Oliver Lee "Sonny" Rodgers (December 4, 1939 – May 7, 1990) was an American electric blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He won a

W.C. Handy Award WC or wc may refer to: * Water closet or flush toilet Arts and entertainment * W.C. (film), ''W.C.'' (film), an Irish feature film * WC (band), a Polish punk rock band * WC (rapper), a rapper from Los Angeles, California * Westside Connectio ...

for his release "Cadillac Baby" b/w "Big Leg Woman", which the Blues Foundation deemed to be the 'Blues Single of 1990'. His subsequent debut album, ''They Call Me the Cat Daddy'', was acclaimed but coincided with his early death in May 1990, just prior to embarking on a UK tour. He variously worked with

Forest City Joe Joe Bennie Pugh (July 10, 1926 – April 3, 1960), known as Forrest City Joe or Forest City Joe, was an American blues musician who is mainly remembered for his ability as a harmonica player. He performed with other major blues acts of the perio ...

, Joe Hill Louis, Joe Willie Wilkins, Eddie Boyd,

Lazy Bill Lucas Lazy Bill Lucas (May 29, 1918 – December 11, 1982) was an American blues musician who was part of the birth of the Chicago blues scene in the 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s. He then took his talents to Minneapolis, Minnesota, becoming an impor ...

, Muddy Waters,

George "Mojo" Buford George Carter Buford, Jr. (November 10, 1929 – October 11, 2011), known as Mojo Buford, was an American blues harmonica player best known for his work in Muddy Waters's band. Biography Buford relocated from Hernando, Mississippi, to Memp ...

, and Willie Cobbs.

Life and career

Rodgers was born in 1939 near Hughes, Arkansas, United States, and he learned to play the guitar from his father, who hailed from the

Deep South The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...

. His playing was influenced by B.B. King, Robert Nighthawk and Muddy Waters. Rodgers formed his first band at the age of 17 and, in October 1959, was recorded by

Alan Lomax Alan Lomax (; January 31, 1915 – July 19, 2002) was an American ethnomusicologist, best known for his numerous field recordings of folk music of the 20th century. He was also a musician himself, as well as a folklorist, archivist, writer, sch ...

accompanying

. Rodgers performed throughout Arkansas and beyond from 1960, before relocating briefly to Texas. In 1961, he moved on to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he began a lengthy association with

. In 1970, Rodgers recorded with

for the latter's album, ''Lazy Bill & His Friends''. Rodgers long association with Buford led to the latter recommending him in 1972 to Muddy Waters, to replace Sammy Lawhorn in Waters' band. After his short spell playing in Waters band ended, Rodgers spent several years away from the music industry. However, he returned to performing in 1979, playing on ''Mojo Buford's Chicago Blues Summit'', and then forming his own band. He collected several music awards over the next decade or two in Minnesota. Blue Moon Records single "Cadillac Baby" b/w "Big Leg Woman", billed as by Sonny Rodgers and the Cat Scratchers, was voted 'Blues Single of 1990' in the W.C. Handy Awards. Following this success, Rodgers released what turned out to be both his debut album and final studio recordings. The resultant LP, ''They Call Me the Cat Daddy'' (1990), was highly acclaimed, but only just preceded Rodgers early death. The bassist playing on two tracks was

Biscuit Miller David Leon "Biscuit" Miller (born December 30, 1961) is an American electric blues bassist, singer and songwriter. He writes most of his own material, and has released three albums to date. In 2012 and 2017, Miller won a Blues Music Award in th ...

. Miller went on to play in Lonnie Brooks' band and became a "frontman" himself, releasing three albums. Sonny's album incorporated mainly blues standards including "Black Nights are Falling", "Walkin' Thru the Park", " Five Long Years", " Fever", " Stand by Me", and "

Good Morning Little School Girl "Good Morning, School Girl" is a blues standard that has been identified as an influential part of the blues canon. Pre-war Chicago blues vocalist and harmonica pioneer John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson first recorded it in 1937. Subsequently, a ...

"; as well as several of Rodgers' original numbers. In May 1990, Rodgers died of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the age of 50.

Discography

Singles

Albums

References

External links