That time I asked Long John Baldry if he was the King in “Don’t Try to Lay No Boogie Woogie on the King of Rock and Roll”

By Steve Newton

Back in 1985 I did an interview with British blues legend Long John Baldry, who’d recently moved to Vancouver, where he would stay until his death 20 years later.

In 1971 Baldry had released an album called It Ain’t Easy that was produced by his buddies, Rod Stewart and Elton John. It included a song called “Don’t Try To Lay No Boogie Woogie on the King of Rock and Roll”, which became his biggest U.S. hit.

At one point in the conversation I asked Baldry if he was referring to himself as “the King” in that tune.

I shoulda known better, I suppose.

Have a listen:

To hear the full audio of my 1985 interview with Long John Baldry subscribe to my Patreon page, where you can eavesdrop on over 500 of my uncut, one-on-one conversations with musicians since 1982.