Guitar | All About Blues Music

PINK ANDERSON

Back at the start of the 20th Century, when the original Blues music was born out of the hard life of rural African-American workers, travelling shows, circuses, tent-show revues and ‘medicine shows’ were a common sight in the South. They all had musicians as part of their entertainment, and these ‘wandering songsters’ spread the new…

SISTER ROSETTA THARPE

Sister Rosetta was a sanctified Gospel singer who caused consternation among the flock by appearing in theatres and nightclubs, singing the Blues. She was a glorious sight to behold in her smart dresses and high heels as she toted her electric guitar like a Tommy-gun, spattering Blues licks around her audience like red-hot bullets. Rosetta…

SCRAPPER BLACKWELL

Scrapper Blackwell was one of the early Blues guitarists whose jazz-based, single-note style was to prove hugely influential. Like his contemporary Lonnie Johnson, Scrapper’s powerful phrasing on his acoustic guitar showed the way for later electric blues guitarists to express themselves. He also wrote some classic Blues tunes and, with his piano-playing partner Leroy Carr,…

LEFT HAND FRANK

A seriously under-rated guitarist and singer, Frank Craig made a career as a sideman in lots of Chicago bands between the mid-50s and the late 70s. Born in the heart of the Delta, Frank went to Chicago as a teenager, where he played his guitar southpaw and strung upside down. He would perform outside the…

DUKE ROBILLARD

In 1967 Duke formed the Roomful of Blues, the New England outfit that has become an institution that survives into the present. Guitarist Duke formed the band with pianist Al Copley to play Blues and jazz flavoured R&B and their driving horn section made them a thrilling live act. A decade of playing bars and…

CUB KODA

Singer, guitarist, producer and DJ, Michael ‘Cub’ Koda is perhaps best known as a record collector, writer and critic. His work editing the All Music Guide, his journalism, reviews and album notes made his reputation for clear writing and thoughtful criticism. Cub’s music career reached it’s height when his band Brownsville Station took his song…

ZZ HILL

Texan Arzell Hill was almost unknown to white audiences when he died in 1982, but his ‘Down Home’ album stayed on the R&B charts for two years. In 1964 his gospel tinged voice first appeared on his brother Matt’s MH label in L.A. and made a surprise entry into the pop charts with ‘You Were…

ROBERT NIGHTHAWK

Robert Nighthawk was an important figure in the transitional development of Blues from its Mississippi roots to its new home in the city. His slide-guitar work, with its combination of rhythmic drive and subtle one-string runs, was learned in the Delta juke-joints but its effects were heard many years later in the clubs and bars…

BOBBY RADCLIFF

When Bobby was 17 he made a pilgrimage from Washington to the hospital bedside of Magic Sam in Chicago. The two became friends and Bobby determined to play Blues guitar in the style of his hero. He certainly rips out those ferocious West-side riffs on the four albums he recorded in the 90s. Bobby had…

CURLEY WEAVER

Atlanta in the 20s had a thriving Blues scene and Curley and his boyhood friend Barbecue Bob Hicks, playing their country Blues guitars, were at the forefront. With Eddie Mapp on harmonica, they played many parties and bar gigs, as well as playing on streetcorners. The loose collective known as The Georgia Cotton Pickers included…