Wilroy Sanders of the Fieldstones dies at 76 by Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms

(Memphis, Tennessee)Wilroy Sanders, a true old school blues showman and friend, died on February 16, 2010, from complications caused by his battle with lung cancer. Wilroy owned Memphis' famed Green's Lounge, also known as Dorothy's Lounge at 2090 E. Person Ave., which was the blues hotspot of the Orange Mound area until it burned several years ago. Wilroy continued to play at clubs like the Blue Worm but recently his playing was limited to sitting in for a couple of numbers because of his declining health. His loss of vitality and health and growing inability to play deeply troubled him.

Willie Roy "Wilroy" Sanders was the leader of the Fieldstones, a true inner city blues band that claimed its origins and style from the Mississippi Delta blues players. Byhalia, Mississippi, was Wilroy's birthplace. His family farmed in that area until relocating in what was then rural Memphis, actually outside of Collierville, Tennessee, in the 1930's.

Wilroy began building his own guitars as a young boy and when I first met him back in the early 1980's he was playing a cool electric guitar he had made from a wooden 2 by 4. We used to call it the "Wilroy guitar" and it had a really cool sound. I had never seen such an instrument before and was amazed at Wilroy and his guitar.

A young Wilroy Sanders in his Army days 1953-1955

My band, the Wampus Cats, pulling a U-Haul trailer behind my '71 Cadillac, rolled into the town square of Oxford, Mississippi, in 1982 and played a fun couple of sets there in the afternoon before the Fieldstones went on stage. I became quick friends with their lovely and remarkably talented bassist, Lois Brown, who was one of the few rare female blues bass players I had ever seen. The Fieldstones were comprised of Wilroy Sanders (vocals, guitar); Little Applewhite (vocals); Wordie Perkins (guitar, piano); Bobby Carnes (organ); Lois Brown (bass guitar); Joe Hicks (drums); Clarence Nelson (guitar).



In the subsequent years I jammed with different combinations of the band's members and also became friends with Wilroy, Joe, Wordie and Bobby. Everyone in the Fieldstones band was trained by Leroy Hodges, Sr., father of my friend Leroy "Flick" Hodges who played on so many great Hi Records including lots of big hits by Al Green.

the author and the great Howard Grimes

Mr. Hodges, Sr., was the father of all the guys in the Hi records house band, Teeny, Charles, Leroy. Drummer, Howard Grimes, my old friend and band mate, was the only member of the Hi Records house band that was not a son of Mr. Hodges, Sr.

Hi Rythm, the Hi Records house band with Willie Mitchell
Standing: Leroy Hodges, Teeny Hodges, Archie Turner, Charles Hodges and Howard Grimes

Wilroy blended his gospel vocals with the blues and emerged a soul singer with the help of Mr. Hodges. His vocals were heartfelt and moving and the band played so much that they became a tight unit. As a young man, Wilroy was in several Memphis blues bands, including the Binghampton Blues Boys who wrote the blues classic, "Crosscut Saw."

Author and ethnomusicologist Dr. David Evans, head of the doctorate program of Ethnomusicology at the University of Memphis, discovered the band and produced two 45 rpm recordings of them on the High Water label. In 1983 he produced the album Fieldstones, Memphis Blues Today on High Water. David is a good friend who not only authored scholarly texts on music but also plays in the Last Chance Jug Band here in Memphis.

A couple of my buddy Dr. Dave Evans' CD releases.

David discovered and recorded the Fieldstones in the early 1980's


Wilroy Sanders, the Last Living Bluesman

Sanders even became the subject of a 1999 video documentary, produced by local music label Shangri-La Projects, titled “The Last Living Bluesman.” It can be obtained at Shangri-la's site here:

http://www.shangri.com/

We in Memphis were all thrilled to see the video of the Fieldstones back in late 1980's when MTV still played an occasional song and was looking desperately for some video content. The Fieldstones video, replete with the glowing background lighting of Massa's liquor store on 3rd Street, was both a testament to the past, to deprivation, and concurrently a ray of hope that even some humble blues players could be seen on MTV. As the famous Ramones point out, after the market became glutted with video content, MTV had no time for them or such indelible roots music as the Fieldstones.

