Jimmy Dotson
| Jimmy Dotson | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | James Dent Dotson |
| Also known as | Jimmy "Louisiana" Dotson |
| Born |
October 19, 1933 Ethel, Louisiana, United States |
| Died | March 26, 2017 (aged 83) Houston, Texas, United States |
| Genres | Blues |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, guitarist, drummer, songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, drums |
| Years active | 1950s–2000s |
| Labels | Zynn, Rocko, Home of the Blues |
James Dent "Jimmy" Dotson, (October 19, 1933 – March 26, 2017), sometimes known as Jimmy "Louisiana" Dotson, was an American blues singer, guitarist and drummer. His best known track was "I Need Your Love", a song he co-wrote with Jerry West. Over a sixty-year career, Dotson played alongside Silas Hogan, Lightnin' Slim, Slim Harpo, Lazy Lester, Albert King, O. V. Wright, Rufus Thomas, Ivory Joe Hunter, Buddy Guy, Son Seals, and Isaac Hayes. He released three singles on different record labels between 1959 and 1963.
Dotson was born in Ethel, Louisiana, on October 19, 1933. He began his music career singing in local juke joints. As a teenager he relocated to New York, where he performed in comedy shows singing pop music standards, but his fledgling solo singing career failed to take off. By the mid-1950s he had returned to Louisiana, briefly playing in an ensemble with Lazy Lester. Silas Hogan had relocated to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, by the early 1950s and, equipped with a Fender electric guitar, formed the Rhythm Ramblers. Hogan sang and played rhythm guitar with Dotson (drums), Isaiah Chapman (lead guitar), and Sylvester Buckley (harmonica). They stayed together for almost ten years and contributed to the development of the Baton Rouge blues sound. Though Hogan was the group's leader, their first recordings had Dotson on lead vocals, and the tracks were released in his name. Two singles, "I Wanna Know" backed with "Looking for My Baby" and "Oh Baby" backed with "I Need Your Love" were issued in 1959 and 1960, by Zynn and Rocko Records, respectively, which were both owned by J. D. "Jay" Miller. AllMusic noted that they were "both in an upbeat R&B vein, quite different from Hogan's down-home blues sound."
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