From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Guitar Shorty
Guitar Shorty
Guitar Shorty
Guitar Shorty at the 2008 Ottawa Bluesfest
Background information
Guitar Shorty plays at the Bulleit Sessions in Maggie May’s
Birth name David William Kearney
Glasgow.
Born September 8, 1939 (1939-09-08) Houston,
Texas Johnson Orchestra.[3] Eventually, he joined Guitar Slim’s
Genres Blues band and move to New Orleans, Louisiana. Slim inspired
Shorty to incorporate more showmanship into his live
Occupations Musician
performance style. Before long, Shorty was doing somer-
Instruments Guitar saults and flips on stage.
While in New Orleans, Shorty also fronted his own
Years active 1950s — present
band which played regularly at the Dew Drop Inn where
Labels Black Top, Alligator he was joined by special guests such as T-Bone Walker,
Big Joe Turner and Little Richard.[2] Not one to stay in
Website http://www.guitarshorty.com
one place long, Shorty next moved to the West Coast at
Guitar Shorty (born David William Kearney September
Kearney, 19 in order to play with Sam Cooke. He played up and
8, 1939, Houston, Texas, United States) is an American down the west coast and Canada until he met his fu-
blues guitarist. He is well known for his explosive guitar ture wife, Marcia, in Seattle, Washington Marcia was the
style and wild stage antics. Billboard magazine said, “his half-sister of Jimi Hendrix. Jimi was so enthralled with
galvanizing guitar work defines modern, top-of-the-line Shorty’s playing, he attended several of Shorty’s gigs in
blues-rock. His vocals remain as forceful as ever. Right- the Seattle area.[2][3][4] As Shorty’s popularity grew, he
eous shuffles...blistering, sinuous guitar solos.”[1] recorded three singles for the Los Angeles-based Pull
Records label in 1959.
Shorty gigged steadily through the late 1950s and
History 1960s. During the 1970s he worked as a mechanic, playing
Shorty was born in Houston but grew up mainly in Kis- music at nights and on weekends. He again became a
simmee, Florida where he began playing the guitar at full-time musician in 1975, struggling at times to make
an early age and began leading a band not long after. ends meet. In 1976 he made an appearance on Chuck Bar-
During his time in Tampa Bay, Florida, at age 16 he re- ris’ Gong Show, winning first prize for performing the
ceived his nickname, Guitar Shorty, when it mysteriously song "They Call Me Guitar Shorty" while balanced on his
showed up on the marquee of the club he was playing head.[4]
as ’The Walter Johnson Band featuring Guitar Shorty.’[2] In 1985, he released his first album On the Rampage on
He steadily began to garner accloades from his peers and, Olive Branch Records. He went on his first tour to the UK
soon after, he joined the Ray Charles Band for a year.[2] in 1991, and there he recorded “My Way or the Highway”
He recorded his first single in 1957, "You Don’t Treat Me with Otis Grand which came out on JSP Records that year.
Right", for the Cobra label under the direction of Wil- This won him a W.C. Handy Award and garnering him in-
lie Dixon after Dixon saw him playing with the Walter terest from labels in the United States.[3] Shorty soon got
a record deal with New Orleans based Black Top Records.
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Guitar Shorty
Topsy Turvy, his first on Black Top, came out in 1993. • 1993 - Topsy Turvy (Black Top)
The album featured some fresh new songs as well as re- • 1991 - My Way or the Highway (JSP)
makes of three classic numbers from his Pull days back in • 1989 - On the Rampage (Olive Branch)
1959. He released two more albums on Black Top in the
1990s. When Black Top folded in 1999, Shorty moved to
Evidence Music, and released I Go Wild! in 2001.
References
In 2002, he was featured on the Bo Diddley tribute [1] ^ "Review by Philip Van Vleck".
album Hey Bo Diddley - A Tribute!, performing the song http://www.billboard.com.
"Don’t Let It Go (Hold On To What You Got)". He joined [2] ^ "Official Guitar Shorty biography".
Alligator Records in 2004. His album that year, Watch Your http://www.guitarshorty.com. Retrieved
Back and his 2006 album We the People both charted on 2006-12-12.
the Billboard Top Blues Albums at numbers eleven and [3] ^ The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings by Tony
twelve, respectively. Billboard said of We The People, "it’s Russel, Chris Smith, et al. p231
difficult to imagine that he ever tracks a better album [4] ^ Bill Dahl & Al Campbell. "Allmusic Biography of
than this one."[1] Guitar Shorty". http://www.allmusic.com/artist/
A new Alligator Records CD ’ Bare Knuckles was re- p33528. Retrieved 2006-12-12.
leased in March 2010.
Another blues musician, John Henry Fortescue
(1923–1976) on Trix Records was also named Guitar
External links
Shorty. • Guitar Shorty Official website
• Guitar Shorty at Alligator Records
• Guitar Shorty at Allmusic
Discography • Guitar Shorty Interview by Brian D. Holland
• 2010 - Bare Knuckle (Alligator Records) Persondata
• 2010 - How Blue Can You Get (Janblues) Name Guitar Shorty
• 2006 - The Best of Guitar Shorty: The Long and Short of It
(Shout! Factory) Alternative names Kearney, David William
• 2006 - We the People (Alligator) Short description American blues guitarist
• 2004 - Watch Your Back (Alligator) Date of birth September 8, 1939
• 2001 - I Go Wild! (Evidence)
Place of birth Houston, Texas, United States
• 1998 - Roll Over, Baby (Black Top)
• 1996 - Billie Jean Blues (Collectables) Date of death
• 1996 - Blues Is All Right (Janblues) Place of death
• 1995 - Get Wise to Yourself (Black Top)
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Guitar_Shorty&oldid=448029296"
Categories:
• 1939 births
• Living people
• American blues guitarists
• Musicians from Houston, Texas
• Black Top Records artists
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