Tony Joe White

Coming to prominence in the late '60s, singer, songwriter, and guitarist Tony Joe White was a pioneer of swamp rock and country soul. He grew up on a cotton farm in Oak Grove, Louisiana on July 23, 1943, and by 1967 he'd made his way to Nashville, striking a deal with Monument Records. His revolutionary blend of R&B, country, and swampy rock 'n' roll powered atmospheric tales influenced by his upbringing. His first release was the 1967 single "Georgia Pines," but it wasn't until "Polk Salad Annie" from his 1968 debut album, Black and White, became a sleeper hit in 1969 that his career took off. Besides putting White in the Top 10, the song was covered by everybody from Elvis Presley to Tom Jones. Presley would go on to cover White's 1972 single "I've Got a Thing About You Baby" as well, and many other artists covered White's tunes for decades to come. After this brief blip on the mainstream radar, White never had another hit single or album, but he continued refining his dark, bluesy sound at a steady pace throughout the '70s, becoming a cult phenomenon in the process. In 1971 he shifted to Warner Bros. for his self-titled, Peter Asher-produced album. In '74, White appeared as Cassio in the Patrick McGoohan-directed film Catch My Soul, a musical adaptation of Othello starring Richie Havens. After an ill-advised attempt at a disco-tinged approach, White took a hiatus from performing and recording, focusing on songwriting instead. Things turned around with Tina Turner's 1989 album Foreign Affair, on which White played, co-produced, and contributed several songs including the hit "Steamy Windows." This helped revive his career, and he began recording for Polydor. Though he didn't become much more commercially viable, he was reenergized. From the 2000s on, an artistically invigorated White released a long string of indie records and claimed his place as elder statesman of swamp rock. He continued performing and recording right up until his death on October 24, 2018 at the age of 75.