Teeny Tucker

Last updated
Teeny Tucker
Teeny Tucker.JPG
2011 Jazzweek Burghausen
Background information
Birth nameRegina B. Higginbotham
Also known asRegina B. Westbrook
Born (1958-01-22) January 22, 1958 (age 66)
Dayton, Ohio, United States
Genres Electric blues, new blues
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter
Years active1996–present
LabelsVarious including CD Baby
Website teenytucker.com

Regina B. Higginbotham (born January 22, 1958) known professionally as Teeny Tucker is an American electric blues and new blues singer and songwriter. [1] She is the daughter of the late blues musician Tommy Tucker. AllMusic noted that "Teeny Tucker is among a growing number of female blues belters taking different paths to stardom or wider recognition, but she's one of the very best..." [2] She has released six albums to date.

Contents

She has variously appeared on the same bill with B.B. King, Koko Taylor, Etta James, Buddy Guy, the Holmes Brothers, Robert Cray, Keb' Mo', Deanna Bogart, Kenny Neal, Bobby Rush, and John Mayall. [3]

Life and career

Teeny Tucker was born in Dayton, Ohio, United States. [1] She sang in her local church choir. [4] Her father, a blues performer best known for his 1964 hit song, "Hi-Heel Sneakers," died tragically at the age of 42 in January 1982, on his daughter's 24th birthday. [1] [5] [6]

Tucker first performed professionally in November 1996. [7] Her debut album, Tommy's Girl, was issued in 2000. [8] She composed eight of the 11 tracks on her 2003 album, First Class Woman, which had airplay on XM Satellite Radio, Music Choice and various other blues radio stations across the United States. [4] Tucker has twice been a top three finalist in the International Blues Challenge. In 2008, Tucker performed at the Monterey Bay Blues Festival. [4]

Two Big M's (2008) peaked at number six on the Living Blues chart, [4] and was nominated for the best self-produced CD by the Blues Foundation. [7] Keep the Blues Alive (2010) contained more of Tucker's own compositions. [4] [9]

In 2009 and 2011, Tucker performed at the Briggs Farm Blues Festival. In 2010, Tucker, now officially named Regina B. Westbrook, was residing in Columbus, Ohio. [1] In February 2011, Tucker was selected as the 2011 Federal Carter G. Woodson Award winner. [10] In September 2011, Tucker sang at the Blast Furnace Blues Festival.

At the 2014 Blues Music Awards, Diunna Greenleaf won the Koko Taylor Award (Traditional Blues Female), beating fellow nominees Tucker, Lavelle White, Trudy Lynn, and Zora Young. [11] Tucker also performed live at the event. [12] In February that year, Tucker gave a talk on "Women In The Blues," part of the Penn State Forum Speaker Series at Pennsylvania State University. [13] In August 2015, Tucker performed at the Riverside Bluesfest in St. Marys, Ohio. [14]

Awards and nominations

Discography

Albums

YearTitleRecord label
2000Tommy's GirlSelf issued
2003First Class WomanHot Rod Records
2008Two Big M's CD Baby/Teebo
2010Keep the Blues AliveTeebo
2013Voodoo To Do YouCD Baby
2018Put On Your Red Dress BabyTeBo Records

[8] [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ottawa Bluesfest</span>

Ottawa Bluesfest is an annual outdoor music festival that takes place each July in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. While the festival's lineup historically focused on blues music at its inception, it has increasingly showcased mainstream pop, hip hop, reggae, rock and EDM in recent years. Bluesfest has become the second largest music festival in Canada and the third largest music festival in North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Black Keys</span> American rock duo

The Black Keys are an American rock duo formed in Akron, Ohio, in 2001. The group consists of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney (drums). The duo began as an independent act, recording music in basements and self-producing their records, before they eventually emerged as one of the most popular garage rock artists during a second wave of the genre's revival in the 2000s. The band's raw blues rock sound draws heavily from Auerbach's blues influences, including Junior Kimbrough, R.L. Burnside, Howlin' Wolf, and Robert Johnson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Byron Bay Bluesfest</span> Annual Australian music festival

The Byron Bay Bluesfest, formerly the East Coast International Blues & Roots Music Festival, is an annual Australian music festival that has been held over the Easter long weekend in the Byron Bay, New South Wales, area since 1990. The festival features a large selection of blues and roots performers from Australia and around the world and is one of the world's leading contemporary music festivals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koko Taylor</span> American blues singer (1928–2009)

Koko Taylor was an American singer whose style encompassed Chicago blues, electric blues, rhythm and blues and soul blues. Sometimes called "The Queen of the Blues", she was known for her rough, powerful vocals. Over the course of her career, she was nominated for 11 Grammy Awards, winning 1985's Best Traditional Blues Album for her appearance on Blues Explosion.

