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~~Lord Larehip~~ · 12-30-2014, 10:58 AM

The Bluesmen

Charlie Patton was discovered by Henry Speir and made his first recordings for Paramount in 1930. These recordings made him one of the most famous race records artists especially in the South where Patton performed exclusively (although he recorded up north and his last recordings were done in New York). He became famous enough that he did not have to tramp from place to place looking for a gig but had them set up in advance and he toured across the South on a schedule. Patton was a great showman as well as a musician and he influenced a lot of people. When he wasn’t touring Patton lived on a farm at Dockery’s plantation as a sharecropper. With his beautiful dexterity on the guitar and his gruff bellowing voice, Patton quickly acquired the moniker of “King of the Delta Bluesmen.” He spelled his name “Charlie” but Paramount changed it to “Charley” for some reason. Standing only 5’5” and weighing in at only 135 lbs., the women tried to tear his clothes off when he showed up. Patton bore many battle scars, especially the one on his neck that he suffered when he politely refused a drink bought for him by a drunken patron who took offense, dragged out a knife and viciously slashed Patton in the throat narrowly missing his jugular but inflicting a nasty wound that turned into a noticeable, pale scar. Patton also had a limp which he assumed after being shot in the leg at another juke joint. For a man of his diminutive stature to endure the worst juke joints had to offer, Patton must have been an extremely tough individual and he put on quite a show—playing behind his head, tossing his guitar in the air, etc. He sang blues and religious numbers indiscriminately. He wasn’t religious according to his sister, he just needed something to sing. While performing at whorehouses, Patton would perform a religious number and send many of the patrons fleeing, scared to death that God would strike the sinful place down with a lightning bolt with them still in it.

The only known photo of Charlie Patton (1891-1934) taken about 1929. He was also known as Elder J.J. Hadley and The Masked Marvel. The photo is valuable because it shows us one of his guitar-picking techniques. Note the scar on the neck. Patton taught some of the most influential bluesmen including Son House, Willie Brown and Chester Burnett (a.k.a. Howlin’ Wolf) and influenced everyone from Muddy Waters to Jimi Hendrix. He not only taught blues guitar but also how to survive in the juke joint circuit. One of his more famous pieces of advice was to gorge oneself on fatty pork with a bit of lean on it before the show. The purpose was that one could then consume alcohol all night without getting drunk because the alcohol would go to work on the fat first. Patton learned the hard way not to turn down drinks bought by a fan. He wanted to save others from a similar or worse fate.

12-30-2014, 10:58 AM	#20 (permalink)
~~Lord Larehip~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 899	The Bluesmen Charlie Patton was discovered by Henry Speir and made his first recordings for Paramount in 1930. These recordings made him one of the most famous race records artists especially in the South where Patton performed exclusively (although he recorded up north and his last recordings were done in New York). He became famous enough that he did not have to tramp from place to place looking for a gig but had them set up in advance and he toured across the South on a schedule. Patton was a great showman as well as a musician and he influenced a lot of people. When he wasn’t touring Patton lived on a farm at Dockery’s plantation as a sharecropper. With his beautiful dexterity on the guitar and his gruff bellowing voice, Patton quickly acquired the moniker of “King of the Delta Bluesmen.” He spelled his name “Charlie” but Paramount changed it to “Charley” for some reason. Standing only 5’5” and weighing in at only 135 lbs., the women tried to tear his clothes off when he showed up. Patton bore many battle scars, especially the one on his neck that he suffered when he politely refused a drink bought for him by a drunken patron who took offense, dragged out a knife and viciously slashed Patton in the throat narrowly missing his jugular but inflicting a nasty wound that turned into a noticeable, pale scar. Patton also had a limp which he assumed after being shot in the leg at another juke joint. For a man of his diminutive stature to endure the worst juke joints had to offer, Patton must have been an extremely tough individual and he put on quite a show—playing behind his head, tossing his guitar in the air, etc. He sang blues and religious numbers indiscriminately. He wasn’t religious according to his sister, he just needed something to sing. While performing at whorehouses, Patton would perform a religious number and send many of the patrons fleeing, scared to death that God would strike the sinful place down with a lightning bolt with them still in it. The only known photo of Charlie Patton (1891-1934) taken about 1929. He was also known as Elder J.J. Hadley and The Masked Marvel. The photo is valuable because it shows us one of his guitar-picking techniques. Note the scar on the neck. Patton taught some of the most influential bluesmen including Son House, Willie Brown and Chester Burnett (a.k.a. Howlin’ Wolf) and influenced everyone from Muddy Waters to Jimi Hendrix. He not only taught blues guitar but also how to survive in the juke joint circuit. One of his more famous pieces of advice was to gorge oneself on fatty pork with a bit of lean on it before the show. The purpose was that one could then consume alcohol all night without getting drunk because the alcohol would go to work on the fat first. Patton learned the hard way not to turn down drinks bought by a fan. He wanted to save others from a similar or worse fate.