Robert Shaw

Robert Shaw (August 9, 1908 – May 18, 1985) was an American blues and boogie-woogie pianist, The family also owned a Steinway grand piano, and his sisters had lessons in playing, but Shaw's father was against allowing his son to learn the instrument.

Shaw worked with his father on the family's ranch, and played the piano whenever his family was out; the first song he learned was "Aggravatin' Papa Don't You Try to Two-Time Me." In adolescence, Shaw travelled to Houston to listen to jazz musicians, and at nearby roadhouses. He then found a piano teacher and paid for lessons with his earnings.

Although he played in Chicago, Shaw mainly restricted himself to Texas, performing as a soloist in the clubs and roadhouses of Sugarland, Richmond, Kingsville, Houston and Dallas. "Ma Grinder" (Shaw), 4:13 "Hattie Green", 4:41 "Fives", 4:10 "Black Gal", 8:46 "Put Me in the Alley" (Shaw, Smith), 4:31 "Groceries on My Shelf (Piggly Wiggly)", 4:00 "The Clinton", 3:39 "People, People", 5:57 "The Cows" (Shaw, Shaw), 4:01 "Whores Is Funky", 3:19 "Here I Come with My Dirty, Dirty Duckings On", 3:58 Texas Barrelhouse Piano (1980), Arhoolie

Legacy The music journalist Bill Dahl described "The Cows", a composition written and recorded by Shaw, as "a piece of incredible complexity that would wilt anything less than a legitimate ivories master." Tony Russell, in his book The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray, cited The Ma Grinder as "offering a uniquely clear view of a style and repertoire that almost escaped preservation."