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Mickey Baker

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Mickey Baker was born in 1925 in Louisville, Kentucky, and grew into one of the most sought-after session guitarists in American rhythm and blues. At the age of eleven he was placed in an orphanage, from which he often ran away. At sixteen he stayed on in New York and worked as a labourer and dishwasher. He wanted to become a jazz musician and at first had the trumpet in mind, but for fourteen dollars he could find only guitars in a pawnshop. He took lessons from various teachers and by 1949 was already playing with a combo of his own.

Music and breakthrough

In California he saw the blues guitarist Pee Wee Crayton perform, and that introduced him to bending strings: for him the blues was at that time mainly a way of earning money. Back in the East he recorded for Savoy, King and Atlantic Records and played sessions with Doc Pomus, The Drifters, Ray Charles, Ruth Brown, Big Joe Turner, Louis Jordan, Coleman Hawkins and Dion. Inspired by the success of Les Paul and Mary Ford, in the mid-1950s he formed the duo Mickey & Sylvia with his guitar pupil Sylvia Robinson. Their hit Love Is Strange was released in 1956. His solo album The Wildest Guitar came out in 1959.

Influence

Later he moved to France, where he worked with Ronnie Bird and Chantal Goya and remained for the rest of his life. He also wrote influential guitar tutor books, played at the Roskilde Festival in 1975 and recorded albums for Big Bear Records in the 1970s. He died in 2012. His playing can be heard running through many records of the 1950s, even though his name is not on the front.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Love Is Strange by Mickey & Sylvia and notice Baker's guitar line: what does the guitar do between the vocals of the two, and how does he keep the rhythm light?

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists