Elmore James ( Brooks; January 27, 1918 – May 24, 1963)
was an American
blues
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...
guitarist, singer, songwriter, and bandleader.
Noted for his use of loud amplification and his stirring voice, James was inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
His
slide guitar technique earned him the nickname "King of the Slide Guitar".
Biography
Elmore James was born Elmore Brooks in
Richland, Holmes County, Mississippi
Richland is an unincorporated community in Holmes County, Mississippi, located approximately northwest of Goodman and approximately north of Pickens.
History
A post office operated under the name Richland from 1842 to 1906. In 1900, Richland ...
, the son of 15-year-old Leola Brooks, a field hand.
His father was probably Joe Willie "Frost" James,
who moved in with Leola, and Elmore took his surname. He began making music at the age of 12, using a simple one-string instrument (
diddley bow
The diddley bow is a single-stringed American instrument which influenced the development of the blues sound. It consists of a single string of baling wire tensioned between two nails on a board over a glass bottle, which is used both as a brid ...
, or jitterbug) strung on a shack wall.
As a teen he performed at dances under the names Cleanhead and Joe Willie James.
James was influenced by
Robert Johnson
Robert Leroy Johnson (May 8, 1911August 16, 1938) was an American blues musician and songwriter. His landmark recordings in 1936 and 1937 display a combination of singing, guitar skills, and songwriting talent that has influenced later generati ...
,
Kokomo Arnold
James "Kokomo" Arnold (February 15, 1896 or 1901 – November 8, 1968) was an American blues musician. A left-handed slide guitarist, his intense style of playing and rapid-fire vocal delivery set him apart from his contemporaries. He got his ni ...
and
Tampa Red
Hudson Whittaker (born Hudson Woodbridge; January 8, 1903March 19, 1981), known as Tampa Red, was a Chicago blues musician.
His distinctive single-string slide guitar style, songwriting and bottleneck technique influenced other Chicago blues gu ...
. He recorded several of Tampa Red's songs. He also inherited from Tampa Red's band two musicians who joined his own backing band, the Broomdusters,
"Little" Johnny Jones (piano) and
Odie Payne (drums).
In the late 1930s, James worked alongside
Sonny Boy Williamson II
Alex or Aleck Miller (originally Ford, possibly December 5, 1912 – May 24, 1965), known later in his career as Sonny Boy Williamson, was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter. He was an early and influential blues harp st ...
.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, James joined the U.S. Navy, was promoted to
coxswain
The coxswain ( , or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the cockboat, a type of ship's boa ...
and took part in the invasion of
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
.
Upon his discharge, he returned to central Mississippi and settled in the town of
Canton with his adopted brother Robert Holston.
He began recording with
Trumpet Records
Trumpet Records was an American record company founded by Lillian McMurry in Jackson, Mississippi in 1951. Although it existed for only four years, it was influential.
History
The goal of Trumpet Records was to record musicians from the Mississip ...
in nearby Jackson in January 1951, first as a sideman again for Sonny Boy Williamson II and for their mutual friend
Willie Love
Willie Love Jr. (November 4, 1906 – August 19, 1953) was an American Delta blues pianist. He is best known for his association with and accompaniment of Sonny Boy Williamson II.
Biography
Love was born in Duncan, Mississippi. In 1942, he ...
and possibly others.
He made his debut as a session leader in August with "Dust My Broom", which was a surprise R&B hit in 1952.
His backing musicians became known as the Broomdusters.
James broke his contract with Trumpet Records to sign with the
Bihari brothers
The Bihari brothers, Lester, Jules, Saul and Joe, were American businessmen of Hungarian Jewish origins. They were the founders of Modern Records in Los Angeles and its subsidiaries, such as Meteor Records, based in Memphis. The Bihari brothers w ...
through their scout
Ike Turner
Izear Luster "Ike" Turner Jr. (November 5, 1931 – December 12, 2007) was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, record producer, and talent scout. An early pioneer of 1950s rock and roll, he is best known for his work in the 1960s and ...
, who played guitar and piano on a couple of his early Bihari recordings. His "I Believe" was a hit a year later.
During the 1950s he recorded for the Bihari brothers'
Flair Records
Flair Records was an American record label owned by the Bihari brothers, launched in the early 1950s. It was a subsidiary of Modern Records. Its most famous artist were Elmore James, who released ten singles with this label (as listed below), R ...
