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{{Short description|American music producer and songwriter (1918–1985)}}
{{other people}}
{{other people}}
{{Refimprove|date=December 2017}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2023}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject Musicians -->
{{More citations needed|date=December 2017}}
⚫
| name = Robert Blackwell
{{Infobox musical artist
| image =
⚫
| name = Robert Blackwell
⚫
| caption =
| image = File:American_bandleader_and_songwriter_Robert_Blackwell.png
| image_size = <!-- Only for images smaller than 220 pixels -->
⚫
| caption =
| background = non_performing_personnel
| birth_name = Robert Alexander Blackwell
| birth_name = Robert Alexander Blackwell
| alias = Bumps Blackwell
| alias = Bumps Blackwell
| birth_date = {{birth date|1918|05|23|mf=y}}
| birth_date = {{birth date|1918|5|23|}}
|birth_place = [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]], U.S.
| birth_place = [[Seattle]], Washington, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|1985|03|09|1918|05|23}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|1985|3|9|1918|5|23}}
|death_place =[[Hacienda Heights, California|Hacienda Heights]], [[Whittier, California]], U.S.
|death_place = {{nowrap|[[Hacienda Heights, California]], U.S.}}
| origin =
| origin =
| instrument =
| instrument =
| genre = [[Rock and roll]], [[Pop music|pop]]
| genre = {{hlist|Rock and roll|pop}}
| occupation = [[Songwriter]], [[record producer]], [[arrangement|arranger]]
| occupation = {{hlist|Musician|songwriter|record producer|arranger}}
| years_active = 1947–1981
| years_active = 1940s–1980s
| label =
| associated_acts =
}}
}}


'''Robert Alexander "Bumps" Blackwell''' (May 23, 1918&nbsp;– March 9, 1985) was an [[United States|American]] bandleader, [[songwriter]], [[arrangement|arranger]], and [[record producer]], best known for his work overseeing the early [[hit record|hits]] of [[Little Richard]], as well as grooming [[Ray Charles]], [[Quincy Jones]], [[Ernestine Anderson]], [[Lloyd Price]], [[Sam Cooke]], [[Herb Alpert]], [[Larry Williams]], and [[Sly and the Family Stone]] at the start of their music careers.<ref name="whitep43">White, Charles (2003), p. 43. ''The Life and Times of Little Richard: The Authorised Biography.'' Omnibus Press.</ref><ref name="whitep78-79">White, Charles (2003), p. 78-79. ''The Life and Times of Little Richard: The Authorised Biography.'' Omnibus Press.</ref>
'''Robert Alexander''' "'''Bumps'''" '''Blackwell''' (May 23, 1918&nbsp;– March 9, 1985) was an American bandleader, songwriter, arranger, and record producer,<ref name="Larkin">{{cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]|editor=Colin Larkin|editor-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|publisher=[[Virgin Books]]|date=1997|edition=Concise|isbn=1-85227-745-9|pages=143/4}}</ref> best known for his work overseeing the early hits of [[Little Richard]], as well as mentoring [[Ray Charles]], [[Quincy Jones]], [[Ernestine Anderson]], [[Lloyd Price]], [[Sam Cooke]], [[Herb Alpert]], [[Larry Williams]], and [[Sly and the Family Stone]] at the start of their music careers.<ref name="whitep43">White, Charles (2003), p. 43. ''The Life and Times of Little Richard: The Authorised Biography.'' Omnibus Press, {{ISBN|978-0711997615}}</ref><ref name="whitep78-79">White, Charles (2003), p. 78-79. ''The Life and Times of Little Richard: The Authorised Biography.'' Omnibus Press, {{ISBN|978-0711997615}}</ref>


