Biography
Memphis Slim, born John "Peter" Chatman, stands among the foremost blues pianists in history thanks to his tireless output and the polished metropolitan elegance he infused into his often striking performances. He absorbed Big Bill Broonzy's counsel to craft a distinctive approach rather than echo Roosevelt Sykes, and before long fellow pianists were emulating Slim's forceful keyboard attack and the authoritative weight of his richly burnished vocals.
Born and raised in Memphis, a city ideally suited to launching a blues career, Chatman relocated to Chicago in the late 1930s. He began recording under his own name for OKeh in 1939 before moving to Bluebird the following year. Around that period he teamed with Broonzy, then the leading figure on the local blues circuit, and after serving several years as the guitarist's key accompanist he stepped forward independently in 1944.
Following World War II he signed with Hy-Tone Records and cut eight sides later acquired by King. In 1947 Lee Egalnick's Miracle label brought him aboard; fronting his lively House Rockers, whose sax section typically featured Alex Atkins and Ernest Cotton, Slim laid down the enduring tracks "Lend Me Your Love" and "Rockin' the House." The next year he produced the landmark "Nobody Loves Me," later transformed into "Everyday I Have the Blues" by Lowell Fulson, Joe Williams, and B.B. King, along with the poignant "Messin' Around (With the Blues)."
Label changes followed in rapid succession, from Miracle to Peacock to Premium, where he first recorded his sagacious slow blues "Mother Earth," then on to Chess and Mercury before settling at Chicago's United Records from 1952 to 1954. This stretch proved especially fruitful: he enlisted his first steady guitarist, the formidable Matt Murphy, whose incisive playing energized "The Come Back," "Sassy Mae," and "Memphis Slim U.S.A."
By the end of the decade he had moved to Vee-Jay Records, where he captured definitive readings of his signature songs with Murphy and a first-rate ensemble supplying ideal backing. Demonstrating his independent streak, Slim departed the United States permanently in 1962. A European tour with bassist Willie Dixon two years earlier had convinced him to settle in Paris, where abundant recording and performance opportunities awaited and the veteran pianist received the regard often withheld from African-American blues figures in the States. He remained there until his death in 1988, holding the status of expatriate blues royalty.
Born and raised in Memphis, a city ideally suited to launching a blues career, Chatman relocated to Chicago in the late 1930s. He began recording under his own name for OKeh in 1939 before moving to Bluebird the following year. Around that period he teamed with Broonzy, then the leading figure on the local blues circuit, and after serving several years as the guitarist's key accompanist he stepped forward independently in 1944.
Following World War II he signed with Hy-Tone Records and cut eight sides later acquired by King. In 1947 Lee Egalnick's Miracle label brought him aboard; fronting his lively House Rockers, whose sax section typically featured Alex Atkins and Ernest Cotton, Slim laid down the enduring tracks "Lend Me Your Love" and "Rockin' the House." The next year he produced the landmark "Nobody Loves Me," later transformed into "Everyday I Have the Blues" by Lowell Fulson, Joe Williams, and B.B. King, along with the poignant "Messin' Around (With the Blues)."
Label changes followed in rapid succession, from Miracle to Peacock to Premium, where he first recorded his sagacious slow blues "Mother Earth," then on to Chess and Mercury before settling at Chicago's United Records from 1952 to 1954. This stretch proved especially fruitful: he enlisted his first steady guitarist, the formidable Matt Murphy, whose incisive playing energized "The Come Back," "Sassy Mae," and "Memphis Slim U.S.A."
By the end of the decade he had moved to Vee-Jay Records, where he captured definitive readings of his signature songs with Murphy and a first-rate ensemble supplying ideal backing. Demonstrating his independent streak, Slim departed the United States permanently in 1962. A European tour with bassist Willie Dixon two years earlier had convinced him to settle in Paris, where abundant recording and performance opportunities awaited and the veteran pianist received the regard often withheld from African-American blues figures in the States. He remained there until his death in 1988, holding the status of expatriate blues royalty.