Sleepy LaBeef was a legendary rockabilly and country singer and guitarist who grew up on a melon farm in Arkansas. He was nicknamed 'Sleepy' because his heavy-lidded eyes made him appear constantly tired. He was influenced by country and blues in his youth.
At 18 he moved to Houston and sang gospel songs, before realising his powerful baritone voice was well-suited to the new style of rockabilly. His debut single was 'I'm Through' in 1957 and he released a number of rockabilly singles billed as Tommy LaBeff and Sleepy LaBeff.
He moved to Nashville in 1964 and took up country music, having a 1968 hit as Sleepy LaBeef with the single 'Every Day'. Another minor hit followed in 1969, with a cover of Frankie Miller's 'Blackland Farmer'. The 6ft 7" star also appeared as a swamp monster in Ron Ormond's 1968 B-movie 'The Exotic Ones'.
In the 1970s he returned to rockabilly, releasing singles 'Thunder Road', 'There Ain't Much After Taxes' and the rocking 'Boogie Woogie Country Girl'. His constant touring earned him a strong live reputation and in the 1980s he rode the crest of a rockabilly revival. His later album releases included 'It Ain't What You Eat (It's the Way That You Chew It)' (1981), the live album 'Nothin' But the Truth' (1985), `Strange Things Happening' (1994) and 'I'll Never Lay My Guitar Down' (1996). On the 2000 album 'Tomorrow Never Comes' he duetted with Maria Muldaur on the song 'Raining in My Heart'.
It was as a live performer that LaBeef will be best remembered for his energy, medleys and massive range of material. He was known as 'The Human Jukebox' - the title of his 1995 album. At one point he would play 300 shows a year, later cutting this down to 200-250 in the 1990s.
He continued to perform live until two months before his death in December 2019 at the age of 84.
