Goree Carter
Goree Chester Carter or Christer Carter (January 1, 1931 – December 27, 1990), was an American singer, guitarist, drummer, and songwriter. He was also credited with the stage names Little T-Bone, Rocky Thompson and Gory Carter, and recorded music in blues genres such as electric blues, jump blues and Texas blues, as well as rock and roll. He is best known for his 1949 single, "Rock Awhile," which has been cited by several sources as the first rock and roll record, featuring an over-driven electric guitar style similar to that of Chuck Berry years later. Carter recorded "Rock Awhile" at the age of 18, and its rediscovery has posthumously brought him recognition as a forefather of rock and roll. As a young man, he was drafted into the U.S. Army, and was a veteran of the Korean War. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Houston (seat of Harris County, and largest city in State of Texas, United States), Died December 29, 1990 (Houston (seat of Harris County, and largest city in State of Texas, United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1951 - 1955
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, guitar
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | 3836 | 10-in. | 1/4/1951 | Cloudy weather blues | Lee Graves | instrumentalist, guitar | ||
| Mercury | 3838 | 10-in. | 1/4/1951 | Papa said yes, mama said no, no, no | Lee Graves | instrumentalist, guitar | ||
| Duke | ACA 2962 | 10-in. | approximately 1955 | Let's make love | Goree Carter | vocalist | ||
| Duke | ACA 2963 | 10-in. | approximately 1955 | My love comes down to you | Goree Carter | vocalist | ||
| Duke | ACA 2964 | 10-in. | approximately 1955 | Let me be your fellow | Goree Carter | vocalist | ||
| Duke | ACA 2965 | 10-in. | approximately 1955 | All exhausted | Goree Carter | vocalist | ||
| Decca | H-108 | 5/15/1951 | I've got news for you | Goree Carter | vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar | |||
| Decca | H-109 | 5/15/1951 | I'm your boogie man | Goree Carter | vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar | |||
| Decca | H-110 | 5/15/1951 | Please say you're mine | Goree Carter | vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar | |||
| Decca | H-111 | 5/15/1951 | Tell me, is there still a chance? | Goree Carter | vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Carter, Goree," accessed December 24, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/201633.
Carter, Goree. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 24, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/201633.
"Carter, Goree." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 24 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Carter, Goree - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n2004069148
Wikidata: Goree Carter - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q3110949
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/24792929
MusicBrainz: Goree Carter - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/4b3f3cdb-3055-4060-99ab-ebd66c375b68
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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