He was a singer-songwriter and guitarist from Oak Grove, Louisiana, who went to Nashville and got a contract with Monument Records, where his producer was Biilly Swan.
He remained with the record company for around three years, during which he put out four single releases. “Polk Salad Annie” was one which had no immediate commercial success and was written off by the record company but after being around for nine months it eventually got into the charts in 1969 and became his biggest hit when it reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Roosevelt and Ira Lee (Night of the Moccassin)” also made it into the charts but “Soul Francisco” did not make any waves in the US but it did, however, become a hit in France.
His debut album Black and White was released in 1969, which featured “Polk Salad Annie” among others and before long he managed to gain three other minor successes with single releases. His songwriting was also recognised when Dusty Springfield made the charts with his “Willie and Laura Mae Jones” in 1969 and his “Rainy Night in Georgia” was a success for Brook Benton in 1970. In the very early 1970s he toured with several rock bands in Europe and there were several albums released on an annual basis.
Catch My Soul came out in 1972 which was his rock-opera take on Othello by William Shakespeare. That same year he as asked to play on the recording sessions for Southern Roots by Jerry Lee Lewis.
In 1976 he recorded his Eyes on 20th Century Records then by 1980 he had moved to Casablanca Records to record The Real Thing and after shifting to Columbia Records for his 1983 Dangerous he made the decision to put his energy into writing songs rather than singing.
In 1989 he wrote four songs for the album Foreign Affair by Tina Turner. This turned out to be a turning point for him with the massive success of “Steamy Windows” as he landed himself a new contract with Polydor and started being managed by Tina Turner’s manager Roger Davies.
When the 1990s came around he released Closer to the Truth on Remark Records in 1991 which became more of a commercial success for him. He then performed at the Montreaux Festival in 1992. He followed by releasing The Path of a Decent Groove in 1993 and Lake Placid Blues in 1995. It was also a busy decade for him when he joined Joe Cocker and Eric Clapton on tour in France and Germany.
When the new millennium came around he released his One Hot July on Hip-O Records in 2000 and the following year he went to Swamp Records and recorded The Beginning. Three years later in 2004 he duetted with several female singers on his album Heroines and was the guest artist on the Legends Rock TV Show.
In 2006 the concert recording Live from Austin, TX came out and that same year he was an opener for The Dark Side of the Moon concert by Roger Waters in France. He also released Uncovered which included collaborations with several other top artists.
The next year in 2007 his live Take Home the Swamp appeared along with his Introduction to Tony Joe White. Hoodoo was released in 2013.
Throughout his career he performed with and/or been the composer for songs recorded by many artists including The Animals, John Anderson, Acker Bilk, Elkie Brooks, Eric Burdon, J.J. Cale, Kenny Chesney, Bobby Darin, Chris Farlowe, Eddie Floyd, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Rory Gallagher, Isaac Hayes, Roy Head, Levon Helm, Al Hirt, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Ferlin Husky, Chuck Jackson, Etta James, Kaiser Chiefs, Ben E. King, Mark Knopfler, Shelby Lynne, John Mayall, Tim McGraw, Jackie Mittoo, Carmen McRae, Jerry Reed, Charlie Rich, Johnny Rivers, Earl Scruggs, Joe Simon, Nancy Sinatra, The Skatalites, Shakin’ Stevens, Nat Stuckey, B.J. Thomas, Conway Twitty, Michelle White, Wild Cherry and Nancy Wilson.
As you can imagine his album credits, not including his own recordings, are countless with his credits as a composer and/or musician. Just a very few of these include Skydog by Duane Allman, Songs and Stories by George Benson, Best of the Johnny Cash TV Show by Johnny Cash, Live by The Cate Brothers, The Genius Hits the Road by Ray Charles, At Their Best by The Crusaders, Greatest Hits by Joe Cocker, Full Moon by Rita Coolidge, Secret Combination by Randy Crawford, Heavy Love by Buddy Guy, Cowgirl’s Prayer by Emmylou Harris, Good Hearted Woman by Waylon Jennings, Tom by Tom Jones, Makin’ Love is Good For You by B.B. King, Extensions by The Manhattan Transfer, Turtle Bay by Herbie Mann, Blue Obsession by Michael McDonald, Elements: 1973-1991 by Mike Oldfield, That’s the Way It Is by Elvis Presley, The Wonder of You by Nelson Riddle & His Orchestra, The Gambler by Kenny Rogers, David: Unreleased LP & More by David Ruffin, Memphis by Boz Scaggs, Dusty in Memphis by Dusty Springfield, Soul Book by Rod Stewart, Foreign Affairs by Tom Waits, The Last Love Song by Hank Williams Jr. and Essential by Paul Young.
He died of a heart attack in 2018 at his home in Tennessee. He was 75 years old.
Kenny Rogers recordings
The Gambler (Don Schlitz)
United Artists UA-X1250-Y (UAST-20122)
Sources:
- http://www.tonyjoewhite.com/about/
- https://myspace.com/tonyjoewhite
- http://www.allmusic.com/artist/tony-joe-white-mn0000744265/biography
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Joe_White
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polk_Salad_Annie - http://www.discogs.com/artist/Tony+Joe+White
- http://www.allmusic.com/artist/tony-joe-white-mn0000744265/credits