Died On This Date (January 29, 2013) George Higgs / North Carolina Blues Great
themusicsover George Higgs
1930 – January 29, 2013
George Higgs was a respected Piedmont style blues great who began playing the harmonica as a youngster while taking breaks from working the family tobacco farm in Speed, North Carolina. He eventually picked up the guitar and began performing at area house parties and competitions. By the ’60s, he was fronting the Friendly Five Gospel Quartet. In 1992, Higgs was North Carolina Folklore Society’s Brown-Hudson Award and during the following year, he was presented with the North Carolina Heritage Award. Remarkably, Higgs didn’t release his first album until 2001’s Tarboro Blues which was recognized as the Album of the Year by respected magazine, Living Blues. He released Rainy Day in 2006. George Higgs was 82 when he passed away on January 29, 2013.
What You Should Own
Leroy “Sugarfoot” Bonner was the longtime lead singer for arguably America’s greatest funk band, the Ohio Players. Formed in Dayton, Ohio as the Ohio Untouchables in 1959, it would be a few years before they regrouped as the Ohio Players and brought Bonner on board. First the band’s lead guitarist, Bonner’s charisma on stage could not be denied, so he soon took over as front man as well. It wasn’t until 1973 that the band hit its stride with the release of their first #1 R&B single, “Funky Worm.” The record ultimately sold over 1 million copies and helped the group land a deal with Mercury Records. Over the next three years, the Ohio Players scored seven Top 40 singles, two Gold Albums and three Platinum. In all, they sold well over 4 million albums. Their hits included such era definers as “Fire,” “Who’d She Coo?” “Skin Tight” and “Love Rollercoaster,” which claimed one of pop music’s greatest urban legends as well. Mid way through the #1 hit, a high-pitched scream can be heard, leading many to believe that a woman was murdered in the studio with her scream unknowingly recorded. Of several myths that were spawned, the most absurd was that while the band was recording, the cover photo shoot of Playboy model, Ester Corbet, was taking place in an adjacent room. Badly burned and disfigured by the hot honey which was poured on her, Corbet ran into the studio threatening to sue the band. The myth goes on to claim that the band’s manager stabbed her to death in the control room in order to shut her up. All caught on tape, of course. The problem with that scenario is that Corbet is still alive and apparently burn free as of this writing. The reality is that keyboardist Billy Beck provided the infamous scream. Meanwhile, the Ohio Players forged on through the ups and downs of their popularity with Bonner at the helm well into the 2000s. Leroy Bonner was 70 when he passed away on January 26, 2013. Cause of death was not immediately released.
Known throughout the industry as “The Songwriter’s Best Friend,” John Braheny was a successful songcrafter as well as the author of to best-selling manual, The Craft and Business of Songwriting. Braheny began his career during the late ’60s as a recording artist – his only album, Some Kind of Change came out in 1970. S0me may argue that this album was the birth of the Laurel Canyon country rock scene since its “December Dream” was later popularized by Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Poneys. In 1971, Braheny co-founded the Los Angeles Songwriters Showcase which at one point or another showcased such future greats as Stevie Nicks, Dianne Warren, Janis Ian, and 
Tandyn Almer was a mysterious Minneapolis-born singer-songwriter whose biggest contribution to popular music came by way of his “Along Came Mary,” a 1966 Top Ten hit as recorded by the Association. Just a teenager when the music of 
Sammy Johns was a folk and country-rock singer-songwriter who scored a major ’70s pop hit with 1975’s “Chevy Van.” Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, Johns was just nine when he picked up the guitar. By the time he was a teenager, he was fronting his own band, the Devilles. After a few records with the Devilles, Johns moved to Atlanta and signed a solo deal with General Records who released his self-titled debut in 1973. The album’s “Chevy Van” took about a year or so to catch on, but when it did, it became one of the biggest singles of the ’70s. Reaching #5 on the Billboard pop charts, the record sold more than 1 million copies in the US alone. It was later covered by Eric Church, Sammy Kershaw, and 
