitarist

Paul Burlison Paul Burlison (February 4, 1929 – September 27, 2003) was an American pioneer rockabilly guitarist and a founding member of The Rock and Roll Trio. Burlison was born in Brownsville, Tennessee, where he was exposed to music at an early age ...

. With Burlison, he accompanied

Howlin' Wolf Chester Arthur Burnett (June 10, 1910January 10, 1976), better known by his stage name Howlin' Wolf, was an American blues singer and guitarist. He is regarded as one of the most influential blues musicians of all time. Over a four-decade care ...

on radio performances on station KWEM in

West Memphis West Memphis is the largest city in Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 26,245 at the 2010 census, ranking it as the state's 18th largest city, behind Bella Vista. It is part of the Memphis metropolitan area, and is ...

. He then joined the

Snearly Ranch Boys The Snearly Ranch Boys were a band that formed around 1950 in Memphis, Tennessee. The band was a launching platform for many of the musicians who contributed to the Memphis music scene that revolved around Sam Phillips and Sun Records. Members of ...

, led by Clyde Leoppard, performing and touring with them, and recorded the single "Split Personality", released on the Flip label, an offshoot of

Sun Records Sun Records is an American independent record label founded by producer Sam Phillips in Memphis, Tennessee in February 1952. Sun was the first label to record Elvis Presley, Charlie Rich, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny ...

, in early 1955, and credited to Bill Taylor (the band's trumpeter) and Smokey Jo . Biography by Bruce Eder, ''Allmusic.com''
Retrieved 22 January 2019

Sam Phillips Samuel Cornelius Phillips (January 5, 1923 – July 30, 2003) was an American record producer. He was the founder of Sun Records and Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where he produced recordings by Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, ...

recognized that Baugh's distinctive raspy voice could appeal to black audiences, though Baugh himself was white. He signed to Sun Records, and later in 1955 recorded "The Signifying Monkey", a song written by Bill Taylor and Stan Kesler based on traditional African American folklore. The record became successful around Memphis, and Baugh, who was assumed by the promoters to be black, was invited to perform at the

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

. The song formed the basis of

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...

's "

Jo Jo Gunne Jo Jo Gunne was an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, United States, in 1971 by Jay Ferguson and Mark Andes after they had left Spirit. The band was named after a Chuck Berry song, "Jo Jo Gunne". They released their eponymou ...

". Baugh's original recording, featuring a prototype

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

rhythm of the type popularized by

Millie Small Millicent Dolly May Small CD (6 October 1947 – 5 May 2020) was a Jamaican singer and songwriter who is best known for her 1964 hit " My Boy Lollipop". The song reached number two in both the UK and US charts and sold over seven million ...

's "

My Boy Lollipop "My Boy Lollipop" (originally "My Girl Lollypop") is a song written in the mid-1950s by Robert Spencer of the doo-wop group The Cadillacs, and usually credited to Spencer, Morris Levy, and Johnny Roberts. It was first recorded in 1956 by American ...

", was reissued in 1964, and the song was recorded about the same time by

Sam the Sham Domingo "Sam" Samudio (born February 28, 1937, in Dallas, Texas, United States), better known by his stage name Sam the Sham, is a retired American rock and roll singer. Sam the Sham was known for his camp robe and turban and hauling his equipme ...

. Baugh's recording has subsequently been issued on various

compilations. "Smokey Joe Baugh", ''BlackCatRockabilly''
Retrieved 21 January 2019 Although Baugh made further recordings for Sun, including "Hula Bop" featuring

Hawaiian guitar Hawaiian guitar may refer to: *Lap steel guitar, a type of steel guitar without pedals that is typically played with the instrument in a horizontal position across the performer's lap *Ukulele The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ...

as well as Baugh's piano, most were not issued at the time, perhaps because Baugh and Phillips had a poor relationship. However, Baugh did record as a session musician on records by Warren Smith, Barbara Pittman, Carl Perkins, and others. He was also present at the "

Million Dollar Quartet "Million Dollar Quartet" is a recording of an impromptu jam session involving Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash made on December 4, 1956, at the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. An article about the session ...

" recording in December 1956, with Perkins,

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 ...

, Johnny Cash, and

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis ma ...

. During the early 1960s, he was a member of Bill Black's Combo. Baugh's career was limited by financial problems and a dependence on alcohol and other drugs. He moved to

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the st ...

, and in 1970, formed a

band, the Midnite Cowboys, with guitarist Buddy Holobaugh. Baugh died in Monterey, California, in 1999.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baugh, Smokey Joe 1932 births 1999 deaths Sun Records artists American rockabilly musicians