==Biography==
==Biography==
Born in [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]], Blackwell led a [[jazz]] group in the late 1940s that included [[pianist]] [[Ray Charles]] and [[trumpet]]er [[Quincy Jones]].<ref>[https://www.pbs.org/kcet/tavissmiley/archive/200701/20070116_jones.htm] {{dead link|date=December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/jon0bio-1 |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2014-12-22 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/6BcX6sbHl?url=http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/jon0bio-1 |archivedate=2012-10-23 |df= }} </ref> He moved to [[Hollywood, California|Hollywood]], [[California]] to continue studying composition, but he instead took a job at [[Art Rupe]]'s [[Specialty Records]] as an arranger and producer. He worked with [[Sam Cooke]], [[Larry Williams]], [[Lloyd Price]] and [[Guitar Slim]], as well as producing Little Richard during his rise to stardom in 1955 and 1956.
Born in [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]],<ref name="Larkin"/> Blackwell led a [[jazz]] group in the late 1940s that included pianist [[Ray Charles]] and trumpeter [[Quincy Jones]].<ref name="American Masters 2001a">{{cite web |title=Quincy Jones Interview #1 |website=American Masters |date=June 8, 2001 |url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/archive/interview/quincy-jones-interview-1/ |access-date=November 21, 2022}}</ref><ref name="American Masters 2001b">{{cite web |title=Quincy Jones Interview #2 |website=American Masters |date=July 24, 2001 |url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/archive/interview/quincy-jones-interview-2/ |access-date=November 21, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/jon0bio-1 |title=Quincy Jones Biography -- Academy of Achievement |access-date=December 22, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014065154/http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/jon0bio-1 |archive-date=October 14, 2012 }}</ref> He moved to Hollywood, California, to continue studying composition, but he instead took a job at [[Art Rupe]]'s [[Specialty Records]] as an arranger and producer.<ref name="Larkin" /> He worked with [[Sam Cooke]], [[Larry Williams]], [[Lloyd Price]] and [[Guitar Slim]], as well as producing Little Richard during his rise to stardom in 1955 and 1956.<ref name="Larkin"/>


In addition to producing Little Richard's breakthrough hit "[[Tutti Frutti (song)|Tutti Frutti]]" following hearing him sing the song in the studio, Blackwell also produced Little Richard's other mid-50s hits, co-writing some as them as well, including: "[[Long Tall Sally]]"; "[[Good Golly Miss Molly]]"; "Ready Teddy"; and "[[Rip It Up (Little Richard song)|Rip It Up]]". They all quickly became [[rock and roll]] [[Traditional pop music|standard]]s, and have subsequently been [[cover version|covered]] by hundreds of [[musician|artists]] including [[Elvis Presley]], [[the Beatles]] and [[Creedence Clearwater Revival]].
In addition to producing Little Richard's breakthrough hit "[[Tutti Frutti (song)|Tutti Frutti]]" following hearing him sing the song in the studio, Blackwell also produced Little Richard's other mid-1950s hits, co-writing some of them as well, including "[[Long Tall Sally]]", "[[Good Golly Miss Molly]]", "[[Ready Teddy]]", and "[[Rip It Up (Little Richard song)|Rip It Up]]".<ref name="Larkin"/> They all quickly became rock and roll standards, and have subsequently been covered by hundreds of artists including [[Elvis Presley]], [[the Beatles]] and [[Creedence Clearwater Revival]].


He also produced [[Sam Cooke]]'s hit "[[You Send Me]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6595960/you_send_me|title=News|website=''[[Rolling Stone]]''|accessdate=24 December 2017}}</ref> Blackwell left Specialty in 1957, taking Sam Cooke with him to [[Keen Records]]. He was the [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]] [[A&R]] director for [[Mercury Records]] from 1959 to 1963, and produced Little Richard's [[gospel music|gospel]] [[sound recording and reproduction|recordings]] for that [[record label|label]]. He became Richard's [[management|manager]] and continued to work with him into the 1970s.
He also produced [[Sam Cooke]]'s hit "[[You Send Me]]".<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6595960/you_send_me|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070328232026/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6595960/you_send_me|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 28, 2007|title=News|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|access-date=December 24, 2017}}</ref> Blackwell left Specialty in 1957, taking Sam Cooke with him to [[Keen Records]].<ref name="Larkin"/> He was the West Coast [[A&R]] director for [[Mercury Records]] from 1959 to 1963, and produced about an album's worth of Little Richard's [[gospel music|gospel]] recordings for that label. "He got what he Wanted (But he lost what he Had)" was a big hit overseas, contemporaneously with his tour of Europe, with the Beatles as his opening act. He became Richard's manager and continued to work with him into the 1970s.<ref name="Larkin"/>


In 1981 Blackwell produced some songs for [[Bob Dylan]]'s [[album]], ''[[Shot of Love]]'', including the title track.
In 1981, Blackwell produced some songs for [[Bob Dylan]]'s album ''[[Shot of Love]]'', including the title track.<ref name="Larkin"/>


