Earl Gaines
Encyclopedia
Earl Gaines was an American
soul blues
and electric blues
singer. Born in Decatur, Alabama
, he sang lead vocals on the hit single
"It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day)", accredited to Louis Brooks and his Hi-Toppers, before undertaking a low-key solo career. In the latter capacity he had minor success with "The Best of Luck to You" (1966) and "Hymn Number 5" (1973). Noted as the best R&B
singer from Nashville, Gaines was also known for his lengthy career.
, Gaines found employment as both a singer and occasional drummer. Via work he did for local songwriter
, Ted Jarrett, Gaines moved from singing in clubs
to meeting Louis Brooks. Brooks led the instrumental
Hi-Toppers, who had a recording contract
with the Excello
label
. Their subsequent joint recording
, "It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day)," peaked at #2 on the US
R&B
chart
in 1955. It was Gaines biggest hit, but his name was not credited on the record
.
Breaking away from the confines of the group, Gaines became part of the 1955 R&B Caravan of Stars, with Bo Diddley
, Big Joe Turner
, and Etta James
. Their tour culminated with an appearance at New York
's Carnegie Hall
. Without any tangible success, Gaines recorded for the Champion
and Poncello labels for another few years, as well as joining Bill Doggett
's band as lead vocalist. In 1963, he joined Bill "Hoss" Allen's repertoire of artists, and by 1966 had issued the album
, The Best of Luck to You, seeing the title track reach the Top 40 in the US R&B chart. He appeared on the television program
The !!!! Beat
, and later released material for King
and Sound Stage 7
, including his cover version
of "Hymn Number 5". Recordings made between 1967 and 1973 for De Luxe
were reissued in 1998. On many of his De Luxe recordings in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Gaines was backed by Freddy Robinson
's orchestra.
In 1975, Gaines recorded "Drowning On Dry Land" for Ace
, before leaving the music industry for almost a decade and a half, to work as a truck driver. He finally re-emerged in 1989 with the album House Party.
In the 1990s Gaines worked with Roscoe Shelton
and Clifford Curry
. On Appaloosa Records, Gaines issued I Believe in Your Love (1995), and in 1997 he reunited with Curry and Shelton for a collaborative live album
. He released Everything’s Gonna Be Alright in 1998. Gaines work was on the 2005 Grammy Award
winning Night Train To Nashville: Music City Rhythm & Blues, 1945–1970
, an exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
. His own albums The Different Feelings of Blues and Soul (2005) and Nothin’ But the Blues (2008) followed, the latter released on the Ecko
label.
In late 2009 Gaines had to cancel a concert tour of Europe
due to ill health, and he died in Nashville on the last day of that year, at the age of 74.
He is not to be confused with Steven Earl Gaines
, a fellow American musician.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
soul blues
Soul blues
Soul blues is a style of blues music developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s that combines elements of soul music and urban contemporary music...
and electric blues
Electric blues
Electric blues is a type of blues music distinguished by the amplification of the guitar, bass guitar, drums, and often the harmonica. Pioneered in the 1930s, it emerged as a genre in Chicago in the 1940s. It was taken up in many areas of America leading to the development of regional subgenres...
singer. Born in Decatur, Alabama
Decatur, Alabama
Decatur is a city in Limestone and Morgan Counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. The city, affectionately known as "The River City", is located in Northern Alabama on the banks of Wheeler Lake, along the Tennessee River. It is the largest city and county seat of Morgan County...
, he sang lead vocals on the hit single
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...
"It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day)", accredited to Louis Brooks and his Hi-Toppers, before undertaking a low-key solo career. In the latter capacity he had minor success with "The Best of Luck to You" (1966) and "Hymn Number 5" (1973). Noted as the best R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
singer from Nashville, Gaines was also known for his lengthy career.
Biography
After moving from his hometown in his teenage years, and relocating to Nashville, TennesseeNashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Gaines found employment as both a singer and occasional drummer. Via work he did for local songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, Ted Jarrett, Gaines moved from singing in clubs
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
to meeting Louis Brooks. Brooks led the instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
Hi-Toppers, who had a recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
with the Excello
Excello Records
Excello Records was an American blues record label, started by Ernie Young in Nashville, Tennessee in 1953 as a subsidiary of Nashboro, a gospel label...
label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
. Their subsequent joint recording
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
, "It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day)," peaked at #2 on the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&B
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
in 1955. It was Gaines biggest hit, but his name was not credited on the record
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
.
