The Beale Streeters were a Memphis-based R&B coalition of musicians, which at times included John Alexander,

Bobby Bland Robert Calvin Bland (born Robert Calvin Brooks; January 27, 1930 – June 23, 2013), known professionally as Bobby "Blue" Bland, was an American blues singer. Bland developed a sound that mixed gospel with the blues and R&B. He was descr ...

Junior Parker Herman "Junior" Parker (March 27, 1932November 18, 1971) Li ...

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 ...

Earl Forest Earl Forest (December 1, 1926 – February 26, 2003) was an American musician and a member of the Memphis-based R&B coalition called the Beale Streeters, which included Johnny Ace, Bobby Bland, Junior Parker, B.B. King, and Roscoe Gordon. Fore ...

Willie Nix Willie Nix (August 6, 1922 – July 8, 1991) was an American Chicago blues singer and drummer, active in Memphis, Tennessee, in the 1940s and 1950s. Life and career Nix was born in Memphis. He learned to tap dance as a child and later, as a te ...

, and

Rosco Gordon Rosco N. Gordon III (April 10, 1928 – July 11, 2002), sometimes billed as Roscoe Gordon, was an American blues singer, pianist, and songwriter. He is best known for his hit songs "Booted," (1952), " No More Doggin'" (1952), and " Just a Litt ...

. Initially, they were not a formal band, but they played at the same venues and backed each other during recording sessions.

History

By 1949,

Beale Street Beale Street is a street in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee, which runs from the Mississippi River to East Street, a distance of approximately . It is a significant location in the city's history, as well as in the history of blues music. Today, th ...

in Memphis, Tennessee, was bustling with merging blues musicians. Collectively they were referred to as the Beale Streeters. They were not an official group, but sometimes one musician was the leader and the rest the sideman. When B.B. King performed live broadcasts at

WDIA WDIA (1070 AM) is a radio station based in Memphis, Tennessee. Active since 1947, it soon became the first radio station in the United States that was programmed entirely for African Americans. It featured black radio personalities; its success in ...

, he was backed by John Alexander (piano), Adolph "Billy" Duncan (saxophone), and Earl Forest (drums). "I guess you can say this was the first little bitty B.B. King band," King recalled in his autobiography. By the end of 1949, Bobby "Blue" Bland had joined the group as the vocalist and singer/guitarist/drummer

. They performed with the house bands at local nightclubs and competed in amateur night contests at the Palace Theatre. Members of the Beale Streeters often lodged at Mitchell Hotel, owned by Sunbeam Mitchell. In 1951,

Ike Turner Izear Luster "Ike" Turner Jr. (November 5, 1931 – December 12, 2007) was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, record producer, and talent scout. An early pioneer of 1950s rock and roll, he is best known for his work in the 1960s and 1 ...

, who was a talent scout and producer for the

Bihari brothers The Bihari brothers, Lester, Jules, Saul and Joe, were American businessmen of Hungarian Jewish origins. They were the founders of Modern Records in Los Angeles and its subsidiaries, such as Meteor Records, based in Memphis. The Bihari brothers wer ...

Modern Records Modern Records (Modern Music Records before 1947) was an American record company and label formed in 1945 in Los Angeles by the Bihari brothers. Modern's artists included Etta James, Joe Houston, Little Richard, Ike & Tina Turner and John Lee ...

, arranged for the Beale Streets to record for Modern at the local

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

. They appeared on many of King's recordings for RPM Records, a subsidiary of Modern, often Turner substituting for Alexander on piano. King's No. 1 record " 3 O’Clock Blues," led to his national tour in 1952 and Ace took over leadership of the band. Soon, Bland also left and Alexander took over vocal duties. By 1952, Alexander began recording as Johnny Ace with David James Mattis of WDIA, who was also the co-founder of

Duke Records Duke Records was an American record label, started in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1952 by David James Mattis (WDIA program director and DJ) and Bill Fitzgerald, owners of Tri-State Recording Company. Their first release was Roscoe Gordon singing "Hey ...

. The Beale Streeters occasionally included singer/harpist Junior Parker and vocalist/pianist Rosco Gordon. They appeared on records credited to one of its members such as Bland's "I.O.U. Blues" (1952). They also appeared on records under The Beale Streeters on Duke. Members of the Beale Streeters went on to have successful solo careers. Ace's single " My Song" topped the R&B chart (Best Selling Retail) in 1952. Earl Forest's "Whoopin' And Hollerin'" reached No. 7 on the ''Billboard'''s R&B chart (Most Played in Juke Boxes) in April 1953. To capitalize off of their success, the Bihari brothers issued a split single from a session in 1951. Ace's "Mid Night Hours Journey" and Forest's "Trouble And Me" was released on the subsidiary

Flair Records Flair Records was an American record label owned by the Bihari brothers, launched in the early 1950s. It was a subsidiary of Modern Records. Its most famous artist were Elmore James, who released ten singles with this label (as listed below), R ...

. Ace had eight hit records in a row following "My Song" before he died in December 1954 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound while playing Russian roulette. King and Bland later toured together and released joint albums, '' Together for the First Time... Live'' (1974) and '' Bobby Bland and B. B. King Together Again...Live'' (1976).

Discography

Compilations * 1987: ''Earl Forest Featuring The Beale Streeters With Bobby Bland And Johnny Ace'' ( Ace Records) Singles * 1952: Johnny Ace with The Beale Streeters – "My Song"/"Follow The Rule" (Duke 102) *1952: Bobby Blue" Bland with The Beale Streeters – "Lovin' Blues"/"I. O. U. Blues" (Duke 105) *1952: 1953: Rosco Gordon with The Beale Streeters – "Too Many Women"/"Wise To You Baby" (Duke 109) * 1953: Johnny Ace with The Beale Streeters – "Cross My Heart"/"Angel" (Duke 107) * 1953: Earl Forest with The Beale Streeters – "Whoopin' And Hollerin'"/"Pretty Bessie " (Duke 108)

References

External links

Beale Streeters
on AllMusic {{Bobby Bland Musical groups from Memphis, Tennessee Memphis blues musicians RPM Records (United States) artists Duke Records artists