Snooky Pryor (September 15, 1921 – October 18, 2006) was a Chicago blues harmonica player. He claimed to have pioneered the now-common method of playing amplified harmonica by cupping a small microphone in his hands along with the harmonica, although on his earliest records in the late 1940s and early 50s he did not utilize this method. James Edward Pryor was born in Lambert and developed a Delta blues style influenced by both Sonny Boy Williamson I and Sonny Boy Williamson II. He moved to Chicago around 1940. While serving in the U.S. Army he would blow bugle calls through the powerful PA system which led him to experiment with playing the harmonica that way. Upon discharge from the Army in 1945, he obtained his own amplifier and began playing harmonica at the outdoor Maxwell Street market, becoming a regular on the Chicago blues scene. Pryor recorded some of the first postwar Chicago blues records in 1948, including Telephone Blues and Snooky & Moodys Boogie with guitarist Moody Jones, and Stockyard Blues and Keep What You Got with singer/guitarist Floyd Jones. Snooky & Moodys Boogie is of considerable historical significance: Pryor claimed that harmonica ace Little Walter directly copied the signature riff of Pryors song into the opening eight bars of his own blues harmonica instrumental, Juke, an R&B hit in 1952. In 1967, Pryor moved south to Ullin, Illinois. He quit music for carpentry in the late 1960s but was persuaded to make a comeback. After he dropped out of sight, Pryor was later re-discovered and resumed periodic recording until his death in nearby Cape Girardeau, Missouri at the age of 85. In January 1973 he appeared with the American Blues Legends tour which played throughout Europe alongside Homesick James. Whilst on this tour they recorded an album in London, Homesick James & Snooky Pryor, on Jim Simpsons label Big Bear Records. Some of his better known songs include Judgement Day (1956), and Crazy Bout My Baby from Snooky (1989), Howd You Learn to Shake It Like That from Tenth Anniversary Anthology (1989) and Shake My Hand (1999). Pryors son Richard Rip Lee Pryor is also a blues musician, and performs in and around his residential city of Carbondale, Illinois. Discography This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it. Singles Boogie (A-side) Telephone Blues (B-side) (1948) Planet Someone to Love Me (a) Judgement Day (b) (1956) Vee Jay Records Albums Snooky Pryor (1970) Flyright Record, FLY 100, Made in England Homesick James & Snooky Pryor (1973) Virgin Records, London Do It If You Want To (1973) ABC Records, Los Angeles, New York Snooky (1989) Blind Pig Records Snooky Pryor (1991) Paula Records Johnny Shines and Snooky Pryor: Back To The Country (1991) Blind Pig Records Snooky Pryor: Too Cool To Move (1992) Antones In This Mess Up to My Chest (1994) Antones Mind Your Own Business (1996) Antones Snooky Pryor: Shake My Hand (1999) Blind Pig Records Double Shot! Snooky Pryor and Mel Brown (2000) Electro-Fi Super Harps II mit Carey Bell, Lazy Lester, Rafuel Neal (2001) Telarc Snooky Pryor and his Mississippi Wrecking Crew (2002) Electro-Fi Mojo Ramble (2003) Electro-Fi
Posted on: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 12:30:26 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015