To help defray Sanders’ funeral costs, Shangri-La Records, located at 1916 Madison Ave., has set up a charity fund. Anyone who donates $25 or more will get their choice of a free copy of Sanders’ “The Last Living Bluesman” CD, book or video. Sanders is survived by his wife Dorothy Mae Tucker Sanders, and more than two-dozen children

Other Fieldstones:

Wordie Perkins would occasionally find himself off the Fielstones roster for imbibing tooo much in the spiritus fermenti, but he always returned to light up the show with his inimitable style. Wordie, who once drank so much he passed out before the first song at an overseas festival only to wake up, on stage, for the last number, and play to an overwhelming round of non-stop applause, has passed on to glory. God bless you, Wordie, it was a pleasure to be on stage with you. The last I heard of my friend, Lois Brown, she had lost a leg to diabetes and moved back with a family member in Pennsylvania. These are the last remnants of the Fieldstones original blues players from my area that still plied their craft despite the vicissitudes and trials of time, age, infirmity and changing tastes.

My greatest hope is that others, with even a shred of such soulfulness and virtue, will replace the lost Fieldstones in the blues pantheon. Memphis, Tennessee, has lost a beautiful, poignant and enduring voice in Wilroy Sanders. I will never forget you, Wilroy, and I can still see you with your self-made 2 by 4 guitar playing and singing with the enduring soul of man down at that stage in Oxford, Mississippi.

© Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms, 2010

RCT

check out my website at: http://www.RobertNighthawkTooms.com/

Willie Mitchell, one last time down Beale Street by Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms

(Memphis, Tennessee) If I were a better writer perhaps I could express the sense of profound community loss that I feel with the passing of Willie Mitchell. Today, me and my fellow working Memphis musicians held a funeral procession for Pops on historic Beale Street (January 12, 2010). They all braved the freezing temperatures to play a few last songs for our fallen friend and make an attempt to express our gratitude and heartfelt respect for this monolith of Memphis Music. If you have ever felt a shred of hometown pride then you will understand how ebullient and overwhelmed Memphians were with the success of Hi records and the many accomplishments of Willie Mitchell. We are commensurately saddened and grieved by his passing which marks the end of an era (photo above by Charley Burch).

Willie Mitchell at the Fender Rhodes electric piano

In the midst of a city so full of deprivation and squalor, where a huge percentage of the city lives under the poverty level, to see someone from our ranks, someone unknown, like an Al Green or Teeny Hodges or Willie Mitchell, rise to prominence, is more vicariously gratifying than I am capable of expressing with mere words. The soul-stirring emotional jolt that you hear when you first experience"I'm so Tired of Being Alone" by Al Green, his first hit, is the stuff of which dreams are made. This did not occur by accident. It was the genius foresight and planning of the late Willie Mitchell.

For more details and his discovery of Al Green, please click this link to an article I wrote earlier:

http://www.ameriblues.com/2010/01/willie-mitchell-dead-at-81.html

Willie Mitchell, a kind man known to musicians everywhere as "Pops"

Willie Mitchell's tenure as a bandleader and trumpet player in the clubs of West Memphis prepared his ear for the musical farsightedness that would produce so many Hi and Goldwax records. His jazz training and experience from gigging gave him this rare talent to hear the future, juxtaposing what he knew he could provide in his studio posed against the vocal strides of the likes of Al Green and Sly Johnson, Ann Peebles and so many more. His imagination knew no bounds.

Here's a link to another article about where Memphis Music originates, touching on Willie Mitchell's band and the contributions of the club scene in West Memphis:

http://www.ameriblues.com/2009/12/memphiswhere-music-came-from-posted-on.html

Musicians gather at B. B. King's before the funeral procession begins

Rudy Williams

Trumpet player Rudy Williams, who has played Beale Street every day for over 20 years, led the procession and the mourners who attended the private family service lined up in a very long parade of limousines all down old Beale Street.

