Zuzu Bollin's recorded output amounts to little more than two 78 rpm singles cut in the early 1950s and a 1989 album released after his rediscovery, yet his role in the Texas blues tradition merits recognition. His guitar work, shaped by T-Bone Walker, came to define the sound of postwar Lone Star blues. Born A.D. Bollin, he absorbed influences ranging from Blind Lemon Jefferson and Leroy Carr via phonograph records to Joe Turner and Count Basie in person. The nickname Zuzu attached to him during his tenure with Texan E.X. Brooks's band, a result of his preference for ZuZus ginger snap cookies. He assembled his own ensemble in 1949 that featured the young saxophonist David "Fathead" Newman. After a period with Percy Mayfield's group, Bollin returned to performing in Dallas. Late in 1951 he made his first records for Bob Sutton's Torch imprint; Newman and saxist Leroy Cooper, both of whom later joined Ray Charles's band, appeared on the sides "Why Don't You Eat Where You Slept Last Night" and "Headlight Blues." A follow-up Torch release, "Stavin' Chain" backed with "Cry, Cry, Cry," placed Bollin in front of Jimmy McCracklin's combo. No further sessions occurred, although Bollin traveled with bandleaders Ernie Fields and Joe Morris until he left music in 1964 for the more reliable trade of dry cleaning. The Dallas Blues Society initiated his 1987 rediscovery, organizing a run of live dates that led to the 1989 album Texas Bluesman, which presented his style to strong effect. Their work came just in time; Bollin died in 1990.