In 1985, he issued a 12-inch single called "Give it Up - Pay Little Richard", following Richard's latest comeback the year before .
⚫
Blackwell died at his home in [[Hacienda Heights, California|Hacienda Heights]] in [[Whittier, California]] in 1985 of [[pneumonia]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.turkku.com/music/musicians_b.html |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2008-11-26 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090130041914/http://turkku.com/music/musicians_b.html |archivedate=2009-01-30 |df= }} </ref>

⚫
Blackwell died at his home in [[Hacienda Heights, California]], in 1985 of [[pneumonia]].<ref name="Larkin"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.turkku.com/music/musicians_b.html |title=B: Rock Star's Digest &#124; Database: Birth, death, cause of death, trivia, links |access-date=November 26, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090130041914/http://turkku.com/music/musicians_b.html |archive-date=January 30, 2009 }}</ref>


==Selective discography==
==Selective discography==
===As co-writer and producer===
===As co-writer and producer===
*1956 "[[Long Tall Sally]]" (Blackwell/Johnson/[[Little Richard|Penniman]]) - [[Little Richard]], [[Billboard Hot 100|US Pop]] #6, [[UK Singles Chart|UK]] #3
*1956: "[[Long Tall Sally]]" (Blackwell/Johnson/[[Little Richard|Penniman]]) - [[Little Richard]], [[Billboard Hot 100|US Pop]] No. 6, [[UK Singles Chart|UK]] No. 3
*1956 "[[Ready Teddy]]" (Blackwell/[[John Marascalco|Marascalco]]) - Little Richard, US Pop #44
*1956: "[[Ready Teddy]]" (Blackwell/[[John Marascalco|Marascalco]]) - Little Richard, US Pop No. 44
*1956 "[[Rip It Up (Little Richard song)|Rip It Up]]" (Blackwell/Marascalco) - Little Richard, US Pop #17, UK #30
*1956: "[[Rip It Up (Little Richard song)|Rip It Up]]" (Blackwell/Marascalco) - Little Richard, US Pop No. 17, UK No. 30
*1958 "[[Good Golly Miss Molly]]" (Blackwell/Marascalco) - Little Richard, US Pop #10, UK #8
*1958: "[[Good Golly Miss Molly]]" (Blackwell/Marascalco) - Little Richard, US Pop No. 10, UK No. 8


===As producer===
===As producer===
*1957 "[[You Send Me]]" ([[Sam Cooke]]), US Pop #1, UK #29
*1957: "[[You Send Me]]" ([[Sam Cooke]]), US Pop No. 1, UK No. 29
*1964: "[[Ooh Poo Pah Doo|Ooh Poop A Doo]]" / "[[Merry Christmas Baby]]" (Warner Bros.) - [[Ike & Tina Turner]]
⚫
*1981 "[[Shot of Love]]" ([[Bob Dylan]])
*1964: ''[[Live! The Ike & Tina Turner Show]]'', US Pop No. 126, US R&B No. 8
*1967: ''[[Live! The Ike & Tina Turner Show#The Ike & Tina Turner Show – Vol. 2|The Ike & Tina Turner Show – Vol. 2]]''
⚫
*1981: ''[[Shot of Love]]'' ([[Bob Dylan]])


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
* {{IMDb name|1039469}}
* {{IMDb name|1039469}}
* [https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc19767/m1/ Bumps Blackwell interviewed] on the [[Pop Chronicles]], recorded 4.3.1968.
* [https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc19767/m1/ Bumps Blackwell interviewed] on the [[Pop Chronicles]], recorded March 4, 1968.
**{{cite web|url=http://www.library.unt.edu/music/special-collections/john-gilliland/index-to-interviews |title=A-D&nbsp;— University of North Texas Libraries |publisher=Library.unt.edu |date=2008-07-24 |accessdate=2010-09-18}}
**{{cite web |url=http://www.library.unt.edu/music/special-collections/john-gilliland/index-to-interviews |title=A-D&nbsp;— University of North Texas Libraries |publisher=Library.unt.edu |date=July 24, 2008 |access-date=September 18, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090602212238/http://www.library.unt.edu/music/special-collections/john-gilliland/index-to-interviews |archive-date=June 2, 2009 |url-status=dead }}


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackwell, Robert}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackwell, Robert}}
[[Category:Songwriters from Washington (state)]]
[[Category:Songwriters from Washington (state)]]
[[Category:American record producers]]
[[Category:Record producers from Washington (state)]]
[[Category:1922 births]]
[[Category:1918 births]]
[[Category:1985 deaths]]
[[Category:1985 deaths]]
[[Category:Deaths from pneumonia in California]]
[[Category:Musicians from Seattle]]
[[Category:Musicians from Seattle]]
⚫
[[Category:20th-century American musicians]]
[[Category:20th-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:20th-century American businesspeople]]
⚫
[[Category:20th-century American songwriters]]

Latest revision as of 06:50, 20 October 2024

For other people named Robert Blackwell, see Robert Blackwell (disambiguation).

Robert Blackwell
Background information
Birth nameRobert Alexander Blackwell
Also known asBumps Blackwell
Born(1918-05-23)May 23, 1918
Seattle, Washington, U.S.
DiedMarch 9, 1985(1985-03-09) (aged 66)
Hacienda Heights, California, U.S.
Genres
  • Rock and roll
  • pop
Occupations
  • Musician
  • songwriter
  • record producer
  • arranger
Years active1940s–1980s

Robert Alexander "Bumps" Blackwell (May 23, 1918 – March 9, 1985) was an American bandleader, songwriter, arranger, and record producer,[1] best known for his work overseeing the early hits of Little Richard, as well as mentoring Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, Ernestine Anderson, Lloyd Price, Sam Cooke, Herb Alpert, Larry Williams, and Sly and the Family Stone at the start of their music careers.[2][3]

Biography

[edit]

Born in Seattle, Washington,[1] Blackwell led a jazz group in the late 1940s that included pianist Ray Charles and trumpeter Quincy Jones.[4][5][6] He moved to Hollywood, California, to continue studying composition, but he instead took a job at Art Rupe's Specialty Records as an arranger and producer.[1] He worked with Sam Cooke, Larry Williams, Lloyd Price and Guitar Slim, as well as producing Little Richard during his rise to stardom in 1955 and 1956.[1]

In addition to producing Little Richard's breakthrough hit "Tutti Frutti" following hearing him sing the song in the studio, Blackwell also produced Little Richard's other mid-1950s hits, co-writing some of them as well, including "Long Tall Sally", "Good Golly Miss Molly", "Ready Teddy", and "Rip It Up".[1] They all quickly became rock and roll standards, and have subsequently been covered by hundreds of artists including Elvis Presley, the Beatles and Creedence Clearwater Revival.

He also produced Sam Cooke's hit "You Send Me".[7] Blackwell left Specialty in 1957, taking Sam Cooke with him to Keen Records.[1] He was the West Coast A&R director for Mercury Records from 1959 to 1963, and produced about an album's worth of Little Richard's gospel recordings for that label. "He got what he Wanted (But he lost what he Had)" was a big hit overseas, contemporaneously with his tour of Europe, with the Beatles as his opening act. He became Richard's manager and continued to work with him into the 1970s.[1]

In 1981, Blackwell produced some songs for Bob Dylan's album Shot of Love, including the title track.[1]

In 1985, he issued a 12-inch single called "Give it Up - Pay Little Richard", following Richard's latest comeback the year before .

Blackwell died at his home in Hacienda Heights, California, in 1985 of pneumonia.[1][8]

Selective discography

[edit]

As co-writer and producer

[edit]

As producer

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. pp. 143/4. ISBN 1-85227-745-9.
  2. ^ White, Charles (2003), p. 43. The Life and Times of Little Richard: The Authorised Biography. Omnibus Press, ISBN 978-0711997615
  3. ^ White, Charles (2003), p. 78-79. The Life and Times of Little Richard: The Authorised Biography. Omnibus Press, ISBN 978-0711997615
  4. ^ "Quincy Jones Interview #1". American Masters. June 8, 2001. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  5. ^ "Quincy Jones Interview #2". American Masters. July 24, 2001. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  6. ^ "Quincy Jones Biography -- Academy of Achievement". Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  7. ^ "News". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 28, 2007. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
  8. ^ "B: Rock Star's Digest | Database: Birth, death, cause of death, trivia, links". Archived from the original on January 30, 2009. Retrieved November 26, 2008.
[edit]
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