Today is Lightnin' Hopkins' birthday
Samuel John "Lightnin" Hopkins (March 15, 1912 - January 30, 1982) was an American country blues singer, songwriter, guitarist, and occasional pianist, from Centerville, Texas.
Hopkins developed a deep appreciation for the "blues" at the age of 8, when he met Blind Lemon Jefferson at a church picnic in Buffalo, Texas.
That day, Hopkins felt the blues was "in him."
Hopkins began accompanying Jefferson on guitar at informal church gatherings.
Jefferson reputedly never let anyone play with him except young Hopkins, and Hopkins learned much from Jefferson at these gatherings.
It has been estimated that he recorded between eight hundred and a thousand songs in his career.
By the mid to late 1950s, his prodigious output of high-quality recordings had gained him a following among African-Americans and blues aficionados.
In 1959, the blues researcher Robert "Mack" McCormick contacted Hopkins, hoping to bring him to the attention of a broader musical audience in the folk revival.
McCormick presented Hopkins to integrated audiences first in Houston, and then in California.
He made his debut at Carnegie Hall on October 14, 1960, alongside Joan Baez and Pete Seeger, performing the spiritual "Mary Don't You Weep"
In 1960, he signed with Tradition Records.
The recordings which followed included his song "Mojo Hand" in 1960.
In 1968, Hopkins recorded the album "Free Form Patterns,' backed by the rhythm section of the psychedelic band "13th Floor Elevators."
Hopkins was Houston's poet-in-residence for 35 years.
He recorded more albums than any other bluesman.
Hopkins died of esophageal cancer in Houston on January 30, 1982, at the age of 69.
His obituary in the New York Times described him as "one of the great country blues singers and perhaps the greatest single influence on rock guitar players."
= new reply since forum marked as read
