Long John Baldry
Long John Baldry, born January 12, 1941 in Haddon, Derbyshire, England, is a blues musician.
Born John William Baldry, he grew to a towering 6 feet, 7 inches that resulted in the nickname "Long" John. Blessed with a deep, rich voice, he was one of the first British vocalists to sing blues music. In the early '60s, he sang with Alexis Korner's band Blues Incorporated with whom he recorded the first British blues album in 1962. He then joined and led another band, the Hoochie Coochie Men, that featured Rod Stewart doing vocals and Geoff Bradford on guitar. Popular on the London club circuit, Baldry made a guest appearance on one of The Beatles 1964 British TV specials. In 1967, he recorded a pop song "Let the Heartaches Begin" that went to number one in Britain followed by a 1968 hit titled "Mexico."
During the 1970s, Baldry recorded a number of songs that met with reasonable success in Britain before moving to North America. He made a minor breakthrough into the all-important North American market with the song "Don't Try to Lay No Boogie Woogie on the King of Rock and Roll." Into the late 1970s and 1980s, he had continued to make records but had also made commercial voice-overs as well as doing the voice of Dr. Ivo Robotnik in the children's computer game, the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog.
After spending time in New York City and Los Angeles in 1978, Baldry chose to settle permanently in Vancouver, British Columbia where he became a Canadian citizen. He regularly toured the Canadian west coast as well as the U.S. northwest. In 1979, he teamed up with Seattle singer Kathi MacDonald to record a very successful version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin" following which MacDonald became a permanent part of his touring group for the next two decades. Currently recording on the Stony Plain record label, Long John Baldry has built a solid base of devout followers and continues to tour worldwide.
Partial Discography:
- Long John's Blues (1964)
- Looking at Long John (1966)
- Let the Heartaches Begin (1968)
- Let There Be Long John (1968)
- Wait For Me (1969) Missing image
LongJohnBaldryEP.jpgLong John Baldry - It Ain't Easy (1971)
- Everything Stops for Tea (1972)
- Heartaches (Golden Hour) (1974)
- 'Silent Treatment' (1986)
- Let The Heartaches Begin (1988)
- Beat GoesOn (1990)
- It Still Ain't Easy (1991)
- Long John Baldry-On Stage Tonight (1993)
- A Thrill's a Thrill: The Canadian Years (1995)
- Right To Sing The Blues (1997)
- Long John Baldry Trio-Live (2000)
- Remembering Leadbelly (2002)