Jessie Hill
Jessie Hill | |
|---|---|
Jessie Hill at New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, 1996. | |
| Background information | |
| Born | December 9, 1932 New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |
| Died | September 17, 1996 (aged 63) New Orleans, Louisiana, US |
| Genres | R&B Louisiana blues |
| Occupations | Singer, songwriter |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 1951–1996 |
| Labels |
|
Jessie Hill (December 9, 1932 – September 17, 1996)[1] was an American R&B and Louisiana blues[2] singer and songwriter, best remembered for the classic song "Ooh Poo Pah Doo".[1][3]
Life and career
Hill was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.[4] By his teens, he was playing drums in local bands, and in 1951 he formed his own group, the House Rockers.[4] After periods performing as drummer with Professor Longhair and then Huey "Piano" Smith, Hill formed a new version of the House Rockers in 1958, which enabled him to focus on singing with the band.[4] He is the grandfather of James and Troy Andrews.[1]
The origins of "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" were apparently created from a tune played by a local pianist, who was known only as Big Four. Hill wrote the lyrics and melody, later expanding the work with an intro taken from Dave Bartholomew. It was further honed on stage, before Hill recorded a demo that he shopped to local record labels, finally recording a session at Cosimo Matassa's studio produced by Allen Toussaint.[4]
Upon its 1960 release on Minit Records, "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" emerged as a favorite at Mardi Gras, selling 800,000 copies and reaching number 3 on the Billboard R&B chart and number 28 in the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart.[5][1][6] There have been over 100 cover versions of "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" recorded and performed live over the years by other popular musicians, most notably The Shirelles and Ike and Tina Turner.[6]
His follow-up "Whip It On Me" reached number 91 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1960.[5] Further recordings in New Orleans were less successful, and he moved to California to work with fellow New Orleans musicians including Harold Battiste and Mac Rebennack. In this period, he wrote songs recorded by Ike and Tina Turner, Sonny and Cher, and Willie Nelson.[1]
A 1971 solo album on Blue Thumb was unsuccessful, and he began to suffer financial difficulties exacerbated by a drinking problem. These problems continued after his return to New Orleans in 1977, and several benefit gigs did little to revive his personal or professional fortunes.[1]
Death
Hill died of heart and renal failure in New Orleans on September 17, 1996, at the age of 63.[1][7] He is buried in Holt Cemetery in New Orleans.[6]
Family members
Two of Hill's grandsons are James Andrews and Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews. The pair performed "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" in Episode 7 of the HBO series Treme.[8] A third grandson, Travis "Trumpet Black" Hill, was a rising New Orleans–based performer who died from a tooth infection while on tour in Tokyo on May 4, 2015.[9]
Walter "Papoose" Nelson, best known as Fats Domino's guitar player, was his brother-in-law.[10] Lois Nelson Andrews, a New Orleans 6th Ward cultural icon dubbed as the Queen of the Tremé, was Hill's daughter.[11]
Discography
Singles
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions |
Record Label |
Album | B-side | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Pop |
US R&B | |||||
| 1960 | "Ooh Poo Pah Doo Part 1" | 28 | 3 | Minit | "Ooh Poo Pah Doo Part 2" | |
| "Whip It on Me" | 91 | — | "I Need Your Love" | |||
| "Scoop Scoobie Doobie" | — | — | "Highhead Blues" | |||
| 1961 | "I Got Mine" | — | — | "Oh Me Oh My" | ||
| "My Love" | — | — | "Oogsey Moo" | |||
| "It's My Fault" | — | — | "Sweet Jelly Roll" | |||
| 1962 | "Can’t Get Enough (Of That Ooh Poo Pah Doo)" | — | — | "The Pot's on a Strike" | ||
| 1964 | "Chip Chop (My Fair Lady)" | — | — | Downey | "Woodshed" | |
| "Understanding" | — | — | "Down the Street" | |||
| "Never Thought" | — | — | "T.V. Guide" | |||
| 1965 | "I'm Telling You People" | — | — | Kerwood | "If I Am Lucky" | |
| 1967 | "My Children, My Children" | — | — | Chess | "Something Ought to Be Done (About You)" | |
| 1969 | "Free and Easy" | — | — | Pulsar | "Mardi Gras" | |
| 1971 | "Naturally" | — | — | Blue Thumb | Naturally | "Livin’ a Lie" |
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "Biography by Jason Ankeny". AllMusic. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
- ^ Du Noyer, Paul (2003). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music (1st ed.). Fulham, London: Flame Tree Publishing. p. 180. ISBN 1-904041-96-5.
- ^ Alison Fensterstock (December 9, 2014). "A birthday party for the late New Orleans R&B icon Jessie Hill, at Ooh Poo Pah Doo Bar Monday night". Nola.com. Times-Picayune. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
- ^ a b c d Colin Larkin, ed. (1995). The Guinness Who's Who of Blues (Second ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 172. ISBN 0-85112-673-1.
- ^ a b "Jessie Hill Chart History". Billboard.
- ^ a b c Jeff Hannusch (February 1, 2002). "Masters Of Louisiana Music: Jessie Hill". OffBeat magazine website. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
- ^ "R&B Singing Legend Jessie Hill Is Dead". Times Picayune. September 24, 1996. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
- ^ "'Treme,' Episode 7: Civil Dysfunction Meets Civil Disobedience". NPR.org. May 24, 2010. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
- ^ Alison Fensterstock (May 5, 2015). "Travis 'Trumpet Black' Hill, rising New Orleans trumpeter, has died at 28". NOLA.com. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
- ^ Dik de Heer. "WALTER "PAPOOSE" NELSON". TIMS-This Is My Story. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
- ^ "Remembering Lois Nelson Andrews". Jazz & Heritage Foundation. November 18, 2021. Retrieved October 2, 2025.