Sidney Selby (July 28, 1931[2] – September 23, 2020),[1] known as "Guitar Crusher" and formerly as "Bone Crusher", was an American blues singer and guitarist, for many years based in Berlin, Germany. Primarily a singer, billed as "The Big Voice from New York", he also played guitar and blues harmonica.
Life and career
Selby was born at Lake Landing, in Hyde County, North Carolina.[3] He sang gospel in the Mt. Pilgrim Baptist Church and on the radio as a schoolboy. At the age of 15 he went to live with his mother in New York. He started a band The Midnight Rockers and performed in colleges and clubs in the NY area.[4] In the 1960s he recorded a number of singles on King[5] and other labels.[6][7] He also toured with artists such as Ben E. King, The Drifters and The Isley Brothers.[8][9]
In 1982, he went to Berlin, Germany with New York guitarist Nick Katzman, and began to attract an audience. With the new Midnight Rockers they soon performed in clubs and on major festivals all over Europe. Their repertoire included Selby's originals, R&B standards, ballads and soul classics. On his recordings and live gigs he was backed by artists such as Katie Webster, Eb Davis, "Detroit" Gary Wiggins, Christian Rannenberg,[10][2] Tyree Glenn Jr., Alvin Lee, Charles 'Honeyboy' Otis, Wild Jimmy Spruill, Benny Bailey, Calvin Owens, Marcos Coll, Thomm Jutz and Hans McMinamin and many others.[11]
Originally known as "Bone Crusher", Selby's name changed to "Guitar Crusher" after he smashed his guitar over the head of an unruly customer in a club during his show.[3] He was called a "living legend" by the press in Germany several times.[12][13][14][15]
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