Roosevelt Sykes (January 31, 1906 – July 17, 1983) was an American blues musician, also known as "the Honeydripper."

Career

Sykes was born in Elmar, Arkansas, the son of a musician. He described his birthplace as "just a little old sawmill town." By 1909, the Sykes family had moved to St. Louis. Sykes often visited his grandfather’s farm near West Helena. He began playing the church organ around the age of ten. "Every summer I would go down to Helena to visit my grandfather on his farm," he told biographer Valerie Wilmer. "He was a preacher and had an organ that I used to practice on, trying to learn how to play. I always liked the sound of the blues, liked to hear people singing, and since I was singing first, I was trying to play like I sang." Sykes was baptized at 13 years old, and his lifelong beliefs never conflicted with playing the blues.

At age 15, he traveled around playing piano in a style of blues called barrelhouse. Like many blues musicians of his time, he performed for all-male audiences in sawmill, turpentine, and levee camps along the Mississippi River, sometimes in a duo with Big Joe Williams. He gathered a collection of songs that included raw, sexually explicit material. In 1925, Sykes met Leothus "Lee" Green, a pianist in a West Helena theater who played a mix of blues, ragtime, waltz, and jazz to accompany silent movies. They worked together on the Louisiana and Mississippi work camp and roadhouse circuit, with Green acting as a mentor and protector to Sykes. "I just been pickin' a little cotton," Sykes would say from the stage, "and pickin' a little piano." Green taught Sykes the style of playing, characterized by separate bass and treble rhythms, that would later become the basis for "44 Blues." Sykes’ travels eventually brought him back to St. Louis, Missouri, where he met St. Louis Jimmy Oden, the writer of the blues standard "Goin' Down Slow."

After a few years, Sykes found work at Katy Red's, a barrelhouse across the river in East St. Louis, Illinois. He was paid room and board, and a dollar a night. In 1929, he was spotted by a talent scout named Jesse Johnson, who owned De Luxe Music Shop. After Sykes played a few songs on the store’s piano, Johnson offered him the opportunity to make his first recordings. His first release was "44 Blues," which became a blues standard and his signature song. Sykes recalled: "I started making records on the 14th of June 1929. I had been playing for about eight years before I started recording. The first number I made was a hit, '44 Blues,' and every record I made was a star ever since." Sykes earned the nickname "the Honey Dripper" while playing on a session for singer Edith Johnson later in 1929, during which she recorded "Honeydripper Blues." Johnson said she gave him the name because of his kind disposition and easygoing personality. Sykes claimed the nickname dated back to his childhood, saying, "Girls used to hang around me when I was a young kid. So the boys say, 'He must have honey.'" Sykes used his earnings from recording to invest in an illegal speakeasy that sold fried fish and alcohol. He continued running this business at various locations for years. He recorded for different labels using pseudonyms, including "Easy Papa Johnson" for Melotone Records, "Dobby Bragg" for Paramount Records, "Willie Kelly" for Victor Records, and "the Bluesman" for Specialty Records, in the 1930s and 1940s. During this time, he befriended another blues musician, the singer Charlie "Specks" McFadden, and accompanied him on half of McFadden’s recordings.

Sykes and Oden moved to Chicago, where Sykes found his first period of fame when he signed a contract with Decca Records in 1934. In 1936, he recorded "Driving Wheel Blues" for Decca. He soon became a sought-after session pianist for the Bullet and Bluebird labels. Sykes and Oden continued their musical friendship into the 1960s.

In 1943, Sykes began performing with his band The Honeydrippers. The band often had as many as twelve musicians, including many of Chicago’s best horn players. Despite the growing urbanity of his style, he gradually became less competitive in the post–World War II music scene. After his contract with RCA Victor expired, he recorded for smaller labels, such as United, until his opportunities ran out in the mid-1950s.

