Floyd Dixon biography

For the American football player see Floyd Dixon (American football) Floyd Dixon (February 8, 1929 – July 26, 2006) was an American rhythm and blues pianist and singer. Biography Dixon was born Jay Riggins Jr. in Marshall, Texas. Self-dubbed "Mr. Magnificent," Dixon signed a recording contract with Modern Records in 1949, specializing in jump blues and sexualized songs like "Red Cherries", "Wine Wine Wine", "Too Much Jelly Roll" and "Baby Let's Go Down to The Woods". When Brown left Johnny Moore's Three Blazers in 1950 to go solo, Dixon replaced him as pianist and singer and recorded with the band for Aladdin Records. Dixon switched to the Specialty Records label in 1952, and the Atlantic Records subsidiary Cat Records in 1954. "Hey Bartender" (later covered by The Blues Brothers) and "Hole In The Wall" were hit singles during this time. In the 1970s Dixon left the music industry for a quieter life in Texas, though he did occasional tours in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1993, Dixon received a Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. Dixon died in Orange County, California in July 2006, at the age of 77, from kidney failure, having suffered with cancer. A public memorial service was held at Grace Chapel, in the grounds of the Inglewood Park Cemetery.