NEWS
Pops is featured in the December/January issue of the world famous Living Blues Magazine Music is also available as a free download on the magazine website. Pops’ new cd Rhythm Man will be available any day now. Please check back for a link to the online store. Upcoming Shows: Saturday December 15th at the Boiler Room 101 Hickory on the Square Denton, Tx 10pm
At 88 years young, Pops Carter is performing with as much vigor and feeling as he ever has during a career spanning more than 65 years. He's not just singing the blues; he's baring his soul of all the joy and pain of a life that not only continues to inspire him and his music, but also members of his band, The Funkmonsters, and legions of friends and followers.
The release of his compact-disc recording "Rhythm Man" attests to that fact, proving that the veteran Louisiana-born, Texas-settled rhythm-and-blues singer still packs a punch. Pops' first release in four years features longtime favorites ranging from "Breakfast Time" to "Baby come on home!" and, as an added bonus, several new compositions. Pops oozes a special brand of funk-laden soul that's rare in today's entertainment world.
Pops has a unique gift that touches disc collectors and live music aficionados alike; in a sense, he is always "live". Fans young and old have been clamoring for the new release, and as the millennium approaches, he's hoping it will lead him to areas where people (unfortunately) haven't had access to his music. Pops Carter likes to make friends.
Pops indeed barbecues his blues and serves it smothered with spirit. Funkmonsters guitarist Chris Tracey and bassist Clarence Pitts sizzle as well, punctuating the inimitable phrasing and emotive style that set Pops apart as one of the truly great Texas bluesmen of the 1990s.
BIOGRAPHY
Pops Carter's story is one of a modern day "Crossroads", only in real life instead of 70mm. He was born in Shreveport, La., a virtual breeding and training ground of blues and other prominent artists of the 20th Century (Huddie Ledbetter, Kenny Wayne Shepard, Elvis Presley).
In 1930, 12-year-old Tom Carter left Northwest Louisiana just as he had started working the cotton fields. He packed everything he owned in a pillowcase and headed for Houston, where within a year he had hooked up with a 13-piece band. He spent his youth in the Houston area, and through his early adult life sang at picnics and churches and anywhere else he was called to please people using only a smile, a few dance steps and his honey-warm throat. Eventually though, dedication to his family and a day job limited Pops to spots as a guest in R&B revues, performing with numerous friends as well as new acquaintances.
In 1969, a construction job landed Pops in the deceptively sleepy college town of Denton, Texas. He stayed there and retired with his wife Minnie Lee (who is Lightin' Hopkins' cousin). The North Texas prairie community was perfect for Pops, offering fertile creative ground for the middle-aged songster. Drawing on the wellspring of aspiring musicians studying at the University of North Texas' music school, Pops was inspired and energized.
During the 1970s and '80s, Pops honed his stage skills as a guest artist with innumerable rock, jazz, blues and country acts, and also fronted more than a few excellent (but short-lived) bands of his own. Finally, in 1990, with guitarist Christopher Tracey, he formed The Funkmonsters. The band's goal is simple: to provide a forum that allows Pops to touch as many lives as possible with his natural charisma and musical prowess.
Although the roster of the band over the years has been filled with a literal Who's Who of Texas R&B and jazz musicians, it is the unmistakable sound of one of The South's original bluesmen that moves blues lovers and audiences of all musical genres. Pops has sung with many legends of the blues: B.B. King and Stevie Ray Vaughn, among others. New York City, Memphis, Fresno, Portland, Denver, Austin and of course the Dallas-Fort Worth area are just a few of the places he has honored with his presence.
With a new recording under his belt, the coming year promises much, much more for Mr. Pops Carter, a funky blues master and living legend of North Texas.