Grady Lee Gaines Sr.

For Grady Gaines, the saxophone was much more than a musical instrument adorned with a collection of keys and valves, it was a vessel that transported a young boy from a tiny east Texas town on a magical journey.

Grady's earthly journey reached its end on January 29, 2021, when he was called home at age 86 years old. But, oh, what a journey it was! Beginning in 1955, when he left Houston headed to Washington D.C. to join and lead the touring band of the rock 'n roll pioneer Little Richard, Gaines enjoyed a seven-decade career in the music industry.

Born on May 14, 1934 in Waskom, Texas as the fifth of seven children of Merkerson and Ethel Mae Harris Gaines, Grady moved with his family to a home in Houston's Fifth Ward as a young boy and he started a paper route to save money to buy a saxophone.

Inspired by sax great Louis Jordan, among others, Grady formed his first band—Grady Gaines and His House Rockers—and, later, the Blues Ramblers, which gained a large following around the Houston area. All of this was accomplished while he was still a high school student at Phillis Wheatley.

Gaines first met Little Richard while working as a session musician at legendary Houston producer/label owner Don Robey's Peacock Studios. Gaines' high energy, "honkin'" sax style was the perfect fit for Richard's wild, in-your-face music, and Grady was the leader of Richard's Upsetters Backing Band up until the day the singer abruptly "retired" from the music business in 1957.

Retaining the Upsetters name, the 1960s became a whirlwind for Gaines as the bandleader for the remaining band members. They served as the backing band for singers Dee Clark, Little Willie John and the legendary Sam Cooke. Following Cooke's tragic death, the band went on to play as the backing band for many revue-style tours for a host of stars, including James Brown, Smokey Robinson, The Supremes, Etta James, and Bo Diddley, B.B. King and many more.

Gaines would leave the road and return to Houston in the 1970s, eventually putting music aside for a few years before returning as leader of Grady Gaines and the Texas Upsetters in the 1980s. Grady met wife, Nell, the love of his life, in the mid-1980s as the band was becoming a headlining act, playing concerts and festivals around the world, including at an inauguration ball for President Bill Clinton in 1993. The Texas Upsetters also released three albums.

The Texas Upsetters became one of the most popular big bands in the Houston area and go-to entertainers for some of the highest profile private wedding receptions and birthday parties, including playing engagements for the family of President George H.W. Bush. In recent times, son Grady Gaines, Jr., an accomplished sax player, picked up the mantle of band leader.

Grady Gaines leaves behind a legacy of musicianship, showmanship and grace and as a highly respected member of the Houston music community.

He was preceded in death by: his parents - Ethel Gaines Douglas and Merkerson Gaines Sr.; sisters - Reba C. Jones, Arena Carter; brother - Merkerson Gaines Jr; grandson - Grayson L. Lavergne.

He leaves behind: wife - Nell Clements Pharms Gaines; sister - Wilkie Hartwell; brothers - L.C. Gaines, Roy Gaines; daughters - Wanda Gaines, Debra Shotwell Miles, Towanna Wallace; sons - Grady Gaines Jr., Darrick Castleberry, Roosevelt Vanyon Prime Sr.; granddaughters — Adrianne D. Cooper, Jada Gaines Douglas, Jalaina Gaines Douglas, Keshia Roquemore, Vanity V. Prime, Shadonna L. Middleton; grandsons - Brady Gaines Douglas, Kord Gaines Douglas, Darrick Castleberry Jr., Roosevelt Vanyon Prime Jr.; great-grandsons - Grayson Lavergne Il, Tyler Vanyon, Sebastian Prime.