Search - Sugar Pie Desanto :: Refined Sugar

Refined Sugar is the latest CD from dynamic R&B singer Sugar Pie DeSanto, whose sassy, spicy live performances have become legendary.Born Umpeylia Marsema Balinton in San Francisco, the diminutive singer was dubbed "Little Miss Sugar Pie" by bandleader Johnny Otis when she made her recording debut with him for Federal Records in 1955. A first-class blues and soul singer, DeSanto is also a commanding jazz stylist, an uproarious comedienne, a show-stopping dancer and an expert tunesmith. At age 70, Sugar Pie still brings an endless energy and vibrancy to her live performances, as evidenced by a recent feature from Rob Harvilla in the East Bay Express: "...DeSanto can only truly do herself justice in person, a rowdy, full-contact experience..."On Refined Sugar, producer James C. Moore, Sr. skillfully mixes DeSanto's blues and soul sounds with a blend of jazz and pop that demonstrates her multi-talents as a singer. Recorded at several studios in the San Francisco Bay Area, the new CD features DeSanto backed mostly by her regular touring band, with such special guests as pianist/jazz arranger William Bell and the late producer/arranger/pianist Lonnie Hewitt. She co-wrote the majority of the songs on Refined Sugar and puts her own stamp on such covers as "Blues Hall of Fame," written by blues great Jimmy McCracklin; and Big Mama Thornton's "Black Rat."She has made over 20 appearances at the legendary Apollo Theatre in New York, where she was spotted by James Brown and became his opening act from 1960-1962. In 1964, she was the only female act with the American Folk Blues Festival that toured Europe. Billed as "featuring the best blues artists of America," other headliners on the tour included Willie Dixon, Sleepy John Estes, Sunnyland Slim, Hubert Sumlin, Lightnin' Hopkins, Howlin' Wolf and Sonny Boy Williamson.Over the years, she has written more than 100 tunes, two of which she recorded as a duet with her cousin Etta James ("Do I Make Myself Clear?" and "In the Basement," reissued by MCA, the latter being included on the soundtrack of the movie The Hurricane). Among the over 30 sides she recorded for Chess Records, her first single, "I Want to Know," (which she wrote) reached the top 10 on the R&B charts. In 1989, Marcia Ball recorded Sugar Pie's "Soulful Dress" as the title track for her Rounder Records album. Other songs of hers have been recorded by Billy Stewart, Little Milton, Fontella Bass, Bobby McClure, Minnie Riperton, Jesse James, The Dells and The Whispers, among others. DeSanto's awards include "Best Female Live Blues Performer" from Canada's Real Blues magazine in 1997 and 1998, a 1999 Bay Area Music Award for "Outstanding Blues Artist" and was honored in 2003 as a Blues Legend by the California Music Awards. She was also a contributor to the book Harlem of the West - The San Francisco Fillmore Jazz Era by Elizabeth Pepin and Lewis Watts.