,
Meteor Records
Meteor Records was a Memphis-based R&B record label ran by Lester Bihari, one of the Bihari brothers, owners of Modern Records in Los Angeles. Founded in 1952, the label was a bold experiment to broaden the talent base by focusing on signing and ...
, and
Modern Records; he also recorded for
Chess Records and
Mel London
Mel London (April 9, 1932 – May 16, 1975) was an American songwriter, record producer, and record label owner. He was active in the Chicago blues and R&B scenes in the 1950s and 1960s. London is best known for his compositions for Chicago ...
's
Chief Records
Chief Records, together with its Profile and Age subsidiaries, was an independent record label that operated from 1957 to 1964. Best known for its recordings of Chicago blues artists Elmore James, Junior Wells, Magic Sam, and Earl Hooker, the lab ...
. He played lead guitar on
Big Joe Turner's 1954 top 10 R&B hit "TV Mama".
In 1959, he began recording for
Bobby Robinson's
Fire Records
Fire Records was an American independent record label, set up in 1959 by Bobby Robinson. Amongst others, it released records by Lightnin' Hopkins, Elmore James, Buster Brown and Arthur Crudup. At one point it was thought Fire had issued the la ...
, which released "
The Sky Is Crying", "
My Bleeding Heart", "Stranger Blues", "
Look on Yonder Wall", "
Done Somebody Wrong
"I Must Have Done Somebody Wrong" is a blues song written and recorded by Eddie Kirkland in 1959. Using the same lyrics but modifying aspects of the music, Elmore James recorded it as "Done Somebody Wrong" in 1960; he took sole writing credit ...
", and "
Shake Your Moneymaker", among others.
James died of a heart attack in Chicago in 1963,
as he was about to tour Europe with that year's
American Folk Blues Festival
The American Folk Blues Festival was a music festival that toured Europe as an annual event for several years beginning in 1962. It introduced audiences in Europe, including the UK, to leading blues performers of the day such as Muddy Waters, Howl ...
. He was buried in the Newport Baptist Church Cemetery, in
Ebenezer, Mississippi
Ebenezer is an unincorporated community located in Holmes County, Mississippi. Ebenezer is located at the west end of the eastern segment of Mississippi Highway 14, approximately south of the county seat of Lexington and approximately west of ...
.
Phil Walden
Phil Walden (January 11, 1940 – April 23, 2006) was a co-founder of the Macon, Georgia-based Capricorn Records, along with former Atlantic Records executive Frank Fenter.
Biography
Walden received his undergraduate degree in economics from M ...
of
Capricorn Records
Capricorn Records was an independent record label founded by Phil Walden and Frank Fenter in 1969 in Macon, Georgia. Capricorn Records is often credited by music historians as creating the southern rock genre.
History
Label and studio foun ...
raised funds for a granite headstone for James's grave. The headstone which reads "King of the Slide Guitar", features a bronze
relief
Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...
of James playing guitar. It was revealed at a dedication ceremony sponsored by the
Mt. Zion Memorial Fund in 1992.
James was posthumously inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 as an "Early Influence" inductee.
In 2012, he was honored with a marker on the
Mississippi Blues Trail
The Mississippi Blues Trail was created by the Mississippi Blues Commission in 2006 to place interpretive markers at the most notable historical sites related to the birth, growth, and influence of the blues throughout (and in some cases beyond) ...
in Ebenezer.
Influence
James influenced many slide players, such as blues guitarists
Homesick James
Homesick James (April 30, 1910December 13, 2006 was an American blues musician known for his mastery of the slide guitar. He worked with his cousin, Elmore James, and with Sonny Boy Williamson II.
Early years
Homesick James was born in Somervil ...
,
Hound Dog Taylor
Theodore Roosevelt "Hound Dog" Taylor (April 12, 1915 – December 17, 1975) was a Chicago blues guitarist and singer.
Life and career
Taylor was born in Natchez, Mississippi, in 1915, though some sources say 1917. He first played the piano and ...
, and
J. B. Hutto.
His single string playing also influenced
B.B. King
Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...
and
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...
.
