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'''Otis Verries Hicks''' (March 13, 1913 – July 27, 1974),<ref name="bare">{{cite book| first1= Bob| last1= Eagle| first2= Eric S.| last2= LeBlanc| year= 2013| title= Blues: A Regional Experience| publisher= Praeger| location= Santa Barbara, California| pages=305| isbn= 978-0313344237}}</ref> known as '''Lightnin' Slim''', was an American [[blues]] musician who played [[Louisiana blues]] and [[swamp blues]] for [[Excello Records]].<ref name="Music">{{cite book |first= Paul |last= Du Noyer | year= 2003 | title= The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music | publisher= Flame Tree | location= London| isbn= 1-904041-96-5
'''Otis Verries Hicks''' (March 13, 1913 – July 27, 1974),<ref name="bare">{{cite book| first1= Bob| last1= Eagle| first2= Eric S.| last2= LeBlanc| year= 2013| title= Blues: A Regional Experience| publisher= Praeger| location= Santa Barbara, California| pages=305| isbn= 978-0313344237}}</ref> known as '''Lightnin' Slim''', was an American [[blues]] musician who played [[Louisiana blues]] and [[swamp blues]] for [[Excello Records]].<ref name="Music">{{cite book |first= Paul |last= Du Noyer | year= 2003 | title= The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music | publisher= Flame Tree | location= London| isbn= 1-904041-96-5
| page= 181}}</ref>


==Biography ==
==Biography ==
According to most sources, Otis Hicks was born on a farm outside [[St. Louis]], [[Missouri]],<ref name=Koda>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/lightnin-slim-mn0000220710/biography | title=Lightnin' Slim – Biography | last=Koda | first=Cub | authorlink=Cub Koda | website=[[AllMusic]] | access-date=October 21, 2013}}</ref> but the researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc stated, on the basis of his [[Selective Service System|draft card]], that he was born in [[Good Pine, Louisiana]]. Prison records from [[Louisiana State Penitentiary]] discovered by researcher Gene Tomko also corroborate his birthplace as [[Good Pine, Louisiana]]. <ref>{{Cite book|last=Tomko|first=Gene|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ZKzDwAAQBAJ|title=Encyclopedia of Louisiana Musicians: Jazz, Blues, Cajun, Creole, Zydeco, Swamp Pop, and Gospel|publisher=Louisiana State University Press|year=2020|isbn=978-0807169322|location=Baton Rouge|pages=161–162}}</ref> He moved to [[Baton Rouge, Louisiana|Baton Rouge]] at the age of thirteen. Taught guitar by his older brother Layfield, Slim was playing in bars in Baton Rouge by the late 1940s.<ref name="Trail">{{cite web |url=http://www.thebluestrail.com/artists/mus-lslim.htm |title=Lightnin' Slim / Otis Hicks |author= |date= |publisher=Thebluestrail.com |access-date=November 19, 2011}}</ref>
According to most sources, Otis Hicks was born on a farm outside [[St. Louis]], [[Missouri]],<ref name=Koda>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/lightnin-slim-mn0000220710/biography | title=Lightnin' Slim – Biography | last=Koda | first=Cub | authorlink=Cub Koda | website=[[AllMusic]] | access-date=October 21, 2013}}</ref> but the researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc stated, on the basis of his [[Selective Service System|draft card]], that he was born in [[Good Pine, Louisiana]]. Prison records from [[Louisiana State Penitentiary]] discovered by researcher Gene Tomko also corroborate his birthplace as [[Good Pine, Louisiana]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tomko|first=Gene|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ZKzDwAAQBAJ|title=Encyclopedia of Louisiana Musicians: Jazz, Blues, Cajun, Creole, Zydeco, Swamp Pop, and Gospel|publisher=Louisiana State University Press|year=2020|isbn=978-0807169322|location=Baton Rouge|pages=161–162}}</ref> He moved to [[Baton Rouge, Louisiana|Baton Rouge]] at the age of . Taught guitar by his older brother Layfield, Slim was playing in bars in Baton Rouge by the late 1940s.<ref name="Trail">{{cite web |url=http://www.thebluestrail.com/artists/mus-lslim.htm |title=Lightnin' Slim / Otis Hicks |author= |date= |publisher=Thebluestrail.com |access-date=November 19, 2011}}</ref>


