Information AboutBobby Bland |
Bobby "Blue" Bland was born Robert Calvin Bland, January 27 1930 , In 1992 , Bobby Bland was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame , and in 1997 he received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award . =Career= Bobby "Blue" Bland was born 27 January 1930, in the small town of Rosemark, Tennessee, USA. Later moving to Memphis with his mother, Bland started singing with local Gospel groups there, including amongst others the Miniatures. Eager to expand his interests, he began frequenting the city's infamous Beale Street where he became associated with an ad hoc circle of aspiring musicians named, not unnaturally, the Beale Streeters. Bobby's recordings from the early 1950's show him striving for individuality, but any progress was halted by a spell in the US Army . When the singer returned to Memphis in 1954 he found several of his former associates, including Johnny Ace , enjoying considerable success, while Bland's recording label, Duke, had been sold to Houston entrepreneur Don Robey . In 1956 Bland began touring with Little Junior Parker . Initially he doubled as valet and driver, a role he reportedly fulfilled for B.B. King and Roscoe Gordon . Bland continued to enjoy a consistent run of R&B chart entries throughout the mid-'60s but his recorded work was nonetheless eclipsed by a younger generation of performers. Bland's highest charting song on the pop chart, "Ain't Nothing You Can Do" only peaked at #20 during the same week The Beatles held down the Top 5 spots. Financial pressures forced the singer to cut his touring band and in 1968 the group broke up altogether. His relationship with Scott, who died in 1979, was irrevocably severed. Nonetheless, depressed and increasingly dependent on alcohol, Bland weathered this unhappy period. He stopped drinking in 1971; his record company, Duke, was sold to the larger ABC Records group, resulting in several contemporary blues/soul albums including ''California'' and ''Dreamer''. Subsequent attempts at pushing the artist towards the disco market were unsuccessful but a 1983 release, "Here We Go Again", provided a commercial life-line. Two years later Bland was signed by Malaco Records , specialists in traditional Southern black music, who provided an empathetic environment. One of the finest singers in post-war blues, Bobby Bland has sadly failed to reach the popular acclaim his influence and craft perhaps deserves. Rapper Jay-Z sampled Bland on for "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)" on his 2001 album The Blueprint . |
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