From:   Flippar
Date:  Fri Jan 25, 2002  7:18 pm
Subject:  Born To Be With You - Huey Piano Smith
 
HUEY "PIANO" SMITH

Born January 26 1934 in New Orleans.

Piano genius Smith has well earned his unofficial but highly apt middle name.
Inspired as a child by a blues piano playing uncle he grew up listening to
the blues and gospel in the musical melting pot of his home city and `twas no
surprise when he started playing in the local clubs. Louis Jordan was a
particular hero. In the early 50s he played with the older Eddie Jones (aka
Guitar Slim) though it was Ray Charles played on Slim`s million seller Things
I Used To Do for Specialty.

Undeterred, Smith then hooked up with Earl King and played sessions for
Smiley Lewis, Lloyd Price etc. He was a master of many styles and King
recalls that he could sound like anyone and that Nawlins was a town where the
piano, and not the guitar, ruled. Huey`s 53 Savoy recordings flopped however,
he played on some Earl King sides for JohnnyVincent`s new Ace label (named
after the make of his comb!!) like the classic Those Lonely Lonely Nights.
Huey then cut his own classic Little Liza Jane. Success was around the corner
as Fats, Richard n co ruled the r&b charts

Huey formed the Clowns in 56 and hired female impersonator Bobby Marchan to
sing lead. Two smash hits followed, the wonderfully titled ( and "ahem"
infectious) Rocking Pneumonia (and the Boogie Woogie Flu pt 1&2) and the
equally memorable Don`t You Just Know It for Ace( the same awful modern
dj/artist who massacred Hey Baby-Ooh Ahh recently has now had the audacity to
attempt the latter Smith gem).

It must have been galling for Huey when his unfinished Clowns songs Sea
Cruise/Loberta were overdubbed by Frankie Ford. Vincent`s logic being that as
the Clowns were still in the charts he could break a new artist. Ford`s
career stemmed from that huge hit, with the flip being retitled Roberta.
Perhaps if Huey had the hit he deserved with the originals he`d have had a
lengthy chart career like the Sheikh of Araby Mr D.

The Clowns recordings and the hits were a mix of zany Coasteresque styled fun
and sheer Nawlins bonton roulez! Smith and the Clowns toured extensively on
the back of these hits, as well as cutting many fabulous sessions. Their
onstage antics made it quite clear why they were called Clowns!

Thankfully Westside are finally doing justice to Vincent`s Ace label on cd
(non related Uk Ace label had some fine lps back in the early 80s, as did UK
Sue in the 60s) and the Smith releases are of a consistent high standard
throughout, there are some cracking unissued sides on them like the belting
Bashful Bob. Smith recorded material in the 60s and 70s but though some of it
was good, it never matched up to that great burst of creative energy in the
50s (how often has that happened?). The fact that artists of the stature of
the Killer, Gene and Dr John have covered his songs says enuff!

Sadly for us, Huey has more or less retired from the pop music biz, devoting
his life to the Jehovah`s Witness religion. If only he`d come to the Rhythm
Riot it would really do wonders for my High Blood Pressure. Final word to Dr
John aka Mac Rebbenack "I learnt more about writing songs from Huey than just
about anyone else".

(Highly) Recommended Listening
All the Westside releases especially
Having A Good Time ( best ofVol 1)
Havin Fun With ( More Of The Best)
That`ll Get It ( Vol 3)
also other Westside releases by Earl King, Bobby Marchan, Frankie Ford and
the various compilations etc featuring Huey & the Clowns or Huey`s session
work

Recommended reading
John Broven`s Walking To New Orleans
one of the finest music books ever IMHO.