Breaking away from the confines of the group, Gaines became part of the 1955 R&B Caravan of Stars, with Bo Diddley
Bo Diddley
Ellas Otha Bates , known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rhythm and blues vocalist, guitarist, songwriter , and inventor...
, Big Joe Turner
Big Joe Turner
Big Joe Turner was an American blues shouter from Kansas City, Missouri. According to the songwriter Doc Pomus, "Rock and roll would have never happened without him." Although he came to his greatest fame in the 1950s with his pioneering rock and roll recordings, particularly "Shake, Rattle and...
, and Etta James
Etta James
Etta James is an American blues, soul, rhythm and blues , rock and roll, gospel and jazz singer. In the 1950s and 1960s, she had her biggest success as a blues and R&B singer...
. Their tour culminated with an appearance at New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
. Without any tangible success, Gaines recorded for the Champion
Champion Records
The name Champion Records has been used by at least four record labels.An early Champion label was produced by Gennett Records as an inexpensive label that featured country or "hillbilly" artists, as well as popular bands, hot jazz and blues...
and Poncello labels for another few years, as well as joining Bill Doggett
Bill Doggett
Bill Doggett was an American jazz and rhythm and blues pianist and organist. He is best known for his tracks, "Honky Tonk" and "Hippy Dippy", and variously working with The Ink Spots, Johnny Otis, Wynonie Harris, Ella Fitzgerald, and Louis Jordan.-Biography:William Ballard Doggett was born in...
's band as lead vocalist. In 1963, he joined Bill "Hoss" Allen's repertoire of artists, and by 1966 had issued the album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, The Best of Luck to You, seeing the title track reach the Top 40 in the US R&B chart. He appeared on the television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
The !!!! Beat
The !!!! Beat
The !!!! Beat is an American television program which aired in syndication for 26 episodes in 1966. It was hosted by the Nashville, Tennessee based disc jockey Bill "Hoss" Allen, and featured a house band led by Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown. As the show was recorded in color, WFAA, a Dallas TV...
, and later released material for King
King Records (USA)
King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
and Sound Stage 7
Sound Stage 7
Sound Stage 7 was an American, Nashville, Tennessee based record label of the 1960s and 1970s, noted mainly for its soul music releases. The label's biggest star was Joe Simon, who placed numerous singles on the U.S...
, including his cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of "Hymn Number 5". Recordings made between 1967 and 1973 for De Luxe
De Luxe Records
De Luxe Records was a Linden, New Jersey, United States based record label formed in 1944 by brothers David and Jules Braun. The label flourished in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1947, Syd Nathan, the founder and owner of King Records, purchased a majority interest in De Luxe. In 1949, Nathan moved the...
were reissued in 1998. On many of his De Luxe recordings in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Gaines was backed by Freddy Robinson
Abu Talib (musician)
Abu Talib was an African American blues and jazz guitarist, singer, and harmonica player.-Career:...
's orchestra.
In 1975, Gaines recorded "Drowning On Dry Land" for Ace
Ace Records (US)
Ace Records was a record label that was started in August 1955 in Jackson, Mississippi by Johnny Vincent, with Teem Records as its budget subsidiary. Ace also had the Vin label. Its records were distributed independently until 1962 when a distribution arrangement was set up with Vee-Jay Records....
, before leaving the music industry for almost a decade and a half, to work as a truck driver. He finally re-emerged in 1989 with the album House Party.
In the 1990s Gaines worked with Roscoe Shelton
Roscoe Shelton
Roscoe Shelton was an American electric blues and R&B singer. He is best remembered for his 1965 hit single, "Strain on My Heart," and his working relationships with both The Fairfield Four and Bobby Hebb. Other notable recordings include "Think It Over" and "Baby Look What You're Doin' To Me"...
and Clifford Curry
Clifford Curry
Clifford Curry is an American beach music and R&B singer.His career began in high school. He was the member of several groups including: The Echoes, The Five Pennies , Hollyhocks , and the Bubba Suggs Band...
. On Appaloosa Records, Gaines issued I Believe in Your Love (1995), and in 1997 he reunited with Curry and Shelton for a collaborative live album
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
. He released Everything’s Gonna Be Alright in 1998. Gaines work was on the 2005 Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
winning Night Train To Nashville: Music City Rhythm & Blues, 1945–1970
Night Train to Nashville
A two disc compilation of R&B songs from 1945-1970 featured on the WIVK radio station of Nashville, Tennessee. It won a Grammy Award in 2005.-Track listing:# Nashville Jumps # Buzzard Pie # Skip's Boogie # L & N Special # Sittin' Here Drinking...
