Remembering Big Daddy

by Marc Stone / Offbeat Magazine
 

You couldnt park on the same block as the Notre Dame Catholic Church that bright Wednesday morning. Summer had settled onto St. Martinville, but the Louisiana heat didnt stop people coming from far and wide to say goodbye. Small waves of mourners and well-wishers continued to file into the already packed church during the service. In the aisle stood a large coffin containing a big man in a powder blue suit with a long coat and matching hat; a giant of a bluesman, an eternal child, a Louisiana country boy. The same man whos picture was on the front page of the Times of Acadiana that day. Prayers and praise were uttered, songs were sung, and tears trailed down some of the faces. Harry Hypolite had gone home.

Ill never forget the day I met Harry. How could I? It was my first day on the road as a professional musician. I had boarded a plane from New Orleans on less than 24 hours notice to go on tour for a month with a bunch of guys Id never met. The gig was with C.J. Chenier and the Red Hot Louisiana Bandsome people called them the best zydeco band in the world. They met me in the lobby of the shoe box airport in Winston-Salem. I was the only person deplaning the eight-seater with two guitars, so C.J. figured I was his guy. He pointed a gunslinger finger at me and said You must be Marcus! Im C.J., and this heres Gumbo, Humpy and Red, and out in the van we got Big Daddy.

And so began my adventures with the Red Hot. A hulking man with ebony skin and suspicious eyes occupied the front passenger seat of the van. Big Daddy. He didnt say word one to me until we got to the barbecue joint. Not that anyone else said much either, these werent the warmest, fuzziest bunch of road dogs youd ever met. Harry and I finally broke the ice over plates of ribs and chicken, but it wasnt until we hit the stand that night that I saw that trademark sly grin, the beaming look that Harry had used to light up countless stages and work his way in and out of more situations than Ill ever know. He blended innocence and mischief into one seamless expression of joy, and his guitar rang out like a bell. His tone was pure, each note spoke the truth. I would keep my ears glued to Harrys guitar for the better part of a year, soaking up the sparkling lines and supple rhythms that he carried from a time long before my own. The blues, straight from the fields and tinged with the unmistakable lilt of a Creole man and his culture.

Harry Hypolite was born in St. Martinville, south of Lafayette, on April 15, 1937. He spoke Creole French until his one year of schooling introduced him to the English language. He picked cotton and cut cane, and he would stack soda crates outside the local juke joint to peep in the window and catch a glimpse of T-Bone Walker, Gatemouth Brown or Guitar Slim. It was the dawn of the age of electric music, and Harry was drawn to the loud guitars and even louder suits that marked the cutting edge of black music in the Deep South. By the early 50s Harry had an electric guitar and some slick suits of his own and began what would become a six decade career in music. He would play behind legends like Clifton Chenier, Big Mama Thornton and Slim Harpo and tour the world for over a decade with C.J. Chenier before joining his nephews Nathan and Dennis Paul Williams in Nathan and the Zydeco Cha-Chas. From there he would embark on the too-brief solo career that finally put a spotlight on his considerable talents, earning him acknowledgement as one of the last of the real deal. His prowling stage swagger, the power that he exuded from his massive frame, the knowing light in his eyes, all reflected the energy of that magic time when electricity first lit up the backwoods with rhythm and blues and created the sound that jolted the American soul. By the time he died tragically on I-10 a few weeks ago, the country boy from St. Martinville had been around the world multiple times. He had been treated as cultural royalty in European capitals, shared the stage with almost all of the greats of the blues world, and touched people from every walk of life. Harry was magnetic, his charm could cut through any boundary and his music spoke straight to the heart. His big, gruff voice sang in English and French about the dire poverty of his childhood, his love for life and his taste for big-legged women. He meant it, every word of it, and he lived it.

At the time I joined C.J.s band, things werent so good. Despite their status as a major roots music touring act, the band was in disarray. The group was plagued with drug and alcohol problems and management was nearly non-existent. Harry was the last member of Cliftons band to remain on board, and after 15 years on the road together, he and C.J. had had about enough of each other. Even though Harry sang and led the band to warm up each set for C.J., usually to a great crowd response, he wasnt treated like a valued member of the bands front line.

In 1999 C.J. took an unannounced vacation while on a package tour with the Fabulous Thunderbirds and Gatemouth Brown. Long time Red Hot washboard player and fellow St. Martinville native Clifford Humpy Alexander Jr. convinced the promoter to let Harry fill C.J.s spot on the roster. Backed by Gatemouths band with Alexander on washboard, Harry stepped up to center stage and delivered. Harry left the band soon after with his sights set on a solo career.

I told him, you been a follower all your life, recalls Alexander. Youre a damn leader, go be a leader.

From the chaos of the Red Hot, Harry retreated to the family environs of Nathan and the Zydeco Cha-Chas. Within a year Chad Kassem signed Harry to a solo deal with APO Records. Harry traveled to Blue Heaven Studios in Salina, Kansas and, at age 62, recorded his first album. Louisiana Country Boy, Harrys debut and only official release, brought him awards, festival gigs, international tours, and finally, the recognition that he had paid 50 years of dues to earn. The week he died the Times of Acadian readers poll dubbed his band Best Blues Band, an honor he could count amongst his Handy Award nominations, accolades in European magazines and his place in the Louisiana Blues Hall of Fame.

I cant begin to tell you what a pleasure it was to know Harry. He helped me through some tough times on the road, and he always let me know I had a friend. We played all over the U.S. and Europe together, we knew each others families. He never failed to ask about my mom. The shows we did together in subsequent years were only made sweeter by that extra glint in his smile, the knowledge that he was the star of the show. Thanks to all of the people who supported our gigs with Harry, and to Mathilda Jones, Eric Lindell, Walter Washington and all of the musicians that took part in the Louisiana Blues Throwdown series, which was built as a feature for Harry.

It took a long time for Harry to even start to get his due, and its hard to see him go so suddenly when so many things were rolling his way. He was the real thing, no one else could wear that suit and swing that guitar quite like he could. When he sang in his big, raspy voice, with his impish cackle breaking loose now and then, it didnt matter if he was singing in French or in English thick with his Creole accent. Harry always got his point across, he knew how to talk to the soul.

Harry Big Daddy Hypolite passed away in a car accident on I-10 near Baton Rouge on the morning of June 22, 2006. Foundations are being set up in Harrys honor, and tribute concerts are being planned in New Orleans and Lafayette.