Floyd Cramer | |
---|---|
![]() Cramer in 1965 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Floyd Cramer |
Born | October 27, 1933 Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S. |
Origin | Huttig, Arkansas, U.S. |
Died | December 31, 1997 Nashville, Tennessee | (aged 64)
Genres | Country, Nashville sound |
Occupation | Pianist |
Instrument | Piano |
Years active | 1953ā1980 |
Labels | Abbott |
Floyd Cramer (October 27, 1933 ā December 31, 1997) was an American pianist who became famous for his use of melodic "whole-step" attacks. He was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame[1] and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His signature playing style was a cornerstone of the pop-oriented "Nashville sound" of the 1950s and 1960s.[2] Cramer's "slip-note" or "bent-note" style, in which a passing note slides almost instantly into or away from a chordal note, influenced a generation of pianists.[3] His sound became popular to the degree that he stepped out of his role as a sideman and began touring as a solo act.[4] In 1960, his piano instrumental solo, "Last Date" went to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 pop music chart and sold over one million copies. Its follow-up, "On the Rebound", topped the UK Singles Chart in 1961. As a studio musician, he became one of a cadre of elite players dubbed the Nashville A-Team and he performed on scores of hit records.