Ready Teddy

A final word for Ready Teddy (real name Terence McQuiston), a New Orleans bluesman and DJ, who has died two years after breaking his neck. Regular visitors to Jazzfest and to the much-missed Blues Estafette in Utrecht will remember Teddy's unique style, which included standing on one arm when introducing the next act. He sang with a local band called the Swamp Daddys and was a regular DJ on WWOZ in New Orleans. One of the great characters of the Big Easy, he was a friend of Little Richard and took his name from his 1956 hit. As a DJ he coined colourful phrases such as 'hanging' like 'a spider on the wall,' 'ice cubes in your refrigerator' and 'wet clothes on a clothes line'. In 1996 he was suspended after being accused of accepting Payola for playing certain records but was later cleared.
Photo shows him at the Blues Estafette in 1997.