He released the Apollo single “Bogey Man” b/w “It Keeps Raining” (billed to “Big Willie” and recorded in 1949) as well as two more records by his combo-the first, the catchy, slow-burning “I’m Mad,” also hit number one on the Billboard R&B chart, despite its murderous lyrics (“Asked my baby could she stand to see me cry / She said yes, I could stand to see you buried alive / I’m mad”).
Freed, the DJ who popularized the term “rock ‘n’ roll,” famously refused to air white cover versions of Black R&B numbers.
Mabon’s original crossed over to white audiences, and Alan Freed played it on his early Cleveland rock radio broadcasts. “I Don’t Know” was also one of the first R&B smashes covered by a popular white singer, though Tennessee Ernie Ford’s sanitized version wasn’t nearly as successful. It reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart and stayed there for eight weeks-Chess’s biggest success until Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley. Willie Mabon & His Combo debuted on wax late that year with the Parrot single “I Don’t Know” b/w “Worry Blues,” where Mabon’s wheezy harmonica, classy vocals, and boogie-woogie piano are joined by Ernest Cotton’s tenor sax, Bill Anderson’s bass, and Bill Stepney’s drums.īased in part on a 1935 recording of “Strut That Thing” by Chicago boogie-woogie pianist Cripple Clarence Lofton (who received no royalties), “I Don’t Know” became a huge hit after Chess acquired the songs from Parrot. They also kept playing without Mabon after he started a solo career a couple years later.Īt that point Mabon was managed by Chicago DJ and promoter Al Benson, who launched the Parrot Records label in 1952. The group had two 78s on the Aristocrat label (which later became Chess Records), both released in 1950. In 1947 Mabon started the Blues Rockers to show off his piano and harmonica skills, playing with guitarists Lazy Bill Lucas and Earl Dranes, among others. The war ended in time for Mabon to return home for his 20th birthday, and he started making connections in the local music scene. Once here, he began piano lessons, influenced by Roosevelt Sykes and Big Maceo, but his career had to wait-once he was old enough, he was off serving in World War II as a marine. Willie James Mabon was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on October 24, 1925, and followed his early love of blues and jazz to Chicago in 1942.
The man had hits, big label support, and a unique crossover style-plus he was as suave as they come. But none of these things was the case for pianist Willie Mabon. It’s often possible to find a reason a musician ended up relegated to the margins of history-they might’ve been less commercial, less photogenic, or signed to less powerful labels than the top-shelf stars of their era. Since 2004 Plastic Crimewave (aka Steve Krakow) has used the Secret History of Chicago Music to shine a light on worthy artists with Chicago ties who’ve been forgotten, underrated, or never noticed in the first place. Best of Chicago 2022: Sports & Recreation.Best of Chicago 2022: Music & Nightlife.Get your Best of Chicago tickets! Line-Up Announced > Close
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