Big Sambo and the Housewreckers - The Rains Came (Eric 7003)
The Rains Came
In the late fifties, Texas sax man James Young led a smokin' band in Beaumont and Port Arthur called Big Sambo and the Housewreckers. This amazing record we have here today was cut with Huey Meaux in 1960 and sold over 500,000 copies. It was well on its way to breaking nationwide when it was killed by the NAACP, who thought that Young's stage name was a little over the top. Meaux says he pleaded with James to change it, but that he wanted to stick with the name that got him there. Young is the man who brought Barbara Lynn to Huey's barber shop, and set all of that in motion. He did, in fact, consent to call himself James 'Big Sambo' Young for a later release on Meaux's Jetstream label, but it didn't sell much. Big Sambo died in 1983.The Rains Came was also released as the follow-up to Sir Doug's She's About A Mover in early 1966, when it broke into the Top 40 on the pop charts.
I spun this 45 for the first time in ages as part of episode seven on the YouTube thing, and it just knocked me out. This guy could sing, man.
posted by Red Kelly at 7:44 AM
5 Comments:
what a cool blog!
One of the all time great! Thanks- Chubba
Thanks for posting this information! James Harold is my grandfather whom I never had the chance of meeting, at least at an age that I could remember him. He died when I was about 2 years old. I was looking for someone for a musician for my daughter to do a black history report on and I came across your page. This is amazing that I get to hear his acomplishments even though I didn't know him. Thanks again!
Dayna - What a beautiful story! Thank You!
in the late 50's big sambo played at the national guard armory in port Arthur tx if someone just walked in not knowing who was singing they would swear it was bobby blue bland but it was really Charles Sheffield.big sambo's piano player was a man named mabry.this was one of the best bands in the area in the 50's & 60's-along with jiving gene,cookie & the cupcakes plus many others.thanks for letting me express my opinions about these great muscians. Ronnie b.class of 61-sphs.
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