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202:. Sometimes, he even balanced a chair on his chin while he sang. This led to the flamboyant persona he adopted for his short career that he passed onto Little Richard. It also gave him experience in make-up which came in handy with his performances. After a few years as a female impersonator, Billy focused more on singing, performing at Atlanta's 81 Theater. The saxophonist
232:
in 1949. He had three more records on the R&B chart: "You
Satisfy" (number 9, 1949), "Stacked Deck" (number 9, 1951), and "Hey, Little Girl" (number 10, 1951). A flamboyant performer, he was known as the "Prince of the Blues" throughout his career. He was a key figure in Atlanta blues after World
187:. There is uncertainty over his year of birth. He claimed to have been born in 1932, but the researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc have stated that he was born in 1918, on the basis of official records and a newspaper obituary; other sources suggest 1928. As a child, Wright excelled at singing
237:, whom he helped get his first recording contract in 1951. In the early 1950s, the openly gay Wright also helped in establishing Richard's look, advising him to use pancake makeup on his face and wear his hair in a long-haired pompadour style similar to his.
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that were popular at the time. In these events, men dressed in drag and acted and sang in minstrel shows. He worked as a dancer and as a
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Bennett, Tom (October 31, 1991). "Mr. Billy Wright, local R&B singer known as the 'Prince of the Blues'".
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His first record, "Blues for My Baby", recorded with Howard
Collander's orchestra, rose to number 3 on the
365:"Do Something for Me", recorded live at the Harlem Theater, Atlanta, Georgia, 1952 (included on the album
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372:"Keep Your Hand on Your Heart and Your Mind on Me" (Savoy), 1953 (included on Savoy LP-2255)
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171:(May 21 or 23, 1918, ā October 28, 1991) was an American singer. He is considered one of
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just before his 1991 Halloween show at the Royal
Peacock in Atlanta. He was buried in
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359:"If I Had My Life to Live Over" (Savoy), unreleased, 1952 (included on Savoy LP-1146)
219:
149:
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248:, in Houston, Texas. He made his last recordings in 1959. He primarily worked as an
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440:(Blue City BCCD-810), including his Peacock, Carrollton, and Atlanta recordings
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in
Atlanta but continued to perform until he suffered a stroke. He died of a
245:
195:
327:"Bad Luck, Heartaches, and Trouble" / "The Question" (Peacock 1657), 7/1955
542:
Corey @ I'll Keep You Posted, April 5, 2011]. Retrieved
October 27, 2016.
375:"Will You Need Me" (Savoy), unreleased, 1954 (included on Savoy LP-1146)
362:"Sad Hour Blues" (Savoy), unreleased, 1952 (included on Savoy LP-1146)
349:"Restless Blues" (Savoy), unreleased, 1951 (included on Savoy LP-1146)
312:"Turn Your Lamps Down Low" / "Drinkin' and Thinkin'" (Savoy 827), 1952
300:"Mean Old Wine" / "Keep Your Hands on Your Heart" (Savoy 776), 11/1951
126:
113:
330:"Have Mercy Baby" / "I Love You Sweetheart" (Carrollton 801), 1959
378:"Baby Don't You Want a Man Like Me" (Peacock), unreleased, 1955
318:"If I Didn't Love You" / "Goin' Down Slow" (Savoy 870), 12/1952
309:"New Kind of Lovin'" / "When the Wagon Comes" (Savoy 819), 1952
690:
The Life and Times of Little
Richard: The Authorised Biography
603:"The 1950s Queer Black Performers Who Inspired Little Richard"
414:
Billy Wright/Little
Richard: Baby Don't You Want a Man Like Me
233:
War II and had a major influence on the rock-and-roll pioneer
321:"After Awhile" / "Four Cold Cold Walls" (Savoy 1100), 5/1953
315:"Married Woman's Boogie" / "Every Evening" (Savoy 837), 1952
294:"After Dark Blues" / "Heavy Hearted Blues" (Savoy 741), 1951
340:"Walking the Blues" (Savoy), unreleased, September 23, 1949
288:"I Keep Drinkin'" / "Billy's Boogie Blues" (Savoy 715),1950
249:
306:"Hey Little Girl" / "Gotta Find My Baby" (Savoy 810), 1951
206:
saw Wright's performance when the two shared a bill with
291:"Back Biting Woman" / "Thinkin' Blues" (Savoy 733), 1950
282:"Blues for My Baby" / "You Satisfy" (Savoy 710), 11/1949
356:" (Savoy), unreleased, 1951 (included on Savoy LP-1146)
343:"Ride on Little Girl" (Savoy), unreleased, July 1, 1950
285:"Man's Brand Boogie" / "Beg-a-Dog" (Atlanta 6000), 1950
346:"Misfortune Blues" (Savoy), unreleased, April 24, 1950
533:"The REAL Tent Show Queens: What Was on Their Mind?"
465:. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger. p. 272.
324:"Live the Life" / "I Remember" (Savoy 1127), 4/1954
297:"'Fore Day Blues" / "Empty Hands" (Savoy 761), 1951
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579:"Billy Wright: "You Satisfy" ā Spontaneous Lunacy"
510:
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408:Southern Blues: Roots of Rock and Roll Volume 11
303:"Stacked Deck" / "Mercy Mercy" (Savoy 781), 1951
194:Wright's first musical opportunity came in the
175:'s greatest influences in his formative years.
381:"Let's Be Friends" (Peacock), unreleased, 1955
8:
384:Titles unknown (Fury/Fire), unreleased, 1959
771:20th-century African-American male singers
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240:In 1954, Wright signed a contract with
520:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942ā1995
456:
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461:Eagle, Bob; LeBlanc, Eric S. (2013).
7:
597:
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657:"Prince of the Blues: Billy Wright"
776:20th-century American male singers
766:20th-century American LGBTQ people
667:from the original on March 3, 2016
14:
522:. Record Research. p. 495.
761:Burials at South-View Cemetery
756:Deaths from pulmonary embolism
268:Wright was openly homosexual.
214:. Williams recommended him to
1:
781:20th-century American singers
741:African-American LGBTQ people
428:(Melodie Jazz Classics), 2003
786:African-American drag queens
554:"TheHoundBlog: Billy Wright"
552:Hound, The (June 15, 2009).
463:Blues: A Regional Experience
807:
204:Paul "Hucklebuck" Williams
95:October 28, 1991 (aged 73)
538:November 6, 2016, at the
30:
706:Allmusic on Billy Wright
688:White, Charles. (2003).
629:"Bill Wright: Biography"
692:. Omnibus Press. P. 25.
736:American gay musicians
731:American blues singers
655:Marion, J. C. (2004).
191:in his local church.
97:Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
40:Background information
746:Savoy Records artists
410:(Savoy LP-2255), 1985
403:(Savoy LP-1146), 1984
791:American drag queens
751:Singers from Atlanta
497:Atlanta Constitution
258:South-View Cemetery
200:female impersonator
183:Wright was born in
138:1930s or 1940sā1991
60:Prince of the Blues
434:(Savoy Jazz), 1994
426:Classics 1949-1951
422:(Savoy Jazz), 1994
254:pulmonary embolism
406:Various artists,
354:This Love of Mine
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397:(Route 66), 1980
335:Other recordings
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438:Have Mercy Baby
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216:Herman Lubinsky
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235:Little Richard
212:Wynonie Harris
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173:Little Richard
169:William Wright
165:Musical artist
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230:R&B chart
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220:Savoy Records
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669:. Retrieved
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633:. Retrieved
627:Dahl, Bill.
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610:. Retrieved
606:
582:. Retrieved
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561:. Retrieved
558:TheHoundBlog
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496:
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432:Billy Wright
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425:
420:Billy Wright
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395:Stacked Deck
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367:Stacked Deck
366:
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189:gospel music
182:
168:
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134:Years active
75:May 21, 1918
25:Billy Wright
18:
726:1991 deaths
721:1932 births
671:October 27,
272:Discography
244:, owned by
715:Categories
445:References
196:tent shows
123:Occupation
109:Jump blues
91:1991-10-28
71:1918-05-21
46:Birth name
246:Don Robey
227:Billboard
179:Biography
665:Archived
612:July 29,
607:The Wire
584:July 29,
563:July 29,
536:Archived
518:(1996).
661:Jamm Up
635:July 6,
277:Singles
155:Peacock
114:R&B
469:
389:Albums
143:Labels
127:Singer
102:Genres
150:Savoy
673:2016
637:2015
614:2023
586:2023
565:2023
467:ISBN
210:and
85:Died
65:Born
218:of
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
