February 3, 1939 John William “Johnny” Bristol, musician, songwriter, and record producer, was born in Morganton, North Carolina. After serving in the United States Air Force, Bristol recorded several singles before his label was absorbed by Motown Records in the mid-1960s. At Motown, he teamed with Harvey Fuqua to write and produce some of their [...]
Tag Archives | musician
December 24th in African American History – Warren “Baby” Dodds
December 24, 1898 Warren “Baby” Dodds, jazz drummer, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Dodds gained a reputation as a top young drummer in New Orleans and worked on Mississippi River steamship bands with Louis Armstrong. He moved to California in 1921 to work with Joe “King” Oliver and then followed him to Chicago, Illinois. [...]
March 13th in African American History – Roy Owen Haynes
March 13, 1925 Roy Owen Haynes, jazz drummer and bandleader, was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Haynes made his professional debut in 1944 and from 1947 to 1949 worked with saxophonist Lester Young. From 1949 to 1952, Haynes was a member of Charlie Parker’s quintet and from 1953 to 1958 he toured with Sarah Vaughn. In [...]
March 11th in African American History – Sonny Terry
March 11, 1986 Sonny Terry, blues musician, died. Terry was born Saunders Terrell on October 24, 1911 in Greensboro, North Carolina.
February 10th in African American History – Roberta Flack
February 10, 1937 Roberta Flack, singer, songwriter and musician, was born in Black Mountain, North Carolina. During her early teens, Flack so excelled at classical piano that Howard University awarded her a full music scholarship at the age of 15 and she graduated at the age of 19.
January 25th in African American History – Alicia Augello Cook (Alicia Keys)
January 25, 1981 Alicia Augello Cook (Alicia Keys), recording artist, musician, and actress, was born in New York City. At the age of seven, Keys began to play classical music on the piano. She attended Columbia University before dropping out to pursue her music career.
December 24th in African American History – Dave Bartholomew
December 24, 1920 Dave Bartholomew, musician, band leader, composer and arranger, was born in Edgard, Louisiana. Bartholomew has been active in many musical genres, but his partnership with Fats Domino produced some of his greatest successes. Together, they wrote and recorded more than 40 hit songs, including “Goin’ Home” (1952), “Ain’t That a Shame” (1855), [...]