Albert Luandrew, also known as Sunnyland Slim, was an American blues pianist born on September 5, 1906, and died on March 17, 1995. He was born in the Mississippi Delta and later moved to Chicago, where he helped make the city a key place for blues music after the war. Chicago broadcaster and writer Studs Terkel described Sunnyland Slim as "a living part of our folk history, carrying on the old traditions with courage and skill."

Biography

Sunnyland Slim was born on a farm in Quitman County, Mississippi, near the unofficial area of Vance. In 1925, he moved to Memphis, Tennessee, where he played music with many famous blues artists of that time. His stage name came from the song "Sunnyland Train," which described a railroad line connecting Memphis and St. Louis, Missouri. In 1942, he moved to Chicago as part of the Great Migration, when many people from the South traveled to the North for work.

At that time, electric blues was developing in Chicago. Over the years, Sunnyland Slim performed with musicians like Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Robert Lockwood Jr., and Little Walter. His piano style used strong, repeated chords with his left hand and fast, shaking notes with his right hand. He sang loudly and clearly.

Sunnyland Slim's first recording was as a singer with Armand "Jump" Jackson's band for Specialty Records in September 1946. His first recordings as a leader were made for Hy-Tone Records and Aristocrat Records in late 1947. He continued performing until his death in 1995.

He released one record for RCA Victor, "Illinois Central" with "Sweet Lucy Blues" (Victor 20–2733), using the name Dr. Clayton's Buddy.

In the late 1960s, Slim became friends with members of the band Canned Heat and played piano on the track "Turpentine Moan" from their album Boogie with Canned Heat. In return, members of the band—lead guitarist Henry Vestine, slide guitarist Alan Wilson, and bassist Larry Taylor—helped Sunnyland Slim record his 1969 Liberty Records album Slim's Got His Thing Goin' On, which also included Mick Taylor.

He received a 1988 National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, which is the highest honor in the United States for folk and traditional arts.

He died in March 1995 in Chicago due to complications from kidney failure at the age of 88.

Discography

Note: Sunnyland Slim worked with many different record companies during his long career. Some of his records were released and released again on different dates and by other companies.

• Live and Cookin' (Chess, 1972)