Oct 162011
I’m looking for rock ‘n roll people who’s names are always or almost always preceded by an adjective. The person must be real and not some Springsteen-esque character like Crazy Janey or Wild Billy.
As always, please limit your answers to one per post.
I’ll kick it off with Handsome Dick Manitoba.
Weird Al Yankovic, of course.
Little Richard
Wildman Fischer
Country Dick Montana from the Beat Farmers
Big Al Anderson
There’s already a lot of Dicks in this thread, but let’s not forget J. Geils Band’s harmonica player Magic Dick.
Wild Bill Davis.
Lonesome Dave Peverett of Savoy Brown and Foghat.
Diamond Dave
Big Bill Broonzy
Stumpy Joe Childs
nice
Smiling Jay McDowell from BR-549
Muddy Waters
Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
Hmmm… Not sure if I’m going to allow Muddy Waters but just in case I do: Howlin’ Wolf.
I didn’t think of blues guys when I launched this LMS. We’ll see how things go but I might have to put a cap on “Little” or “Blind” if it gets out of hand.
Little Stevie Wonder, for a while at least.
And Screaming Lord Sutch, so I don’t have to live with Little Stevie Wonder being rejected.
I’ll get Sleepy Joe Estes in quick then…
Might as well get Blind Lemon Jefferson while I can
Will Oldham, aka Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy
Little Jimmy Osmond
Big Joe Turner
Little Steven (…Van Zandt often omitted)
Tiny Tim
Little Anthony & The Imperials
I know this won’t count, but for those who are unfamiliar with British radio comedy you may enjoy this:
Rambling Syd Rumpo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWTs9SP3AIc
Little Willie John
Looks like bluesmen are go, so I’ll say Lazy Lester.
Wreckless Eric
Bunny Wailer
If an adjective is required, then don’t we need to toss out “Bunny?” I don’t know…
You are correct, nouns do not count. I thought about this issue when considering an entry whose name now escapes me. Maybe Miami Steve.
Champion Jack Dupree. I confirmed on dictionary DOT com that “Champion” is an adjective as well as a noun and a verb.
Whoops! Our youngest once announced that “I am too bunny to talk”, which has stuck as an adjective in our household since. That was me going into senior mode, “having a bunny moment”.
Wild Willy Barrett
I think I interviewed or was scheduled to interview that guy about 100 years ago, when he was only 112.
Country Joe McDonald – “Gimme an F….”
“Lonesome” George Thorogood
Blind Willie Johnson
long john baldry
Bullmoose Jackson, That’s the unacceptable entry that I was thinking of. Whew, I feel better now.
That’s cool, Mod. Who were you interviewing him for? How did it go? The only song I have by him is Hurry Down Sunshine but it’s pretty fantastic.
Wow, I’d never heard of Kenneth Williams or the 26 (?) Carry On films he made! He sounds like he was a true English institution. Strange life, from the few things I just read. This bit was pretty interesting, even if the references and type of character were unfamiliar to me.
I did some work from some short-lived glossy music magazine in the early ’90s. I remember so little about it, who was involved, etc. I remember interviewing some local goth-metal band. I think I interviewed this guy but remember nothing about it. I had to review a Roseanne Cash album. Almost everything I did put me in a fish-out-of-water scenario.
Isn’t there a country guy named Lefty Frizzell?
Randy Newman (I’ve checked it on dictionary dot com)
Sleepy LaBeef
Leapy Lee
Slim Harpo
awesome!
Ramblin’ Jack Elliott
The Legendary Stardust Cowboy
First post! Southside Johnny
Nice! And welcome to the fray!
Seasick Steve
Black Francis. Last Man Standing!!!
Shit, I was saving that one!
Shakin’ Stevens
I know this doesn’t count, but I’m reading a book about Bob Dylan, and I just read that there was a polka musician in the 30s and 40s named Whoopee John Wilfahrt. Is that great or what?
Excello bluesman Lonesome Sundown.
That is great!
Sneaky Pete Kleinow from the Flying Burrito Brothers
cdm – I’d just like to say Thanks A Lot for contributing to getting “Unpack Your Adjectives” stuck in my head for the last 2 days. As I wake up, do I get to hear some snippet of a Portishead or Stephen Malkmus, both of whom I’ve been listening to in the car? No, it’s “It was a hairy bear, it was a scary bear…” and on and on and on. Thanks, really.
Sweet Billy Pilgrim
Bluesman Mighty Joe Young.
This is a band, not a person, right? The only thing I know about them is that they’re on David Sylvian’s label. Are they good?
Ooh, ooh – I’ve got a contemporary artist: Black Joe Louis.
LMS!
Hey, it could be worse. It could have been Conjunction Junction.
Ha! That may not be last man standing, but it’s definitely best man standing. I’ll never look at him without laughing now!
Dimebag Darrel
Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Good Rockin’ Sam (with Kid King’s Combo) — an amazing Excello blues dude.
The Fantastic Johnny C.
“Boogaloo Down Broadway”, 1967
Oh, thanks a lot. Now THAT’s stuck in my head.
SBP sounds to me a bit like Talk Talk or David Sylvian. We only have a few tracks but I like what I’ve heard.
Baby Charles
Sweet!
Swamp pop singer Jivin’ Gene Bourgeois (big hit, Breaking Up Is Hard to Do).
Moderator, I raise you a Black Francis.
Motorhead drummer Philthy Phil Taylor.
