Herman "Junior" Parker (March 27, 1932 – November 18, 1971), also known as Little Junior Parker, was an American blues singer and harmonica player. He is best remembered for his voice, which people described as "honeyed" and "velvet-smooth." One music journalist wrote, "For years, Junior Parker moved away from down-home harmonica blues to uptown blues-soul music." In 2001, he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. Parker was also inducted into the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame.

Life and career

There is some disagreement about the exact details of Parker's birth. However, most reliable sources now say he was born in March 1932 at Eastover Plantation near Bobo, Coahoma County, Mississippi. During the 1940s, he moved with his mother to West Memphis, Arkansas. Other birth dates, such as 1927 or 1932, have been suggested. Some research also shows that his name at birth was registered as Herbert Parker.

As a child, he sang in gospel groups. Beginning in his teenage years, he played on various blues circuits. His greatest influence as a harmonica player was Rice Miller, also known as Sonny Boy Williamson II. He worked with Sonny Boy Williamson II before joining Howlin' Wolf in 1949. Around 1950, he began performing with a group of performers in Memphis called the Beale Streeters. This group included Bobby "Blue" Bland and B. B. King.

Bobby "Blue" Bland was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1952 and was released in 1955.

In 1951, Parker formed his own band, the Blue Flames, with guitarist Pat Hare. In 1952, Ike Turner, who worked as a talent scout for Modern Records, discovered Parker. Turner recorded Parker's first release, "You're My Angel" / "Bad Women, Bad Whiskey," with Turner playing piano and Matt "Guitar" Murphy on guitar. This recording brought Parker to the attention of Sam Phillips, and he and his band signed with Sun Records in 1953. At Sun Records, they produced three successful songs with Matt Murphy's brother, Floyd, on electric guitar: "Feelin' Good" (which reached number 5 on the U.S. Billboard R&B chart), "Love My Baby," and "Mystery Train," a cover version of which was later recorded by Elvis Presley. For Presley's version of "Mystery Train," Scotty Moore used the guitar riff from Parker's "Love My Baby," played by Pat Hare. "Love My Baby" and "Mystery Train" became rockabilly standards.

Later in 1955, Parker joined Duke Records and toured with Bobby Bland and Buddy Ace. Parker and Bland led the successful Blues Consolidated Revue, which regularly performed on the southern blues circuit. He continued to have many hits on the R&B chart, including the smooth song "Next Time You See Me" (1957); remakes of Roosevelt Sykes's song "Driving Wheel" (1961), "Annie Get Your Yo-Yo" (1962), Robert Johnson's "Sweet Home Chicago," Guitar Slim's "The Things That I Used to Do" (1963), and Don Robey's "Mother-in-Law Blues" (1956); and his own song "Stand by Me" (1961).

His success was limited after he left Duke Records in 1966. He recorded for various labels, including Mercury, Blue Rock, Minit, and Capitol. His final chart hit came in 1971 with "Drowning on Dry Land" on Capitol, which reached number 48 on the Billboard R&B chart.

Death

Parker died on November 18, 1971, at age 39, in Blue Island, Illinois, while having surgery for a brain tumor. His next album was released by United Artists Records in 1972. The album’s title was I Tell Stories Sad and True, I Sing the Blues and Play Harmonica Too, It Is Very Funky. In Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), Robert Christgau wrote, "Once a big man on the blues circuit, Parker was turning into the forgotten Beale Streeter by the time he died… and this is a respectful farewell… Not as powerful as B.B. or Bobby, Parker smooths his way over the arrangements with the calm of a man who was calm and relaxed even before people talked about it that way, at least in its present form. Highlight: the sad, true story that goes with 'Funny How Time Slips Away.'"

Legacy

In 1974, on the album …Explores Your Mind, Al Green dedicated his song "Take Me to the River" to Parker. In the song's spoken introduction, Green referred to Parker as "a cousin of mine who's gone on, and we'd like to carry on in his name."

In 2001, Parker was added to the Blues Hall of Fame. He was also added to the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame.

In 2011, Parker received a marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail in Bobo.

Discography

• Blues Consolidated, 1958 (Duke DLP-72)
• Driving Wheel, 1962 (Duke DLP-76)
• The Best of Junior Parker, 1967 (Duke DLP-83)
• Like It Is, 1967 (Mercury SR 61101) also released as Baby Please, 1967 (Wing SRW-16401)
• Honey-Drippin' Blues, 1969 (Blue Rock SRB-64004)
• Little Jr. Parker: Blues Man, 1969 (Minit 24024)
• Jimmy McGriff/Junior Parker [AKA Chicken Fried Soul], 1971 (United Artists UAS-5597) also released as Jimmy McGriff with Junior Parker, 1972 (United Artists UAS-6814) – live recording
• You Don't Have to Be Black to Love the Blues, 1971 (Groove Merchant GM-502) also released in 1972 as Blue Shadows Falling for the UK market.
• Love Ain't Nothin' but a Business Goin' On, 1971 (Groove Merchant GM-513) reissue of The Outside Man, 1970 (Capitol ST-564)
• The Dudes Doin' Business, 1970 (Capitol ST-569) also released as Good Things Don't Happen Every Day (with Jimmy McGriff), 1972 (Groove Merchant GM-2205)
• I Tell Stories Sad and True, I Sing the Blues and Play Harmonica Too, It Is Very Funky, 1972 (United Artists UAS-6823)
• Sometimes Tomorrow My Broken Heart Will Die, 1973 (ABC/Bluesway BLS-6066)

• The ABC Collection, 1976 (ABC Records AC-30010), compilation of Duke singles
• Junior's Blues: The Duke Recordings, Vol. 1, 1992 (MCA 10669), recorded 1951–1964
• Backtracking: The Duke Recordings, Vol. 2, 1998 (MCA 11786), recorded 1953–1966
• I'm So Satisfied: The Complete Mercury & Blue Rock Recordings, 1998 (Mercury 5580), recorded 1967–1969
• The Outside Man: The Capitol Recordings, 2001 (Capitol 5310), recorded 1970–1972

• 1953: "Feelin' Bad", Little Junior's Blue Flames (Sun unissued master)
• 1954: "Sittin' at the Bar", Little Junior's Blue Flames (Sun unissued master)
• 1954: "Sittin' at the Window", Little Junior's Blue Flames (Sun unissued master)
• 1954: "Sittin', Drinkin' and Thinkin'", Little Junior's Blue Flames (Sun unissued master)
• 1955: "Can You Tell Me, Baby", Little Junior Parker & His Orchestra (Duke unissued master)
• 1955: "Bachelor's Blues", Little Junior Parker & His Orchestra (Duke unissued master)