Ivory Joe Hunter

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Ivory Joe Hunter (born October 10, 1914 in Kirbyville , Texas , † November 8, 1974 in Memphis , Tennessee ) was an American R&B singer, pianist and songwriter, not to be confused with the Motown producers and Songwriter Ivy Joe Hunter .

Hunter was known as "the Baron of the Boogie ", but also as "the Happiest Man Alive" ("the happiest man alive"). His most famous hit was Since I Met You, Baby in 1956 . It is estimated that he wrote over 7,000 songs.

Ivory Joe, his christening name, was born into a musical family. His father played the guitar, his mother was a gospel singer. Hunter's talent on the piano showed at a young age. Alan Lomax accepted him in 1933 for the Library of Congress.

In the early 1940s, Hunter had his own radio show in Beaumont, Texas . In 1942 he moved to Los Angeles , where he played with Johnny Moore's Three Blazers. With them he recorded his first hit, Blues at Sunrise , which he released on his own label Ivory Records.

Hunter later founded the Pacific Records label in the 1940s. Numerous recordings of this phase were licensed by Four Star Records in Hollywood and released again on this label. In 1949 he had his first US-wide R&B charts - I Quit My Pretty Mama and Guess Who . In 1950, I Almost Lost My Mind hit the top of the R&B charts on MGM Records . More hits followed, and in 1951 he appeared on television for the first time. In 1954 he had already recorded more than a hundred titles. In 1956 his biggest hit, Since I Met You, Baby appeared on Atlantic Records , which reached number twelve on the pop charts.

At the end of the 1950s, the success began to wane. In the 1970s, Hunter made a comeback as a country singer. He performed at the Monterey Jazz Festival , among others .

Ivory Joe Hunter died of lung cancer in 1974.

Quite a few pieces of Hunter were re-recorded by other artists. Pat Boone had a number one hit in 1956 with I Almost Lost My Mind . Sonny James hit # 1 on the country charts with Since I Met You, Baby in 1970, ushering in Hunter's comeback. Elvis Presley had two top 20 hits with Hunter songs: My Wish Came True and Ain't That Loving You, Baby .

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personal data
SURNAME Hunter, Ivory Joe
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Baron of the Boogie (nickname)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American blues musician
DATE OF BIRTH October 10, 1914
PLACE OF BIRTH Kirbyville , Texas
DATE OF DEATH November 8, 1974
Place of death Memphis , Tennessee