His first recording was "Bad Luck Blues" ("If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all"), released by [[J. D. "Jay" Miller|J.&nbsp;D. "Jay" Miller]]'s Feature Records in 1954.<ref name="russell">{{cite book
His first recording was "Bad Luck" ("If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all"), released by [[J. D. "Jay" Miller]]'s Feature Records in 1954.<ref name="russell">{{cite book
| first= Tony
| first= Tony
| last= Russell
| last= Russell
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| location= Gretna
| location= Gretna
| page= 123
| page= 123
| isbn= 978-08828-96-083}}</ref> Slim then recorded for [[Excello Records]] for twelve years, starting in the mid-1950s, often collaborating with his brother-in-law [[Slim Harpo]] and with the harmonica player [[Lazy Lester]].<ref name="russell"/>
| isbn= 978-08828-96-083}}</ref> Slim then recorded for [[Excello Records]] for years, starting in the mid-1950s, often collaborating with his brother-in-law [[Slim Harpo]] and with the harmonica player [[Lazy Lester]].<ref name="russell"/>


Slim stopped performing the blues for a time and eventually worked in a foundry in [[Pontiac, Michigan]],{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}} as a result of which his hands were constantly exposed to high temperatures. He was rediscovered by Fred Reif in 1970, in Pontiac, where he was living in a rented room at Slim Harpo's sister's house. Reif soon got him back performing again and a new recording contract with Excello, this time through Bud Howell, then the president of the company. His first engagement was a reunion concert in 1971 at the [[University of Chicago]] Folk Festival with Lazy Lester, whom Reif had brought from [[Baton Rouge]] in January of that year.
Slim stopped performing the blues for a time and eventually worked in a foundry in [[Pontiac, Michigan]],{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}} as a result of which his hands were constantly exposed to high temperatures. He was rediscovered by Fred Reif in 1970, in Pontiac, where he was living in a rented room at Slim Harpo's sister's house. Reif soon got him back performing again and a new recording contract with Excello, this time through Bud Howell, then the president of the company. His first engagement was a reunion concert in 1971 at the [[University of Chicago]] Folk Festival with Lazy Lester, whom Reif had brought from [[Baton Rouge]] in January of that year.
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*''Authentic R & B'', three tracks, with various artists, [[Stateside Records|Stateside]] SL-10068 (1963)
*''Authentic R & B'', three tracks, with various artists, [[Stateside Records|Stateside]] SL-10068 (1963)
*''The Real R & B'', two tracks, with various artists, Stateside SL-10112 (1964)
*''The Real R & B'', two tracks, with various artists, Stateside SL-10112 (1964)
*''A Long Drink of Blues'', six tracks (all of side 1), compilation album with Slim Harpo, Stateside SL-10135 (1964)
*''A Long Drink of Blues'', six tracks (all of side ), compilation album with Slim Harpo, Stateside SL-10135 (1964)
*''Lightnin' Slim's Bell Ringer'', Excello LPS-8004 (1965); CD release: [[Ace Records (United Kingdom)|Ace Records]] #CDCHD-517 (1994)
*''Lightnin' Slim's Bell Ringer'', Excello LPS-8004 (1965); CD release: [[Ace Records (United Kingdom)|Ace Records]] #CDCHD-517 (1994)
*''The Real Blues'', one track, with various artists, Excello LPS-8011 (1969)
*''The Real Blues'', one track, with various artists, Excello LPS-8011 (1969)
Line 74: Line 73:
*''That's All Right'', Quicksilver QS-5062 (1983), reissue of Excello LPS-8018
*''That's All Right'', Quicksilver QS-5062 (1983), reissue of Excello LPS-8018
*''London Gumbo'', Excello LPS-8023 (1972) and Sonet SNTF-757 (1978)
*''London Gumbo'', Excello LPS-8023 (1972) and Sonet SNTF-757 (1978)
*''The Excello Story'', three tracks, with various artists, Excello LPS-8025 (1972), 2-LP set
*''The Excello Story'', three tracks, with various artists, Excello LPS-8025 (1972), -LP set
*''Montreux Blues Festival'', 10 tracks, with various artists, Excello LPS-8026 (1972), 2-LP set
*''Montreux Blues Festival'', 10 tracks, with various artists, Excello LPS-8026 (1972), -LP set
*''American Blues Legends '73,'' 2 tracks, with various artists, [[Big Bear Records]] BEAR20; Polydor 2460 186 (1973)
*''American Blues Legends '73,'' tracks, with various artists, [[Big Bear Records]] BEAR20; Polydor 2460 186 (1973)
*''The Early Years'', [[Flyright Records|Flyright]] FLYLP-524 (1976)
*''The Early Years'', [[Flyright Records|Flyright]] FLYLP-524 (1976)
*''Trip to Chicago'', Flyright FLYLP-533 (1978)
*''Trip to Chicago'', Flyright FLYLP-533 (1978)
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*''Winter Time Blues (The Later Excello Sessions 1962–1965)'', Ace Records CDCHD-674 (1998)
*''Winter Time Blues (The Later Excello Sessions 1962–1965)'', Ace Records CDCHD-674 (1998)
*''The Best of Lightnin' Slim'', [[Hip-O Records|Hip-O]]/MCA 12010 (1999)
*''The Best of Lightnin' Slim'', [[Hip-O Records|Hip-O]]/MCA 12010 (1999)
*''I'm a Rolling Stone: The Singles As & Bs 1954–1962 Centenary Edition'', [[Jasmine Records|Jasmine]] JASMCD-3045 (2015), 2-CD set
*''I'm a Rolling Stone: The Singles As & Bs 1954–1962 Centenary Edition'', [[Jasmine Records|Jasmine]] JASMCD-3045 (2015), -CD set


