Dave Bartholomew was a giant in the New Orleans R&B scene of the 1950s and claimed to have invented the 'big beat' sound. He played mainly the trumpet and tuba and wrote, arranged and produced songs for such figures as Fats Domino, Shirley & Lee, Smiley Lewis, Earl King, Robert Parker, Chris Kenner, Frankie Ford and Lloyd Price.
He fronted several bands in New Orleans before serving in the forces in World War II where he gained valuable experience scoring and arranging. After the war he returned to New Orleans and in 1949 had his first solo hit with the song 'Country Boy'. He recruited a group of musicians who became the core of R&B in the city - his band included drummer Earl Palmer and sax players Alvin 'Red' Tyler and Lee Allen.
In 1949 Lew Chudd of Imperial Records hired Bartholomew as A & R man, house arranger and bandleader. He was credited with creating the first rock & roll song with Fats Domino's 'The Fat Man' in 1949. At Imperial he wrote and created hit records, spotting Fats Domino and helping to create his hits 'Ain't That a Shame' and 'Blue Monday'. Other hits he worked on included Shirley & Lee's 'Let the Good Times Roll', Lloyd Price's 'Lawdy Miss Clawdy' and Smiley Lewis' 'I Hear You Knockin''. Bartholomew also wrote Chuck Berry's only number one, the novelty song 'My Ding-a-Ling'.
He was successful at a time of racial segregation and always maintained control of his career. With more than 4,000 songwriting credits, his output included classics such as 'I'm Walkin'' the 1957 hit for Fats Domino, a song Bartholomew also recorded himself with the New Orleans Jazz Band.
Bartholomew's success lasted up until the mid-1960s. He continued to work as a producer and performer and in the 1970s and '80s he fronted a Dixieland jazz band that played in New Orleans. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. He died in Metairie, Louisiana in June 2019, having reached the age of 100.
