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A.C. Reed
To
hear tenor saxist A.C. Reed bemoan his fate onstage, one might glean
the impression that he truly detests his job. But it's a
tongue-in-cheek complaint -- Reed's raspy, gutbucket blowing and
laidback vocals bely any sense of boredom.
Sax-blowing blues bandleaders are scarce as hen's teeth in Chicago;
other than Eddie Shaw, Reed's about all there is. Born in Missouri,
young Aaron Corthen (whether he's related to blues legend Jimmy Reed
remains hazy, but his laconic vocal drawl certainly mirrors his
namesake) grew up in downstate Illinois. A big-band fan, he loved the
sound of Paul Bascomb's horn on an obscure Erskine Hawkins 78 he heard
tracking on a tavern jukebox so much that he was inspired to pick up a
sax himself.
Arriving in Chicago during the war years, he picked up steady gigs with
Earl Hooker and Willie Mabon before the '40s were over. In 1956, he
joined forces with ex-Ike Turner cohort Dennis "Long Man" Binder,
gigging across the southwest for an extended period. Reed became a
valuable session player for producer Mel London's Age and Chief labels
during the early '60s; in addition to playing on sides by Lillian
Offitt, Ricky Allen, and Hooker, he cut a locally popular 1961 single
of his own for Age, "This Little Voice."
More gems for Age -- "Come on Home," "Mean Cop," "I Stay Mad" --
followed. He cut 45s for USA in 1963 ("I'd Rather Fight than Switch"),
Cool ("My Baby Is Fine," a tune he's recut countless times since) and
Nike ("Talkin' 'Bout My Friends") in 1966, and "Things I Want You to
Do" in 1969 for T.D.S.
Reed joined Buddy Guy's band in 1967, visiting Africa with the
mercurial guitarist in 1969 and, after harpist Junior Wells teamed with
Guy, touring as opening act for the Rolling Stones in 1970. He left the
employ of Guy and Wells for good in 1977, only to hook up with
Alligator acts Son Seals and then the Master of the Telecaster, Albert
Collins. Reed appeared on Collins's first five icy Alligator LPs,
including the seminal Ice Pickin'.
During his tenure with Collins, Reed's solo career began to reignite,
with four cuts on the second batch of Alligator's Living Chicago Blues
anthologies in 1980 and two subsequent LPs of his own, 1982's Take
These Blues and Shove 'Em! (on Ice Cube Records, a logo co-owned by
Reed and drummer Casey Jones) and I'm in the Wrong Business! five years
later for Alligator (with cameos by Bonnie Raitt and Stevie Ray
Vaughan). Until his death from cancer in February of 2004, Reed
remained an active force on the Chicago circuit with his band, the
Spark Plugs (get it? AC sparkplugs? Sure you do!).
-Written
by Bill Dahl
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