Knocky Parker

{{short description|American jazz musician}}

Knocky Parker (August 8, 1918, Palmer, Texas – September 3, 1986, Los Angeles, California),{{cite book|title=The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music|editor=Colin Larkin|publisher=Guinness Publishing|date=1992|edition=First|isbn=0-85112-939-0|page=1907}} born John William Parker, II, was an American jazz pianist. He played primarily ragtime and Dixieland jazz.

A native of Texas, Parker played in the Western swing bands The Wanderers (1935) and the Light Crust Doughboys (1937–39){{cite book|last=Porterfield|first=Nolan|title=Exploring Roots Music: Twenty Years of the JEMF Quarterly|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jMeR6O2wN8QC&pg=PA86|accessdate=9 October 2018|year=2004|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-4893-1|pages=86–}} before serving in the military during World War II.{{cite web |last1=Yanow |first1=Scott |title=Knocky Parker |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/knocky-parker-mn0000106006 |website=AllMusic |accessdate=9 October 2018}}

After the war he worked with Zutty Singleton and Albert Nicholas. He became an English professor at Kentucky Wesleyan College and the University of South Florida.{{cite web |title="Professor/pianist John "Knocky" Parker" by University of South Florida |url=https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/usfhistinfo_gallery/176/ |website=scholarcommons.usf.edu |accessdate=9 October 2018 }}{{cite book|last1=Broer|first1=Lawrence R. |last2=Walther|first2=John Daniel |title=Dancing Fools and Weary Blues: The Great Escape of the Twenties|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xnmWcA_0KeQC&pg=PA140|accessdate=9 October 2018|year=1990|publisher=Popular Press|isbn=978-0-87972-458-0|pages=140–}} On the side, he played piano with Tony Parenti, Omer Simeon and Doc Evans. He recorded albums for Euphonic, GHB, Jazzology, London, Progressive, Paradox, Audiophile and Texstar. At Audiophile, he was one of the first to record all known ragtime pieces by Scott Joplin, excluding "The Silver Swan", which was not discovered at that point.

In 1984, he was nominated for a Grammy Award with Big Joe Turner for Big Joe Turner with Knocky Parker and His Houserockers.{{cite web |last1=Hunt |first1=Dennis |title='We Are The World' Scores In Grammy Nominations |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-01-10-ca-1077-story.html |website=Los Angeles Times |access-date=9 October 2018 |date=10 January 1986}}{{cite web |title=Knocky Parker |url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/knocky-parker |website=GRAMMY.com |accessdate=9 October 2018 |language=en |date=22 May 2018}}