Post by Supertramp78 on Oct 7, 2014 17:47:33 GMT -5
I've been picking up all sorts of fun tidbits reading "Cowboys and Indies" which is about the history of the record business.
Here is one interesting thing...
Let's go all the way back to a white Georgia plantation owner by the name of James Thomas Gordy. James was born in 1828. His wife was Harriet Emily Gordy and between the two of them they had several children, one of whom I'll come back to in a minute.
James also had a son with Esther Johnson, one of his black slaves. That son was named Barry and he was born sometime between 1853 and 1857. Barry eventually grew up and married Lucy Hellum and had a son named Barry II in 1888.
(Barry II and Bertha Fuller Gordon)
Barry II was a self taught businessman who amassed a sizable amount of money to the point where it was no longer safe for him to remain in Georgia so he packed up his family and moved to Detroit in 1922. Barry II married Bertha Fuller and they produced Barry III (or Barry Jr. as he was called because by now Barry II was going by Barry Sr.) in 1929.
Barry Jr. tried his hand at boxing but failed. He also tried writing pop songs but nobody liked them. He eventually scored a hit song for Jackie Wilson with "Reet Petite" in 1957. He got the job because at one point in his past he had boxed against Wilson and Wilson figured that was worth a shot.
He also wrote or co-wrote the following.
"Lonely Teardrops" for Wilson
"All I Could Do Was Cry" for Etta James
And a somewhat more better know "Money (That's what I want)" for Barrett Strong - which was later covered by The Beatles.
"Shop Around" for The Miracles and co-written by Smokey Robinson
And to round things up for this songwriter, "Please Mr. Postman" for the Marvelettes - and also covered by The Beatles on the same album they did "Money".
but.... you guys already know all this. Barry Jr. goes on to found Motown records, discovers and or signs Diane Ross (sending her to charm school and renaming her Diana), Stevland Morris (Stevie Wonder) and a host of other people.
(Barry with his daughter Hazel and some other guys)
Now let's go back to the top of this list.....
"Let's go all the way back to a white Georgia plantation owner by the name of James Thomas Gordy."
Thomas Gordy had a son with his wife Harriet by the name of James Jackson Gordy in 1853. James grew up and married Mary Ida Nicholson and they had a daughter in 1898 named Bessie Lillian Gordy who was the half first-cousin of Barry II from way up there.
Bessie married James Earl Carter, Sr. in 1923 and they had four children, one of whom was this guy.
Interesting stuff.
