© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

New Orleans R&B great Huey 'Piano' Smith dies at 89

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

OK. Let's take a moment to appreciate a great New Orleans bandleader.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DON'T YOU JUST KNOW IT")

HUEY "PIANO" SMITH & HIS CLOWNS: (Singing) I can't lose with the stuff I use. Don't you just know it? Baby, don't believe I wear two left shoes. Don't you just know it? Ah, ha, ha, ha. Ah, ha, ha, ha. Hey, yo. Hey, yo.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

In the mid- to late-'50s, Huey "Piano" Smith & His Clowns churned out classics like "Don't You Just Know It." That put Smith, who died last week, at the forefront of the New Orleans R&B sound that would heavily influence rock 'n' roll.

INSKEEP: A big influence, even though the record industry was not kind. Smith was routinely cheated out of royalties. And he largely stopped performing by the 1980s. He later declared bankruptcy. And according to his biographer, Huey "Piano" Smith had to pawn his piano.

FADEL: Dr. John was one of the many pianists who followed in Huey Smith's footsteps and fingertips, as he told NPR back in 2010.

DR JOHN: You could tell a New Orleans guy by not so much what he did, but what he left out, the space he left in the music to get a little more funky. It's like, if you listen to, say, Huey Smith's record of "I Got The Rockin' Pneumonia And The Boogie Woogie Flu," the whole song is loaded with breaks to leave the drum a little extra space to just do something.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ROCKIN' PNEUMONIA AND THE BOOGIE WOOGIE FLU")

HUEY "PIANO" SMITH & HIS CLOWNS: (Singing) I got a rocking pneumonia and the boogie-woogie flu.

DR JOHN: And it was just kind of the attitude of - all the guys did that. All of that influenced other people from other places that played down there a lot.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ROCKIN' PNEUMONIA AND THE BOOGIE WOOGIE FLU")

HUEY "PIANO" SMITH & HIS CLOWNS: (Singing) And the boogie-woogie flu.

INSKEEP: Huey "Piano" Smith was 89 years old.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ROCKIN' PNEUMONIA AND THE BOOGIE WOOGIE FLU")

HUEY "PIANO" SMITH & HIS CLOWNS: (Singing) I want to kiss her, but the gal too tall. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.