Wynonie Harris (August 24, 1915[2] – June 14, 1969) was an American blues shouter best remembered as a singer of upbeat songs, featuring humorous, often ribald lyrics.

[5] His dirty blues repertoire included "Lolly Pop Mama" (1948),[6] "I Like My Baby's Pudding" (1950),[7] "Sittin on It All the Time" (1950),[7] "Keep On Churnin' (Till the Butter Comes)" (1952),[8] and "Wasn't That Good" (1953).

His wife, Olive E. Goodlow, and daughter, Patricia Vest, said that his father was a Native American named Blue Jay.

In 1935 Harris, age 20, started dating 16-year-old Olive E. (Ollie) Goodlow, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, who came to neighboring Omaha to watch him perform.

In 1940, Wynonie and Ollie Harris moved to Los Angeles, California, leaving Pattie with her grandmother in Omaha.

He began traveling frequently to Kansas City, where he paid close attention to blues shouters, including Jimmy Rushing and Big Joe Turner.

They moved on to New York City, where on April 7 Harris took the stage with Millinder's band for his debut at the Apollo Theatre, in Harlem.

Here, Preston Love, Harris's childhood friend, joined Millinder's band, replacing the alto saxophonist Tab Smith.

Although not a chart-topper, the song became popular, and cover versions were recorded by many artists, including Willie Bryant, Jimmy Rushing and Big Joe Turner.

His greatest success came when he signed for Syd Nathan's King label, where he enjoyed a series of hits on the U.S. R&B chart in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

In 1946, Harris recorded two singles with the pianist Herman "Sonny" Blount, who later earned fame as the eclectic jazz composer and bandleader Sun Ra.

Some reviewers state that "Good Rocking Tonight", by Roy Brown (1947) or by Harris (1948)[12] is one of the contenders for the title of "first rock'n'roll record".

The Project adds that "the song has also been credited with being the most successful record to that point to use the word 'rock' not as a euphemism for sex, but as a descriptive for the musical style.

[16][17] His risqué approach to material at times made his tracks "Keep On Churnin'" (1952) and "Wasn't That Good" (1953) jukebox favorites in the early 1950s.

In 1960 he cut six sides for Roulette Records, including a remake of his hit "Bloodshot Eyes" and "Sweet Lucy Brown", "Spread the News", "Saturday Night", "Josephine" and "Did You Get the Message".

Harris died of esophageal cancer on June 14, 1969, aged 53, at the USC Medical Center Hospital in Los Angeles.

[27][28] According to Henry Glover, Harris's record producer, Elvis "copied many of the vocal gymnastics of Wynonie as well as the physical gyrations.