Difference between revisions of "Son House" - New World Encyclopedia
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| − | + | {{Infobox musical artist | Background = solo_singer | Instrument = [[Guitar]] | |
| + | | Name = Edward James "Son" House, Jr. | ||
| + | | Img = SonHouse.jpg | ||
| + | | Born = {{birth date|1902|3|21|mf=y}} (?)<br/>[[Riverton, Mississippi|Riverton]], [[Mississippi]], [[United States|U.S.A.]] | ||
| + | | Died = {{death date|1988|10|19|mf=y}}<br/>[[Detroit, Michigan|Detroit]], [[Michigan]], [[United States|U.S.A.]] | ||
| + | | Genre = [[Delta blues]]<br/>[[Country blues]]<br/>[[Blues revival]]<br/>[[Slide guitar]] | ||
| + | | Years_active = 1930 - 1974 | ||
| + | | URL = | ||
| + | }} | ||
| + | '''Eddie James "Son" House, Jr.''' (March 21, 1902<ref>His date of birth is a matter of some debate. Son House himself alleged that he was middle aged during World War I, and, more specifically, that he was 79 in 1965, which would mean that he was born around 1886. However, all legal records place his birth on March 21 1902.</ref> – October 19, 1988) was an American [[blues]] singer and [[guitarist]]. A seminal [[Delta blues]] figure, House remains influential today. | ||
| − | == Biography == | + | ==Biography== |
| + | The middle of seventeen brothers, House was born in Riverton, two miles from [[Clarksdale, Mississippi]]. Around age seven or eight, he was brought by his mother to [[Tallulah, Louisiana]] after his parents separated. The young Son House was determined to become a [[Baptist]] preacher, and at age 15 began his preaching career. Despite the church's firm stand against [[blues music]] and the sinful world which revolved around it, House became attracted to it and taught himself guitar in his mid-20s, after moving back to the Clarksdale area, inspired by the work of Willie Wilson. He began playing alongside [[Charley Patton]], [[Willie Brown (musician)|Willie Brown]], [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]], [[Fiddlin' Joe Martin]], and [[Leroy Williams]], around [[Robinsonville, Mississippi]] and north to [[Memphis, Tennessee]] until 1942. | ||
| − | + | After killing a man, allegedly in self-defense, he spent time at [[Parchman Farm]] in 1928 and 1929. The official story on the killing is that sometime around 1927 or 28, he was playing in a [[juke joint]] when a man went on a shooting spree. Son was wounded in the leg, and shot the man dead. He received a 15-year sentence at Parchman Farm prison.<ref>[http://www.nationalguitars.com/part3.html]. ''www.nationalguitars.com''. Retrieved September 28, 2007.</ref> | |
| − | + | Son House recorded for [[Paramount Records]] in 1930 and for [[Alan Lomax]] from the [[Library of Congress]] in 1941 and 1942. He then faded from public view until the country blues revival in the 1960s when, after a long search of the [[Mississippi Delta]] region by [[Nick Perls]], [[Dick Waterman]] and [[Phil Spiro]], he was "re-discovered" in June, 1964 in [[Rochester, New York]] where he had lived since 1943; House had been retired from the music business for many years, working for the [[New York Central Railroad]], and was completely unaware of the international revival of enthusiasm for his early recordings. He subsequently toured extensively in the US and Europe and recorded for CBS records. Like [[Mississippi John Hurt]] he was welcomed into the music scene of the 1960s and played at [[Newport Folk Festival]] in 1964, the [[New York Folk Festival]] in July, 1965, and the October, 1967 European tour of the [[American Folk Festival]] along with [[Skip James]] and [[Bukka White]]. In the summer of 1970, House toured Europe once again, including an appearance at the [[Montreux Jazz Festival]]; a recording of his London concerts was released by [[Liberty Records]]. | |
| − | + | Ill health plagued his later years and in 1974 he retired once again, and later moved to [[Detroit, Michigan]], where he remained until his death from [[cancer]] of the [[larynx]]. He was buried at Mt. Hazel Cemetery on Lahser south of Seven Mile. Members of the Detroit Blues Society raised money through [[benefit concert]]s to put a fitting monument on his grave. He had been married five times. | |
