Happy birthday an awesome blues guitarist and vocalist Shuggie Otis (born Johnny Alexander Veliotes, Jr.; November 30, 1953) an American singer-songwriter, recording artist, and multi-instrumentalist. Otis composition Strawberry Letter 23 (as recorded by The Brothers Johnson) topped the Billboard R&B chart and reached #5 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1977. He also achieved commercial success with his 1974 single Inspiration Information (from the album of the same name), reaching #56 on the R&B chart. Born in Los Angeles, California, Otis is the son of rhythm and blues pioneer, musician, bandleader, and impresario Johnny Otis and wife Phyllis. The name Shuggie (short for sugar, according to his mother) was coined by Phyllis when he was a newborn. Otis began playing guitar when he was two years old and performing professionally with his fathers band at the age of twelve, often disguising himself with dark glasses and a false mustache so that he could play with his fathers band in after-hours nightclubs. Otis, primarily known as a guitarist, also sings and plays a multitude of other instruments. While growing up with and being heavily influenced by many blues, jazz and R&B musicians in his father Johnnys immediate circle, Otis began to gravitate towards the popular music of his generation such as Sly Stone, Jimi Hendrix, and Arthur Lee of the band Love. In 1969, Al Kooper asked Otis to be the featured guest on the second installment (Kooper Session) of the Super Session album series that had previously included Stephen Stills and Mike Bloomfield. Kooper and the then-fifteen-year-old Otis recorded the whole album over one weekend in New York. Immediately returning to Los Angeles, Otis, along with his father and singer Delmar Mighty Mouth Evans, performed on the album Cold Shot, released in 1969 on the Los Angeles-based Kent label. Another obscure album this three-man team recorded was the extremely rare and risque Snatch & The Poontangs, on which Otis recorded tracks under the pseudonym Prince Wunnerful. Otis then released his first solo album later that year entitled Here Comes Shuggie Otis on Epic Records. Countless musicians were his guests on that debut attempt, including Johnny, Leon Haywood, Al McKibbon, Wilton Felder. This further established his reputation and catapulted him to the attention of B. B. King, who was quoted in a 1970 issue of Guitar Player magazine saying Otis was (*his) favorite new guitarist. Some of the artists Otis performed and recorded with during that time include Frank Zappa (having played electric bass on Peaches en Regalia on the 1969 album Hot Rats), Etta James, Eddie Vinson, Richard Berry, Louis Jordan, and Bobby Blue Bland, among many others. The album Otis received the most notoriety for was his second Epic Records release in 1971, Freedom Flight, which featured his hit Strawberry Letter 23. Both the album and single reached the Billboard Top 200 and the Billboard Hot 100, respectively and caught the attention of Brothers Johnson guitarist George Johnson, who then played it for producer Quincy Jones. They covered the song and it instantly became a smash hit. Even though Otis played most of his own parts in the studio, the lineup on this album was quite extensive, including keyboardist George Duke and Aynsley Dunbar of Frank Zappa, Journey, and Whitesnake fame. In 1974, Otis released Inspiration Information, his third and final album for Epic Records. The album had taken almost three years to finish. All the songs were written and arranged by Otis himself, who played almost exclusively every musical instrument on the album (except for horns and various stringed instruments). However, despite its long-awaited impact, Inspiration Information had but one single (the title track) reach the Billboard Hot 100. After the albums release, Otis was approached by Billy Preston on behalf of The Rolling Stones, asking him to join the band for their upcoming world tour. He declined the offer, along with the chance to work with Quincy Jones in helping produce Otiss next album. After a series of similar refusals, Otis gained the reputation of taking his time, and his recording contract with Epic Records was nullified. Otiss only credited works throughout the mid-1970s were done as a session musician for his fathers recording projects. Inspiration Information gained a huge cult following during the 1990s with the emergence of rare groove and acid jazz.[citation needed] It was lauded by such musicians as Prince and Lenny Kravitz. Due in part to this regained interest, the album was re-released on April 3, 2001, by David Byrnes independent label Luaka Bop Records. This CD re-issue includes all nine original album tracks plus four songs taken from Otis 1971 album Freedom Flight, and features new cover art, liner notes, and exclusive never-seen-before photos. Otis is featured in every one of his father Johnnys books, as well as Alligator Records Presents West Coast Blues, issued in August 1998. Otis and Sony Music Entertainment made a deal for a double CD which was released on April 20, 2013. It is a re-release of Inspiration/Information. Added to the album is several bonus tracks, including an accompanying album entitled Wings of Love. Wings of Love is an album of previously unreleased material, all of which was written from 1975 to the present, including live material from some of his rare performances. It will be available on Shugiterius records (Shuggies new company) and Sony records, through Sony Music Entertainment. Otis and a band entitled Shuggie Otis Rite toured internationally in 2013 in support of the release, including Australia, Japan, the U.S., Ireland and the U.K. Their performances earned rave reviews from critics.
Posted on: Sun, 30 Nov 2014 06:03:43 +0000