John Leon Gross (September 14, 1912[1] or 1916[2][3] – January 8, 1973), who performed and recorded as Archibald, was an American rhythm and blues pianist and singer who had a hit in 1950 with "Stack-A-Lee", a version of "Stagger Lee".
Influenced in particular by local piano player Burnell Santiago, he began playing at parties, and later in brothels, and acquired the nickname "Archie Boy" which eventually became "Archibald".
The song was based on a true story - the shooting of Billy Lyons by "Stag" Lee Shelton in St Louis, Missouri in 1895 - and had already been recorded by many artists including Ma Rainey, Mississippi John Hurt, and Duke Ellington, but Archibald's version was the first to achieve widespread national success.
[1][3][4] He had to cancel a tour that year due to illness, and later recordings failed to match the commercial success of "Stack-A-Lee".
They "featured Bartholomew's brash trumpet playing, Joe Harris, and Clarence Hall, respectively, on alto- and tenor-sax, and as solid a rock & roll beat as anything on Imperial...".