===Songs===
======
*"Bad Luck" (1954)
*"Bad Luck" (1954)
*"New Orleans Bound" (1954)
*"New Orleans Bound" (1954)
*"Bugger Bugger Boy" / "Ethel Mae" (1954) Feature Records
⚫
*"Bad Luck and Trouble" (1956)
*"Hoo-Doo Blues" b/w "It's Mighty Crazy" (1957)
*" Blues" / "' " ()
*"I Can't Be Successful" / "Lightnin' Blues" (1955) Excello Records
⚫
*"My Starter Won't Start" (1958)
*"Sugar Plum" / "Just Made Twenty-One" (1956) Excello Records
⚫
*"Rooster Blues" b/w "G.I. Blues" (1959)
*"Goin' Home" / "Wonderin' and Goin'" (1956) Excello Records
⚫
*"Nothin' but the Devil" (1960)
⚫
*"Bad Luck and Trouble" ()
*"Mean Ole Lonesome Train" / "I'm Grown" (1957) Excello Records
*"I'm a Rollin' Stone" / "Love Me Mama" (1957) Excello Records
*"Hoo-Doo Blues" b/w "It's Mighty Crazy" (1957) Excello Records
⚫
*"My Starter Won't Start" (1958)
*"I'm Leavin' You Baby" / "Feelin' Awful Blue" (1959) Excello Records
*"Sweet Little Woman" / "Lightnin's Troubles" (1959) Excello Records
⚫
*"Rooster Blues" b/w "G.I. " (1959)
*"Tom Cat Blues" / "Bed Bug Blues" (1959) Excello Records
*"Too Close Blues" / "My Little Angel Child" (1960) Excello Records
⚫
*"Nothin' but the Devil" (1960)
*"I Just Don't Know" / "Somebody Knockin'" (1961) Excello Records
*"I'm Tired Waitin' Baby" / "Hello Mary Lee" (1961) Excello Records
*"Mind Your Own Business" / "You're Old Enough to Understand" (1962) Excello Records
*"I'm Warning You Baby" / "Winter Time Blues" (1962) Excello Records
*"I'm Evil" / "If You Ever Need Me" (1963) Excello Records
*"Loving Around the Clock" / "You Know You're So Fine" (1963) Excello Records
*"Blues at Night" / "Don't Mistreat Me Baby" (1963) Excello Records
*"The Strangest Felling" / "You Give Me the Blues" (1964) Excello Records
*"She's My Crazy Little Baby" / "Greyhound Blues" (1964) Excello Records
*"Baby Please Come Back" / "You Move Me Baby" (1964) Excello Records
*"Have Mercy on Me Baby" / "I've Been a Fool for You Darlin'" (1964) Excello Records
*"Can't Live This Life No More" / "Bad Luck Blues" (1965) Excello Records
*"Don't Start Me Talkin'" / "Darling, You're the One" (1965) Excello Records
*"Love is Just a Gamble" / "I Hate to See You Leave" (1965) Excello Records
*"Just a Lonely Stranger" / "Goin' Away Blues" (1965) Excello Records
<ref>https://www.wirz.de/music/lighslim.htm</ref>


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3T4XSCeek9w Alternate take on "Bad Luck" (1954) @ YouTube]


