From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Sat Apr 26, 2003  2:10 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Roy Perkins
 
ROY PERKINS (By Phil Davies)

Born Ernie Suarez, 26 April 1935, Lafayette, Louisiana.

Ernie was of Spanish/Irish extraction. Life was tough for his family during the
depression. His dad was a bartender and would come home drunk, spin some old
blues 78s and dance round the house with his wife. He got the record from a pal
who was a jukebox operator. Boogie pianist Cecil Gant was a great influence on
little Ernie. He tried to copy the licks on his granny's piano in the house
next door.

He began playing R&B as a teenager in a high school band called the Modernaires
in the early '50s, they played mainly swing and big band standards until Ernie
got hooked on Lloyd price's now classic Lawdy Miss Clawdy, which became the
highlight of the school band's set. Some nights they had to play it four times
as it was the only r&b number they knew. Quickly they realised that this
innovative New Orleans sound was the way forward. A local record shop owner got
them an audition for a Capitol records distributor, Mel Mallory. He also owned
his own little label Mel -A -Dee.

Ernie's name was changed to Roy Perkins by Mel , mainly due to the chart
success of Sun god Carl P. He released a single by Roy Perkins and his band,
You're on My Mind, cut at a Nawlins tv studio. Black guitarist Left Hand
Charlie Morris played guitar on the session. It was a number one hit in
Lafayette and did well in New Orleans, and was covered by swamp pop singer Rod
Bernard on Argo in 1959. Roy remembers playing dates with Bobby Charles. His
last Mal -A -Dee 45 was Here Am I /You're Gone. He still had a day job and
played weekends with the band.

Mira Smith named him Roy " Boogie Boy" Perkins when she signed him to Ram
Records. Pal Roy Prejan had recommended a hot local band to her, The Riff
Raffs. She went to see them play at a local club, Bobby Page was the lead
vocalist and he had a wild stage act but piano boy Roy impressed her most, she
signed both the band and also Roy to a management and song writing contract.
Roy recalled how she brought her guitar into the club and blew them away with
her bluesy style.

Roy wrote and recorded a demo of Just Another Lie, which Mira gave to label
mate and Hayride star Linda Brannon; it became a southern hit and one of Ram's
best sellers. The 45 was eventually leased to Chess and covered by many
artists. Roy went back to writing and was motivated by his new convertible and
thus spawned Drop Top, writing it in about an hour. The band drove over to
Eddie Shuler's studio in Lake Charles and Mira soon issued the final product.
Mercury picked up on its local sales and arranged to lease it nationally on
March 6th 1958, they took out trade ads and garnered a good review in Cashbox,
where it was picked as "sleeper of the week" - "The number is a house rockin'
jumper - wild and woolly R n R belting of a tune describing a convertible
automobile that the songster has just bought -it's got that pile driving beat
that doesn't let up for a second". 

Unfortunately, Roy's big break never materialised, Mira didn't release any more
Perkins 45s due to financial reasons and by 1959 she allowed Roy to cut sides
for Bill Hall in Beaumont Texas. Roy cut Sweet Lies for Hall but the 45
eventually appeared on Pappy Daily's Dart label. It sold zilch. 

Roy learnt to play Fender bass for the Riff Raffs when their bass player got
drafted. Jimmy Scatman Patin was the tenor man and he featured on some fine
instros. Legendary Louisiana horn man Harry Simoneaux played with the band for
a while and also played with Roy in later bands. Guitar man Bessyl Duhon later
joined the Jimmy C. Newman band for many years. Bobby Page (real name Elwood
Dugas) also cut solo sides after the Riff Raffs split up in 1962. Roy played
with Jerry Starr & the Clippers and Burt Miller's swing kings, he also played
with old friend Johnnie Allan. Ray Topping calls Roy Louisiana's best kept
secret. Luckily for us, he heard some of Perkins sides on a Ram mail order
reissue series in the 70s. Eventually Ray compiled and annotated the excellent
Ace cd that this feature is drawn from.

Recommended Listening:

Roy Boogie Boy Perkins - Ace cd CDCHD619, has Perkins, Riff Raff, Simoneaux and
Page numbers.

Or V A compilation Shreveport Stomp also on Ace.