Chick Willis

by Bill Dahl
Cousin to the late blues ballad singer Chuck Willis, Robert Chick Willis is primarily beloved for his ribald, dozens-based rocker Stoop Down Baby. The guitarist cut his original version in 1972 for tiny La Val Records of Kalamazoo, MI, selling a ton of 45s for the jukebox market only (the tunes lyrics were way too raunchy for airplay).
Willis left the military in 1954, hiring on as valet and chauffeur to cousin Chuck, then riding high with his many R&B hits for OKeh Records. At that point, Chicks primary role on the show was as a singer (he made his own vinyl debut in 1956 with a single, Youre Mine, for Lee Rupes Ebb Records after winning a talent contest at Atlantas Magnolia Ballroom), but he picked up the guitar while on the road with his cousin (Chick cites Guitar Slim as his main man in that department).
When Chuck died of stomach problems in 1958, Willis soldiered on, pausing in Chicago to work as a sideman with slide guitar great Elmore James. A few obscure 45s (Twistin in the Hospital Ward, cut for Alto in 1962, sounds promising) preceded the advent of Stoop Down Baby, which Willis has freshened up for countless sequels ever since (he developed the song by teasing passersby with his ribald rhymes while working in a carnival variety show).
Risqué material has remained a staple of Williss output in recent years. He cut several albums for Ichiban, notably 1988s Now!, Footprints in My Bed in 1990, and Back to the Blues in 1991.