My nice new Blues Calendar

[johncorrigan]

'Casey' Bill Weldon was KC because of his links to Kansas City, but in fact he was born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas on July 10 1909. Casey Bill became well accomplished on the Hawaiian steel guitar, using that approach rather than the bottleneck slide. He was briefly married to Memphis Minnie, and it would appear that this tune may have chronicled some of the events leading to their break-up.
Casey Bill-Somebody Changed The Lock On My Door - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2hTjsfeUpo

Bill played with a wide range of performers - as well as Minnie there was Big Bill Broonzy, Tampa Red, Peatie Wheatstraw, Memphis Jug Band, Washborad Sam and many others.

[johncorrigan]

Just quickly before I head out west for a couple of weeks, a couple of folks I don't want to miss from my advancing calendar. Rev J.M. Gates born 14th July in 1884 in Hogansville, Georgia.
Death's Black Train is Coming - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elzhb_LewJA

I was wondering what Washboard Sam's real name was and of course I find out he was born Washboard Sam on 15th July 1910, which pretty much set his life's road in front of him - either get a job down the laundry or take to the stage - fortunately for us he chose the latter. Here's one of my favourites, even if not very pc in this day and age...Sophisticated Mama - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCsYhIWPbpI

Only joking...Washboard was born Robert Clifford Brown in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas and played extensively with Big Bill Broonzy, among others. Here he is with Bill and Memphis Slim digging their potatoes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhENu_w2fQs

[johncorrigan]

The end of July is beckoning and I notice that Buddy Guy, the great Chicago bluesman, is 82 today. Buddy was born in Lettsworth, Louisiana on 30th July 1936. Here he is with Roland Kirk and Jack Bruce on 'Stormy Monday Blues', it being a Monday like!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eW7mCDmP644

[Globaltruth]

Today in 1917 Big Walter Price entered the world.
His first recording, with the Thunderbirds in a mainly spoken performance of 'Calling Margie' - also written by him

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3b6Mcs6SJfM

One of his hits, Pack Fair and Square:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKrDP--9JsM

[johncorrigan]

Today in 1917 Big Walter Price entered the world.
His first recording, with the Thunderbirds in a mainly spoken performance of 'Calling Margie' - also written by him

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3b6Mcs6SJfM

Totally top tunes, honey! Excuse me for calling you honey!
Should've had a 'don't try this at home' warning attached, by the way - I could do myself - and the furniture - an injury, you know!

[johncorrigan]

My calendar informs me that Louis Daniel Armstrong, nicknamed Satchmo, one of the most influential figures in jazz was born 4th August 1901, New Orleans, Louisiana. With the Buddies getting off to a winning start following their return to the Scottish Premiership, only one place to go.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyLjbMBpGDA

[johncorrigan]

August 6 1900 in Clarksdale, Mississippi saw the birth of Willie Brown. There's only a few sides left of his recordings and it is reputed that some of his discs were destroyed somewhere along the way, and also it seems clear that there were a number of Willie Browns, but there can be no doubting his influence on the development of the delta blues sound. He played with Son House and Charley Patton, as well as being the friend of Robert Johnson who even gets a mention in 'Crossroads Blues' -
'You can run, you can run, tell my friend Willie Brown
You can run, you can run, tell my friend Willie Brown
That I got the crossroad blues this mornin'
Lord, babe, I am sinkin' down'

Here he is doing 'Future Blues', and attached to the youtube clip is a fairly comprehensive biography of Brown.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An9rC8olaVY

...and of course, Ry Cooder wrote a song about him which appears on the 'Crossroads' soundtrack.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coaw2UQtnpg

[johncorrigan]

As well as being my Vanuatu sister's birthday, my blues calendar informs me that 11th August is also the birth date of Sam Collins who seems to have had a myriad of pseudonyms, even by the standards of early blues artists. Sam was born in 1887 in Louisiana but was brought up over the Mississippi line. He was one of the earliest blues performers to be recorded, and performed and recorded under names such as Jim Foster, Jelly Roll Hunter, Big Boy Woods, Bunny Carter and Salty Dog Sam.

