East Coast Piedmont Blues

Full name: Robert Hicks

Born: Sept. 11, 1902, Walnut Grove, GA
Died: Oct. 21, 1931, Lithonia, GA from pneumonia brought on by influenza

Instrument: 6 and 12 string guitars and vocals

Biographical Sketch

Barbecue Bob was born Robert Hicks in 1902 in Walnut Grove, GA. He was the most heavily recorded Atlanta bluesman of the late 1920s. In his early years, he moved to Newton County with his parents and his older brother Charlie. It was here that he and his brother first began to show an interest in music. They were soon taking guitar lessons from Savannah "Dip'' Weaver. The two Hicks brothers quickly became friends with the younger Weaver boy, Curley, and often practiced together. Robert was an easy-going man who enjoyed life and relied on his musicianship for most of his living.

He soon started working at Tidwell's Barbecue in the Atlanta suburb of Buckhead, cooking and playing for the patrons who would occasionally carry him off to parties after work. Somehow he came across Columbia Records scout Dan Hornsby, who was leading a recording team Down South to New Orleans and was making recordings along the way, stopping off in Atlanta. Hornsby decided to use Hicks's job at Tidwell's Barbecue as a gimmick, photographing him in chef's whites and hat and dubbing him "Barbecue Bob''. Using these hooks, Hicks's local reputation, and his infectious rhythm, his "Barbecue Blues" was sure to be something of a hit, ensuring Hicks a chance to record again. His name and reputation established, Hicks recorded for Columbia every time they came through Atlanta and was frequently brought to New York. His "Motherless Chile Blues" (covered by Eric Clapton) was also quite popular. In addition to being a big seller, Hicks was responsible for getting the company to record his brother Charlie under the name "Laughing Charley Lincoln." Robert also brought his old friends Curley Weaver and Eddie Mapp, and a young talented harmonica player and guitarist named Buddy Moss to the recording industry's attention. (These four, in various combinations, recorded under the name The Georgia Cotton Pickers.) By 1930, however, the Depression was hitting the recording industry hard, particularly in the blues and country fields. Robert Hicks made his last recordings in December 1930, all the more of a shame since his guitar playing was becoming more inventive and gaining a wider range. Sadly, he died from pneumonia brought on by influenza on October 21, 1931, a year after his wife had died and two years after his mother had passed away.

Books

Bastin, Bruce. Crying for the Carolines. London: Studio Vista, 1971.

---. Red River Blues: The Blues Tradition of the Southeast. University of Illinois Press, 1986.

Charters, Samuel B. The Country Blues. Da Capo Press, 1975.

---. Sweet as the showers of rain. New York: Oak Publications, 1977.

Oliver, Paul, ed. The Blackwell Guide to Blues Records. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell Reference, 1989. (brief mention)

Oliver, Paul. The Story of the Blues. Philadelphia: Chilton, 1969.

Articles

DelGrosso, Rich. "Take It on Home: Barbecue Bob" Blues Revue 58 [June 2000]: 26-27

Lowry, Pete. "Some Cold Rainy Day: Part 4 [Barbecue Bob]." Blues Unlimited 103 (August/September 1973): 15.

Recordings on CD

Barbecue Bob. Chocolate to the Bone (1927-1930). Yazoo 2005

Barbecue Bob. Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 3 (1929-1930). Released 1991. Document 5048

Barbecue Bob: The Essential. Classic Blues

Web Sites

"Barbecue Bob" from T-Bone's Piedmont Blues Page. Accessed 10 December 2003. <http://www.io.com/~tbone1/blues/ECblz/>

AMG All Music Guide. Accessed 17 December 2003. <http://www.allmusic.com/>

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Last updated 18 December 2003.