calsfoundation@cals.org
July 19, 2010
Saxophonist Louis Jordan of Brinkley (Monroe County) was a major influence on the creators of rhythm and blues and rock and roll. In the 1940s and 1950s, he and his band, the Tympany Five, had more than fifty songs on the charts, with eighteen reaching number one. Jordan’s career also included starring in several films. He died in 1975 and was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame in 2005.