Professor Longhair
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Biography
His career in music began in the 1930s, dancing for tips. “The very first instrument I played was the bottom of my feet, working out rhythms, tap dancing. We used to dance all up and down Bourbon Street.”
He learned guitar and piano and began to take music seriously when he found he could get out of work by playing piano for his fellow members of the Civilian Conservation Corps. He also worked as a boxer, cook, and professional card player.
In the late 1940s, he sat in on piano at the Caledonia Club while Dave Bartholomew’s band was taking a break. He was an immediate hit and Bartholomew, later famous as Fats Domino’s bandleader and collaborator, was fired. The band all had long hair and were dubbed Professor Longhair and the Four Hairs.
He began recording the following year. His signature song, “Mardi Gras in New Orleans” (still the theme song of New Orleans Mardi Gras) was recorded in 1949 under the name Professor Longhair and the Shuffling Hungarians. “I had one Hindu in the band, but there weren’t no Hungarians,” he explained.
Top Tracks
Top Albums
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New Orleans Piano
33,376 listeners13 tracks
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Crawfish Fiesta
12,230 listeners12 tracks
Released:
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New Orleans Piano - Blues Originals, Vol 2
5,211 listeners15 tracks
Released:
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House Party New Orleans Style
12,912 listeners15 tracks
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Create a Last.fm profileShoutbox
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uh_oh_jlm
Style for days and days and days.
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SimonePerrota
Fantastic profile picture
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josernoya
King Longhair
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esunsalmista
Where was the world hiding this phenomenon?!
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richardneal
Fess & Earl Palmer together: unbeatable
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Halfthatswhole
"Forget every thing you've been told about Jesus, Buddha, Allah, there's only God, and his name is Professor Longhair" - Davis McAlary
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joaofabiao
"Ball the wall" should be in 1st place
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branchong
so so good.
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Zer0_II
That profile picture is awesome. The Professor is a relatively recent discovery for me. I picked up the album Rock 'N' Roll Gumbo not too long ago. The album opens up weak in my opinion. I had to warm up to the Professor's style, as I'm used to a more raw and dirty blues style, but I quickly discovered this is some top-notch piano blues. It doesn't take long before the Professor kindles the fire a bit on the album, and then pounds out a string of amazingly smooth and groovy numbers.
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doctorka33
Fess is great
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doctorjmo
i love nawlins!!
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palijer
how is he not more well known
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fmera
he looks like general platt, the "pants on the ground" guy in AI
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Triebert91
Genius.
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pistol-b
oobbah doobah
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sweetdy
professor longhair IS new orleans.
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Saaaandy
<3
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cyrone
I Like.
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vince1973
Hey, Lily Allen... Big Chief ?
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MERLE211
Amazing!
All 32 shouts
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