by Bill Dahl\r Next time someone voices the goofball opinion that blues is simply too depressing to embrace, sit em down and expose em to a heady dose of Roosevelt Sykes. If he doesnt change their minds, nothing will.\r \r There was absolutely nothing downbeat about this roly-poly, effervescent pianist (nicknamed Honeydripper for his youthful prowess around the girls), whose lengthy career spanned the pre-war and postwar eras with no interruption whatsoever. Sykess romping boogies and hilariously risqué lyrics (his double-entendre gems included Dirty Mother for You, Ice Cream Freezer, and Peeping Tom) characterize his monumental contributions to the blues idiom — he was a pioneering piano-pounder responsible for the seminal pieces 44 Blues, Driving Wheel, and Night Time Is the Right Time.\r \r Sykes began playing while growing up in Helena. At age 15, he hit the road, developing his rowdy barrelhouse style around the blues-fertile St. ...