| − | + | House's innovative style featured very strong, repetitive rhythms, often played with the aid of a bottleneck, coupled with singing that owed more than a nod to the hollers of the [[chain gang]]s. The music of Son House, in contrast to that of, say, [[Blind Lemon Jefferson]], was emphatically a dance music, meant to be heard in the noisy atmosphere of a barrelhouse or other dance hall. House was the primary influence on [[Muddy Waters]] and also an important influence on [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]], who would later take his music to new levels. It was House who, speaking to awe-struck young blues fans in the 1960s, spread the legend that Johnson had sold his soul to the Devil in exchange for his musical powers. | |
| − | + | More recently, House's music has influenced rock groups such as the [[White Stripes]], who covered his song [[Death Letter]] (also reworked by Skip James and Robert Johnson) on their album [[De Stijl (album)|De Stijl]], and later performed it at the 2004 [[Grammy Awards]]. The White Stripes also incorporated sections of a traditional song Son House recorded, [[John the Revelator (song)|John the Revelator]], into the song ''Cannon'' from their eponymous debut album [[The White Stripes (album)|''The White Stripes'']]. | |
| − | Describing House's 1967 appearance at the [[De | + | Another musician deeply influenced by Son House is the slide player [[John Mooney (musician)|John Mooney]], who in his teens learned slide guitar from Son House while Son was living in Rochester, New York. Several of House's songs were recently figured in the motion picture soundtrack of "Black Snake Moan" (2006). |
| − | + | ||
| + | Describing House's 1967 appearance at the [[De Montfort Hall]] in [[Leicester, England]], [[Bob Groom]] wrote in [[Blues World]] magazine: | ||
| + | <blockquote>It is difficult to describe the transformation that took place as this smiling, friendly man hunched over his guitar and launched himself, bodily it seemed, into his music. The blues possessed him like a 'lowdown shaking chill' and the spellbound audience saw the very incarnation of the blues as, head thrown back, he hollered and groaned the disturbing lyrics and flailed the guitar, snapping the strings back against the fingerboard to accentuate the agonized rhythm. Son's music is the centre of the blues experience and when he performs it is a corporeal thing, audience and singer become as one.</blockquote> | ||
==Discography== | ==Discography== | ||
Son House's recorded works fall into four categories: | Son House's recorded works fall into four categories: | ||
| − | * A few (6-10 songs according to source) recorded in 1930 for commercial release on 78s. Many of these were recorded as two songs with the same title, e.g. "My Black Mama" parts 1 and 2. See also [[Clarksdale Moan]]. | + | * A few (6-10 songs according to source) recorded in 1930 for [[Paramount Records]], for commercial release on 78s. Many of these were recorded as two songs with the same title, e.g. "My Black Mama" parts 1 and 2. See also [[Clarksdale Moan]]. |
* Alan Lomax's non-commercial recordings ("Library of Congress Sessions") in 1941 and 1942, a total of 19 songs. | * Alan Lomax's non-commercial recordings ("Library of Congress Sessions") in 1941 and 1942, a total of 19 songs. | ||
* Studio recordings from 1965 and later following his "rediscovery" | * Studio recordings from 1965 and later following his "rediscovery" | ||
* Live recordings, also from this period. | * Live recordings, also from this period. | ||
These have been collected, issued and reissued in a baffling array of ways, some of which use the word "complete" in unexpected ways. The following list is partial and uncategorized. | These have been collected, issued and reissued in a baffling array of ways, some of which use the word "complete" in unexpected ways. The following list is partial and uncategorized. | ||
| − | *''The Complete Library Of Congress Sessions'' ( | + | *''The Complete Library Of Congress Sessions'' (1964) Travelin' Man Cd 02 |
| − | *''Blues From The Mississippi Delta (W/Short) '' ( | + | *''Blues From The Mississippi Delta (W/Short) '' (1964) Folkways 2467 |
| − | *''The Legendary Son House: Father Of The Delta Blues'' ( | + | *''The Legendary Son House: Father Of The Delta Blues'' (1965) Columbia 2417 |
