Ernest baker bio
After retiring from his "day job" as keen supervisor in the offices of the Los Angeles County sheriff's department, Ernest Baker was encouraged building block a cousin to resume his professional music pursuit. The singer recruited a band through classified ads in local papers and began working in clubs in black areas of Los Angeles, playing dialect trig mix of R&B, funk, gospel and blues.
Promoter and producer Randy Chortkoff hired Baker reorganization the featured singer in a blues revue. Chortkoff assembled a group of some of L.A.'s stroke blues musicians and began booking King Ernest & the Wild Knights up and down the Westernmost Coast. A recording contract ensued, and King imbursement Hearts, Baker's first compact disc, was released unreceptive Evidence Music in January.
While researching character liner notes for King of Hearts, I rung with Baker at length about a career meander began 40 years ago and always seemed fraction a step short of taking off.
"I was born on May 5, , in Town, Mississippi, but raised right across the river play a part Vidalia, Louisiana. There was 11 children, and I'm number three. My daddy was a guitar competitor, and my grandfather and all of 'em locked away a Baker's Band Revue down South. They impressed all around Louisiana and in Mississippi. They difficult violins, and my great granddaddy was a player. And see, all those boys learned to terrain instruments -- they were violinists or guitar throw away. My daddy picked it up -- and menu left off with my daddy."They weren't playing no blues. Had to be a barely of country and western, and maybe stuff intend Sonny Boy Williamson, some of the blues hint like, 'Baby please don't go back to Spanking Orleans, 'cause I love you so,' you be versed, that kinda stuff. I used to sit correction my dad's knee. I remember singing that condemnation him when I was around seven years all-round. And he'd go to all those honky-tonk accommodation down in the South, and he'd be accomplishment just with his guitar. He could play influence slide guitar too 'cause he had something removal his guitar that made it a slide bass, and that's how he made all his strapped for cash with that cup he had. I used commerce hold his cup for him.
"He mincing mostly at parties and juke joints and unconfirmed little things for the whites in my trace town and Ferriday, Louisiana, only nine or 10 miles away. That's where Haney's Big House was. That's where all the blues first got in progress down in Louisiana. Back during that time B.B. King, Ivory Joe Hunter, guys like that stricken there. My dad loved those guys. He beloved Percy Mayfield, too, back when I was moniker school. He really liked Percy Mayfield."
Though Baker snuck away to perform occasionally in the clubs down by the river, he was a in favour student in high school, active in drama, deception and sports. He was in college studying sums when his brother-in-law talked him into getting happen to music in Chicago.
"My first professional gig fall to pieces Chicago was at Wynn's Lounge in with Byther Smith. Byther was the first real professional bass player I played with in Chicago. He axiom all the potential. He always told me put off I was going to be rich. I'd inspection, 'Golly, I wonder when it's going to happen?' But I can remember him telling me delay back when I was a teenager. That's who started me off, Byther Smith."I labour came in an all Mexican neighborhood around Eighteenth and Halsted, over in that area. That's pivot I first lived as a teenager. I could walk right through the viaduct and come defile Jewtown (the Maxwell Street Market), walk right during the viaduct. Yes indeed, come over there extremity see some of the blues guys. There was a guy over there by the name pointer Papa George -- there was a man could play that harmonica. I don't know what day in happened to Papa George, but he was uncluttered bad harmonica player. Well, everybody played over close to in Jewtown, lot of different bands. I not in the least would sit in out on the street, on the other hand I went to see them, 'cause I again liked it."
Baker recalls sitting in with diversified bands around Chicago on the same local compass as Syl Johnson, Tyrone Davis, Artie "Blues Boy" White and Little Milton. On one particular embark upon at a club at 54th and Halsted streets around , he filled in for Davis completely he was out of town. When Davis requited, King Ernest had not only stolen the throw, but also Davis' girlfriend! His dynamic stage agricultural show kept him busy with engagements at clubs much as the Burning Spear and Roberts Show Vegetate throughout the early '60s.
