Sugar Blue
Blue at the Lucerna Music Bar, Prague, 1988
Blue at the Lucerna Music Bar, Prague, 1988
Background information
Birth nameJames Joshua Whiting
Born (1949-12-16) December 16, 1949
New York City, U.S.
Genres
  • Blues
  • rock
Occupation(s)
  • Musician
  • singer
  • songwriter
Instrument(s)
  • Harmonica
  • vocals
Years activeLate 1960s–present
Websitewww.sugar-blue.com

James Joshua Whiting (born December 16, 1949),[1] known professionally as Sugar Blue, is an American blues harmonica player.[2] He is best known for playing on the 1978 Rolling Stones album Some Girls, and well as his partnership with blues guitarist Louisiana Red.

The Chicago Tribune said, "The sound of Sugar Blue's harmonica could pierce any night...it's the sound of a musician who transcends the supposed limitations of his instrument."[3]

Biography

Whiting was born in New York City in 1949.[1] In the mid-1970s, Whiting played as a session musician on Johnny Shines's Too Wet to Plow (1975) and with Roosevelt Sykes. While in the company of the latter, he met Louisiana Red, and the two toured and recorded in 1978.[4]

Taking advice from Memphis Slim, in the late 1970s Whiting traveled to Paris, France. According to Ronnie Wood, Whiting was found by Mick Jagger busking on the city streets.[5] This led to him playing on several of the tracks on The Rolling Stones' Some Girls and Emotional Rescue albums: "Some Girls", "Send It to Me", "Down in the Hole" and "Miss You".

Trombonist Mike Zwerin backed Whiting on his solo debut album, Crossroads (1979). Following the release of his From Chicago to Paris (1982), Whiting joined Willie Dixon's Chicago Blues All Stars.[4] In 1984, Whiting's track "Another Man Done Gone", appeared on the compilation album Blues Explosion. It won a Grammy in 1985 for Best Traditional Blues Album.[6]

Whiting appeared with Brownie McGhee in the film Angel Heart (1987).

Whiting joined as a side musician recording with Willie Dixon on the Grammy Award winning album, Hidden Charms (1988).[7]

His next album, Blue Blazes, was released in 1994 and it included his version of "Miss You".[4] It was followed by In Your Eyes (1995) and Code Blue (2007).[8]

He played on the album Down Too Long, by Southside Denny and the Skintones, in 1988.[9] Whiting's next album, Threshold, was released by Beeble Music on January 26, 2010.[10]

Writing in the Chicago Tribune, music critic Howard Reich said, "There's no mistaking Sugar Blue incendiary virtuosity. The speed and ferocity of his playing are matched by its inventiveness, with Blue packing nearly every phrase with trills, glissandos, clusters and chords. At times, it sounds as if two harps were working at once... intense, melodically ornate, punctuated by growls and swooping pitches, it's the sound of a musician who transcends the limitations of his instrument."[3]

Discography

Albums

Year Title Label Number Notes
1978Red, Funk and BlueBlack PantherBP1001Duo with Louisiana Red
1979King BeeJSPDuo with Louisiana Red
1980CrossroadsBlue SilverBS 3004France, recorded 1979
1982From Chicago to ParisBlue SilverBS 3012/3332France, recorded 1980 with Slim Pezin, Earl Howell
1984High Voltage BluesJSP1081with Louisiana Red
1988Hidden CharmsCapitol RecordsAs sideman with Willie Dixon
1991Absolutely BlueSeven Seas/KingKICP 341Japan, recorded 1982
1994Blue BlazesAlligator4819
1995In Your EyesAlligator4831
2006Right NowKozelSwitzerland, George Kay Band featuring Sugar Blue
2007Code BlueBeeble801
2010ThresholdBeeble802
2012Raw Sugar - LiveBeeble803
2016VoyageM.C. RecordsMC 0079

[8][11]

|2019||Colors||Beeble||804||

Compilations and reissues

Year Title Label Number Notes
1979Stars of the StreetsWhale Productions / Egg Records (France)Egg 900582 CompilationPerformances of several street musicians were recorded live outdoors in the streets and parks of New York City. Track 1 : "Pontiac Blues" by Sugar Blue
1980Jazz Gala '80Kingdom JazzGate 7010Recorded at the Palm Beach Casino, Cannes, France
1984Blues ExplosionAtlantic80149Grammy winner, recorded live at Montreux
1992From Paris to ChicagoEPM Blues Collection756Reissue of Crossroads and From Chicago to Paris
1998The Blues Spectrum of Louisiana RedJSPUK recording
2007Another Man Done GoneWNTS/Believe DigitalMP3 downloadReissue of Crossroads and From Chicago to Paris

[12][13]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Eagle, Bob; LeBlanc, Eric S. (2013). Blues - A Regional Experience. Santa Barbara: Praeger Publishers. p. 262. ISBN 978-0313344237.
  2. ↑ Diana Olson (March 19, 2008). "Sugar Blue". Skope Entertainment Inc. Retrieved January 22, 2010.
  3. 1 2 "Sugar Blue, Blues, Harmonica". Sugar-blue.com. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 Russell, Tony (1997). The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray. Dubai: Carlton Books. p. 170. ISBN 1-85868-255-X.
  5. ↑ Wood, Ronnie (August 13, 2013). "Ronnie Wood talks about Sugar Blue and the harmonica". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Blues Grammy award winners by year". Mojohand.com. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  7. ↑ Steve Shorter (2015). Roots to Rock: Part 2 - Blues. Booktango. ISBN 978-1468954456. Dixon was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1980 and won a Grammy Award in 1989 for his album, Hidden Charms.
  8. 1 2 "Sugar Blue | Discography". AllMusic. December 16, 1949. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Southside Denny And The Skintones – Down Too Long". Discogs.com. November 25, 1988. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
  10. ↑ "Sugar Blue CD Preview". Blues.about.com. October 30, 2009. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Absolutely Blue". Bidders.co.jp. Retrieved January 22, 2010.
  12. ↑ G.Heinlein & François Ziegler (March 2004). "EPM Records Checklist". Jazzlabels.klacto.net. Retrieved January 22, 2010.
  13. ↑ "Blues Explosion – Various Artists | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
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