Snooky Pryor

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Biography

Snooky Pryor (September 15, 1921 – October 18, 2006) was an United States|American Chicago blues harmonica player. He claimed to have pioneered the now-common method of playing amplified harmonica by cupping a small microphone in his hands along with the harmonica , although on his earliest records in the late 1940s and early '50s he did not utilize this method.

Career

James Edward Pryor was born in Lambert, Mississippi|Lambert , Mississippi and developed a Delta blues style influenced by both Sonny Boy Williamson I and Sonny Boy Williamson II . He moved to Chicago around 1940.

While serving in the United States Army|U.S. Army he would blow bugle call s through the powerful PA system , which led him to experiment with playing the harmonica that way. Upon discharge from the Army in 1945, he obtained his own amplifier , and began playing harmonica at the outdoor Maxwell Street market, becoming a regular in the Chicago blues scene.

Pryor sound recording and reproduction|recorded some of the first postwar Chicago blues records in 1948, including "Telephone Blues" and "Snooky & Moody's Boogie" with guitarist Moody Jones , and "Stockyard Blues" and "Keep What You Got" with singer/guitarist Floyd Jones . "Snooky & Moody's Boogie" is of considerable historical significance: Pryor claimed that harmonica ace Little Walter directly copied the signature riff of Pryor's song into the opening eight bars of his own blues harmonica instrumental, "Juke," an R& B hit in 1952."I Started the Big Noise Around Chicago," an interview with Snooky Pryor conducted by Jim O'Neal, Steve Wisner, and David Nelson, Living Blues #123 (Sept./Oct. 1995, pp. 10-11 In 1967, Pryor moved south to Ullin, Illinois|Ullin , Illinois . He quit music for carpentry in the late 1960s but was persuaded to make a comeback. After he dropped out of sight, Pryor was later re-discovered and resumed periodic recording until his death in nearby Cape Girardeau, Missouri|Cape Girardeau , Missouri at the age of 85.

In January 1973 he appeared with the American Blues Legends tour which played throughout Europe , alongside Homesick James . Whilst on this tour they recorded an album in London , Homesick James & Snooky Pryor , on Jim Simpson's label Big Bear Records .

Some of his better known songs include "Judgement Day" (1956), and "Crazy 'Bout My Baby" from Snooky (1989), "How'd You Learn to Shake It Like That" from Tenth Anniversary Anthology (1989) and "Shake My Hand" (1999).

Discography

Singles

"Boogie" ( A-side and B-side|A-side ) "Telephone Blues" ( A-side and B-side|B-side ) (1948) Planet

"Someone to Love Me" (a) "Judgement Day" (b) (1956) Vee Jay Records

Albums

Homesick James & Snooky Pryor (1973) Virgin Records , London

"Do It If You Want To" (1973) ABC Records , Los Angeles, New York

Snooky (1989) Blind Pig Records

Snooky Pryor (1991) Paula Records

Johnny Shines and Snooky Pryor: Back To The Country (1991) Blind Pig Records

Snooky Pryor: Too Cool To Move (1992) Antones

In This Mess Up to My Chest (1994) Antones

Mind Your Own Business (1996) Antones

Snooky Pryor: Shake My Hand (1999) Blind Pig Records

Double Shot& #33; (Album)|Double Shot! Snooky Pryor and Mel Brown (2000) Electro-Fi

Super Harps II mit Carey Bell, Lazy Lester, Rafuel Neal (2001) Telarc

Snooky Pryor and his Mississippi Wrecking Crew (2002) Electro-Fi

Mojo Ramble (2003) Electro-Fi

Copyright Citations

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