Mississippi Fred McDowell | Artist
Fred McDowell aka Mississippi Fred McDowell was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist of hill country blues, born 1904 in Rossville, Tennessee. As a stylist and purveyor of the original Delta blues he was superb, equal parts Charley Patton and Son House coming to the fore through his roughed-up vocals and slashing bottleneck style of guitar playing. McDowell's parents were farmers, who both died while Fred was in his youth. He took up the guitar at the age of 14 and was soon playing for tips at dances around Rossville. Seeking a change from plowing fields, he moved to Memphis in 1926 where he worked in the Buck-Eye feed mill. In 1928, he moved to Mississippi to pick cotton then finally settled in Como, Mississippi, around 1940. There he worked as a full-time farmer for many years while continuing to play music on weekends. After decades of playing for small local gatherings, McDowell, now aged 55, was recorded in 1959 by roving folklore musicologist Alan Lomax and Shirley Collins, on their Southern Journey field-recording trip. With interest in blues and folk music rising in the US at the time, McDowell's field recordings caught the attention of blues aficionados and record producers, and within a couple of years he had finally become a professional musician and recording artist in his own right. His LPs proved quite popular, and he performed at festivals and clubs all over the world. Up until his death in 1972, 12 "studio" albums of McDowell's music were released, although the earliest are somewhat crude field recordings. There are also several excellent live albums from the US and the UK, plus many posthumous archival sets. Standout albums include Delta Blues (1964), Long Way From Home (1967), Fred McDowell and his Blues Boys (1969), I Do Not Play No Rock 'n' Roll (1970), The First Recordings (Archival) (1997), and Standing at the Burying Ground (Live) (1984). McDowell continued to perform in the north Mississippi style, sometimes on electric guitar rather than acoustic guitar. He was particularly renowned for his mastery of slide guitar, a style he said he first learned using a pocketknife for a slide and later a polished beef rib bone. He ultimately settled on the clearer sound he got from a glass slide, which he wore on his ring finger. While he famously declared, "I do not play no rock and roll," he was not averse to associating with younger rock musicians. He coached Bonnie Raitt on slide guitar technique and was reportedly flattered by the Rolling Stones' copy of his "You Gotta Move" on their 1971 album Sticky Fingers. In 1965, he toured Europe with the American Folk Blues Festival, together with Big Mama Thornton, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy, and Roosevelt Sykes. McDowell's 1969 album I Do Not Play No Rock 'n' Roll, recorded at Malaco Studios in Jackson, Mississippi, was his first featuring electric guitar. McDowell died of cancer in 1972, aged 68, and was buried at Hammond Hill Baptist Church Mississippi. The memorial stone with McDowell's portrait on it was paid for by Bonnie Raitt.
Artist Website : wikipedia/Mississippi_Fred_McDowell
Featured Albums: Mississippi Fred McDowell
Related Artists: Alan Lomax, Bonnie Raitt