Tommy Tucker was an American blues singer-songwriter and pianist. He is best known for the 1964 hit song, "Hi-Heel Sneakers", that went to No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and peaked at No. 23 in the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shemekia Copeland</span> American blues singer (b. 1979)

Charon Shemekia Copeland is an American electric blues vocalist. To date, she has released ten albums and been presented with eight Blues Music Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ana Popović</span> Musical artist

Ana Popović is a blues singer and guitarist from Serbia who currently resides in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irma Thomas</span> American soul, rhythm and blues, and gospel singer

Irma Thomas is an American singer from New Orleans. She is known as the "Soul Queen of New Orleans".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Trout</span> Musical artist

Walter Trout is an American blues guitarist, singer and songwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ash Grunwald</span> Australian blues musician (born 1976)

Ash Grunwald is an Australian blues musician. He has released nine studio albums and has received five nominations for ARIA Music Awards. Five albums have charted in the ARIA Albums Chart top 50; Fish out of Water (2008), Hot Mama Vibes (2010), Trouble's Door (2012), Gargantua (2013) and Mojo (2019).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruthie Foster</span> American blues musician, singer, and songwriter

Ruthie Cecelia Foster is an American singer-songwriter of blues and folk music. She mixes a wide palette of American song forms, from gospel and blues to jazz, folk and soul. She has often been compared to Bonnie Raitt and Aretha Franklin.

Thornetta Davis is an American Detroit blues and rhythm and blues singer. She has opened for Bonnie Raitt, Gladys Knight, and Etta James, and sang backing vocals on Bob Seger's 1991 album, The Fire Inside. She also worked with Kid Rock and Alberta Adams, and has released three solo albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janiva Magness</span> Musical artist

Janiva Magness is an American Grammy Award nominated blues, soul, and Americana singer, songwriter, and author. To date she has released 16 albums.

Trudy Lynn is an American electric blues and soul blues singer and songwriter, whose recorded work has been released on twelve studio albums, one live album, and four compilation albums.

Diunna Greenleaf is an American blues singer and songwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Noble (music promoter)</span>

Peter Bruce Noble is an Australian entrepreneur active in the music industry for almost 50 years. He is best known as the festival director of the annual Bluesfest Byron Bay, which has been running since 1990 & that he became a partner of in 1994. The 5-day festival is now held every Easter at the Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, just north of Byron Bay, a New South Wales beachside town.

Bob Corritore is an American blues harmonica player, record producer, blues radio show host and owner of The Rhythm Room, a music venue in Phoenix, Arizona. Corritore is a recipient of a Blues Music Award, Blues Blast Music Award, Living Blues Award and a Keeping The Blues Alive Award and more. He produced one album that was nominated for a Grammy Award and contributed harmonica on another.

Sista Monica Parker was an American electric blues, blues rock, gospel and soul singer, songwriter, and record producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vasti Jackson</span> American singer-songwriter

Vasti Jackson is an American electric blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and record producer. He has also been the musical director, and guitarist for Z. Z. Hill, Johnnie Taylor, Denise LaSalle, Little Milton, Bobby Bland, and Katie Webster, plus Jackson has worked with those involved in gospel music including the Williams Brothers, the Jackson Southernaires, and Daryl Coley.

Caiti Baker is an Australian Singer, Songwriter, Producer, Harmony Arranger, Vocal Engineer, Music Workshop Facilitator, Mentor.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Eagle, Bob L.; Le Blanc, Eric S. (2013). Blues : A Regional Experience. Praeger. pp. 82/3. ISBN   978-0-31334423-7.
  2. ↑ Michael G. Nastos (2010-06-15). "Keep the Blues Alive – Teeny Tucker | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic . Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  3. ↑ "Teeny Tucker | Keep the Blues Alive". Cdbaby.com. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Teeny Tucker Official Website". Teenytucker.com. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  5. ↑ "Tommy Tucker". Soulfulkindamusic.net. Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  6. ↑ "Robert Higginbotham, Singer Of Blues and Jazz, Dead at 48". The New York Times . January 25, 1982. Retrieved 2012-08-20. Robert Higginbotham, a blues and jazz singer who performed under the name Tommy Tucker, died Friday at College Hospital in Newark. Mr. Higginbotham, who lived in East Orange, N.J., was 48 years old. ... A native of Springfield, Ohio, he had lived in East Orange for 17 years. He was a licensed real-estate broker and had been an amateur prize fighter as a young man.
  7. 1 2 "Teeny Tucker's Biography — Free listening, videos, concerts, stats and pictures at". Last.fm. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  8. 1 2 "Teeny Tucker – Tommy's Girl (CD, Album)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  9. ↑ "October 2010 | Teeny Tucker | Keep The Blues Alive". Thebluegrassspecial.com. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  10. ↑ "Teeny Tucker Official Website | Bio". Teenytucker.com. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  11. ↑ "2014 Blues Music Awards Nominees and Winners". Blues.about.com. Archived from the original on 2016-11-12. Retrieved 2014-05-17.
  12. ↑ "Blues Festival Guide Magazine and Online Directory of Blues Festivals – Imagine A Crowd This Excited? With Teeny Tucker, they will be!". Bluesfestivalguide.com. 2014-06-19. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  13. ↑ "Heard on Campus: Teeny Tucker, international blues recording artist | Penn State University". News.psu.edu. 2014-02-18. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  14. ↑ "Tickets for 2015 Riverside Bluesfest featuring Wayne Baker Brooks / Teeny Tucker / Bumper Jacksons / etc". Ticketweb.com. 2015-08-29. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  15. ↑ "Teeny Tucker Official Website #124; Home". Teenytucker.com. Retrieved 2015-12-31.
  16. ↑ "Teeny Tucker | Album Discography". AllMusic . Retrieved 2015-12-31.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.