SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 1178

In Memory

of

Cornell Dupree, Jr.

WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas joins the citizens of Fort Worth in mourning the loss of Cornell Dupree, Jr., who died May 8, 2011, at the age of 68; and

WHEREAS, Cornell Dupree was born in Fort Worth on December 19, 1942; he graduated from I. M. Terrell High School, and soon thereafter, he began what would become an internationally recognized career in music; and

WHEREAS, Cornell first expressed his talent for music by playing the saxophone; at the age of 13, however, he traded it in for a guitar after watching a show by bluesman Johnny "Guitar" Watson; he was barely out of high school when fellow Fort Worth native and legendary tenor saxophonist King Curtis Ousley invited him to join his band in 1959; his family moved to New York, and on his first night there, he played at Small's Paradise, one of the most famous clubs in Harlem; and

WHEREAS, Cornell soon was playing on some of the biggest rhythm and blues and jazz hits of the century and earning a reputation as one of the most accomplished guitarists in American music; he played with King Curtis for eight years and later toured for some years with Aretha Franklin; modest and extremely versatile, he recorded with such other great artists as Otis Redding, Miles Davis, Barbra Streisand, and Stevie Ray Vaughan; and

WHEREAS, An exemplary musical performer and a sought-after studio musician, he also had three critically acclaimed bands over the years, Stuff, the Gadd Gang, and Who It Is, and his albums were immensely popular in Europe and Japan; and

WHEREAS, He was a masterful guitarist and an inspirational figure in the music world; toward the end of his life, even when weakened by his illness, he continued to compose melodies and songs on his custom-made Yamaha guitars; and

WHEREAS, Cornell Dupree was beloved by his family and friends, and he will long be remembered with affection and appreciation by all who were privileged to share in his life; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 82nd Legislature, hereby extend sincere condolences to the bereaved family of Cornell Dupree, Jr.: his wife of 52 years, Erma; his children, James Cornell Dupree, Cornell Dupree III, and Celestine Dupree; and his nine grandchildren; and, be it further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for his family as an expression of deepest sympathy from the Texas Senate, and that when the Senate adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Cornell Dupree, Jr.

Davis

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President of the Senate

I hereby certify that the above Resolution was adopted by the Senate on May 25, 2011, by a rising vote.

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Secretary of the Senate

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Member, Texas Senate