Sykes left Chicago for New Orleans in 1954, as electric blues was taking over the Chicago blues clubs. He also recorded two sessions for Imperial Records in 1955, which were produced by Dave Bartholomew. He moved back to Chicago in 1960 as the folk music revival rekindled interest in the blues. He toured Europe and performed at blues festivals in the United States. In the late 1960s, Sykes moved back to New Orleans, where he played at clubs, including the Court of Two Sisters. When he recorded in the 1960s, it was for labels such as Delmark, Bluesville, Storyville, and Folkways, which were documenting the quickly passing blues history. He lived his final years in New Orleans, where he died from a heart attack on July 17, 1983. He was buried at Providence Memorial Park in New Orleans in an unmarked grave. In 2015, the Killer Blues Headstone Project placed a headstone for him.

Technique

Sykes decided to become a blues musician after hearing St. Louis pianist Red-Eye Jesse Bell. He listed St. Louis musicians such as Bell, Joe Crump, Baby Sneed, and his teacher "Pork Chop" Lee Green as important influences. Leothus Lee "Pork Chop" Green is believed to have taught Sykes how to play separate but connected bass and treble rhythms.

Sykes had a strong voice and a powerful piano style. His voice could be sharp but also had softer tones, and he sang with a smooth, wavering sound called vibrato. He sometimes added complex musical details to his songs. His piano playing used simple left-hand patterns, often repeating single notes on beats, while his right hand played with complex rhythms. His music used only basic blues chords most of the time. His technique was more like that of blues guitarists than other pianists recorded at the time. Though he played fast, energetic boogie-woogie songs well, Sykes was especially skilled at slower and medium-paced blues. His left hand provided a steady rhythm, while his right hand moved freely across the keyboard. He treated the piano as a main instrument rather than just part of a group. His style worked well alone or with larger musical groups.

As his career continued, Sykes became more skilled in writing lyrics, including influences from pop music, than in his playing or singing. Some of his later blues songs used an 8-bar structure, similar to pop or gospel music, instead of the earlier 12-bar style. Sykes could easily switch between country boogie-woogie and his urban blues piano style. A highly skilled blues pianist, he played in a traditional way, adding musical details, notes, and chord changes when needed, even if it meant changing the timing slightly. At the same time, Sykes was careful as a supporting musician, adjusting to other musicians’ changes.

Sykes’ unique vocal style was singing half a musical measure before his piano played. Author Paul Oliver said, "His habit of starting a piano phrase before singing gave his songs a strong rhythm."

Legacy

Sykes had a long career that included the time before and after a major war. His loud and energetic piano music and bold lyrics helped describe his work in the blues. He created important blues songs such as "44 Blues," "Driving Wheel," and "Night Time Is the Right Time." He was added to the Blues Hall of Fame in 1999.

Discography

• The Return of Roosevelt Sykes (Bluesville, 1960)
• The Honeydripper (Bluesville, 1961)
• Blues (Folkways, 1961) with Memphis Slim
• Face to Face with the Blues (Columbia, 1961)
• The Honeydripper: Roosevelt Sykes Plays and Sings the Blues (Columbia, 1962)
• Roosevelt Sykes Sings the Blues (Crown, 1963)
• Hard Drivin' Blues (Delmark, 1964) with Homesick James
• Roosevelt Sykes in Europe (Delmark, 1966 [reissued in 1969])
• The Meek Roosevelt Sykes (Carson, 1969; reissued by Jewel, 1973)
• Chicago Blues Festival (Black & Blue, 1970) with Homesick James
• Feel Like Blowing My Horn (Delmark, 1970 [reissued in 1973])
• The Honeydripper's Duke's Mixture (Barclay, 1971)
• Roosevelt Sykes Is Blue and Ribald…A 'Dirty Mother' for You (Southland, 1972)
• Dirty Double Mother (BluesWay, 1973)
• Music Is My Business (Blue Labor, 1975 [reissued in 1977])
• The Original Honeydripper (Blind Pig, 1977)
• Boot That Thing 1929–1941 (Acrobat ADDCD-3019 [2CD], 2008) includes songs recorded for OKeh, Victor, Paramount, Champion, and Decca labels.