Mac Arnold (born June 30, 1942), is 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 ...

musician from

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

Early years

Mac Arnold was born in Ware Place, South Carolina, one of 13 children born and raised on his father's farm. Arnold's musical journey began in the 1950s when he and his brother Leroy fashioned a guitar from a steel gas can, broomsticks, wood, nails, and screen wire: Arnold has since become famous for the gas-can guitar and has taught many other people how to make them. His early career included working with a young

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

in the band, J. Floyd & the Shamrocks. Arnold moved to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

in 1965, where he worked with

A.C. Reed Aaron Corthen, better known as A.C. Reed (May 9, 1926 – February 24, 2004) was an American blues saxophonist, closely associated with the Chicago blues scene from the 1940s into the 2000s. Biography Reed was born in Wardell, Missouri, ...

prior to joining

Muddy Waters McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913 April 30, 1983), known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer and musician who was an important figure in the post-war blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago b ...

' band in 1966. Arnold appears on the November 1966 live recording released in 2009 as ''Muddy Waters - Authorized Bootleg''. He formed the Soul Invaders in 1967, finding work backing up

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, shimm ...

The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...

, Little Milton and many others. Mac's studio work in the 1960s includes playing bass on several notable blues albums, including

Otis Spann Otis Spann (March 21, 1924 or 1930April 24, 1970) was an American blues musician, whom many consider to be the leading postwar Chicago blues pianist. Early life Sources differ over Spann's early years. Some state that he was born in Jackson, Miss ...

's ''The Blues Is Where It's At'' and

John Lee Hooker John Lee Hooker (August 22, 1912 or 1917 – June 21, 2001) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. The son of a sharecropper, he rose to prominence performing an electric guitar-style adaptation of Delta blues. Hooker often ...

's ''Live At Cafe Au Go Go''. He performed in various session work after moving to

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

in the 1970s. His TV work also included a four-year gig as part of the set band on ''

Soul Train ''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. It aired in syndication from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. Across its 35-year history the show primarily featured performances by R&B, soul, and hip hop artists. The series w ...

''.

Later years

By the 1990s, Arnold had grown weary of the road life and returned home to

Pelzer, South Carolina Pelzer is a town in Anderson County in South Carolina, United States, along the Saluda River. The population was 89 at the 2010 census. Government As of 2010 the town was governed by a mayor and four council members. The current Mayor is William ...

and virtual retirement from the spotlight until 2006, when he was convinced to front his own band, Plate Full O' Blues. Arnold's return to the stage was the subject of a 2-part musical-history documentary, Stan Woodward's final film, ''Nothing to Prove: Mac Arnold's Return to the Blues.'' In 2013, Arnold opened his own restaurant in

Greenville, South Carolina Greenville (; locally ) is a city in and the seat of Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 census, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. Greenville is located approximately halfway be ...

's historic West End, where he hosted his popular yearly music event, The Cornbread and Collard Greens Blues Festival. Despite much local success in the food business, he decided to close the restaurant in August 2017 to once again concentrate on music, especially after his nomination into the Alabama Blues Hall of Fame. Macarnold

On September 23, 2017, Mac Arnold was inducted into the Alabama Blues Hall of Fame at the historic

Dr. John R. Drish House The Dr. John R. Drish House, also known simply as the Drish House, is a historic plantation house in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. It is considered by state preservationists to be one of the most distinctive mixes of the Greek Revival an ...

Tuscaloosa, Alabama Tuscaloosa ( ) is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west-central Alabama, United States, on the Black Warrior River where the Gulf Coastal and Piedmont plains meet. Alabama's fifth-largest city, it had an estimated population of 1 ...

Awards and recognition

*The Blues Foundation Awards *Nominee, Best Traditional Blues Male Artist 2012. *Nominee, Best DVD 2011, Woodward Studio, ''Nothing to Prove'', Mac Arnold. *Winner, Best Historical Album of the Year 2010,

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and roll ...

- ''Authorized Bootleg'' (

) Mac Arnold appears on the album and accepted the award in Memphis. *Winner 2006 Folk Heritage Award *Awarded honorary doctorate of music from the University of South Carolina, May 10, 2014 *Alabama Blues Hall of Fame, inductee, 2017 Mac Arnold was included in the 2021 edition of the ''South Carolina African American History Calendar.''

Music in schools

Arnold and the band support the preservation of

music education Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origina ...

in public schools through the, "I Can Do Anything Foundation", an organization that was started following the release of a song by the same name, written by Mac Arnold and Max Hightower and performed by Plate full O' Blues.

Discography

With

*'' The Blues Is Where It's At'' (BluesWay, 1966)

References

External links

Mac Arnold website

VIDEO: Blues legend Mac Arnold scorches the blues on his gas can guitar

Video of blues man Mac Arnold performing on Saturday afternoon at Bele Chere 2008 in Asheville, NC.

Mac Arnold and Plate Full O' Blues - Cackalacky Twang (live in Concord, NC)

Mac Arnold and Plate Full O' Blues - Train Smoke (Uptown Charlotte, NC @ The BBQ, Brews and Blues Festival - 10-18-2013)

''Bids & Blues'' fundraiser raises $35,000 for ''Thrive'' in Hendersonville
Mac Arnold's blues benefit for mental health - Mountain Xpress (September 26, 2016)
Playback: Mac Arnold Interview with Renee Denton - WNCW FM (March 5, 2018)

PHOTOS: Mac Arnold and Plate Full O’Blues - Spartanburg Herald-Journal (September 5, 2018)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arnold, Mac 1942 births Living people American blues guitarists American male bass guitarists Guitarists from South Carolina Blues bass guitarists 20th-century American bass guitarists African-American guitarists People from Pelzer, South Carolina People from South Carolina 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people