Ace Cannon â born John Henry Cannon on May 5, 1934, in Grenada, Mississippi â was a tenor and alto saxophonist best known for his rockabilly recordings including his 1960 Top 20 hit âTuff.â He originally came to prominence as a member of Bill Blackâs Combo. Bill Black was previously the bassist in Elvis Presleyâs original trio but once Elvis went into the army, Bill Black formed his combo. The groupâs original saxophonist, Martin Willis, didnât tour with the combo so they brought in Ace Cannon to perform on tour. Bill Blackâs Combo was signed to Hi Records and released many singles for the label. As his touring saxophonist, Ace Cannon caught the attention of Hi Records and he signed with the label. Using Bill Blackâs Combo as his backing band, Ace Cannon released his single âTuffâ in 1961. The single was a success and reached number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. His next single, âBlues (Stay Away from Me),â only climbed to number 36, and while he continued to chart with various singles over the next two decades, Ace Cannon never had another Top 40 hit. However, he continued to release dozens of albums over the course of his career. He stayed with Hi Records until 1979 and then recorded for a series of labels including Gusto Records, Rohit Records, Project 3 Records, and others. Ace Cannonâs classic sound became extremely influential, and he was inducted into Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 2000. Ace Cannon died on December 16, 2018, at the age of 84.
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