Hi, Blues Fans: just to let you know, the 2017 blues calendars are in, featuring original blues artwork from the 1920's/'30's, and a 23 track cd of music from the same period.
Now, it's another December, the month of Christmas and New Years Eve parties, and when and where possible, family gatherings. To all, we wish a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Yes, I know by today's standards, that it's not politically correct, but I'm sure that with any blues fan, it is correct. What-- the song should be "Happy Holiday, Baby”? That would be a severe injustice to Charles Brown! His original vocal was with Johnny Moore's Three Blazers, “Merry Christmas, Baby" (1947), on the Aladdin label, #254.
Thanks to all who attended/participated in/at the NEOBA 2016 Christmas Party. It is/was for good causes!
Now, it's another December, the month of Christmas and New Years Eve parties, and when and where possible, family gatherings. To all, we wish a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Yes, I know by today's standards, that it's not politically correct, but I'm sure that with any blues fan, it is correct. What-- the song should be "Happy Holiday, Baby”? That would be a severe injustice to Charles Brown! His original vocal was with Johnny Moore's Three Blazers, “Merry Christmas, Baby" (1947), on the Aladdin label, #254.
Thanks to all who attended/participated in/at the NEOBA 2016 Christmas Party. It is/was for good causes!
December Blues Births:
- December 5th.,1910-- John Henry "Bubba" Brown
- December 12th.,1928-- Cornelius Green, best-known as " Lonesome Sundown "
- December 26th.,1902-- J,D. Short, aka Jay Dee or " Jelly Jaw " Short
Answer to the November 2016 Blues Question: the bluesman we were looking for was/is Houston Stackhouse, born Houston Goff, September 28th.,1910, in Wesson, Mississippi. He was raised by James Wade Stackhouse, on the Randall Ford Plantation. He only found out about his biological parentage in 1976, when he applied for a passport to perform in Vienna, Austria (which was his only overseas trip). When he was around 15, his family moved to Crystal Springs. At around that point he became interested in music while listening to local musicians and records by Arthur "Blind" Blake, Blind Lemon Jefferson, and Lonnie Johnson. The local musicians from whom he learned to play guitar were brothers Tommy, Mager, LeDell, and Clarence Johnson. From the late '20's up to about 1932, Houston worked with Tommy Johnson and his own distant cousin, Robert Lee McCollum (aka Robert Lee McCoy; best known as Robert Nighthawk), who, it has been said, Houston taught to play guitar. Houston himself played guitar, violin, mandolin, and harmonica. During his career, from the early '30's through 1969, he, at various times, worked with Jimmy Rogers, The Mississippi Sheiks (2nd. group), Robert Lockwood Jr., Little Walter Jacobs, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Frank Frost, Peck Curtis, Boyd Gilmore, and Joe Willie Wilkins, to name a few. He performed, at different times, on the "King Biscuit Time" and "Mother's Best Flour Hour " programs on KFFA radio, in Helena, Arkansas. During this period he only performed in the Delta area. He did his first recording session in 1967, in Dundee, Mississippi, on the Testament label. From 1970 on he started to travel more to perform. Some of the places he played were Washington, D.C., Chicago, New York City, Boston, Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Florida. He passed away September 23rd., 1980, five days short of his 70th. birthday, in Helena, Arkansas.
Blues Question For December 2016: this bluesman is of Portuguese descent. He plays slide guitar and harmonica in the late Delta/ early Chicago style. He was quoted as saying, in a 1994 interview, " it's hard to see this big explosion of BMW blues, you know? I mean Eric Clapton, a multimillionaire, singing about five long years working in a steel mill? ". His biggest influence was Booker T. Washington " Bukka " White. Any idea who this bluesman is??
Blues Trivia for December 2016: (this whole thing is trivia this time) As a blues fan, are you familiar with the Aristocrat record label? No ? I'll bet you are! It was founded in April, 1947, in Chicago, by five people: two husband and wife couples and one individual. In September of that same year, another investor bought into the company, a guy by the name of Leonard Chess. By 1948 Leonard had bought out the rest of the group, and, with one of the founding wives, Evelyn Aron, ran the company. By early 1950 Leonard and brother, Phil, became sole owners. In June of that year the company's name was changed to Chess Records. In January of 1951, the Aristocrat label was officially discontinued. During the period from 1947 into 1950, two of the artists who recorded on the Aristocrat/Chess labels were notable. One of them was Muddy Waters. The other was Robert Nighthawk (born as Robert Lee McCollum). The two competed for the top billing spot, as both were "slide" players of the same style. As Muddy won the spot, Nighthawk moved to the " United " and " States " labels. Oh, by the way, at the age of 17, Nighthawk had a son, born Samuel Lee McCollum. You may have heard the son's later name, taken from his adoptive parents-- Sam Carr, a well-known drummer who could also play bass. Carr, Frank Frost, and "Big" Jack Johnson later formed " The Jelly Roll Kings ".
Some December Blues Passings:
- December 4th.,2011-- Hubert Sumlin (Howlin Wolf's guitarist)
- December 17th.,1975-- Theodore Roosevelt " Hound Dog " Taylor
- December 25th.,2008-- Robert Ward
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