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}

Revision as of 22:17, 28 May 2024

Lightnin' Slim
Lightnin' Slim in 1972
Lightnin' Slim in 1972
Background information
Birth nameOtis Verries Hicks
Born(1913-03-13)March 13, 1913
Good Pine, Louisiana, U.S.
DiedJuly 27, 1974(1974-07-27) (aged 61)
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • songwriter
Instruments
  • Guitar
  • vocals
Years active1940s–1973
Labels

Otis Verries Hicks (March 13, 1913 – July 27, 1974),[1] known as Lightnin' Slim, was an American blues musician who played Louisiana blues and swamp blues for Excello Records.[2]

Biography

According to most sources, Otis Hicks was born on a farm outside St. Louis, Missouri,[3] but the researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc stated, on the basis of his draft card, that he was born in Good Pine, Louisiana. Prison records from Louisiana State Penitentiary discovered by researcher Gene Tomko also corroborate his birthplace as Good Pine, Louisiana.[4] He moved to Baton Rouge at the age of 13n. Taught guitar by his older brother Layfield, Slim was playing in bars in Baton Rouge by the late 1940s.[5]

His first recording was "Bad Luck" ("If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all"), released by J. D. "Jay" Miller's Feature Records in 1954.[6] Miller gave him the stage name "Lightnin' Slim".[7] Slim then recorded for Excello Records for 12 years, starting in the mid-1950s, often collaborating with his brother-in-law Slim Harpo and with the harmonica player Lazy Lester.[6]

Slim stopped performing the blues for a time and eventually worked in a foundry in Pontiac, Michigan,[citation needed] as a result of which his hands were constantly exposed to high temperatures. He was rediscovered by Fred Reif in 1970, in Pontiac, where he was living in a rented room at Slim Harpo's sister's house. Reif soon got him back performing again and a new recording contract with Excello, this time through Bud Howell, then the president of the company. His first engagement was a reunion concert in 1971 at the University of Chicago Folk Festival with Lazy Lester, whom Reif had brought from Baton Rouge in January of that year.

In the 1970s, Slim performed on tours in Europe,[5] in the United Kingdom and at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, for which he was often accompanied by Moses "Whispering" Smith on harmonica. He last toured the UK in 1973, with the American Blues Legends package organised by Big Bear Records.[8]

In July 1974, Slim died of stomach cancer in Detroit, Michigan, aged 61.[7]

Discography

Albums

  • Rooster Blues, Excello LPS-8000 (1960); CD release: Hip-O/MCA 40134, with three bonus tracks (1998)
  • Authentic R & B, three tracks, with various artists, Stateside SL-10068 (1963)
  • The Real R & B, two tracks, with various artists, Stateside SL-10112 (1964)
  • A Long Drink of Blues, six tracks (all of side one), compilation album with Slim Harpo, Stateside SL-10135 (1964)
  • Lightnin' Slim's Bell Ringer, Excello LPS-8004 (1965); CD release: Ace Records #CDCHD-517 (1994)
  • The Real Blues, one track, with various artists, Excello LPS-8011 (1969)
  • High & Low Down, Excello LPS-8018 (1971) and Sonet SNTF-770 (1978); CD release: Ace Records #CDCHD-578 (1994)
  • That's All Right, Quicksilver QS-5062 (1983), reissue of Excello LPS-8018
  • London Gumbo, Excello LPS-8023 (1972) and Sonet SNTF-757 (1978)
  • The Excello Story, three tracks, with various artists, Excello LPS-8025 (1972), Two-LP set
  • Montreux Blues Festival, 10 tracks, with various artists, Excello LPS-8026 (1972), Two-LP set
  • American Blues Legends '73, two tracks, with various artists, Big Bear Records BEAR20; Polydor 2460 186 (1973)
  • The Early Years, Flyright FLYLP-524 (1976)
  • Trip to Chicago, Flyright FLYLP-533 (1978)
  • The Feature Sides 1954, Flyright FLYLP-583 (1981)
  • We Gotta Rock Tonight, Flyright FLYLP-612 (1986)

CD compilations

  • Rollin' Stone, Flyright FLYCD-08 (1989)
  • King of the Swamp Blues 1954–1961, Flyright FLYCD-47 (1992)
  • Blue Lightning, Indigo Records IGOCD-2002 (1992)
  • I'm Evil: Rare & Unissued Excello Masters, Volume One, Excello/AVI 3002 (1994)
  • It's Mighty Crazy!, Ace Records CDCHD-587 (1995)
  • Nothin' but the Devil, Ace Records CDCHD-616 (1996)
  • Winter Time Blues (The Later Excello Sessions 1962–1965), Ace Records CDCHD-674 (1998)
  • The Best of Lightnin' Slim, Hip-O/MCA 12010 (1999)
  • I'm a Rolling Stone: The Singles As & Bs 1954–1962 Centenary Edition, Jasmine JASMCD-3045 (2015), Two-CD set

