Sep 062011
Townsman BigSteve has passed along the news that New Orleans arranger Wardell Quezergue has died at 81. Not being that knowledgeable about New Orleans music, I had never heard of Quezergue. I sure as hell grew up, however, digging the syncopated arrangements for songs like “Mr. Big Stuff” and “Groove Me,” two smash songs (as I just read) that he arranged on the same day! In my high school and college years I was tormented by the chestnut “Iko, Iko,” but that’s because I’d only suffered through hearing it played by the Grateful Dead. The Dixie Cups’ version that Quezergue arranged is pretty cool.
I’ll add another R.I.P. here, for Honeyboy Edwards.
“The last of the pre-war bluesman, David ‘Honeyboy’ Edwards, has died at the age of 96, August 29 from heart failure. Born in 1915 in Shaw, Mississippi, guitarist and singer Edwards began touring at the age of 14 with artists such as Howlin’ Wolf and Little Walter. He started performing solo at 17 in Memphis. He was good friends with iconic bluesman Robert Johnson and was with him the night he died after drinking poisoned whiskey in 1938.”
I saw Edwards back around 1993 for a show that was much better than I expected. I went solely because of the Robert Johnson connection, having never heard anything by Edwards before that. I didn’t realize it until reading the above obit but that gives me one degree of separation from Robert Johnson – and I’m more than enough of a music nerd to think that’s way cool!
A few more — Robert Parker’s Barefootin’, Earl King’s Trick Bag, and Professor Longhair’s Big Chief. Quezergue doesn’t have that many producer credits, because his main thing was arranging horn sections. Great name too.
Heh, I just heard “Barefootin'” on Music Choice today – “Ain’t got no shoes on!”