Charles 'Wigg' Walker - Best Artist Ever (Of The Month)
When we started talking about who we wanted as our first “Best Artist Ever (Of the Month)” our pick was obvious. Every Saturday our brunch-goers are serenaded by one of the few remaining original soul singers from back in the day when old school R&B/soul was brand new on the music scene: Charles ‘Wigg’ Walker.
He cut his first record in 1959 for Ted Jarrett’s legendary Champion label. In 1960, Charles moved to New York City where studios and nightclub work were plentiful. 1962 found Charles recording with Chess Records out of Chicago, and soon he signed on as lead singer with the J.C. Davis Band. This band began touring the country opening for the greats of the era including James Brown, Jackie Wilson, Etta James, Wilson Pickett, Little Willie John, Otis Redding, and Sam Cooke.
Check out our “Best Artist Ever (Of The Month) playlist featuring Charles ‘Wigg’ Walker and the legends he’s shared a stage with.
In 1964, Charles formed his own group, Little Charles and the Sidewinders. They became one of the most in demand soul bands in New York City’s nightclub scene, performing at the Apollo Theater, Small’s Paradise and venturing out to Las Vegas and Atlantic City. They subsequently recorded for Chess and Decca labels. The Sidewinders stayed together through the 60’s, and in 1969 Charles cut some sides for Botanic Records. The Sidewinders reformed in 1973 and worked as a show band in hotels, nightclubs, and casinos without the benefit of a recording contract. In 1979, Charles signed on with Motown as a staff writer.
Early in the 80’s, Charles recorded in England and re-issued many of the Sidewinders classic sides. Realizing that there was a market for soul music in the U.K., he formed his own label P.R.G. and released the single “See Me” in Europe. Charles spent most of the 1980’s in England and Spain and worked steadily and recorded occasionally, but this wasn’t enough. In 1993, he moved back to Nashville to do some serious recording, since Nashville’s blues and R&B scene was really booming.
Charles most recently was the featured singer for a band called “The Dynamites featuring Charles Walker”, and three records were released since June of 2007 on Outtasight Records. The band toured frequently in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Australia. You can catch them every Saturday for “Soul Brunch” on the first floor of Acme Feed & Seed.
