John Thurman Hunter Jr. (July 13, 1931 – January 4, 2016), known by the stage name Long John Hunter, was an American
Texas blues
Texas blues is blues music from Texas. As a regional style, its original form was characterized by jazz and swing influences. Later examples are often closer to blues rock and Southern rock.
History
Texas blues began to appear in the early 1900s ...
and
electric blues
Electric blues refers to any type of blues music distinguished by the use of electric amplifier, amplification for musical instruments. The guitar was the first instrument to be popularly amplified and used by early pioneers T-Bone Walker in the ...
guitarist, singer and songwriter.
He released seven albums in his own name, and in his later years found critical acknowledgement outside of his homeland.
Hunter's best known tracks are "El Paso Rock" and "Alligators Around My Door", the latter of which Hunter co-wrote with
Bruce Iglauer
Bruce Iglauer (born July 10, 1947) is an American businessman and record producer who founded Alligator Records as an independent record label featuring blues music.
Early life and career
Iglauer was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States ...
.
Life and career
Hunter was born in
Ringgold, Louisiana
Ringgold is a town in the U.S. state of Louisiana, in the western half of Bienville Parish. The town of Ringgold is named for United States Army Major Samuel Ringgold. The population of Ringgold was 1,495 at the 2010 census, and 1,370 at the U.S ...
.
He was raised on a farm in
Magnolia, Arkansas
Magnolia is a city in Columbia County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 11,577. The city is the county seat of Columbia County.
Magnolia is home to the World's Largest Charcoal Grill and the World Championship S ...
, but by his early twenties was working in a box factory in
Beaumont, Texas
Beaumont is a coastal city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat, seat of government of Jefferson County, Texas, Jefferson County, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur, Texas, Port Arthur Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, metropo ...
. He bought his first guitar after attending a
B. B. King concert. He adopted the
stage name
A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...
Long John Hunter in 1953.
His first single, "She Used to Be My Woman" backed with "Crazy Girl" was released by
Duke Records
Duke Records was an American record label, started in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1952 by David James Mattis (WDIA program director and DJ) and Bill Fitzgerald, owners of Tri-State Recording Company. Their first release was Roscoe Gordon singing "Hey ...
in 1953. By 1957, he had relocated to
El Paso, Texas
El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...
, and found employment playing at the Lobby Club in
Juárez,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
. He remained there for over thirteen years, releasing several singles in the early 1960s on local
record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
s. These tracks included one of his most notable numbers, "El Paso Rock".
His album ''Texas Border Town Blues'' was released in 1988 and the album ''Ride with Me'' in 1992. These were followed by two more albums for
Alligator Records
Alligator Records is an American, Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971. Iglauer was also one of the founders of the ''Living Blues'' magazine in Chicago in 1970.
History
Iglauer started the label using hi ...
, ''Border Town Legend'' (1996) and ''Swinging from the Rafters'' (1997). In 1999, Hunter teamed up with
Lonnie Brooks
Lonnie Brooks (born Lee Baker Jr., December 18, 1933 – April 1, 2017) was an American blues singer and guitarist. The musicologist Robert Palmer, writing in ''Rolling Stone'', stated, "His music is witty, soulful and ferociously energetic, b ...
and
Phillip Walker to release ''Lone Star Shootout''.
Hunter appeared at the
Long Beach Blues Festival
The Long Beach Blues Festival, in Long Beach, California, United States, was established in full in 1980, and was one of the largest blues festivals and was the second oldest on the West coast of the United States, West Coast (first being the San ...
in 1996 and 2000. His last album was ''Looking for a Party'' (2009).
He died on January 4, 2016, at his home in
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...
.
[ "El Paso Music Legend Long John Hunter Dies"]
''El Paso Times'', January 5, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
Discography
See also
*
List of Texas blues musicians
Texas Blues is a subgenre of the blues, and of course is not limited to Texas-based musicians. It has had various style variations but typically has been played with more swing than other blues styles. Texas blues differs from styles such as Ch ...
*
List of electric blues musicians
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Long John
1931 births
2016 deaths
American blues guitarists
American male guitarists
American blues singers
American male singers
Songwriters from Louisiana
Electric blues musicians
Singers from Louisiana
Texas blues musicians
People from Ringgold, Louisiana
Songwriters from Texas
Guitarists from Louisiana
Guitarists from Texas
20th-century American guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
American male songwriters