This is. . .

Smith, Huey "Piano" and His Clowns

Party Time at the Piano

If you believe the history books, Huey "Piano" Smith is a forgotten footnote. He was never king of the boogie-woogie-influenced R&B explosion that happened in New Orleans during the 1950s—such luminaries as Professor Longhair and Eddie Bo held that distinction. Smith was never the most famous of the city's fast-rising rock piano giants, either; Fats Domino overshadowed him in almost every way.

But cue up virtually any of the singles Smith and his band the Clowns recorded for Ace Records in the late '50s, and prepare for a jolt. Here is some of the most deliriously giddy party-time music ever captured on tape. These up-tempo dance-floor jumps and cat-calling blues are highly concentrated magic elixirs—press Play and watch the cares of the day melt away. Smith's original songs seem simple: "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" (one of several "disease" songs in his canon), "Sea Cruise" (later a hit for Frankie Ford), and "Little Liza Jane" amount to a series of riffs and shouts, sung with suave nonchalance by frequent guest vocalist Bobby Marchan. Still, the draw is Smith's scooting, relentlessly rollicking rhythm section, which shuttles along in grand New Orleans style, moving with the unstoppable force of a freight train and the curve-hugging grace of a sports car.

Genre: R&B
Released: 1998, Music Club
Key Tracks: "Don't You Just Know It"
Next Stop: Professor Longhair: New Orleans Piano
After That: Dave Bartholomew: Spirit of New Orleans.
Book Page: 717

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