Cecil Gant(1913-1951)

Blues singer/pianist Cecil Gant was born in Nashville, TN, in 1913. Although he learned to play piano and had secured in various roadhouses and clubs in the South, he wasn't a full-time musician. He joined the US Army during World War II, and he was at a war-bond rally in Los Angeles, CA, in 1944 when, during a break in the entertainment, he asked if he could go on stage and perform a couple of songs. As it turned out he was the hit of the show, and was asked to perform at other rallies in the L.A. area. He began to make a name for himself and it wasn't long before he was offered a recording contract, by Gilt Edge Records. He released a song in late 1944, "I Wonder", which shot to #1 on the R&B charts. Audiences liked both his smooth, crooner-style vocals and his wild, foot-stomping piano playing (he was an influence on future rocker Jerry Lee Lewis). Although he continued to record on a variety of labels, none of his songs had the success that "I Wonder" did. His career frustrations led him to develop a drinking problem, which further hurt his career; in 1951, his health having been weakened by his alcohol consumption, he caught pneumonia and died in Nashville.