September 29, 1928 – June 3, 2009
Cora Walton was born on a Memphis sharecroppers farm. She grew up picking cotton, feeding pigs, and singing with her church and family. She got the nickname Koko because of her love for chocolate. In 1953, she married Robert “Pops” Taylor and moved to Chicago. Pops worked at a slaughterhouse and Koko cleaned houses. They often went to blues clubs where Koko would “sit in” as a singer for whatever band was playing.
One night in 1962 Willie Dixon heard her sing, and history was made. He had her record his Howlin’ Wolf song “Wang Dang Doodle” in 1965. It became a hit and her signature tune. It was Chess Records’ last top 10 R&B hit. None of her other recordings hit it as big, but that didn’t stop her from eventually winning every possible Blues Award multiple times! She became known as The Queen of Chicago Blues.
Koko lived in Chicago, but spent most of her time on the road with her band the Blues Machine. In 1975 she signed with Alligator Records and ended up making 8 albums for them. She continued the Blues and Jazz Festival circuits and recorded with multiple blues artists throughout her career.
In 1980 she received the first of her 29 W.C Handy awards, the most of any female Blues artist. In 1988 her tour bus was in an accident and Pops never really recovered. It took a couple of years for Koko to be ready to perform again, but she started back on the road in 1990. Koko toured for another decade before her health started to hold her back. She recorded an album in 2000, “Royal Blue” featuring Kenny Wayne Shepherd, BB King, Keb Mo, and Johnie Johnson and then retired from touring. Her final album was recorded in 2007. She died in 2009 from surgical complications.
Happy Birthday Koko Taylor! We gonna pitch a wang dang doodle all night long for you!