Rock guitarists
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
,
Brian Jones
Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones (28 February 1942 – 3 July 1969) was an English multi-instrumentalist and singer best known as the founder, rhythm/lead guitarist, and original leader of the Rolling Stones. Initially a guitarist, he went on to prov ...
,
Jeremy Spencer
Jeremy Cedric Spencer (born 4 July 1948) is a British musician, best known for playing slide guitar and piano in the original line-up of the rock band Fleetwood Mac. A member since Fleetwood Mac's inception in July 1967, he remained with th ...
, and
Frank Zappa have acknowledged his influence. In the
Beatles' song "
For You Blue
"For You Blue" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1970 album '' Let It Be''. The track was written by George Harrison as a love song to his wife, Pattie Boyd. It was also the B-side to the " Long and Winding Road" single, ...
",
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
plays a slide solo on a
Höfner
Karl Höfner GmbH & Co. KG is a German (originally Austro-Bohemian) manufacturer of musical instruments, with one division that manufactures guitars and basses, and another that manufactures other string instruments, such as violins, violas, cel ...
lap steel guitar;
George Harrison encourages him with "Go, Johnny, go... Elmore James' got nothin' on this, baby".
Discography
Selected singles
* "
Dust My Broom
"Dust My Broom" is a blues song originally recorded as "I Believe I'll Dust My Broom" by American blues artist Robert Johnson in 1936. It is a solo performance in the Delta blues-style with Johnson's vocal accompanied by his acoustic guitar. ...
" (1951 & 1965)
* "
I Believe" (1953)
* "
Standing at the Crossroads" (1954 & 1965)
* "
Dust My Blues
"Dust My Broom" is a blues song originally recorded as "I Believe I'll Dust My Broom" by American blues artist Robert Johnson in 1936. It is a solo performance in the Delta blues-style with Johnson's vocal accompanied by his acoustic guitar. ...
" (1955)
* "
It Hurts Me Too
"It Hurts Me Too" is a blues standard that is "one of the most interpreted blues ongs. First recorded in 1940 by American blues musician Tampa Red, the song is a mid-tempo eight-bar blues that features slide guitar. It borrows from earlier blue ...
" (1957 & 1965)
* "
The Sky Is Crying" (1960)
* "
I Can't Hold Out" (1960)
* "
Rollin' and Tumblin'
"Rollin' and Tumblin'" (or "Roll and Tumble Blues") is a blues standard first recorded by American singer-guitarist Hambone Willie Newbern in 1929. Called a "great Delta blues classic", it has been interpreted by hundreds of Delta and Chicago b ...
" (1960)
* "
Shake Your Moneymaker" (1961)
* "
Look on Yonder Wall" (1961)
* "
Bleeding Heart" (1965)
* "
One Way Out" (1965)
* "
Every Day I Have the Blues
"Every Day I Have the Blues" is a blues song that has been performed in a variety of styles. An early version of the song is attributed to Pinetop Sparks and his brother Milton. It was first performed in the taverns of St. Louis by the Spark ...
" (1965)
Selected compilation albums
* ''Blues After Hours'' (1960)
* ''Whose Muddy Shoes'' (1969) (split album with
John Brim
John Charles Brim (April 10, 1922 – October 1, 2003) was an American Chicago blues guitarist, songwriter, and singer. He wrote and recorded the song "Ice Cream Man" which was later covered by the rock band Van Halen for their first album, and ...
)
* ''Street Talkin (1975)
* ''King of the Slide Guitar'' (1992)
* ''The Classic Early Recordings: 1951–1956'' (1993)
* ''The Sky Is Crying: The History of Elmore James'' (1993)
* ''Golden Hits'' (1996)
References
External links
Illustrated Elmore James discographyElmore James , Mount Zion Memorial Fund1980 Blues Foundation Hall of Fame Inductee
{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Elmore
1918 births
1963 deaths
People from Holmes County, Mississippi
American blues singers
Trumpet Records artists
Flair Records artists
Meteor Records artists
USA Records artists
Checker Records artists
Modern Records artists
Chess Records artists
Crown Records artists
Blues musicians from Mississippi
American blues guitarists
American male guitarists
Slide guitarists
20th-century American guitarists
Guitarists from Mississippi
Mississippi Blues Trail
African-American guitarists
20th-century African-American male singers