New York - Fats Domino, who turns 80 on Tuesday, came within a hair of losing his life in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Rescued by helicopter as the flood waters reached the roof of his house in New Orleans, the legendary blues singer and rock 'n' roll pioneer escaped going down as one of the thousands of people either killed or injured in the 2005 disaster. But he lost personal belongings, including pianos, gold and platinum albums and memorabilia collected over his 50-year career.
This, however, didn't force Domino to give up.
"I'm alive and kicking," he declared on the 2006 CD Alive and Kickin' whose proceeds are dedicated to the devastated city and the preservation of its musical culture. The title song was recorded after the hurricane, but most of the other songs were unreleased from recording sessions in the 1990s. Also in 2006, work began to repair Domino's home.
Last year a group of musicians, including Paul McCartney, Allen Toussaint, Norah Jones, Elton John, Randy Newman and BB King, contributed tracks to a double album called Goin' Home - A Tribute to Fats Domino. It includes all the Fats Domino hit songs and favourites he performed on tours: Blueberry Hill, Ain't That a Shame, Jambalaya, I'm Walking and My Blue Heaven.
One of nine children born to a creole family deep in New Orleans, Domino learned piano from a brother-in-law. At the age of 14 he left school and worked in a factory so that he could perform in clubs at night. His music is simple, relaxing and full of humour. It's a mix of delta blues, country, Cajun and jazz.
When he was 20, Domino scored his breakthrough with his debut album The Fat Man, which became a million seller overnight in 1949. Today it's considered one of the first rock 'n' roll albums ever produced, published even before the term rock 'n' roll was coined and before singers such as Elvis Presley and Bill Haley made the music popular.
Following The Fat Man, Domino joined up with trumpet player Dave Bartholomew and the duo wrote one hit after another. Between 1955 and 1963, 35 of Domino's songs could be found in the top 40. The sales of 23 of his singles reached the gold level, and the song Ain't That a Shame was his first success among white teenagers. In his heyday he sold more records than Elvis - a total of 65 million copies.
After the release of Walkin' to New Orleans in 1960, Domino's career cooled down. With the rise of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones his star began to fade. He enjoyed only one other chart success: his cover in 1968 of the Beatles classic Lady Madonna, written by McCartney, who said Domino's style inspired the song.
Later Domino transformed himself into a touring star, entertaining fans young and old until the middle of the 1990s. He was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2003.
Domino occasionally makes appearances at events in New Orleans, hammering at the piano with nimble fingers and thrusting his heavy body over the keyboard.
Since Katrina forced him out of his yellow ocher house in the city's Lower Ninth Ward - the area hardest hit by the storm and its aftermath - Domino has lived about 15 minutes drive away on the other side of the Mississippi River. But he considers it only temporary. He recently told US National Public Radio that he hopes to return soon to the Lower Ninth.