Rudy leads a procession of familiar Beale Street habitues, musicians, bartenders, club owners and managers, and John Elkington who is both famous for renovating and developing the street and notorious for allegedly not paying the city of Memphis any rent for over 20 years. That matter remains in litigation. According to Elkington, the night Al Green sang with Willie Mitchell on trumpet was one of the greatest nights of entertainment ever seen on the street.

hymns played on horns and percussion

Limousines stretch for almost three city blocks

Dear friend Bob Harding, High Punjab and Supreme Overseer of the Black Diamond club and I consider lighting a fire with the remains of what was Pat O'Brien's to ward off the cold.

Rudy Williams and Dr. Herman Green

Musicians gather outside the New Daisy Theater to play one last song for the mourners. Note that club owner Mike Glenn raised the words "Pops Mitchell R.I.P." on the marquee.

The author stands with bassist Vic Charles. We played many days and nights on Beale at the now defunct Willie Mitchell's Legends club.

The author and one of his oldest comrades, Tater Red. He is the owner of Tater Red's Lucky Mojos and Voodoo Healings, one of the most fun locations to visit on the entire street, particularly if one is in need of some Essence of Bendover or a Run, Devil, Run holy candle. Look to see a future article on Tater Red here at the American Blues News.

Here's his site: http://www.taterreds.com/

Musicians gather for a few last words outside the not so bluesy Hard Rock Cafe. That's Watermelon Slim on the left, wearing the hat, standing next to Vic Charles and Vic's sweet wife. Next to Vic is J. Thomas Link on saxophone. Just left of the the flower arrangement wearing a beret stands David Skypeck, drummer for Free World. Next to him stands Richard Cushing, bassist and leader of Free World who organized all these fine musicians to play today. In front of Richard is Dr. Herman Green who also plays with Free World. Next to Herman is my friend and former band mate, Barbara Blue, who performs nightly at Silky's at 3rd and Beale. That's her boyfriend John Hyde standing next to her. Next to John is trumpeter Ewing Joseph Dice.

The distinguished Dr. Herman Green

After most everyone had left save the musicians, my longtime friend Herman Green had a few words of praise for Willie Mitchell, who led the way for all of us for many years. Herman said he had played many nights in Willie Mitchell's band at Danny's club in West Memphis, Arkansas during the mid-1950's and pointed out that thanks to Poppa Willie there was a Memphis sound that was unique to this area and its musicians .

For more information about the Handy Lifetime Achievement Award-winning Dr. Herman Green, please click this link to an earlier article I wrote about my friend:

http://www.ameriblues.com/2009/12/memphis-dr.html

In parting let me pass along this anecdote from my former band mate, Joe Schicke. Joe played in my band, the Wampus Cats, and also the Reba Russell Band until moving to Colorado. By the way, Reba would have been in attendance today but she was recording in Memphis with Grammy award winning producer Jim Gaines on the new Huey Lewis CD.

Joe Schicke at Royal Studios with Willie Mitchell

Joe writes, "This picture is from May 2009. Pops was a kind, smart, and funny man who absolutely loved music, and I'm so glad to have been able to spend some time with him. I'll always remember the times walking in Royal to mix and he would say, "Boo's back there..." then I'd come back up later and he'd be at his desk playing along to my band's songs on his keyboard! He always took time to talk and make me feel comfortable."

Joe is flying in from Colorado to play in Don Bryant's band at the Willie Mitchell memorial service being held for the public at Hope Presbyterian Church. Musical tributes will be performed by Solomon Burke, Willie Clayton, Otis Clay, Kevin Page, Preston Shannon and J. Blackfoot. Look for more on this event on my article to appear here on this Monday, January, 18, 2010.

