Fats Domino, one of the most influential rock and roll performers of the 1950s and 60s, has died aged 89.

Antoine “Fats” Domino, a titan of early rock ‘n’ roll whose piano-based hits — such as “Ain’t That a Shame,” “Blueberry Hill” and “Blue Monday” — influenced artists including Paul McCartney and Randy Newman, died Tuesday, an official said. Domino passed away due to natural causes, according to Mark Bone, chief investigator with the Jefferson Parish Medical Examiner’s office in Louisiana. He was 89.

With producer and arranger Dave Bartholomew, Domino cut a string of songs in the 1950s and early ’60s that helped establish his hometown of New Orleans as a rock ‘n’ roll hotbed and made him one of the music’s leading figures. The pair recorded “The Fat Man” in late 1949, a song considered one of the first rock ‘n’ roll records — a group that includes Wynonie Harris’ version of “Good Rockin’ Tonight” (1947) and Jackie Brenston and Ike Turner’s “Rocket 88” (1951) — and followed it up with more than 30 Top 40 hits, including 23 gold singles.

The New Orleans singer sold more than 65 million records, outselling every 1950s rock and roll act except Elvis Presley.His million-selling debut single, The Fat Man, is credited by some as the first ever rock and roll record.

An official from New Orleans coroner’s office confirmed the death, which was earlier announced by Domino’s daughter to a local television station.

Fats Domino – whose real name was Antoine Domino Jr – was one of the first rhythm and blues artists to gain popularity with a white audience and his music was most prolific in the 1950s.

Domino had a string of number ones and more than 30 top 40 hits. His music is also credited as a key influence on artists during the 1960s and 70s.

Elvis Presley referred to Fats Domino as “the real king of rock n roll” and Paul McCartney reportedly wrote the Beatles song Lady Madonna in emulation of his style.

 

In 1986 he was among the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but by his later life Domino would no longer leave his Louisiana hometown – not even to accept the award. New Orleans-born musician and actor Harry Connick Jr is among those who have paid tribute to Domino on Twitter, saying he had “helped pave the way for New Orleans piano players”.

Fats Domino in a German advertisement featuring “Lady Madonna” and his 1968 album

Antoine “Fats” Domino Jr was born in New Orleans on 26 Feb 1928, the son of a violinist. His parents were of Creole origin, and French Creole was spoken in the family. He was musically inclined from an early age and learned piano from his brother in law, the jazz banjo player, Harrison Verrett. He was given his nickname by bandleader Bill Diamond for whom he was playing piano in honky-tonks as a teenager. He said the youngster’s technique reminded him of two other great piano players, Fats Waller and Fats Pichon. Domino left school at the age of 14 to work in a bedspring factory by day, and play in bars by night. He was soon accompanying such New Orleans luminaries as Professor Longhair and Amos Milburn.In the mid-1940s, he joined trumpeter Dave Bartholomew’s band, and the two co-wrote Domino’s first hit The Fat Man. Suddenly, the New Orleans sound became popular nationwide.

Some of his belongings were replaced, including his gold records and a National Medal of Arts he’d been awarded in 1998 (from President Bill Clinton). His white Steinway was refurbished by the Louisiana Music Foundation, which put it on display in the French Quarter in 2013.
Domino remained a steadfast part of the New Orleans scene. He played a sold-out show at Tipitina’s nightclub in 2007 and appeared in an episode of the TV show “Treme” in 2012.

Domino was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.

 

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