Page 46 - Akae Beka

between the thighs of the shake dancers, challenging End of an Era
each other to winner-take-all cuttin’ contests, Satan himself, During the ’50s, King Records had phenomenal power
running on no sleep for the last week, cakewalking down in the music world, giving us “The Twist” by Hank Ballard,
in Hell, while casino walls shook to the sounds of jacked- hit after hit on the R&B charts, country, rockabilly, gospel,
up patrons shouting “Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop.” “It” was ignored spoken word, polka and, of course, James Brown. Soul
by, or simply unknown to, polite society, the elected (and Brother Number One would change music history, and by
well-compensated) officials on both sides of the Ohio River the ‘60s, he was paying the electric bill for Syd Nathan.
made sure of that. What had once been called “race” music As times and tastes changed, many of the older artists were
was becoming even more primal and unrefined; many jazz no longer selling, Motown and Stax were now the power
players mocked it, and major record labels barely even brokers in Black music. Nathan passed in Miami in 1968 at
acknowledged “it” as “music.” the age of 64, and shortly thereafter, King Records went out
But, night after night on Newport’s bandstands, something of business and was sold.
was changing. The old songs were being played with a raw,
brash attitude and new songs were being written. Drive- Down the Road in Houston, TX
thru brothels, amphetamines and 24-hour gambling weren’t Don Robey looked more like a driver’s education teacher
spawning tunes with titles like “How Much Is that Doggie in than a well-connected record mogul. He was the biracial son
the Window?” Even the music from five years before was of a chef and a laborer and used to brag “I’m half Black and
too square. The tunesmiths and musicians knew that if they half White, I’m smarter than you and I can kick your ass.”
wanted to keep their gigs, it was time to move on from the He was indeed smart when it came to signing artists, and
relatively harmless and fun picture painted by songs like not shy about practicing the ass-kicking part of the statement.
“Saturday Night Fish Fry,” to the music being recorded by a In 1944, he opened the Bronze Peacock Dinner Club in
cigar-smoking, asthmatic record dealer named Nathan in an Houston, TX. The Peacock was the Copacabana of Black
old warehouse in Cincinnati. society in the Lonestar State. His #1 attraction was flashy
guitarist T-Bone Walker, who became a target for a tsunami
Raunch and Roll of room keys and panties nightly tossed onstage.
King Records and Syd Nathan stepped up to the plate, Robey wanted in on this phenomenon and produced the
supplying Newport (and the rest of the country) with the best first records by another guitarist, a young upstart named
and raunchiest records of the era... Wynonie Harris, The Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown. Brown was his first artist, and
Dominoes, The Swallows, Bullmoose Jackson and others although he hung on for a few lean years, Robey wouldn’t
specialized in R-rated classics with titles like “Big Ten Inch hit real paydirt till 1954. That year “Pledging My Love”
(Record of the Blues),” “Keep On Churnin’ Till the Butter by Johnny Ace crossed over and hit #1 on the pop charts.
Comes,” “Rocket 69,” “It Ain’t The Meat, It’s The Motion” The soulful ballad would be the first R&B song to crossover
and “Big Long Slidin’ Thing.” Recorded in the late ‘40s and onto the pop charts, opening a huge door that had been
early ‘50s, they flew under the radar and, along with country previously closed to Black artists.
music, became the roots of rock ‘n roll.
The Gospel According to Robey
Secret Weapons In 1952, Robey bought out Duke Records, and Peacock
Mr. Nathan also had a couple of secret weapons. Unlike Records became his gospel label. Gospel had been virtually
the other independent labels, he ran a full-service operation. ignored by the big labels. Not only did he scoop up groups
While other companies kept their offices, recording studios, like the Dixie Hummingbirds, he changed the basic sound
pressing plants and distribution centers in separate parts of of commercial gospel. Before him, the groups recorded
the country, Nathan ran all of them out of one building. He acapella or with minimal accompaniment. Beginning with
could record a song in the morning and within a matter of the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi, he began using rhythm
hours, have it mastered, pressed and shipped to DJs across sections. He made gospel records in Chicago with Willie
the country. Dixon and the same musicians that played on blues records,
The other ace up his sleeve: Henry Glover. Henry blurring the line between Saturday night and Sunday
Glover did it all. He produced, arranged and wrote million- morning.
dollar sellers and even built the studios. The one-man hit The old school church crowd turned its back on him at
machine wrote for The Delmore Brothers, and produced first, calling the new sound demonic and blasphemous. Oh
sessions for Moon Mullican and others for the hillbilly well, their loss. Robey’s style of gospel took off and began
market. On the R&B side, he wrote and produced mega hits to outsell even secular music. The driving beat, and even the
for Hank Ballard and The Midnighters, James Brown, Little songs of the Five Blind Boys and the Dixie Hummingbirds –
Willie John and Bill Doggett, and became the first African later modified by Ray Charles, Hank Ballard, Jackie Wilson
American executive in the record business. and countless others – all began with Don Robey.

44 Blues Festival Guide 2020