Bookmark us and come back often at American Blues News:

http://Ameriblues.com

©2010, Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms

RCT

Check out my site at http://robertnighthawktooms.com

Willie Mitchell dead at 81 by Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms

(Memphis, Tennessee) American music and in particular the musicians of Memphis, Tennessee have lost a stalwart, a bedrock of innovative music producing and a man, known to so many as "Papa," who was a mentor and friend to so many musicians, including the author, that it is indeed difficult to perceive the breadth of our loss. Willie broke his hip in September, 2009 and had a heart attack on December 19, 2009. He passed away on Tuesday morning, January 5, 2010.

Royal Studio on Willie Mitchell Boulevard, Memphis, Tennessee
formerly the Royal movie theater now home of Hi and Goldwax Records

Listening back to the beautifully arranged Hi and Goldwax records that have been produced during the long, productive life of Willie Mitchell, I am struck by what magnificent jazz arrangements he posed against what might have been just straight up blues or soul songs, transforming the otherwise ordinary, and crafting it so purposefully into the remarkably unique and soul-stirring. These records are a testament to the peculiarly classy and innovative sound that came from "Papa" Willie Mitchell. They were different from anything that SUN or STAX records produced and stand on their own as the best of Memphis music. Al Green's hits, recordings by Rod Stewart, John Mayer, the work of such notable blues men Buddy Guy, Otis Clay and O.V. Wright, 12 albums of extraordinary instrumentals such as 1963 release "Soul Serenade," written by Willie Mitchell himself, and Syl Johnson's version of the Teeny Hodges/Al Green chartbuster, "Take Me to the River" are solid proof of this assertion.

Papa Willie Mitchell at the board

If anything this remarkable musician and producer was a musician first and a bandleader and producer as a result of years of live performances. Discharged from the Army in 1954, Willie Mitchell became a famous bandleader, playing gigs in the fruitful musical breeding ground of the clubs of West Memphis, Arkansas during the last half of the 1950's.

largest billboard in the South, Plantation Inn

These gigs, such as the Plantation Inn and Danny's club provided the experiential knowledge, the training that would stretch the canvas that would become soul and R & B for decades to come. Without these gigs, the interplay of musicians and the kind exchange of skill and techniques exhibited by the musicians, there would have been no Hi Records or STAX records hits. It simply would not have ever happened. It is for this reason that I have loudly decried what has happened in my home town, the elimination of the full time musician by starving him out or literally, killing the golden musical goose. No gigs, no way to make a living means no fertile ground for developing a musical scene. We live on our past with no thought of the future. How many times can every bar band play "Mustang Sally?"

If you are interested in this story of where the Memphis music came from, please click on this link to my earlier article in the American Blues News archives:

http://www.ameriblues.com/2009/12/memphiswhere-music-came-from-posted-on.html


Willie Mitchell discovered Al Green at a gig in Midland, Texas, in 1967, brought him back to Memphis, borrowed $1500 from Mr. Joe Cuoghi, owner of Hi Records and part owner of Poplar Tunes record store, to help Al get established in town, and set out to make him a star. He believed in Al's talent and knew what he could do with it in combination with his own producing skills. He was right.

http://www.algreenmusic.com/

About this Willie Mitchell said, "Of all the singers, he was the only one that could hear jazz changes and really sing in that style. Once we got that sound together, I just kept making those arrangements ... and it was just hit after hit."

Willie searched for songs that would match with Al Green's voice and told Al to "sing sweet, don't use that rough voice," and they led the band through a multitude of different songs including Temptations tunes and even the Beatles' "I Want to Hold your Hand." After a dizzying day and night of recording Al insisted that they try a song he had written. They worked out the tune with the band and recorded "I'm So Tired of Being Alone" at about 1:30 AM after, Al said, Willie had a little shot of vodka. This beautiful arrangement using the Rhodes sisters, who Willie had seen sing country music, on background vocals, was an unqualified winner. Willie went on to write and arrange with Al and many other Hi artists during the 1970's including Ann Peebles("I Can't Stand the Rain"). These were successful years. I remember seeing Papa Willie cruising around town in a white Bentley having some laughs.

