FATS DOMINO
(b. 1928)

(born Antoine Domino, February 26, 1928, New Orleans, Louisiana)

 A seminal figure in the transformation of  R & B into Rock 'n' Roll, Fats began making the charts in the early 1950s, first in R & B and then in Pop as well as R & B, as Pat Boone and other Teenage Rock 'n' Rollers tried to rip off his hits ("Ain't That A Shame," et al.).

Although he was born and grew up in New Orleans, and his constant collaborator/conductor/ co-writer was Ex-Ellington trumpeter and bandleader Dave Bartholomew, the basis of his style was not Jazz but Boogie-Woogie. 

"Blueberry Hill," a rival of a country and Western standard, was his biggest hit, going to No. 1 on the R & B charts and No. 4 in Pop in 1956. 

In 20 years, he is said to have sold over 65 million disks and to have earned more gold records than any artist of the fifties and sixties, exept Elvis and the Beatles. 

Arnold Shaw - American Dictionary of Pop / Rock.