Joe Liggins

American R&B, jazz, and blues pianist, vocalist and composer. He was the leader of [a798934] in the 1940s and 1950s. His band appeared often on the Billboard magazine charts and was extremely popular at the time. The band's biggest hit was "The Honeydripper", released in 1945. He was the older brother of R&B performer [a=Jimmy Liggins].

Born: July 9, 1916 in Guthrie, Oklahoma, USA

Died: July 26, 1987 in Lynwood, California, USA

"The Honeydripper" topped the race chart, later called the R&B chart, for 18 weeks in 1945. More than 60 years later, "The Honeydripper" remains tied with Louis Jordan's "Choo Choo Ch'Boogie" for the longest-ever stay at the top of that chart. It reportedly logged two million sales. Liggins had a series of further R&B chart hits on the [l90764] label, including "Left a Good Deal in Mobile", "Got a Right to Cry", "Tanya" and "Blow Mr. Jackson". He signed with Specialty Records in 1950, where he gained more hits, including "Rag Mop", "Boom-Chick-A-Boogie", "Pink Champagne", and "Little Joe's Boogie". "Pink Champagne" also reached number 30 on the pop chart, and both "Pink Champagne" and "Got A Right To Cry" sold over one million copies and were awarded gold discs.

Although Liggins' success stopped in the late 1950s, he continued to perform until his death following a stroke at the age of 71.