Singles

  • "Bad Luck" / "Rock Me Mama" (1954) Feature Records
  • "New Orleans Bound" / "I Can't Live Happy" (1954) Feature Records
  • "Bugger Bugger Boy" / "Ethel Mae" (1954) Feature Records
  • "Bad Feeling Blues" / "Lightnin' Slim Boogie" (1955) Ace Records
  • "I Can't Be Successful" / "Lightnin' Blues" (1955) Excello Records
  • "Sugar Plum" / "Just Made Twenty-One" (1956) Excello Records
  • "Goin' Home" / "Wonderin' and Goin'" (1956) Excello Records
  • "Bad Luck and Trouble" / "Have Your Way" (1957) Excello Records
  • "Mean Ole Lonesome Train" / "I'm Grown" (1957) Excello Records
  • "I'm a Rollin' Stone" / "Love Me Mama" (1957) Excello Records
  • "Hoo-Doo Blues" b/w "It's Mighty Crazy" (1957) Excello Records
  • "My Starter Won't Start" / "Long Leanie Mama" (1958) Excello Records
  • "I'm Leavin' You Baby" / "Feelin' Awful Blue" (1959) Excello Records
  • "Sweet Little Woman" / "Lightnin's Troubles" (1959) Excello Records
  • "Rooster Blues" b/w "G.I." Slim"" (1959) Excello Records
  • "Tom Cat Blues" / "Bed Bug Blues" (1959) Excello Records
  • "Too Close Blues" / "My Little Angel Child" (1960) Excello Records
  • "Cool Down Baby" / "Nothin' but the Devil" (1960) Excello Records
  • "I Just Don't Know" / "Somebody Knockin'" (1961) Excello Records
  • "I'm Tired Waitin' Baby" / "Hello Mary Lee" (1961) Excello Records
  • "Mind Your Own Business" / "You're Old Enough to Understand" (1962) Excello Records
  • "I'm Warning You Baby" / "Winter Time Blues" (1962) Excello Records
  • "I'm Evil" / "If You Ever Need Me" (1963) Excello Records
  • "Loving Around the Clock" / "You Know You're So Fine" (1963) Excello Records
  • "Blues at Night" / "Don't Mistreat Me Baby" (1963) Excello Records
  • "The Strangest Felling" / "You Give Me the Blues" (1964) Excello Records
  • "She's My Crazy Little Baby" / "Greyhound Blues" (1964) Excello Records
  • "Baby Please Come Back" / "You Move Me Baby" (1964) Excello Records
  • "Have Mercy on Me Baby" / "I've Been a Fool for You Darlin'" (1964) Excello Records
  • "Can't Live This Life No More" / "Bad Luck Blues" (1965) Excello Records
  • "Don't Start Me Talkin'" / "Darling, You're the One" (1965) Excello Records
  • "Love is Just a Gamble" / "I Hate to See You Leave" (1965) Excello Records
  • "Just a Lonely Stranger" / "Goin' Away Blues" (1965) Excello Records

[9]

References

  1. ^ Eagle, Bob; LeBlanc, Eric S. (2013). Blues: A Regional Experience. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger. p. 305. ISBN 978-0313344237.
  2. ^ Du Noyer, Paul (2003). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music. London: Flame Tree. p. 181. ISBN 1-904041-96-5.
  3. ^ Koda, Cub. "Lightnin' Slim – Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  4. ^ Tomko, Gene (2020). Encyclopedia of Louisiana Musicians: Jazz, Blues, Cajun, Creole, Zydeco, Swamp Pop, and Gospel. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. pp. 161–162. ISBN 978-0807169322.
  5. ^ a b "Lightnin' Slim / Otis Hicks". Thebluestrail.com. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  6. ^ a b Russell, Tony (1997). The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray. Dubai: Carlton Books. pp. 135–6. ISBN 1-85868-255-X.
  7. ^ a b Broven, John (1992). South to Louisiana: The Music of the Cajun Bayous (1st ed.). Gretna: Pelican Publishing. p. 123. ISBN 978-08828-96-083.
  8. ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years. London: Reed International Books. p. 266. CN 5585.
  9. ^ https://www.wirz.de/music/lighslim.htm
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