Tommy Ridgley born 30 October 1925

Thomas Herman Ridgley (October 30, 1925 – August 11, 1999) was an American R&B singer, pianist, songwriter and bandleader.

Tommy Ridgley was born in the Shrewsbury district of New Orleans , the eldest of seventeen brothers and sisters, of which eight survived He had an impoverished upbringing and was a breadwinner for his family before his teens. His social life and that of his family centred on the local church where Ridgley began singing in harmony groups He served with the United States Navy during the Second World War and during his rest-time learnt to play the piano. At demobilization under the terms of the G.I. Bill, that provided World War II veterans with funds for college education Ridgley studied at the Grunewald School of Music. In 1946 he entered a talent contest at the Dew Drop Inn , one of New Orleans premier nightclubs which he won and more significantly gained a profile as an up-coming performer. 

Ridgley started his professional career in the late 40's as a band singer with a New Orleans Dixieland group and after a brief stint with Earl Anderson's band playing at The Starlight Hotel in Gert Town, he was recruited by trumpeter and band leader Dave Bartholomew. Ridgley, released his debut single, Shrewsbury Blues c/w Early Dawn Boogie in New Orleans in 1949. Produced by Bartholomew and released on the new imprint Imperial Records the record established Ridgley within New Orleans as a progenitor of jump blues and blues ballads. In 1952 Lew Chudd, owner of Imperial records selected Ridgley and Bartholomew to cover a song called Looped. It was another New Orleans hit and thereafter a staple of Tommy Ridgley's repertoire. Ridgley's singing style in his early career has been compared to that of Roy Brown whilst his reputation as a major New Orleans artist was enhanced by Dave Bartholomew's band that featured outstanding musicians: drummer Earl Palmer and saxophonists Lee Allen, Herb Hardesty, Red Tyler and Ernest Allen. 

In 1953 Ridgley left Bartholomew's band and signed a contract with Atlantic records. He cut I'm Gonna Cross That River c/w Ooh Lawdy My Baby, a record that featured Ray Charles on piano as a member of Edgar Blanchard's Gondoliers  and Jam Up, a sax-led instrumental dance record that narrowly missed the national charts when re-cut in 1961. A regular presence by 1957 on the thriving R&B scene in New Orleans, he was offered a recording contract with Herald Records, by which time Ridgley had formed his own band The Untouchables. Herald released six singles by The Untouchables of which the first release When I Meet My Girl was the most successful. 

By the end of 1950's Tommy Ridgley and The Untouchables were the resident band at the iconic Dew Drop Inn where they opened for and sometimes backed visiting acts. These included a number of major R&B artists of the late 50's and early 60's: James Brown, Clyde McPhatter, Sam Cooke, Little Willie John and Ivory Joe Hunter . Ridgley also employed a young Irma Thomas as one of his girl singers, later recommending her to Ric Records where she recorded for the subsidiary Ron label. 

                              

In 1960, Ridgley also signed with Joe Ruffino's New Orleans Ric Records, and released seven singles, at six monthly intervals. His third release, a recording of Wynona Carr's Should I Ever Love Again c/w Double-Eyed Whammy was a strong seller in spring 1961. His fifth release on Ric In The Same Old Way proved one of the most successful records of his career and he later cut it again on the Shreveport based label Ronn label. 

Joe Ruffino's death in 1962 left the label in limbo and Ridgley's final two Ric 45s were released with little in the way of promotion and although they had Dr John on production duties they were not successful. However, Heavenly c/w Honest I Do and I’ve Heard That Story Before, the later covered by his brother Sammy Ridgley demonstrated that Ridgley could adapt his voice to the new soul music style that was evolving. 

A one-record deal with the tiny Cinderella label saw No One But You released in the winter of 1963. In February 1964 Cash Box reviewed favourably All My Love Belongs To You c/w I Want Some Money, on the Johen label, a R&B dance record from the pen of Eddie Bo. As the decade progressed Tommy Ridgley continued to gig regularly in New Orleans and Louisiana releasing further one-off soul 45s on small labels: Blue Jay, White Cliffs and Ronn. Ridgley also cut a number of tracks at a studio in Clinton, Mississippi for Bob Robin's International City imprint including My Love is Getting Stronger, a song that became highly popular on the UK Northern Soul scene in the 1970s and 80s. 

Ridgley always remained a hometown favourite even when recording opportunities proved scarce. Happily, Since the Blues Began ranked with 1995's best albums, Ridgley sounding entirely contemporary but retaining his defining Crescent City R&B edge.In January 1999 Ridgley received OffBeat magazine's annual Lifetime Achievement Award Ridgley who suffered from kidney failure in his last few years, died from lung cancer, caused by asbestos inhalation whilst working as a construction worker, in August 1999. 

(Edited from Wikipedia)