Eddie Bo

A veteran of the New Orleans R&B circuit whose talents received far less recognition than they deserved, Edwin Joseph Bocage—better known as Eddie Bo—developed into one of the city’s leading funk practitioners by the close of the 1960s and the start of the following decade, even though no nationwide success ever matched his local stature. Born on September 20, 1930, he grew up in the Algiers and Ninth Ward neighborhoods, surrounded by relatives steeped in music: uncles Peter and Charles together with cousin Henry performed in jazz ensembles after World War I, among them A.J. Piron’s orchestra, while his mother played piano in the style associated with Professor Longhair. Following high school he entered the Army; upon returning he enrolled at the Grunewald School of Music, where he absorbed the approach of bebop pianists such as Art Tatum and Oscar Peterson. Although he initially worked the jazz-dominated jam sessions around town, he soon shifted toward R&B, finding it both more popular and financially rewarding. He first appeared in the house band at Club Tijuana under the name Spider Bocage, then assembled the Spider Bocage Orchestra, which provided accompaniment for an array of established blues and R&B performers including Ruth Brown, Earl King, Lloyd Price, Big Joe Turner, Smiley Lewis, and Guitar Slim.

His recording career began in 1955 with a single on the Ace label, and over the years he issued more 45s than any other New Orleans artist apart from Fats Domino. A local success on Apollo titled “I’m Wise” later supplied the foundation for Little Richard’s “Slippin’ and Slidin’.” He also cut sides for Chess and Checker, yet most of his 1950s output appeared on the small Ric imprint, yielding regional favorites such as “Every Dog Has Its Day” and “Tell It Like It Is”; Etta James scored a hit with her version of his “My Dearest Darling.” The 1961 dance number “Check Mr. Popeye” came closest to broader exposure, moving briskly through the South and Northeast, though rival recordings by Chubby Checker and Huey “Piano” Smith limited its national chart impact. Throughout this era Bo also produced sessions for other local talent, among them Irma Thomas, Chris Kenner, and Johnny Adams.

Commercial prospects for New Orleans R&B faded during the 1960s, leaving Bo to record for a succession of modest hometown labels that rarely enjoyed national distribution. As the decade progressed his keyboard work grew progressively funk-oriented while retaining increasing traces of his earlier jazz schooling, helping shape the distinctive New Orleans variant of the style alongside figures such as the Meters and Willie Tee. The 1969 Scram release “Hook and Sling, Pts. 1 & 2” became his strongest chart performer, reaching the R&B Top 40. Frustrated with industry dependence, he launched his own Bo-Sound label and scored another hit in 1971 with “Check Your Bucket.” Additional early-1970s tracks on the imprint, including “Pass the Hatchet,” later contributed to his reputation as an overlooked funk classicist.

After the early 1970s he participated in music only intermittently while establishing a renovation business, although he did produce two albums under his own direction, Another Side of Eddie Bo and Watch for the Coming, toward the end of that decade. Late in the 1980s he collaborated with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and toured Europe. During the 1990s he revived the Bo-Sound imprint, issuing Eddie Bo and Friends, Back Up This Train, and Nine Yards of Funk. He appeared in the 1999 PBS documentary River of Song, continued to perform overseas, and maintained a steady presence on local stages, most frequently at Tipitina’s.