Big Joe Turner

Joseph Vernon Joe Turner, Jr. , best known as Big Joe Turner, was an American blues shouter from Kansas City, Missouri, United States. According to the songwriter Doc Pomus, Rock and roll would have never happened without him. While he had his greatest fame during the 1950s with his rock and roll recordings, particularly Shake, Rattle and Roll, Turners career as a performer endured from the 1920s into the 1980s. Turner was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, with the Hall lauding him as the brawny voiced Boss of the Blues.

Known variously as The Boss of the Blues, and Big Joe Turner , Turner was born in Kansas City. His father was killed in a train accident when Joe was only four years old. He first discovered a love of music in his involvement at church. He began singing on street corners for money, quitting school at age fourteen to work in Kansas Citys nightclubs, first as a cook, and later as a singing bartender. He became known eventually as The Singing Barman, and worked in such venues as The Kingfish Club and The Sunset, where he and his piano playing partner Pete Johnson became resident performers. The Sunset was managed by Piney Brown. It featured separate but equal facilities for caucasian patrons. Turner wrote Piney Brown Blues in his honor and sang it throughout his entire career.

Source: Wikipedia