Champion Jack Dupree

William Thomas Dupree, known as Champion Jack Dupree, was a New Orleans barrelhouse pianist and raconteur whose colorful life included being orphaned when his parents were killed in a house fire, growing up in the Colored Waif's Home (the same institution that raised Louis Armstrong), winning the Golden Gloves boxing championship, serving as a POW in World War II, and spending his final three decades as a beloved expatriate in Europe. His piano style was rooted in the New Orleans barrelhouse tradition, and his recordings for King, Atlantic, and numerous European labels were notable for their humor, storytelling, and raw energy. He settled first in England, then in Germany and Sweden, becoming one of the most popular blues performers in Europe until his death in 1992.