*''In Concert (Oberlin College, 1965) '' Stack-O-Hits 9004 | *''In Concert (Oberlin College, 1965) '' Stack-O-Hits 9004 | ||
*''Delta Blues (1941-1942) '' Smithsonian 31028 | *''Delta Blues (1941-1942) '' Smithsonian 31028 | ||
| Line 46: | Line 58: | ||
*''Blues With A Feeling (3 Cuts, 1965) '' Vanguard Cd 77005 | *''Blues With A Feeling (3 Cuts, 1965) '' Vanguard Cd 77005 | ||
*''Son House/Bukka White - Masters Of The Country Blues'' Yazoo Video 500 : | *''Son House/Bukka White - Masters Of The Country Blues'' Yazoo Video 500 : | ||
| − | *''Delta Blues And Spirituals'' ( | + | *''Delta Blues And Spirituals'' (1995) |
| − | *''In Concert (Live) '' ( | + | *''In Concert (Live) '' (1996) |
| − | *''Live At Gaslight Cafe, 1965'' ( | + | *''Live At Gaslight Cafe, 1965'' (2000) |
| − | *''New York Central Live'' ( | + | *''New York Central Live'' (2003) |
| − | *''Delta Blues (1941-1942) '' ( | + | *''Delta Blues (1941-1942) '' (2003) Biograph Cd 118 |
| − | *''Proper Introduction to Son House'' ( | + | *''Proper Introduction to Son House'' (2004) Proper (contains everything recorded on years 1930, 1940 & 1941) |
| + | |||
| + | ==Trivia and Tributes== | ||
| + | *French singer/song writer [[Francis Cabrel]] refers to Son House in the song "Cent Ans de Plus" on the 1999 album "Hors-Saison." Cabrel cites the artist as one of a number of blues influences, including [[Charley Patton]], [[Blind Lemon Jefferson]], [[Robert Johnson (musician)]], [[Howlin' Wolf]], [[Blind Blake]], [[Willie Dixon]] and [[Ma Rainey]]. | ||
| + | * Clips of him talking about [[blues]] music are used in the movie ''[[Black Snake Moan (film)|Black Snake Moan]]''. | ||
| + | *[[Andrew Bird]] covered House's song, "Grinnin' " on his live album, ''[[Fingerlings 3]]''. | ||
| + | *[[The White Stripes]] self-titled debut album is dedicated to Son House. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==Notes== | ||
| + | <references/> | ||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
| − | *[http://www.wirz.de/music/house.htm Illustrated Son House discography] | + | * [http://www.wirz.de/music/house.htm Illustrated Son House discography]. ''www.wirz.de''. Retrieved September 28, 2007. |
| − | *[http://music.yahoo.com/ar-252156-bio—Son-House Biography of Son House] | + | * [http://music.yahoo.com/ar-252156-bio—Son-House Biography of Son House]. ''music.yahoo.com''. Retrieved September 28, 2007. |
| − | *[http://www.cr.nps.gov/delta/blues/video/Son_House_big.rm Video clip | + | * [http://www.cr.nps.gov/delta/blues/video/Son_House_big.rm Video clip of Son House performing]. ''www.cr.nps.gov''. Retrieved September 28, 2007. |
| − | *[http://www.archive.org/details/BlackMama "My Black Mama Part 1" MP3 file on The Internet Archive] | + | * [http://www.archive.org/details/BlackMama "My Black Mama Part 1" MP3 file on The Internet Archive]. ''www.archive.org''. Retrieved September 28, 2007. |
| − | * http://www.shs.starkville.k12.ms.us/mswm/MSWritersAndMusicians/musicians/SonHouse.html | + | * [http://www.shs.starkville.k12.ms.us/mswm/MSWritersAndMusicians/musicians/SonHouse.html The Mississippi Writers and Musicians Project of Starkville High School]. ''www.shs.starkville.k12.ms.us''. Retrieved September 28, 2007. |
| − | *[http://www.blues.org/halloffame/inductees.php4?YearId=25 1980 Induction into Blues Foundation Hall of Fame] | + | * [http://www.blues.org/halloffame/inductees.php4?YearId=25 1980 Induction into Blues Foundation Hall of Fame]. ''www.blues.org''. Retrieved September 28, 2007. |
| + | *[http://www.nationalguitars.com/part3.html National Reso-phonic Guitar History, Part 3]. ''www.nationalguitars.com''. Retrieved September 28, 2007. | ||
[[Category:Musicians]] | [[Category:Musicians]] | ||
| + | {{Credit|160149492}} | ||
Revision as of 23:45, 27 September 2007
| Edward James "Son" House, Jr. | |
|---|---|
| File:SonHouse.jpg | |
| Background information | |
| Born | March 21 1902 (?) Riverton, Mississippi, U.S.A. |
| Died | October 19 1988 Detroit, Michigan, U.S.A. |
| Genre(s) | Delta blues Country blues Blues revival Slide guitar |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar |
| Years active | 1930 - 1974 |
Eddie James "Son" House, Jr. (March 21, 1902[1] – October 19, 1988) was an American blues singer and guitarist. A seminal Delta blues figure, House remains influential today.
