Jean Knight

Jean Knight (* 26. January 1943 in New Orleans as Jean Caliste ) is an American Soul - R & B singer who especially for their hit Mr. Big Stuff known 1,971th

Life

Jean Knight was born Jean Caliste in New Orleans. After high school , she began singing in a bar that belonged to her cousin. In 1965 she recorded her first song, a cover version of the Jackie Wilson track Stop Doggin 'Me Around . On the mediation of Henry Himes and Henry Moore, she was signed by Huey P. Meaux and released her first recordings on his labels Jet Star and Tribe Records. Because she feared that the difficult pronunciation of her surname could hinder her career, she changed her stage name to Jean Knight. Because she couldn't make a living from her singing career at the time, Jean Knight worked as a baker in the Loyola University canteen in New Orleans.

In 1970, Ralph Williams, one of the authors of her later hit Mr. Big Stuff , came up to her to submit an offer from producer Wardell Quezergue. In the following session in the Malaco studio in Jackson, Mississippi , Mr. Big Stuff was created . Initially, the recording met with little response from the labels. It wasn't until King Floyd's single Groove Me , recorded in the same session as Mr. Big Stuff , became a hit that George Smith remembered Knight on Stax Records. Stax released the single in August 1971, and the accompanying album of the same name was released in November. The song became a hit single, reached number one on the R&B charts, number two on the Billboard Hot 100 , and achieved double platinum status with over two million sales. The song also earned her a Grammy nomination. Jean Knight's Stax time ended when producer Wardell Quezergue, who had handled the business cooperation with Stax, ended the cooperation with Stax due to differences. With the recordings that were made for Stax until 1972, she was unable to build on the great success of Mr. Big Stuff , although, for example, the single You Think You're Hot Stuff, also released in 1971, was also relatively successful and made it onto the Billboard Hot 100 could position at number 57. In the period that followed, she was not granted any major successes, only in 1981 Knight was able to land a small hit again with You Got the Papers (But I Got the Man) , as well as in 1985 with a version of Rockin 'Sidney's song Don't Mess with My Toot Toot , which appeared under the shorter title My Toot Toot (number 50 on the Billboard Hot 100). After a lengthy creative break, Jean Knight released two albums in the late 1990s, which, however, remained without great sales success.

Discography

Studio albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)	Remarks
		US
1971	Mr. Big Stuff	US60 (11 weeks) US	First published: 1971
1985	My Toot Toot	US180 (4 weeks) US	First published: 1985

more publishments

• 1981: Keep It Comin
• 1997: Shaki de Boo tea
• 1997: The Very Best of Me
• 1999: Queen

Singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)	Remarks
		US
1971	Mr. Big Stuff Mr. Big Stuff	US2 (16 weeks) US	First published: May 1971
	You Think You're Hot Stuff Mr. Big Stuff	US57 (5 weeks) US	First published: October 1971
1985	My Toot Toot My Toot Toot	US50 (15 weeks) US	First published: April 1985

Web links

• Jean Knight at Allmusic (English)
• Jean Knight at Discogs (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} Jazzii Anderson: The Real Story Behind “Mr. Big Stuff ” . Interview with Knight in Jefferson Blues Magazine , October 19, 2012, accessed October 30, 2015
2. ^ Jean Knight on Billboard , accessed October 30, 2015
3. ↑ Jean Knight ( Memento of the original from February 1, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. from Stax Records , accessed October 30, 2015  
4. ↑ ^{a b} Chart sources: US