Tommy McLain, a son of the Louisiana bayou whose distinctive tenor laid over a bouncy blend of rock, zydeco, country and R&B made him the king of swamp pop in the 1950s and ’60s and later earned him a following among artists like Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe, died on July 24 in Hessmer, La. He was 85.
His death, in a nursing facility, was announced by his family in a statement. No cause was given.
Swamp pop emerged in the late 1950s as Louisiana musicians playing rock ’n’ roll incorporated elements of their native zydeco and blues, along with the singular influence of Fats Domino and his rollicking piano sound.
“Despite the fact they were singing rock ’n’ roll, they imbued it with this French Cajun feeling, which, coupled with Fats Domino’s sound, gave it a unique sound,” the music historian John Broven, the author of “South to Louisiana” (1984), said in an interview. “Tommy was very much part of that.”
Mr. McLain started off playing in swamp pop bands like the Vel-Tones and the Boogie Kings and then went solo in the mid-1960s.
Though he was a prolific songwriter, his biggest hit, released in 1966, was a cover: “Sweet Dreams,” a song written by Don Gibson that had been a hit for Patsy Cline in 1963.
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