Blues harmonica legend Little Walter recorded "Juke" for Checker Records in Chicago on May 12, 1952. Backing Little Walter were Muddy Waters, Jimmy Rogers, and Elgin Evans. The song later topped the R&B Chart for 8 weeks, and it remained on the chart for 20 weeks. "Juke" is still the only harmonica instrumental ever to be a number one hit on the Billboard R&B Chart. It was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame "Classics of Blues Recordings" in 1986 and the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008.
1955
Singer and songwriter Kix Brooks was born (Leon Eric Brooks III) in Shreveport, LA on May 12, 1955. Kix is half of the multi-award winning country duo, Brooks & Dunn.
1964
The 6th annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held in Los Angeles on May 12, 1964. Winners at the event included Al Hirt (Best Performance By An Orchestra) for his million selling hit, "Java". The tune, written by Allen Toussaint, was from the LP "Honey In The Horn", which lost out in the Album of the Year category. Other 1963 Grammy nominees included New Orleans Gospel artists Mahalia Jackson and Bessie Griffin.
1998
Singer and songwriter Kevin Griffin of Baton Rouge / NOLA alt-rockers Better Than Ezra was honored at the 46th Annual BMI Pop Awards on May 12, 1998. He won a BMI Citation of Achievement award for the tune, "Desperately Wanting".
1999
Supper club and live music venue Levon Helm's Classic American Cafe closed its doors on May 12, 1999 after less than 6 months in operation. Founding partners in the venture, located at 300 Decatur Street in the French Quarter, included Levon Helm (of The Band), Banu Gibson and Carmen Marotta.
2006
Dr. John recorded a session at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London on May 12, 2006, for the performance / documentary television series "Live From Abbey Road". Dr. John was backed by John Fohl, David Berard and Herman "Roscoe" Ernest. The interview and performance segment aired stateside on the Sundance Channel on July 26, 2007. Watch the video here.
