Little Willie Littlefield

Little Willie Littlefield
Little Willie Littlefield
	Littlefield performing at Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône, France, in 1980
Background information
Birth name	Willie Littlefield, Jr.
Born	September 16, 1931; El Campo, Texas, U.S.
Died	June 23, 2013 (aged 81); Voorthuizen, Netherlands
Genres	R&B; jump blues Urban Blues; boogie-woogie;
Occupations	Musician; songwriter; producer;
Instruments	Singing; piano;
Years active	1949–2013
Labels	Eddie's; Modern; Federal; Rhythm; Ace; Oldie Blues;

"Willie's Boogie Medley" sample

Audio sample of "Willie's Boogie Medley", recorded August 1949, Houston, Texas

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Willie Littlefield, Jr.,^[2] billed as Little Willie Littlefield (September 16, 1931 – June 23, 2013),^[3] was an American R&B and boogie-woogie pianist and singer^[4] whose early recordings "formed a vital link between boogie-woogie and rock and roll".^[4] Littlefield was regarded as a teenage wonder and overnight sensation when in 1949, at the age of 18, he popularized the triplet piano style on his Modern Records debut single, "It's Midnight".^[5] He also recorded the first version of the song "Kansas City" (originally issued as "K. C. Lovin'"), in 1952.

Career

Early career

Littlefield was born in El Campo, Texas, and grew up in Houston with his mother. By 1947, at the age of sixteen, he was already a local attraction in many of the clubs on Dowling Street in Houston and was recording for Eddie Henry, a local record shop proprietor who ran his own label, Eddie's Records.^[6] He formed his first band with the saxophonist Don Wilkerson, a friend from school.^[4]

Other major influences on Littlefield's style were the Texas musicians Charles Brown and Amos Milburn.^[3]^[6]

His first recording, "Little Willie's Boogie", was a hit in Texas in 1949 and brought him to the attention of Jules Bihari, of Modern Records in Los Angeles, who was searching for a performer to rival the success of Amos Milburn.^[4]

Success at Modern records

Littlefield returned to Modern Records and recorded "It's Midnight". It reached number three on the Billboard R&B chart, and its follow-up, "Farewell", reached number five.^[7] He became a major nightclub attraction and recorded with West Coast musicians such as Maxwell Davis. Don Wilkerson, Littlefield's schoolmate and the leading saxophone player in his band, also travelled to Los Angeles, but Milburn promptly persuaded him to lead Milburn's new band, the Aladdin Chickenshackers.^[6]

One of his 1950 recordings, "Happy Pay Day", written by Jack Holmes, was later rewritten by Holmes with entirely different lyrics as "The Blacksmith Blues", which became a hit for Ella Mae Morse.^[8]^{[user-generated source]}

In 1951, his duet with Little Lora Wiggins, "I've Been Lost", reached number 10 on the R&B chart.^[7]

In 1952 he moved to the Federal subsidiary of King Records. His first session for Federal produced "K. C. Loving", written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and later re-recorded by Wilbert Harrison as "Kansas City".

In the late 1970s he toured Europe successfully, settling in the Netherlands and releasing a number of albums from 1982 into the late 1990s for the Oldie Blues label from Martin van Olderen.^[9]

Retirement and comeback

After touring for more than 50 years, Littlefield stopped in 2000. After five years of retirement in his adopted home country, the Netherlands, he decided to play again, starting in 2006, declaring, "I went fishing for five years – now I know every herring in Holland by name – it got boring. I feel great and I want to be back with my audience."^[10]

In his later years Littlefield continued to perform occasionally, mainly at festivals, particularly in the UK. In 2008 he played at the 20th Burnley Blues Festival, in 2008, and at the 5th annual UK Boogie Woogie Festival at Sturminster Newton in Dorset, in July 2009. He performed at Shakedown Blues Club, at Castor Village Hall, near Castor, Peterborough, in 2006 and made a return appearance in October 2010.^[11]^[12]

He died at his home in Voorthuizen, Netherlands, in 2013, at the age of 81. He had cancer.^[4]

Selected discography

Albums

1980: Paris Streetlights, Paris Album PLB 2 28508 (recorded May 14, 1980); reissued on CD, 1996, EPM Blues Collection BC 157802^[13]^[14]
1982: Houseparty, Oldie Blues OL 8003 (recorded June 1982)
1983: I'm in the Mood, Oldie Blues OL 8006 (recorded 1983)
1985: Happy Pay Day, Ace CH 150
1987: Plays the Boogie Woogie, Schubert Records SCH-100 (recorded 1987); reissued on CD, 1992, Munich CMA CM 8013
1990: Singalong with Little Willie Littlefield, Oldie Blues OLCD 7001 (recorded 1987)
1992: ... Goes Rhythm 'n Blues, CMA Music CMA CM 10002
1993: The Stars of Rhythm 'n Blues! CMA Music CMA CM 10007
1994: Yellow Boogie & Blues, Oldie Blues OLCD 7006 (recorded 1994)
1997: The Red One, Oldie Blues OLCD 7005 (recorded June 1997)
2006: Little Willie Littlefield Live, Schubert Records SCH-205 (recorded live in Germany, April 20, 2006)
2008: Old Time Feeling, Stormy Monday 81242^[15]

Selected compilation albums

1977: K. C. Loving, K.C. 101 (LP)
1980: Volume 1, Ace 10 CH 24 (10" 8-track album)
1981: Volume 2, Ace 10 CH 34 (10" 8-track album)
1984: Jump with Little Willie Littlefield, Ace CHD 114
1993: I'm in the Mood, Oldie Blues OLCD 7002 (recorded 1982, 1983)
1995: Going Back to Kay Cee, Ace CDCHD 503
1999: Kat on the Keys, Ace CDCHD 736
2005: Boogie, Blues and Bounce: The Modern Recordings Volume 2, Ace CDCHD 1056

References

^ Du Noyer, Paul (2003). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music. Fulham, London: Flame Tree Publishing. p. 181. ISBN 1-904041-96-5.
^ Eagle, Bob; LeBlanc, Eric S. (2013). Blues: A Regional Experience. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger. p. 400. ISBN 978-0313344237.
^ ^a ^b Dahl, Bill. "Little Willie Littlefield: Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e McArdle, Terence. "Little Willie Littlefield, Blues Singer, Boogie-Woogie Pianist, Dies at 81". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 4, 2013.
^ Topping, Ray (1999). Liner notes. Kat on the Keys, CDCHD 736.
^ ^a ^b ^c Topping, Ray (1984). Sleeve notes. Jump with Little Willie Littlefield. Ace Records CHD114.
^ ^a ^b Whitburn, Joel (1996). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–1995. Record Research. p. 271.
^ "Original Versions of Happy Pay Off Day Written by Jack Holmes". Secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
^ Olderen, Martin van (1993). Liner notes. I'm in the Mood. OLCD 7002.
^ "boogie lecture". Ukboogiewoogiefestival.co.uk. Archived from the original on August 12, 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
^ "Blues: Little Willie Littlefield at Castor Village Hall". peterboroughtoday.co.uk. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
^ "live music, blues, soul, R&B, Shakedown Blues, Peterborough, UK". shakedownblues.co.uk. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
^ Russell, Tony (1997). The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray. Dubai: Carlton Books. p. 137. ISBN 1-85868-255-X.
^ "Little Willie Littlefield, Paris Streetlights". AllMusic. Retrieved December 7, 2011.
^ "Little Willie Littlefield, Old Time Feeling". AllMusic. Retrieved December 7, 2011.