Biography
The middle of seventeen brothers, House was born in Riverton, two miles from Clarksdale, Mississippi. Around age seven or eight, he was brought by his mother to Tallulah, Louisiana after his parents separated. The young Son House was determined to become a Baptist preacher, and at age 15 began his preaching career. Despite the church's firm stand against blues music and the sinful world which revolved around it, House became attracted to it and taught himself guitar in his mid-20s, after moving back to the Clarksdale area, inspired by the work of Willie Wilson. He began playing alongside Charley Patton, Willie Brown, Robert Johnson, Fiddlin' Joe Martin, and Leroy Williams, around Robinsonville, Mississippi and north to Memphis, Tennessee until 1942.
After killing a man, allegedly in self-defense, he spent time at Parchman Farm in 1928 and 1929. The official story on the killing is that sometime around 1927 or 28, he was playing in a juke joint when a man went on a shooting spree. Son was wounded in the leg, and shot the man dead. He received a 15-year sentence at Parchman Farm prison.[2]
Son House recorded for Paramount Records in 1930 and for Alan Lomax from the Library of Congress in 1941 and 1942. He then faded from public view until the country blues revival in the 1960s when, after a long search of the Mississippi Delta region by Nick Perls, Dick Waterman and Phil Spiro, he was "re-discovered" in June, 1964 in Rochester, New York where he had lived since 1943; House had been retired from the music business for many years, working for the New York Central Railroad, and was completely unaware of the international revival of enthusiasm for his early recordings. He subsequently toured extensively in the US and Europe and recorded for CBS records. Like Mississippi John Hurt he was welcomed into the music scene of the 1960s and played at Newport Folk Festival in 1964, the New York Folk Festival in July, 1965, and the October, 1967 European tour of the American Folk Festival along with Skip James and Bukka White. In the summer of 1970, House toured Europe once again, including an appearance at the Montreux Jazz Festival; a recording of his London concerts was released by Liberty Records.
Ill health plagued his later years and in 1974 he retired once again, and later moved to Detroit, Michigan, where he remained until his death from cancer of the larynx. He was buried at Mt. Hazel Cemetery on Lahser south of Seven Mile. Members of the Detroit Blues Society raised money through benefit concerts to put a fitting monument on his grave. He had been married five times.
House's innovative style featured very strong, repetitive rhythms, often played with the aid of a bottleneck, coupled with singing that owed more than a nod to the hollers of the chain gangs. The music of Son House, in contrast to that of, say, Blind Lemon Jefferson, was emphatically a dance music, meant to be heard in the noisy atmosphere of a barrelhouse or other dance hall. House was the primary influence on Muddy Waters and also an important influence on Robert Johnson, who would later take his music to new levels. It was House who, speaking to awe-struck young blues fans in the 1960s, spread the legend that Johnson had sold his soul to the Devil in exchange for his musical powers.
More recently, House's music has influenced rock groups such as the White Stripes, who covered his song Death Letter (also reworked by Skip James and Robert Johnson) on their album De Stijl, and later performed it at the 2004 Grammy Awards. The White Stripes also incorporated sections of a traditional song Son House recorded, John the Revelator, into the song Cannon from their eponymous debut album The White Stripes.
Another musician deeply influenced by Son House is the slide player John Mooney, who in his teens learned slide guitar from Son House while Son was living in Rochester, New York. Several of House's songs were recently figured in the motion picture soundtrack of "Black Snake Moan" (2006).
