I believe the year was 1988 (unless my mind is deceiving me), and once again I was at the world’s largest free blues festival, The Chicago Blues Festival, an annual celebration of the blues held in the city’s magnificent Grant Park.  Year after year, the festival had provided me so many opportunities to witness the blues of titans of the genre, and 1988 was certainly again not to disappoint.  With blues and related genre artists including Otis Rush, Buddy Guy, Son Seals, Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, Etta James, Albert King, Fontella bass, Bobby Parker, Bobby “Blue Bland”, B.B. King, among many others on the bill, the 1988 festival was sure to be an incredible event.

But, there was one particular series of performances to take place at the festival’s Front Porch Stage that I was particularly excited about.  There was to be a parade of blues piano giants who were to appear, including west coast master, Charles Brown, and a trio of Texas piano greats who rarely traveled outside the state; the author of 1929’s “Blue Bloomer Blues”, Whistlin’ Alex Moore, barrelhouse artist, Grey Ghost, and the multi-faceted, Dr. Hepcat.  My itinerary for a decent portion of the day was set, as I would claim a portion of the grass up-close to the Front Porch Stage so I could observe and bask in the music of these blues piano aces.

While all four of these astounding blues pianists were awe-inspiring, I was specifically enamored with Dr. Hepcat’s set.  A striking fellow who was immaculately dressed in a black suit with an open-collar white dress shirt and stylish eyewear, not only was his blues of incredibly good quality, but he bantered with an air of hip confidence, giving him the air of authenticity of someone who had been around the proverbial block.  In short, I bought into his whole being.

Albert Lavada Durst aka Dr. Hepcat was born in the southeast Texas city of Austin early in the 20^th century in 1913.  Like many blues artists, he found access to a piano at a young age at a church across the street from his home, and in due time, after becoming proficient on the instrument, began playing the blues in-and-around his hometown area, often in a boogie-woogie style.  Early blues influences for Dr. Hepcat included Baby Dotson, Black Tank, and Boot Walden, among others. 

Perhaps foretelling of Hepcat’s stage chit chat that I found compelling at the Chicago Blues Festival the day I saw him perform, it is said that he fostered a gift of cadenced jive speak, an attribute that allowed him to become a game announcer in Austin for Negro League baseball games at Disch Field. 

We may be veering away from the essence of Dr. Hepcat’s blues contributions here, but this is an effort to ideally frame the man behind the blues and his unique abilities.  One-day, eventual Texas governor, John Connally, who at the time was the radio station executive at Austin’s radio group KVET, was taken by Durst’s baseball announcing style, and recruited him through the station’s owner to both be a DJ (the station’s and Texas’ first black DJ), and to be the station’s baseball analyst on the station’s AM side.  It was during this period of time that Durst became Dr. Hepcat, and he attained a great notoriety throughout Austin for his jive way of speaking.  Many people found him highly-entertaining.  It is said that Dr. Hepcat was responsible for bringing blues, R&B, and jazz to whites in Austin.

KVET’s program director at the time, Fred Caldwell, learned of Dr. Hepcat’s blues piano skills, and convinced him to record for his Uptown Records label.  The recording was issued in 1949 as a 78rpm record, with the titles being “Hattie Green” and “Hepcat’s Boogie”.  By the way, seek these titles out; they are extraordinary.

Also, during this period, Dr. Hepcat was managing The Charlottes, a sanctified music group.  Continuing with Dr. Hepcat’s involvement in the gospel musical arena, he also authored a song for The Bells Of Joy entitled “Let’s Talk About Jesus”.

Additionally, as was per his already-referenced jive talk proclivities, Dr. Hepcat penned a book, a dictionary, if you will, of jive speak entitled “The Jives Of Dr, Hepcat”, a publication that was published in 1953.  Trust me, hearing Dr. Hepcat speak at The Chicago Blues Festival, the man had a way with words.

As if all this activity for Dr. Hepcat was not enough, he too was involved with the Rosewood Recreation Center, also located in Austin, holding the long-standing title of Director Of Athletics.

Dr. Hepcat’s time at KVET came to a close in the early 1960s.  In a move that has been seen before with secular performers, he became a decreed clergyman in 1965.  Due to this life change, Dr. Hepcat retreated from performing blues music.  However, in the mid-1970s, he returned to the stage to again ply his brand of blues, appearing at venues both large and small.  Dr. Hepcat maintained that God swayed him to return to again perform his blues.  Obviously, this is how I had the occasion to see Dr. Hepcat in 1989 in Chicago.

It is very amazing that based upon the strength of only two recordings made in 1949 that Dr. Hepcat was thus in-demand as a performer.  Surely, the strength of his two recordings played into his being desired as a performer, but it seems it was the whole of the package of the man, from his unique jive-talking approach, to the catalog of songs he developed when he was playing blues at various venues in his early years, and due to the very mystery of just who was this enigmatic Texas blues piano man.

In total, it appears that Dr, Hepcat’s two blues recordings have been released on six different blues compilations over the years, on the Blues Classics, African Folk Society, Fantastic Voyage, Boulevard Vintage, CJRO Records, and Koko Mojo Records labels, with the releases dating from 1970-2020.

On that Summer day in 1988, I was treated to that delicious mix of Dr. Hepcat’s boogie-woogie, with his strong rhythmic left hand, and the melodic capabilities of his right, fused with his tenor vocalizations, and that spirited special jive slang that gave Dr. Hepcat an air of coolness that was indisputable.  For me, it was bliss, and to this day, 34 years later, it remains unique among the countless blues performances I have seen.  Unique fellows like Dr. Hepcat do not come our way often.  I am so grateful I was there to see his gifts unfold before my eyes and ears.

You can’t teach cool!