Jessie Hill (December 9, 1932 – September 17, 1996) was
an American R&B and Louisiana blues singer and songwriter, best remembered
for the classic song "Ooh Poo Pah Doo".
Hill was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.
By his teens he was playing drums in local bands, and in 1951 he formed his own
group, the House Rockers. After periods performing as drummer with Professor
Longhair and then Huey "Piano" Smith,
Hill formed a new version of the House Rockers in 1958, which enabled him to focus on singing with the band.
Hill formed a new version of the House Rockers in 1958, which enabled him to focus on singing with the band.
The origins of "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" were
apparently created from a tune played by a local pianist, who was known only as
Big Four. Hill wrote the lyrics and melody, later expanding the work with an
intro taken from Dave Bartholomew. It was further honed on stage, before Hill
recorded a demo that he shopped to local record labels, finally recording a
session at Cosimo Matassa's studio produced by Allen Toussaint.
Upon its early 1960 release, "Ooh Poo Pah Doo"
emerged as a favorite at Mardi Gras, selling 800,000 copie and reaching the Top
5 in the US Billboard R&B chart and a Top 30 slot in the Billboard
Hot 100 pop chart. There have been over 100 cover versions of "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" recorded and performed live over the years by other popular musicians.
Hot 100 pop chart. There have been over 100 cover versions of "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" recorded and performed live over the years by other popular musicians.
The success of the record enabled Hill to tour the
country. "I hit the road," he said. "The Apollo Theatre, man, I went all across the country. I was making more
money than I ever saw in my life." But Mr. Hill's subsequent records
failed to match the success of "Ooh Poo Pah Doo," although "Whip
It on Me" did crack the Billboard Hot 100. He then moved to California to
work with fellow New Orleans musicians including Harold Battiste and Mac
Rebennack. In this period, he wrote songs recorded by Ike and Tina Turner,
Sonny and Cher, and Willie Nelson.
In 1972, he signed to the Blue Thumb label to cut a solo
LP, Naturally, an ambitious but deeply flawed effort that sold scant few copies.
Despite his success on the West Coast, Hill nevertheless suffered financial
difficulties exacerbated by his growing drinking problem. After a disagreement
with Battiste he quit his staff songwriting gig, and while serving a stint in
Los Angeles County Jail for an accumulation of traffic warrants, his car, which
contained all of his songwriting material, was stolen.
Hill ultimately returned to New Orleans in 1977, but
after coming home waving his trademark two tambourines, he found little in the
way of either live dates or songwriting work, and for a time he drove his own
taxi, a black Cadillac dubbed "The Poo Cab." As his drinking and
narcotics use escalated, however, he racked up a series of DWI infractions, and
in short order lost his license altogether. His occasional live appearances
were typically train wrecks, hastily assembled affairs performed with pickup
bands, and for a time Hill was homeless. Several benefit gigs were held in his honour,
but did little to revive his
personal or professional fortunes. Hill finally succumbed to heart and kidney failure on September 17, 1996, and his body was laid to rest under a plywood grave marker in New Orleans' Holt Cemetery.
personal or professional fortunes. Hill finally succumbed to heart and kidney failure on September 17, 1996, and his body was laid to rest under a plywood grave marker in New Orleans' Holt Cemetery.
Bernie Cyrus, executive director of the Louisiana Music
Commission, said "Whenever I talked about musicians that didn't get what
they deserved, Jessie was the first person to come to mind," Cyrus said.
Mr. Hill was one of "the R&B stars of New Orleans that had their
chance in the sun and didn't get to see their garden continue to grow. Jessie
was in a situation where his garden had a lot of weeds in it."
Two of his grandsons are James and Troy "Trombone
Shorty" Andrews. The pair performed "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" in Episode
7 of the HBO series Treme. A third grandson, Travis "Trumpet Black"
Hill, was a rising New Orleans-based performer. Trumpet Black died from an
infection while on tour in Tokyo on May 4, 2015.
(Edited from Wikipedia ,usgwarchives.net & AllMusic)
3 comments:
For “Jessie Hill - Collected” go here:
https://www105.zippyshare.com/v/TWcZwBmb/file.html
This contains 3 folders ... A complete collection of his singles from 1960-68, the 1971 'Naturally' LP and the 1987 issued 'Y'All Ready Now ...Plus' compilation, which collects both issued and unissued seminal material from 1960-62. All files MP3 @ 320kbs. Thanks to Groovy Gumbo blog and original uploaders.
Here’ the track listing for “Y’All Ready Now…..Plus”
1. Ooh Poo Pah Doo Pt. 1 2:20
2. Ooh Poo Pah Doo Pt. 2 2:15
3. Why Holler 2:22
4. Whip It On Me 2:15
5. I Got Mine 2:34
6. Get In Touch 2:12
7. Oogsey Moo [take 10] 2:50
8. I Need Your Love 2:23
9. The Pot's On Strike 1:39
10. Oogsey Moo [take 1] 3:00
11. Popcorn Pop Pop 2:12
12. Scoop Scoobie Doobie 2:31
13. High Head Blues 2:37
14. Can't Get Enough (Of That Ooh Poo Pah Doo) 2:39
15. In My Mind 1:48
16. Candy 2:22
17. Give It To Me 2:35
18. My Love 2:43
19. I Got Mine 2:15
20. Oh Me, Oh My 2:43
21. Do It With Feelin' 2:43
22. It's My Fault 2:04
23. It Was You 2:45
24. Sweet Jelly Roll 2:36
Oh, boppinbob, this is a fabulous treat! I have never heard an entire album by Hill and can't wait to listen. Like the rest of the world, I'm an "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" fan from way back and looked for albums by him for ages. And just look at this: you are Santa Boppinbob! I can't stop smiling :D Thank you so, so much!
Just a quick extra note: it's now a day later and I've been listening to his works and really, I love it all. What a shame about his life, though. Bad timing, bad habits and nothing went his way, although for the most part, it's his own fault. Such a talent he was! I'm so happy to have these albums to continue to listen to and find myself dancing in the living room like I was 17 again.
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