Cecil Gant
Cecil Gant | |
---|---|
R&B, blues, boogie-woogie | |
Occupation(s) | Singer, pianist, songwriter |
Years active | 1930s–1951 |
Labels | Bronze, Gilt-Edge, King, Bullet, Down Beat, Swing Time, Imperial, Decca |
Cecil Gant (April 4, 1913[nb 1] – February 4, 1951)[1] was an American blues singer, songwriter and pianist, whose recordings of both ballads and "fiery piano rockers"[2] were successful in the mid- and late 1940s, and influenced the early development of rock and roll. His biggest hits were the 1944 ballad, "I Wonder," We are going to Rock. Cecil Gant is considered the forefather of rock n roll due to his rocking style.
Biography
Gant was born in
The Gilt-Edge release of "I Wonder" sold well. It reached
He also released material through
He drank too much... He would say, "I want to do a session" when he ran out of money. We would get a bass player and a guitarist and get him a piano, and I'd go sit in the control room, and he'd tinkle around on it, and then he'd say "I'm ready," and tap that bottle; and if we didn't get it the first time, we didn't get it, 'cause he couldn't remember what he did. He'd dream up and write a song while he sat there, and he'd give me the title of it. And the uniqueness of the thing is that all of them sold.[2]
In 1949 he returned to Los Angeles, and recorded for the Down Beat and
In latter years Gant was married and based in Nashville.[3] He died there in 1951, at the age of 37,[4] while preparing to leave for an engagement in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Although some sources give the cause of death as pneumonia,[10] contemporary sources refer to a heart attack,[3] possibly brought on by Gant's alcoholism.[5] He is buried in Highland Park Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio.[4]
Compilation albums
- I'm Still Singing The Blues Today (Oldie Blues)
- I Wonder: The Best of Cecil Gant 1944–1948 (P-Vine Records)
- We're Gonna Rock (Indigo UK)
See also
- List of Boogie-Woogie musicians
- List of artists who reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart
- List of number-one rhythm and blues hits (United States)
- R&B number-one hits of 1945 (USA)
- First rock and roll record
Notes
- ^ The application for his military headstone gives a birth date of February 25, 1911, but his death certificate and most secondary sources state April 4, 1913.
References
- ^ a b "Biography by Bill Dahl". AllMusic. Retrieved June 1, 2009.
- ^ a b c d Nick Tosches, Unsung Heroes of Rock'n'Roll, Secker & Warburg, 1984, pp.69-71
- ^ a b c "Cecil 'I Wonder' Gant Dies Of Heart Attack", Chicago Defender, February 17, 1951, reprinted at Black Nashville Genealogy & History. Retrieved October 5, 2016
- ^ ISBN 978-0313344237.
- ^ a b c Cecil Gant, HoyHoy.com Archived March 9, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved October 5, 2016
- ^ ISBN 1-85868-255-X.
- ^ ISBN 978-0810886285.
- ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (1996). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–1995. Record Research. p. 164.
- ^ a b c d e J C Marion, Cecil Gant : The Forgotten Pioneer , 1999 Archived May 13, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 2, 2013