Smokestack Lightnin' Home Page -- The Blues Profile Page
Louis
Bo Collins - Highly regarded for a handful of 45s he had recorded
for various Detroit labels during the '50s, '60s and '70s, his recording
career had take a long hiatus while his live performing career continued to
thrive. Louis Bo Collins was born on April 7, 1932 in Indianola,
Mississippi; he moved north to Chicago in 1946 and settled in Detroit in the
early 1950s. Befriended by Washboard Willie, his growing interest in
performing the blues was encouraged, and he was soon playing house parties
throughout Detroit, performing with the likes of Jhn Lee Hooker, Eddie Burns
and Little Sonny. Under the name 'Mr Bo,' Collins began a recording career
in 1959 which would eventually be responsible for some of the finest blues
ever to come out of Detroit. The singles reveal a singer and guitarist
influenced by B B King and
T-Bone Walker, but they also reveal an
artist who created a blues style that was uniquely his own. Perhaps the most
enduring recording from this period is 'If Trouble Was Money,' penned by his
brother Little Mac Collins and covered by many since its 1966 release. On
September 19, 1995 he succumbed to pneumonia at Detroit's Harper Hostipal.
Only 63, Mr Bo's death brought to a close the career of one of Detroit's
finest blues artists.
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