Professor Longhair

Henry Roeland "Roy" Byrd (December 19, 1918 – January 30, 1980), better known as Professor Longhair or "Fess" for short, was an American singer and pianist who performed New Orleans blues. He was active in two distinct periods, first in the heyday of early rhythm and blues and later in the resurgence of interest in traditional jazz after the founding of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in 1970. His piano style has been described as "instantly recognizable, combining rumba, mambo, and calypso".
Music journalist Tony Russell (in his book The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray) wrote that "The vivacious rhumba-rhythmed piano blues and choked singing typical of Fess were too weird to sell millions of records; he had to be content with siring musical offspring who were simple enough to manage that, like Fats Domino or Huey "Piano" Smith. But he is also acknowledged as a father figure by subtler players like Allen Toussaint and Dr. John.
==Links to Peel==
Peel played some of Professor Longhair's music on his shows, including various groups he was involved such as the Roy Byrd & His Blues Jumpers group, who had a song called Bald Head, which was nominated by JP as one of his songs for the Peelenium 1950.
==Shows Played==
;thumb|220x220pxProfessor Longhair
*15 August 1972: Tipitana (LP - New Orleans Piano) Atlantic
*03 October 1972: unknown (sourced from David Cavanagh's Good Night And Good Riddance book)
*03 July 1973: Walk Your Blues Away (LP – New Orleans Piano) Atlantic
*05 May 1975: Bald Head (v/a LP - New Orleans R & B Volume One) Flyright 
*D030: No Buts, No Maybes
;Roy Byrd & His Blues Jumpers
*16 September 1999: Bald Head (Peelenium 1950)
==External Links==
*Wikipedia
*Discogs
Category:Artists