, an exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum identifies and preserves the evolving history and traditions of country music and educates its audiences...
. His own albums The Different Feelings of Blues and Soul (2005) and Nothin’ But the Blues (2008) followed, the latter released on the Ecko
Ecko Records
Ecko Records is an American blues and soul blues record label, founded in 1995 by John Ward in Memphis, Tennessee. Ecko Records has released albums by Rufus Thomas, Barbara Carr, Denise LaSalle, Lee "Shot" Williams, Bill Coday, Earl Gaines, Ollie Nightingale, Carl Sims, Quinn Golden, and numerous...
label.
In late 2009 Gaines had to cancel a concert tour of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
due to ill health, and he died in Nashville on the last day of that year, at the age of 74.
He is not to be confused with Steven Earl Gaines
Steve Gaines
Steven Earl Gaines was an American musician. He is most well known as a guitarist and songwriter for southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and is the younger brother of Cassie Gaines, who was also a member of the band...
, a fellow American musician.
Albums
- The Best of Luck to You (1966) - HBR Records
- Lovin' Blues (1970) - De Luxe RecordsDe Luxe RecordsDe Luxe Records was a Linden, New Jersey, United States based record label formed in 1944 by brothers David and Jules Braun. The label flourished in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1947, Syd Nathan, the founder and owner of King Records, purchased a majority interest in De Luxe. In 1949, Nathan moved the...
- That's How Strong My Love Is (1979) - Vivid Sound Records
- Yearning and Burning (1986) - Charly RecordsCharly RecordsCharly Records is a British record label which specialises in reissued material.-History:Among the labels whose original releases are reissued by Charly are Vee-Jay, Sun, Immediate, BYG, Tomato, and Fania. Charly Records was founded in France in 1974 by Jean-Luc Young, who had been a promoter of...
- House Party (1989) - Meltone Records
- I Believe in Your Love (1995) - Appaloosa Records
- Tennessee R&B Live (1997) - Appaloosa Records (with Roscoe SheltonRoscoe SheltonRoscoe Shelton was an American electric blues and R&B singer. He is best remembered for his 1965 hit single, "Strain on My Heart," and his working relationships with both The Fairfield Four and Bobby Hebb. Other notable recordings include "Think It Over" and "Baby Look What You're Doin' To Me"...
and Clifford CurryClifford CurryClifford Curry is an American beach music and R&B singer.His career began in high school. He was the member of several groups including: The Echoes, The Five Pennies , Hollyhocks , and the Bubba Suggs Band...
) - Everything's Gonna Be Alright (1998) - Black Top RecordsBlack Top RecordsBlack Top Records was a New Orleans, Louisiana based independent record label founded in 1981 by brothers Nauman S. Scott, III and Hammond Scott. The label specialized in blues and R&B music. The first release was "Talk To You By Hand" by Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets...
- 24 Hours a Day (1999) - Black Magic Records
- Let's Work Together (2000) - Cannonball Records (with Roscoe Shelton)
- The Different Feelings of Blues and Soul (2005) - Blue Fye Records
- The Lost Soul Tapes (2006) - Aim Records
- Crankshaft Blues (2007) - SPV Records
- Nothin' But the Blues (2008) - Ecko RecordsEcko RecordsEcko Records is an American blues and soul blues record label, founded in 1995 by John Ward in Memphis, Tennessee. Ecko Records has released albums by Rufus Thomas, Barbara Carr, Denise LaSalle, Lee "Shot" Williams, Bill Coday, Earl Gaines, Ollie Nightingale, Carl Sims, Quinn Golden, and numerous...
- Good To Me (2010) - Ecko RecordsEcko RecordsEcko Records is an American blues and soul blues record label, founded in 1995 by John Ward in Memphis, Tennessee. Ecko Records has released albums by Rufus Thomas, Barbara Carr, Denise LaSalle, Lee "Shot" Williams, Bill Coday, Earl Gaines, Ollie Nightingale, Carl Sims, Quinn Golden, and numerous...
- - Released posthumously - While recording this album Earl had to be admitted to the hospital.
Chart singles
- "The Best of Luck to You" (1966) - HBR Records - US R&BHot R&B/Hip-Hop SongsHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
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