Southern Soul
| 29 juni 2010
Theodis Ealey - Blues with soul
We have read time and time again about African American traditional blues artists complaining about the lack of recognition among blacks in the USA and the appreciation among the white blues enthusiasts in Europe. We have also experienced blues artists who have adjusted themselves to the conservative market of the white blues enthusiasts and their urge for traditional blues playing covers of blues standards as they didn’t manage to keep up a career on the black market. This has been going on ever since the 60’s really.
We have almost never heard of the trip of African American blues artists in the other direction, returning successfully to their traditional audience after leaving the white market. When Theodis Ealey recorded the pivotal hit, Stand Up In It, in 2004, it was an achievement in many ways. He broke into the black market in a very big way becoming one of its major artists. The sexually explicit blues song got an appreciation bringing it to the top of the Billboard R&B/Hip Hop Singles Sales charts for many weeks, and finally, the impact of the song influenced the soul blues market up till this day becoming one of the most important songs of the genre. Its only comparable competitor is the over 20 years old classic Candy Licker by Marvin Sease, although it never hit any charts being too explicit at that time.