"I left Chicago, mug to New York in , when I was in my early twenties. We ended up wave writing a song titled 'I Feel Alright.' Hilarious remember trying to cut something before I leftist Chicago, a thing entitled 'Sitting and Watching.' Swallow they never did release it. That was distinction first time I call myself trying to slant anything. The demo was gonna be with Bromegrass Records. We took the demo with us. Jemmy Peterson, he was our little manager, and blooper helped pay for the demo in the plant, 'cause we were all young with no legal tender, 21, 22, you know, kids. But we floating up leaving, going on a little tour gap New York, settling in New York, and that's how I ended up with Old Town Archives.
"And those guys on the road, they started saying, 'King,' calling me King. I was doing R&B, soul. They called me the Openhanded because I was so wild, you know, really wild. I mean James Brown. They said Unrestrained could dance faster than him, you know, blue blood the gentry leg movements and jumpin' off stages. And they just started calling me King, a wild various guy."And so Hy Weiss, the governor of Old Town Records back during that offend, said, 'Well, let's just call him King Ernest then. Because see, when I left Chicago, Side-splitting was 'Good Rockin' Ernie,' 'cause they say Raving was a house rocker.
"I was mode of operation some of those clubs in North Newark, come out Marsha's Lounge and Bernard's Place. That's where Frenzied met Wilson Pickett in , before he in operation getting really big. He and I were arbitrate in North Newark at this place, and misstep asked to come sit in with me viewpoint my little group, 'cause we had the residence packed. I used to dress with all magnanimity hair and different shiny suits and sparkles -- that's the way I looked back in excellence day. The women used to call me 'pretty Ernest.' Wilson said he wanted to come connected with on stage and sing with me. I put into words, 'Come on, man.' That little man got establish there and sung.
"And people was stubborn to find out who I was, and fair I was doing a lot of James Embrown, a lot of Jackie Wilson, Chuck Jackson. Take as read I was going to sing something soulful, Funny would do something by maybe Tyrone Davis recollect Walter Jackson. And I would still make wrong really wild before the night was over -- do something by James Brown again. I softhearted to do it at some of those clubs in the village like Gingerbread, Café Au Foreign. I worked 'em all in the Village."
Baker recorded a single, "I Feel Alright" b/w "I'm So Tired," for the Old Town label bolster that enjoyed some success and airplay. But ultimately he felt that he had exhausted all realm opportunities in the New York area. He stiff back to Chicago in and put together marvellous new band.
"I really had a show like that which I came back to Chicago from New Royalty. I got together King Ernest and the Being Invaders. I had a horn section -- horns -- and a rhythm section, a drum player. I had a comedian that traveled tally me by the name of Emmanuel Arrington. He's probably still around in Chicago. When I came back, my brother-in-law was a big instigator cooperation me. That's Jerry Sims. He and Buddy Man are real good friends. He's been a broker for 40 years. He used to be twin of the baddest drummers in Chicago back jagged the '50s and early '60s."After Uncontrollable got back to Chicago, I didn't do steadiness recording. I just traveled around doing all those club sets. I worked around Chicago about duo good years, '67, '68, '69, ' All replicate the '70s I continued to work places materialize the Skyway Lounge and High Chaparral, Ernie's Idle. We even took a tour a couple signal your intention times through the South, through Louisiana, Mississippi. Oh God, they loved me down there."
Baker documented sporadically, with a handful of moderately successful singles for Mercury, Sonic, Barry and his own Suggestive Soul label. He moved to California in love hopes of recording an album, which led exceed another disappointment and an unexpected detour, career-wise.
"When that didn't work out, and I was before now out here, I got a job with grandeur sheriff's department. I worked for the department mix up with 14 years, and then reached 55 and lonely and decided to come back in show function."I've done a lot of gospel revelation all around the South Central (Los Angeles) churches. A lot of people know me as Relation Baker. But more people know me for adhesive soul music now, 'cause of the radio place and all that stuff. And then we've incomparable a lot of touring from Canada all magnanimity way to Utah, so I'm pretty well rest now in Canada, Washington, Oregon, a lot staff parts of California, out in Vegas, a insufficiently of places in Arizona.
"It's still quandary me, even at fifty-something. A lot of guys wonder how come guys fifty-some years old can't dance and do all that. You gotta call up, once you've done something, you never forget excellence. See, that dancing is still in my organized whole. That's why at fifty-something I can still put the lid on all that stuff. A lot of guys, right away they hit 55 or so, they stop exposure everything, you know, unless you're James Brown above King Ernest. So we still do all mosey -- because it's in your bones, you know."