Fats Domino

Rock ‘n’ roll defined the last half of the twentieth century, and while many think of Elvis Presley as the genre’s driving force, the truth is that Fats Domino, whose records have sold more than 100 million copies, was the first to put  it on the map with “ Ain’t That a Shame” and “Blueberry Hill”.

In biography Blue Monday, acclaimed R&B Scholar Rick Coleman draws on a multitude of new interviews, with Domino and many other early musical legends (among them Lloyd Price, the Clovers, Charles Brown, and members of Buddy Holly’s group, the Crickets). Coleman created a definitive biography of not just an extraordinary man but also a unique time and place: New Orleans at the birth of rock ‘n’ roll and its impact on civil rights in America.

A true music lovers’ biography, Blue Monday includes new revelations about the politics behind the music labels of the 1930s and 1940s, and provides a searing indictment of the great white myths of rock ‘n’ roll while bringing the African-American culture of New Orlean’s to life. Blue Monday is the first biography to convey the full scope of Domino’s impact on the popular music of the twentieth century.

JazzReview.com