Chicago bluesman Jesse Fortune, whose career stretched from the 1950s until the current day, passed away early Monday morning, August 31, 2009. The singer collapsed on stage during a Sunday night performance at Gene's Playmate Lounge in Chicago, suffering an apparent heart attack. Fortune was 79 years old.
A familiar face on the Chicago blues scene, Fortune performed at night at various city blues clubs and worked as a barber at his South Side shop during the day. Born in Macon, Mississippi in 1930, Fortune grew up in Hattiesburg. He moved to Chicago in 1952 and, influenced by the vocal style of B.B. King, began singing with guitarist Little Monroe. Through the ensuing years, Fortune also worked with Buddy Guy and Otis Rush before he was "discovered" by musician, songwriter, and producer Willie Dixon.
Dixon put Fortune in the studio in 1963, and the singer cut four songs for the USA label, including his signature tune "Too Many Cooks," which was written by Dixon and later covered by Robert Cray. Buddy Guy and harpist Big Walter Horton were his sidemen for the session. When little or nothing happened with the songs commercially, Fortune largely retired from recording, preferring to perform locally and work in his barber shop. In the early-1990s, Fortune hooked up with young guitarslinger Dave Specter and his band the Bluebirds, a partnership that resulted in Fortune's lone album, 1993's Fortune Tellin' Man, which was released by noted Chicago blues label Delmark Records.
Kevin Johnson, Delmark Records' Promotions Director, is quoted by the Chicago Sun-Times, saying of Fortune, "he was such a sweet guy. His voice was so amazing. He was an older gentleman but he had this really intense, powerful voice." Guitarist Dave Specter, Fortune's former collaborator, was quoted by the Chicago Tribune as saying "he had an amazingly powerful voice, kind of in the style of early B.B. King. He had so much presence he almost didn't need a microphone."
Fortune was reportedly planning on recording another album at the time of his death. "He had some songs ready, but it didn’t happen," says Johnson. Blues harpist Bob Corritore, in an email, says "he left us doing what he loved, and we will always love him for the great blues he brought us." An underrated blues singer that never received the acclaim he deserved, Jesse Fortune will be missed by his family, friends, and many fans in Chicago and elsewhere.
Photo courtesy Delmark Records
Comments
thanks again Kieth for keeping us posted i got to my hand on both recording of too many cooks .