Obit. Fats (Antoine) Domino, 89. A really cool black performer from the days of 45 records. 13 top 20 hits in all, 1957-1961.
“I found my thrill on Blueberry Hill.”
“I’m gonna be a wheel someday. I’m gonna be somebody.”
“Let the four winds blow.”
“I want to walk you home.”
“I’m ready, yes indeed.”
“I’m walkin’ to New Orleans.”
One of the legends of the ’50s I grew up with on the radio, Fats was typical of the minimal 50% black performers I liked back then. who included Brook Benton, Dinah Washington, The Orlons, The Coasters, Little Richard, Sam Cooke, Johnny Mathis, Chuck Berry, Harry Belafonte, Nat King Cole, The Platters, Lloyd Price, Sarah Vaughan, The Drifters, The Shirelles, Gary U.S. Bonds, Chubby Checker, Ben E. King, Gene Chandler, The Dovells, Ray Charles, Major Lance, and on and on.
Yeah, I was a relatively ‘color-blind’, typical Canadian teen who enthusiastically bought their records long before I ever heard of or knew anything about something called civil rights. A case of ignorance is bliss for sure for a kid who just loved top 40 pop music of the day.