First of all, The Sound of Blue congratulates the winners of the 2017 Blues Challenge, hosted by NEOBA : Chris Yakopcic in the solo/ duo category, and J.J. Vicars and the Desiatos, in the band category, and wish them the best of luck in their next level of competition !!
Some June Blues Births:
- June 2nd.,1907-- Othar "Otha" Turner
- June 12th.,1977-- Kenny Wayne Brobst aka Kenny Wayne Shepherd
- June 25th.,1939-- Harold Melvin
Answer to the May 2017 Blues Question: the bluesman we were looking for is/was Jewell "Babe" Stovall, born October 14th.,1907, in Tylertown, Mississippi, one of twelve children. Again with the discrepancies -- there are other sources that suggest that he was the youngest of eleven children, hence the "Babe" nickname. Anyhow, he was born, raised, and worked on a farm. By the age of eight he had taught himself to play the guitar. He quit school to work outside the music field. During the 1920's and into the '30's, he travelled and performed with his brother Tom, who played the mandolin. During this time period he met guitarist and kazoo player Tommy Johnson. It was Johnson's playing style that influenced the style in which Babe played during his career. From the '30's through the '50's, he lived in the Franklinton, Louisiana area, where he worked mostly outside the music field, but occasionally performing in the area's streets, juke joints, and parks. During the late '50's into the mid-'60's, he toured/ played in New Orleans, Louisiana, Boston and Providence, Massachusetts, Brooklyn and New York City, and coffee houses in California. From the mid-'60's into the early '70's, he played in Louisiana, Florida, Arkansas, and Virginia. During his career he recorded on the Verve, Spivey, Rounder, and Blue Horizon labels. Babe passed away on September 21st.,1974, in New Orleans, of natural causes, in his sleep. It has been stated that the song "Mr. Bojangles", written by Jerry Jeff Walker, was written as a tribute and to honor Babe, after having met and befriended him. Over the years, Walker has given several different answers to that question, none of which has stated that to be correct. Who Knows ??
Blues Question for June 2017: this bluesman, almost totally unknown, did recording sessions during a two year period. Some of the songs were under his own name, while others were under his nickname. He does, however, have one distinction in his recording career. Any ideas on who this bluesman is ??
Blues Trivia for June 2017: Walter "Furry" Lewis (Jr.), who was born March 6th.,1893, in Greenwood, Mississippi, is another discrepancy question. There are researchers who list his other possible year of birth as 1895, 1898, or 1899. He taught himself to play on a home- made guitar by age six. At around age seven, his family moved to Memphis, where he worked the street, playing for tips. At about thirteen he ran away from home to work in passing medicine shows. At fifteen he returned to Memphis, where he performed with the W.C. Handy Orchestra or performed as a solo act. At 23, he lost a leg in a train accident. From 1916 to 1922/23, he performed in local clubs, in the streets, and with various "medicine shows". In 1922 he took a job in Memphis as a street sweeper, a job he held until he retired in 1966. That job allowed him to keep performing in Memphis. He recorded on at least fourteen different labels and appeared in seven films and/or documentaries. His cause of death on September 14th.,1981, in Memphis, is also an "unresolved" question. One source lists it as lung cancer while another states that he contracted pneumonia, and in his weakened condition, died of a heart attack. Anyhow, the trivia part is that in his last film appearance, his character was "Uncle Furry", in the movie "W.W. and The Dixie Dancekings", starring Burt Reynolds, Jerry Reed, Art Carney, Ned Beatty, Mel Tillis, and several others of note. It was released in 1975. Two years later, some of the same actors were in another movie that was based on the type of story of the W.W. movie. You might remember the second movie-- "Smokey and the Bandit".
Some June Blues Passings:
- June 3rd.,1988-- "Blind" James "Jimmy"/"Jim" Brewer
- June 18th.,1993-- Luther Tucker
- June 30th.,1940-- John T. "J.T."/"Funny Papa/Paper", " Howlin' " Smith, aka " The Howlin' Wolf"
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