From the Hi Records site:

"At Hi in the Sixties, Mitchell was already working with the core of what would become one of the world's greatest rhythm sections -- guitarist/leader Teenie Hodges, his organist brother Charles and bassist brother LeRoy. Known as Hi Rhythm, the Hodges Brothers, along with drummer Howard Grimes, remains the premier ongoing Memphis soul section..."

Here's a link to the Hi site: http://hirecords.com/history.html

Otis Clay and The HI Rhythm Section, 1986

Standing left to right: Leroy Hodges, Charles Hodges, Howard Grimes

Sitting left to right: Otis Clay and Teenie Hodges

Willie Mitchell (seated at the Fender Rhodes piano) and (from left) Leroy Hodges, Mabon "Teenie" Hodges, Archie Turner Mitchell, Rev. Charles Hodges and Howard Grimes gave records from Hi that special sound.

My dear friend and former band mate, Howard Grimes is one of the finest old school drummers in the world. Some of Howard's shuffles defy description and it was a thrill and honor to play on stages with him for many years. Once Howard told me that he owed a lot to Willie Mitchell, who, when he was a very young man, had instilled in him that lazy, behind the beat time thing that is the essential signature of Memphis music. Howard said, "Willie told me, Howard, you watch my foot now. Then he tapped his foot all the way through the track we were recording. He said, Howard, we all gonna start together, and we all gonna end together." Thus greatness is born. Both original members of the Hi Rythm section, Howard and bassist Leroy "Flick" Hodges were some of my favorite musicians with whom I got a chance to play blues with over these many years. They are as kind, thoughtful and friendly as they are talented.

Willie Mitchell in his office surrounded by gold records

Pat KerrTigrett, Willie Mitchell, Jimmy Davis

My dear friend, Memphis musician Jimmy Davis, writes the following, "We were lucky enough to be at the Grammy's when Pops was awarded his Lifetime Achievement Award. Our group was also on the same plane home and we all walked together through the Memphis Airport with Willie. We stopped at a Commercial Appeal newspaper stand and there he was on the Front Page. I bought every copy and handed 'em out to our incredible Memphis Entourage. I'll never forget it."

My friend, the superb keyboardist, Archie Turner Mitchell, appears in the following video from Memphis NBC affiliate WMC-TV. To brother Archie, who now has lost his father and has always been so kind and supportive of me as a fellow musician, shared his stage and keyboard with me many nights, I would like to return the compliment, what Archie always says to me when I am downcast, "you are 100 with me, brother. One hundred...A plus."


Here is the Link: http://www.wreg.com/videobeta/watch/?watch=54db6117-0e3a-44f6-9482-15383540fe1e&src=front


As is our custom, to honor Willie Mitchell the musicians of Memphis will play at a formal processional down Beale Street with musicians playing all along our walk down the street that immortalizes the home of the BLUES and its musicians. We begin at noon this coming Tuesday, starting at B.B. King's Blues Club at 2nd and Beale. Loved ones, friends and fans are all invited to walk with us.

In lieu of flowers, the Mitchell family requested donations be sent to the non-profit Willie Mitchell Foundation and Scholarship Fund c/o Royal Studios, 1320 Willie Mitchell Blvd., Memphis, TN 38106, or that contributions be made in Mitchell's name to MusiCares at 1904 Wedgewood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212 (or call 877-626-2748).

Services for Willie Mitchell

A public viewing will be 2 to 6 p.m. Monday at N.J. Ford & Sons Funeral Home, 12 S. Parkway West, Memphis, Tennessee.

A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Hope Presbyterian Church, 8500 Walnut Grove in Cordova, Tennessee. The service will include a video presentation and performances by Solomon Burke, Ann Peebles, Otis Clay, Shirley Brown and J. Blackfoot, among others.

© 2010, Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms

RCT