Pleasant Joseph, known as Cousin Joe, (December 20, 1907 — October 2, 1989)
was a
New Orleans blues
New Orleans blues is a subgenre of blues that developed in and around the city of New Orleans, influenced by jazz and Caribbean music. It is dominated by piano and saxophone, but also produced guitar bluesmen.
Characteristics
As a style, New ...
and
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
singer, famous for his 1940s recordings with
Sidney Bechet
Sidney Bechet (May 14, 1897 – May 14, 1959) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer. He was one of the first important soloists in jazz, and first recorded several months before trumpeter Louis Armstrong. His erratic tempe ...
and
Mezz Mezzrow
Milton Mesirow (November 9, 1899 – August 5, 1972), better known as Mezz Mezzrow, was an American jazz clarinetist and saxophonist from Chicago, Illinois. He is remembered for organizing and financing recording sessions with Tommy Ladnier ...
.
Life
He was born in
Wallace, Louisiana
Wallace is a census-designated place (CDP) in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 570 at the 2000 census. It is part of the New Orleans– Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area. The rural co ...
, United States,
and worked at
Whitney Plantation
The Whitney Plantation Historic District is preserved by the Whitney Institute, a non-profit whose mission is to educate the public about the history and legacies of Slavery in the United States, slavery in the Southern United States. The distri ...
throughout his childhood.
Until 1945, Cousin Joe toured Louisiana; that year he was asked to take part in the King Jazz recording sessions organized by Mezzrow and Bechet.
In the 1970s, Cousin Joe toured extensively throughout the UK and Europe, both individually and as part of the American Blues Legends '74 revue organised by
Big Bear Music. He also recorded the album ''Gospel-Wailing, Jazz-Playing, Rock'n'Rolling, Soul-Shouting, Tap-Dancing Bluesman From New Orleans'' for Big Bear.
Cousin Joe died in his sleep from natural causes in
, at the age of 81. He was survived by his wife Irene Joseph, son Michael and his three grandchildren Rahsaan, Mignonne and Jarrell.
Autobiography
*''Cousin Joe : Blues from New Orleans'' / Pleasant "Cousin Joe" Joseph and Harriet J. Ottenheimer. Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 1987. xi, 227 p. : ill. ; 23 cm.
Partial discography
* 1971 : ''Bad Luck Blues'' (
Black & Blue) with
Jimmy Dawkins
James Henry “Jimmy” Dawkins (October 24, 1936 – April 10, 2013) was an American Chicago blues and electric blues guitarist and singer. He is generally considered to have been a practitioner of the "West Side sound" of Chicago blues.
Caree ...
and
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown
* 1973 : ''Cousin Joe From New Orleans'' (
BluesWay)
* 1974 : ''Gospel Wailing, Jazz Playing, Soul Shouting, Tap Dancing Bluesman from New Orleans'' (
Big Bear Records)
* 1974 : ''American Blues Legends '74'' (
Big Bear Records)
* 1984 : ''Cousin Joe from New Orleans in his prime'' (
Oldie Blues)
* 1985 : ''Relaxin' in New Orleans''
ound recording/ Cousin Joe. New Orleans, LA : Great Southern Records. 1 sound disc : analog, 33 rpm ; 12 in.
* 1995 : ''Jumping at Jubilee''
ound recording London :
Sequel
A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...
, NEM CD 749
* 1996 : ''Blues Festival''
ound recording , NEW CD 17 105
* 2003 : ''Magic Bostic - Bostic, Earl, 1913–1965''
ound recording/ Earl Bostic. Paris : Jazz Archives
Filmography
* 2005 : DVD ''The Blues of Cousin Joe'' (live - 29 August 1984 in
) (Storyville Films)
References
External links
Answers.com: Pleasant JosephSatchmo.com/cousinjoe/
1907 births
1989 deaths
Jazz musicians from New Orleans
Blues musicians from Louisiana
American blues pianists
American male pianists
American blues singers
American jazz pianists
American jazz singers
Singers from Louisiana
Savoy Records artists
Decca Records artists
Imperial Records artists
20th-century American singers
20th-century American pianists
People from St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana
20th-century American male musicians
American male jazz musicians
Black & Blue Records artists
{{US-jazz-pianist-stub