2000.03 Now Dig This nr. 204 p. 2 "Screamin' Jay Hawkins is dead"
Within days of being sent a copy of last month's NDT, in which he was the featured artist, the legendary Screamin' Jay Hawkins added the final chapter to his remarkable story when he died on February 12th in hospital in Neuilly, Paris, from internal haemorrhaging following surgery on an obstructed bowel. ("Constipation blues" indeed!) Of all the larger than life figures that the rock'n'roll world created, Jay could lay claim to being one of the most flamboyant yet humourous individuais to have emerged in any form of popular music. His ability to balance rhythm and blues with a cornucopia of vaudeville, was a surefire guarantee that would bestow him with the kind of Status enjoyed by few.
Jalacy J. Hawkins was born in Cleveland, Ohio on July 18th 1929 and along with his three brothers and sisters, he spent the first eighteen months of his life in an orphanage, from where he was eventually adopted and raised in a community of Blackfoot Indians. He simultaneously became fond of music and boxing and as strapping 18 year-old he won a Golden Gloves trophy, before heading off on a tour of military duty that took him to Japan, Korea and Germany. He admired the work of Paul Robeson and he utilised his powerful physique to develop a noble baritone of his own - a trait which in 1951 won him a place in Tiny Grimes' Rockin' Highlanders. He made his recording debut with this tartan-clad R&B outfit for Gotham Records the following year, alternating his role of vocalist with that of chauffeur, pianist and dog-walker. By 1953 he was talked into going solo and within a matter of months his first singles had appeared on the local Timely label, credited to Jalacy Hawkins. After a short stint opening for Fats Domino, Mercury Records beckoned and it was here that Jay first worked with guitarist / arranger Leroy Kirkland who would eventually play a key role in master-minding the classic "I put a spell on you". An early version of the song was tried out in the fall of 1955 for the Grand label, but it didn't bear fruit until ex-Mercury A&R chief Arnold Maxim got Jay to re-model its structure after signing him to Okeh. When "Spell" was issued in October 1956 the trade ads read "Sales are screamin'!" Unfortunately the song's dark and foreboding message made sure it was sidestepped by many radio stations and although it sold in droves, the record mysteriously never appeared on any chart. Not untypically, lynchpin DJ Alan Freed proved to be an exception to the radio rule and his enthusiasm was such that he came up with the idea for Screamin' Jay's infamous coffin routine. A typical Hawkins show in the fifties would have him emerging from a prop casket that was heralded by special lighting effects and explosions - a routine that would more often than not upstage his fellow performers.
Although British audiences wouldn't get to see such in-concert delights until the mid-sixties, "I put a spell on you" was given a UK release in January 1958 as part of the first batch of releases on the newiy launched Fontana label. Jay had Marty Wilde to thank for this propitious scenario, as it was the British rocker who brought back a copy of the single after a visit to the States and talked his A&R man, Jack Baverstock, into putting it out. As the fifties drew to a dose Jay was arrested in the wake of a puerile transgression, and he subsequently adopted a more modest profile after serving nearly two years in jail. However, when he moved to Hawaii in 1962 he was soon courting adversity once again. He took on a residency at a nightclub in Honolulu and very nearly lost his life in a domestic stabbing incident when he fell foul of his new stage partner, Pat Newborn. The following summer he was tempted back to New York by a fan, who just happened to be a vacationing airline executive, and he proceeded to rekindle his fifties flame by cutting a session for Roulette that yielded the hex-ridden single "The Whammy".
He finally made it to the British Isles early in 1965 (where he found time amongst other things to record an album for Shel Talmy's Planet label) and after he flew back to New York, Jay left behind a trail of mesmerised youths who'd witnessed his wild itinerary of gigs. Upon arrival in the States, he discovered to his total surprise that he had a hit reworking on his hands of "I put a spell on you" by Nina Simone. Then, by a remarkable coincidence, he timed his return visit to the UK the following April with another chartbound rendering of the song, this time by the Alan Price Set. Back home, after flitting around an array of labels that included humble meanderings for Providence, Laurie and Holton, Dick Jacobs (a most unlikely industry notable considering the artist) signed Jay to American Decca and two singles, including a "Spell" remake, emerged from Studio dates i n July and December of 1966.
There followed a further sabbatical in Hawaii, then right out of the blue came a pair of frontline albums that surfaced on Philips, with both sets containing several signature sides. "What that is" gave birth to "Constipation blues", whilst the Huey Meaux-produced SCREAMIN' JAY HAWKINS offered such rhapsodies as "Our love is not for three" and "Bite it". Labels came and labels went, but many highspots still loomed on the horizon. There were memorable moments like his eulogy to Alan Freed in American hot wax, opening for The Rolling Stones at Madison Square Garden (still with his trusty smoking skull "Henry" in tow) and his artistically acclaimed cameo appearance s a desk clerk in the cult movie Mystery train. This latter accolade spawned a programme of recordings both old and new, that in turn procured some of the healthiest record sales that Jay had s een in years. In more recent times he relocated to Paris, France, where his European fans relished the thought of having the man himself residing on local turf. With yet another wave of rejuvenation encouraging him back onto the concert circuit, Screamin' Jay had become fired up all over again, and he was in fact being lined up to play the Hemsby Festival later this year.
Of the countless ways his wholly unpretentious career could be summed up, no one could assess the strength of his individuality better than the man himself. The following is quoted from the website of Jay's French record label, Last Call: "l came into this world black, naked and ugly. And no matter how much l accumulate here, it's a short journey. l will go out of this world black, naked and ugly. So l enjoy life. And l like to see when people are happy... And if l can, since l am in this business, l like to make people forget some of their problems. l like to make 'em laugh."
That you did, Jay, and a whole lot more besides.
Author: Trevor Cajiao
- original source: Now Dig This