Musician of the Month: Fats Domino

Fats Domino was born in 1928 as Antoine Dominique Domino Junior in New Orleans. He was a piano playing prodigy and rock and roll legend who brought a unique blend of sounds to the rhythm and blues scene in the 1950s and 60s. He is one of the first rhythm and blues artists to appeal to both white and black audiences, having sold more than 65 million records. His rendition of "The Fat Man," recorded in December of 1949, is considered by many to be the first rock-and-roll song ever.

Domino described his songwriting process as taking inspiration from everyday events: "Something that happened to someone, that's how I write all my songs," he explained. "I used to listen to people talk every day, things would happen in real life. I used to go around different places, hear people talk. Sometimes I wasn't expecting to hear nothing and my mind was very much on my music. Next thing I'd hear, I would either write it down or remember it good." Domino believed the success of his music came from the rhythm: "You got to keep a good beat. The rhythm we play is from Dixieland, New Orleans."Domino left us recently on October 24th, 2017 due to natural causes.