LMS!
Little Eva
“Locomotion” 1962
Winged Eel Fingerling
Big Mama Thornton
And, Chubby Checker! (BTW: just in case you plan to trump me, “Fats” is not an adjective)
Little Willie & The Adolescents – a Central Florida band who had a minor hit in 1966-1967 with the Nuggety “Get Out of My Life”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkMkU1jKFvo
Ummm… Question Mark of the Mysterians?
Pink
ooh, it’s jumped back to the top, does that mean we have to go through it all again?
Ok, I’ll kick off with the Singing Nun
Yes.
(bluesman) Wild Jimmy Spruill
Spanky McFarlane!
Screamin’ Joe Neal
Old Dirty Bastard
Or, as Hank Kingsley on The Larry Sanders Show referred to him while trying to ingratiate himself to the Wu-Tang Clan , “Dirty Old Bitch”.
Rockin’ Enocky of Japan’s Jackie & the Cedrics
Corky Jones
Burning Spear
Ben Vaughn Combo’s original drummer – and a solo artist/songwriter in his own right, Lonesome Bob.
“Happy” Harry Traum – long-standing folkie.
Rutles manager Leggy Mountbatten.
Sonny Boy Williamson.
It works. I looked it up on dictionary DOT com. He intentionally misspelled his name. LMS!
Smiley Culture
Well, I am late to this party, so let me get started on rock ‘n roll people whose names are always or almost always preceded by an adverb: Simply Red. First man standing!
Bloody Sting
Big Daddy Kane
How many times have you seen a story about Tommy Lee of Motley Crue without him being described as “Rocker Tommy Lee”?
Slim Jim Phantom
Slim Dunlap
Plastic Bertrand
So often that it constantly reminds me that he’s more than a tatted-up home sex-tape maker/star.
“Fuzzy” Calvin Samuels
Rocky Votolato of the Waxwings
William “Smokey” Robinson
Fuzzy Haskins of the P-Funk Mob
Wow I can’t believe it took this long for someone to come up with Smokey Robinson.
Jerome “Bigfoot” Brailey, also of P-Funk
That’s a nickname, not an adjective.
Big Steve. LMS!
Lil’ Wayne
Lil’ Bow Wow
I think it’s Sleepy John Estes isn’t it?
Wild Billy Childish
Mountain drummer Corky Laing.
Wow placticsun is LMS.
But only momentarily — Blind Willie McTell (who no one ever sang the blues like).
Nice try but no go.
Hairy Nilson
Why? You can look it up in Webster’s. It’s an adjective.
Because I don’t think it was intended as the adjective. The adjective is an obscure reference to wine. Corky was a popular nick name from the 40s or 50s. That would be like me claiming Butch Hancock.
So you’re saying the time I saw Mountain playing outside a frat at George Washington University in 1982 and Corky fell off his drum stool mid-song (no joke) his fall was the result of extreme wine intake?
The Big Figure (Dr Feelgood)
No, I’m saying it wasn’t the wine. If it was, I might accept your answer.
To cut through any confusion, let’s turn to wikipedia, shall we? “According to Corky, his brothers called him “Gorky” because they could not pronounce his given name. “Gorky” eventually morphed into Corky, a moniker which has remained with him throughout his career.”
I though about that one a while ago but ultimately rejected it because his name isn’t ‘”Figure”.
Plasticsun is still has the belt.
Slim Whitman!
LMS!
Dusty Springfield, then
Dusty Hill!
LAST. MAN. STANDING.
Blues harmonica genius Little Walter.
Legendary steel player Speedy West (probably best known for the opening notes of the Bugs Bunny theme).
The belt please. I said hand it over!
The original Blackanova, Big Daddy Kane.
Ell-emm-ess!
Speedy (John) Keene – ex-Pete Townshend chauffeur, head of Thunderclap Newman, and writer of “Armenia, City in the Sky” on The Who Sell Out.
Nyah nyah!
I had no idea he played a black harmonica.
Frank Sinatra.
Fast Eddie Clarke
Who better to play for a Last Man Standing than multi-talented triple threat actor/singer/professional wrestler “Rowdy” Roddy” Piper, who contributed on at least two songs during the classic Rock ‘n Wrestling years.
One more: Steady Rollin’ Bob Margolin (Muddy Waters’ guitar player in the Last Waltz).
No matter who ends up being the Last (Wo)man Standing, I need to publicly acknowledge the genius of Happiness Stan and Misterioso for Randy Newman and Frank Sinatra respectively.
thanks 🙂
Nervous Norvus
Mighty Max Weinberg
Smiley Lewis (of I Hear You Knockin’ fame).
Little Milton
Rockin’ Dopsie!
For shame, Big Steve, for leaving that one on the table.
Last! Man! Standing!!!!
Rockin’ Mel Slirrup!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qs1Oov4Gckg&feature=related
Not so fast, I was waiting til cdm “closed up shop for the weekend” to mention Wailers percussionist Sticky Thompson.
Have we gone this ling w/o Fatboy Slim?
Happy Traum. Sorry Big Steve but I monitor this site 24 hours a day.
Pianist ‘Blue’ Gene Tyranny.
Pee Wee Ellis
I came up with another one thinking of seasonal songs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrh-7PvbBM4
Jumpin’ Gene Simmons doing Haunted House. I always loved this one.
Entry #84, HVB.
Kool Moe Dee