Here he is from 1927 on Hesitation Blues as plain old Crying Sam Collins.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8B5-0dAGioE

[johncorrigan]

16th August 1892 in Abbeville County, South Carolina saw the birth of guitar strumming evangelist, Blind Joel Taggart. All his recordings were made between 1926 and 1928. Here he is on 'The Storm is Passing Over'.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxGYtHlhWDE

[johncorrigan]

Clarksdale, Mississippi has a strong claim to be the birthplace of the blues, especially when you look at the litany of greats who have been associated with it... Son House, Willie Brown, Junior Parker, Ike Turner, Eddie Boyd, Sam Cooke, Muddy Waters, Pinetop Perkins, Earl Hooker, Lil Green, Big Jack Johnson. And, of course, legend says it was just outside Clarksdale where the blues great Robert Johnson sold his soul to the Devil at the crossroads in exchange for teaching him how to play guitar. Not surprisingly the many blues' tourists who arrive there can visit 'the Devil's Crossroads'.
Today's birthday boy is one of the biggest and most important of all Delta Bluesmen. John Lee Hooker must be considered one of the biggest influences on the development of British Blues. He was born in Clarksdale on this day 101 years ago, son of a sharecropper and Baptist Preacher and one of 11 children. He moved to Memphis when he was just 14 having learned guitar from his step dad.
Here's the drivin' boogie he became renowned for, here with Roy Rogers in 1992 - Boogie Chillen - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDBz4ASw6uU

[johncorrigan]

Clarksdale, Mississippi has a strong claim to be the birthplace of the blues, especially when you look at the litany of greats who have been associated with it... Son House, Willie Brown, Junior Parker, Ike Turner, Eddie Boyd, Sam Cooke, Muddy Waters, Pinetop Perkins, Earl Hooker, Lil Green, Big Jack Johnson. And, of course, legend says it was just outside Clarksdale where the blues great Robert Johnson sold his soul to the Devil at the crossroads in exchange for teaching him how to play guitar. Not surprisingly the many blues' tourists who arrive there can visit 'the Devil's Crossroads'.
Today's birthday boy is one of the biggest and most important of all Delta Bluesmen. John Lee Hooker must be considered one of the biggest influences on the development of British Blues. He was born in Clarksdale on this day 101 years ago, son of a sharecropper and Baptist Preacher and one of 11 children. He moved to Memphis when he was just 14 having learned guitar from his step dad.
Here's the drivin' boogie he became renowned for, here with Roy Rogers in 1992 - Boogie Chillen - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDBz4ASw6uU

Meant to mention that yesterday also marked the birth date in 1910 of Ruth (Mary) Ellis in Dixon Quarter, Georgia. Not a lot to say about her really. Her first session was for Columbia in Atlanta in October 1931, when she was accompanied by Blind Willie McTell (who speaks and sings as well as playing 12-string guitar) on four tracks: 'Rough Alley Blues', 'Talkin' To You Wimmen About The Blues', 'Experience Blues' and 'Painful Blues'. The first two were issued, billed as by Mary Willis, accompanied by Blind Willie McTell; the other two tracks were issued as performed by Ruth Day accompanied by Blind Sammie.
Here's 'Talkin' to you Wimmen about the Blues' - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2f0FSFbCPwQ

McTell married Ruthy Kate Williams, in January 1934 and Ms Williams then put a stop to Ms Willis coming round to the house.

[Globaltruth]

McTell married Ruthy Kate Williams, in January 1934 and Ms Williams then put a stop to Ms Willis coming round to the house.

...saying 'Get yourself to Clarksdale if you want to sing the blues'


Wonder if she ever appeared here?

http://www.blindwilliesblues.com/

[johncorrigan]

Charlie Burse probably drank there, Global. Born 25th August in 1901 in Decatur, Alabama, Charlie Burse was a wild-living, hard-drinking, bad-tempered man whose redeeming feature was an extraordinary skill on guitar, banjo, mandolin and ukelele, the latter giving rise to his stage-name, the ‘Uke Kid’. Fortunately for him he met up with level-headed, business-minded multi-instrumentalist Will Shade, who managed and played with his Memphis Jug Band. Will overlooked Charlie’s personality defects and the two unlikely friends went on to play together for almost 40 years. The Memphis Jug Band have turned up a few times during this calendar inspired trip into the Blues over the last few months, and they had a changing line-up which included Memphis Minnie, Kansas Joe McCoy, ‘Shakey’ Horton and Furry Lewis. But Burse and Shade were the two stalwarts of this hugely influential group. Charlie also performed with his Memphis Mudcats. Here they are with 'I'm in Buddy's Wagon'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wN27Usf0Nic

[johncorrigan]

Busy week coming up on the old Blues Calendar starting today with one of the last of the Delta Blues pianists, Sunnyland Slim. I'll let the youtube guide take you through a bit about Slim before he lets rip on 'Tin Pan Alley', but following procedure I will register that he was born this day in 1907 in Vance, Mississippi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICd-fNX19jQ

[Globaltruth]

Just checked and we missed this guys birthday on Jan. 26th.
Upcoming star, Blind Boy Paxton with a lovely version of Candy Man.
Courtesy of Cerys' Blues Show - she's popping up radio all over the place so much at the moment I keep expecting to hear her doing the weather forecast...
( she's coming up on r4 Great Lives soon talking about the first WM superstar Dame Hilda von Bingen)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oI43Ove3xgY