Wynonie Harris
| Wynonie Harris | |
|---|---|
Publicity photo of Harris
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| Background information | |
| Born |
August 24, 1915 Omaha, Nebraska, United States |
| Died | June 14, 1969 (aged 53) Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genres | Blues, jump blues, Rock n roll, R&B, swing |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1935–1969 |
Wynonie Harris (August 24, 1915 – June 14, 1969), born in Omaha, Nebraska, was an American blues shouter and rhythm-and-blues singer of upbeat songs, featuring humorous, often ribald lyrics. He had fifteen Top 10 hits between 1946 and 1952. Harris is generally considered one of the forerunners of rock and roll. He influenced Elvis Presley, among others.
His dirty blues repertoire included "Lolly Pop Mama" (1948), "I Like My Baby's Pudding (1950), "Sittin on It All the Time" (1950), "Keep on Churnin'" (1952), and "Wasn't That Good" (1953).
Harris's mother, Mallie Hood Anderson, was fifteen and unmarried at the time of his birth. His paternity is uncertain. His wife, Olive E. Goodlow, and daughter Patricia Vest said that his father was a Native American named Blue Jay. Wynonie had no father figure in his family until 1920, when his mother married Luther Harris, fifteen years her senior.
In 1931, at age 16, Harris dropped out of high school in North Omaha. The following year his first child, a daughter, Micky, was born to Naomi Henderson. Ten months later, his son Wesley was born to Laura Devereaux. Both children were raised by their mothers. Wesley became a singer in the Five Echoes and in the Sultans and later was a singer and guitarist in Preston Love's band. Eventually, Wesley's grandson (Harris's great-grandson), Jourdan Devereaux, under the pseudonym "L Oquence" began a music career as a hip-hop artist.
In 1935 Harris, age 20, started dating 16-year-old Olive E. (Ollie) Goodlow, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, who came to neighboring Omaha to watch him perform. On May 20, 1936, Ollie gave birth to a daughter, Adrianne Patricia (Pattie). Harris and Ollie were married on December 11, 1936. Later they lived in the Logan Fontenelle projects in North Omaha. Ollie worked as a barmaid and nurse; Harris sang in clubs and took odd jobs. His mother was Pattie's main caretaker. In 1940, Wynonie and Ollie Harris moved to Los Angeles, California, leaving Pattie with her grandmother in Omaha.
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