Our guest is Lloyd Price whose 1952 hit Lawdy Miss Clawdy
set the tone for the upcoming Rock and Roll explosion and became
one of the first big crossover hits from R&B to white
audiences.
Clawdy kicked off a career that would see Price climb into
the R&B top ten a total of fourteen times and into the Pop top
three with Stagger Lee, Personality and I'm
Gonna Get Married but that is only one side to Price's story.
Over the course of his life, Lloyd was a record company owner, got
the careers started of such artists as Little Richard and Wilson
Pickett, bought out New York's Birdland and made it the first
uptown R&B club, promoted prize fights with Don King including
the Rumble in the Jungle, worked in food distribution, spent a
decade in Africa and, now, has become an author.
And he did all of this while being a black man in a racially
charged America. Lloyd's new book, Sumdumhonky, tells his
story through vignettes from throughout his life, from growing up
in the deep south during the 30's and 40's through his breakout in
music and all of the challenges he faced by being a minority in a
prejudiced society.
I was honored to talk to Mr.
Price from his home north of New York.
The VVN Music Interviews includes discussions with the veteran music artists that have been recording for twenty years or more in pop, rock, R&B/soul, country, folk and blues.