Describing House's 1967 appearance at the De Montfort Hall in Leicester, England, Bob Groom wrote in Blues World magazine:
It is difficult to describe the transformation that took place as this smiling, friendly man hunched over his guitar and launched himself, bodily it seemed, into his music. The blues possessed him like a 'lowdown shaking chill' and the spellbound audience saw the very incarnation of the blues as, head thrown back, he hollered and groaned the disturbing lyrics and flailed the guitar, snapping the strings back against the fingerboard to accentuate the agonized rhythm. Son's music is the centre of the blues experience and when he performs it is a corporeal thing, audience and singer become as one.
Discography
Son House's recorded works fall into four categories:
- A few (6-10 songs according to source) recorded in 1930 for Paramount Records, for commercial release on 78s. Many of these were recorded as two songs with the same title, e.g. "My Black Mama" parts 1 and 2. See also Clarksdale Moan.
- Alan Lomax's non-commercial recordings ("Library of Congress Sessions") in 1941 and 1942, a total of 19 songs.
- Studio recordings from 1965 and later following his "rediscovery"
- Live recordings, also from this period.
These have been collected, issued and reissued in a baffling array of ways, some of which use the word "complete" in unexpected ways. The following list is partial and uncategorized.
- The Complete Library Of Congress Sessions (1964) Travelin' Man Cd 02
- Blues From The Mississippi Delta (W/Short) (1964) Folkways 2467
- The Legendary Son House: Father Of The Delta Blues (1965) Columbia 2417
- In Concert (Oberlin College, 1965) Stack-O-Hits 9004
- Delta Blues (1941-1942) Smithsonian 31028
- Son House & Blind Lemon Jefferson (1926-1941) Biograph 12040
- Son House - The Real Delta Blues (1964-65 Recordings) Blue Goose Records 2016
- Son House & The Great Delta Blues Singers (With Willie Brown,) Document Cd 5002
- Son House At Home : Complete 1969 Document 5148
- Son House (Library Of Congress) Folk Lyric 9002
- John The Revelator Liberty 83391
- American Folk Blues Festival '67 (1 Cut) Optimism Cd 2070
- Son House - 1965-1969 (Mostly Tv Appearances) Private Record Pr-01
- Son House - Father Of The Delta Blues : Complete 1965 Sony/Legacy Cd 48867
- Living Legends (1 Cut, 1966) Verve/Folkways 3010
- Real Blues (1 Cut, U Of Chicago, 1964) Takoma 7081
- John The Revelator - 1970 London Sessions Sequel Cd 207
- Great Bluesmen/Newport (2 Cuts, 1965) Vanguard Cd 77/78
- Blues With A Feeling (3 Cuts, 1965) Vanguard Cd 77005
- Son House/Bukka White - Masters Of The Country Blues Yazoo Video 500 :
- Delta Blues And Spirituals (1995)
- In Concert (Live) (1996)
- Live At Gaslight Cafe, 1965 (2000)
- New York Central Live (2003)
- Delta Blues (1941-1942) (2003) Biograph Cd 118
- Proper Introduction to Son House (2004) Proper (contains everything recorded on years 1930, 1940 & 1941)
Trivia and Tributes
- French singer/song writer Francis Cabrel refers to Son House in the song "Cent Ans de Plus" on the 1999 album "Hors-Saison." Cabrel cites the artist as one of a number of blues influences, including Charley Patton, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Robert Johnson (musician), Howlin' Wolf, Blind Blake, Willie Dixon and Ma Rainey.
- Clips of him talking about blues music are used in the movie Black Snake Moan.
- Andrew Bird covered House's song, "Grinnin' " on his live album, Fingerlings 3.
- The White Stripes self-titled debut album is dedicated to Son House.
Notes
- ↑ His date of birth is a matter of some debate. Son House himself alleged that he was middle aged during World War I, and, more specifically, that he was 79 in 1965, which would mean that he was born around 1886. However, all legal records place his birth on March 21 1902.
- ↑ [1]. www.nationalguitars.com. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
External links
- Illustrated Son House discography. www.wirz.de. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
- Biography of Son House. music.yahoo.com. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
- Video clip of Son House performing. www.cr.nps.gov. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
- "My Black Mama Part 1" MP3 file on The Internet Archive. www.archive.org. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
- The Mississippi Writers and Musicians Project of Starkville High School. www.shs.starkville.k12.ms.us. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
- 1980 Induction into Blues Foundation Hall of Fame. www.blues.org. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
- National Reso-phonic Guitar History, Part 3. www.nationalguitars.com. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
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