Lorenzo Flennoy was a Los Angeles pianist who was playing at the Savoy Ballroom fronting his own band when he was 22. His bands of various incarnations played frequently at California hotels and clubs throughout the 30s and early 40s with acts such as Earl Hines, Art Tatum, Stuff Smith, T-Bone Walker, Nellie Lutcher, and Meade Lux Lewis.
In the early 40s, Flennoy and his band started getting more national exposure by appearing in Hollywood movies such as Lady Luck (1942) and When Strangers Marry (1944).
In 1943, Flennoy formed a trio with Gene Phillips on Guitar and Robert Lewis on bass. Phillips was replaced in 1945 by Jimmie Edwards, who also sang.
In April (or May?) of 1945, while the rest of the world was watching WWII come to a close in the European theatre, The Flennoy Trio recorded two sides on a new local label called Melodisc – including this one called “Hey Lawdy Mama”.
When I first heard this lively and innovative song I was amazed by all of the prototypical elements of early rock and roll in this song from 1945. It’s catchy and also somewhat unpredictable. While Melodisc advertised the single in Billboard, no review followed and it seems to have disappeared off the radar.
Flennoy, on the other hand, continued to play music throughout the 40s, 50s, and 60s. He died at age 61 in 1971.
Released as Melodisc M-101 in May 1945.
Credits:
Lorenzo Flennoy – piano
Jimmie Edwards – guitar, vocals
Robert Lewis – bass
Thanks to Marv Goldberg’s excellent timeline of Lorenzo Flennoy’s life for much of this information. It can be found at:
https://www.uncamarvy.com/FlennoyTrio/flennoytrio.html