Legendary Louisiana Swamp Pop and R&B Singer, Clint
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REMEMBERING CLINT WEST (1938-2016) EGENDARY LOUISIANA SWAMP POP AND R&B SINGER, CLINT WEST HAS DIED, L succumbing of kidney failure at St Landry Extended Care Hospital in Opelousas, LA, on June 28. He had been in declining health for several years. He was 77. Clint West certainly was not a household name outside of his home state, but this local hero merits much more than just a passing acknowledgement. As erstwhile leader of the fabled, blue-eyed soul band, the Boogie Kings, and afterward the Fabulous Kings he is, indeed, a significant historical figure. And his passing marks the end of an era wherein such aggregates first introduced R&B to white audi- ences, especially those lucky enough to live in that musically fertile crescent of ter- ritory which stretched from the Florida Panhandle to Port Arthur, TX, Beaumont and beyond, in fact the whole Gulf Coast. And his role in the dissemination of this blues roots music cannot be underestimated, because in that era of rampant segregation, renegade outfits like Boogie Kings, through their espousal of what the religious right considered the “devil’s music,” either broke down barriers between blacks and whites or, in the very least, contributed mightily toward the rapproche- ment of the races. BY LARRY BENICEWICZ PHOTOGRAPHS BY LARRY BENICEWICZ UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED 6 | BLUESRAG | WINTER 2016 | MOJOWORKIN.COM Clint West, 1967. PHOTO COURTESY OF JIN RECORDS MOJOWORKIN.COM | WINTER 2016 | BLUESRAG | 7 in delivering their own brand of R&B? It such as Gilbert Mayeaux and the Vidrine would most certainly be a badge of honor Playboys at the Bel Amour Club. At age 12, CLINT and quite a feather in anyone’s cap to be their son prevailed upon them to tag along. selected just to open a show for, for exam- And all the while during the show, Mayeaux, ple, a Fats Domino at the Pelican Club an accomplished accordionist who led WEST in Marksville, LA, or an Otis Redding at a Cajun trio, noticed how the young lad, CONTINUED the Bamboo Club in Lake Charles, LA, seated at the bandstand, was keeping time and thereafter jam with these superstars. with his spoons. In short, Mayeaux inquired The Boogie Kings were never hacks But could you imagine a white soul band about the youngster’s availability as a new nor dilettantes; they were serious students with enough confidence (not to men- addition to his band—percussionist---and of R&B eager to spread the gospel of their tion chutzpah) to execute a gig in a large thereafter provided him with a real drum kit newfound passion to whomever would lis- black arena like Ball’s Auditorium in Lake upon which he taught him the rudiments of ten. By the middle 50s, this genre of music Charles (sharing the bill with B.B. King) the instrument. And, from all accounts, this was finally receiving air play in limited quan- or the all black Cassen Street Community musical neophyte became a quick learner. tities, like over KVPI, in Ville Platte, LA, but Center in Alexandria, LA, a veritable lion’s Honing his skills in mostly Cajun bands, only on Saturday afternoons. Nonetheless, den, wherein they became regulars. Yes, the Clint West (he appropriated his mother’s members of the Boogie Kings became avid Boogie Kings would accept any and all such maiden name), managed to finish high listeners, and they were good to go. But this challenges. In his autobiography, Living Like school and afterward take business courses. band was far from unique in those parts. a King, trumpeter Ned Theall, the last leader At age twenty, he acquired a job as a book- Friendly horn driven competitors in this of the group, expresses his admiration for keeper in an insurance office and legend has region included Baton Rouge’s John Fred the then head honcho, Clint West, and also it that he was fired for listening to too much (Gourrier) and his Playboy Band. Although the band’s ability to assimilate new material. music, all the while keeping time with pen- its biggest claim to fame was the novelty hit, “Clint was such a great drummer that he cils or pens or whatever makeshift drum- “Judy in Disguise,” it was a group to be reck- was a strong force in the band. Clint was sticks he could invent. But it was of no con- oned with in R&B circles. And then there also a wonderful blues vocalist, specializing sequence that he was summarily dismissed was the Beaumont, TX, based Jerry and the in James Brown and B. B. King tunes. We because he was about to meet his second Dominoes. The late leader of this hot R&B had rehearsed the entire James Brown at the great teacher in the figure of Red Smiley. ensemble, Jerry “Count” Jackson La Croix Apollo album. The Boogie Kings performed In 1958, at age 30, Mr. Smiley (born (1943-2014), would go on as vocalist to front this medley of James Brown hits much bet- Robert Shurley in Peoria, IL, September not only a later incarnation of the Boogie ter than James ever thought of playing it. 12, 1928) was then residing in Palmetto, Kings but also Edgar Winter’s White Trash Intense.” LA, off Highway 71 near Lebeau and had and Blood, Sweat & Tears. And yet another But Clint West didn’t acquire his musical long been a solid, seasoned veteran of many worthy adversary was Roy Head and the acumen by accident. It seems that every step bands of many configurations and musical Traits out of San Marco, TX, which scored of the way during his formative years there persuasions. Inspired in his youth particu- nationally with “Treat Her Right” in 1965. was a musical mentor to show him the way. larly by the lap steel or pedal steel guitar Even on its own turf, the Boogie Kings Clint West was born Clinton Joseph work of virtuoso Jerry Byrd, who joined had to respect another similarly inclined, Guillory on August 11, 1938 in Vidrine, the Grand Ole Opry in 1946 and who but short lived affair, Phil Comeaux and LA, a small town between Mamou and Ville backed such greats as Hank Williams, Ernest the Modernaires from Lafayette, which fea- Platte, LA. According to several sources, Tubb, Patsy Cline, and Red Foley, Shurley tured the multi-faceted instrumentalist and he was considered an oddball in that he was determined to follow in his idol’s foot- singer, Roy Perkins (Ernie Suarez). Road eschewed sports as a youngster in favor of steps, teaching himself the elementary prin- warriors all, they regularly crisscrossed this keeping rhythm with a set of spoons upon ciples of the instrument. At an early age, he large swath of real estate during the late 50s any resonating object that he happened became proficient enough to handle the lap and the entire decade of the 60s, sometimes upon in the household. His parents were steel duties in two legendary Cajun string playing simultaneously in the same towns. not musically minded in the least but once bands, Lawrence Walker (accordionist) and How awesome were the Boogie Kings in a while would attend fais do do’s by locals the Wandering Aces and that of guitarist 8 | BLUESRAG | WINTER 2016 | MOJOWORKIN.COM Clint West, 1998, at Warren Storm’s 50th anniversary in show business, Swampwater’s Club, Lafayette, LA. PHOTO BY LARRY BENICEWICZ Happy Fats (Leroy Leblanc). In the early 50s, attendance at his shows [Red Smiley at the Shurley was excused from both largely tra- the group led by Happy Fats was opening time was one-half of the renowned bluegrass ditional ensembles for playing “too jazzy.” “I many a concert for visiting C&W luminar- duo, Reno and Smiley],” he said. Ironically, was favoring minor keys at times with blues ies of the day, including Hank Williams, Billy Bob Shurley, who now resides in the high progressions and improvising too much, I Walker, Floyd Tillman, and Leon Payne, to desert town of Yucca Valley, CA (near Palm guess. So they showed me the door,” he said. name a few. “Happy was fond of renaming Springs), can play a decent banjo, but never But by the middle 50s, Rock and Roll members of his troupe and assigned me the during that time frame tried to emulate that was asserting itself and Mr. Shurley in 1956 name of Red Smiley, maybe to increase the bluegrass demigod. Eventually, however, Mr. latched on to a band that was more accom- modating to his musical proclivities, Bee Romero and the Teche Playboys (a.k.a. the Romero Brothers), which included Johnny on drums, Louis Batiste “Bee” Romero on rhythm guitar, and Sam on saxophone. The latter sibling especially came in handy, since he was the proprietor of several music stores. “I think he furnished me at a discount with one of those fancy Fender double neck steel guitars with three legs,” he said. And their repertoire, as he recalls, contained a lot of Chuck Berry. After parting ways with the Romero Brothers in the late 50s, Mr. Shurley set about to form his own group, the Vel-tones, and quickly recruited Clint West whose reputation as drummer had preceded him. MOJOWORKIN.COM | WINTER 2016 | BLUESRAG | 9 CLINT WEST CONTINUED In addition to being a great tenor vocalist, he was also a valuable commodity in that he could also tackle the Cajun one-note accor- dion, a dexterity which accorded the band a much more diverse play list. Rounding out this ensemble was Billy Jackson on piano and highly regarded upright bass player, Tiny Whalen, who was actually a huge man and who had distinguished himself as a member of Papa Cairo’s (Julius Lamperez) famous string band in the 40s.