Charlie Patton

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Charlie Patton
Born May 1, 1891
in Edwards, Mississippi
Died April 28, 1934
near Indianola, Mississippi
Genre(s) Blues
Years active 1929 - 1934

Charlie Patton (May 1, 1891 - April 28, 1934) is best known as an American Delta blues musician. He is considered by many to be the "Father of Delta Blues" and therefore one of the oldest known figures of American popular music. He is credited with creating an enduring body of American music and personally inspiring just about every Delta blues man (Robert Palmer, 1995). Palmer considers him among the most important musicians that America produced in the twentieth century.

Charlie Patton was one of the first mainstream stars of the Delta blues genre. Patton, who was born in Hinds County, Mississippi near Edwards, lived most of his life in Sunflower County, in the Mississippi Delta. He was born in 1891, but there is still some debate about this. In 1900, however, his family moved 100 miles north to the legendary 10,000 Acre Dockery Plantation sawmill and cotton farm near Ruleville, Mississippi. It was here that both John Lee Hooker and Howlin' Wolf fell under the Patton spell. It was also here that Robert Johnson played his first guitar.

At Dockery, Charlie fell under the spell of Henry Sloan who had an unusual new style of playing music which we would recognize today as very early blues. Charlie followed Henry Sloan around and by the time he was about 19 in 1910 he was an accomplished performer and composer, having already composed his theme song "Pony Blues".

He was extremely popular across the U.S. South, and (in contrast to the itinerant wandering of most blues musicians of his time) was invited to perform at plantations and taverns. Long before Jimi Hendrix he was the entertainer's entertainer with dazzling showmanship, often playing guitar on his knees and behind his head, as well as behind his back. Although Patton was a small man at about 5 foot 5 and 135 pounds, the sound of his whiskey- and cigarette-scarred voice was rumored to have carried for over 500 yards without amplification. This gritty voice was a major influence in the singing style of one of his students, Howlin' Wolf.

It is of minor debate which race Charlie Patton was. Though he was most likely African-American like most of his contemporaries in the blues field, because of his light complexion there have been rumors that he was Mexican, full-blood Cherokee (Howlin' Wolf himself endorsed this theory) and many others.

Patton settled in Holly Ridge, Mississippi with his common-law wife and recording partner Bertha Lee in 1933.

Patton died on the Heathman-Dedham plantation near Indianola from heart disease on April 28, 1934 and is buried in Holly Ridge (both towns are located in Sunflower County).

Bob Dylan dedicates his song "High Water," on his album Love and Theft to Charley Patton.

There exists only one photo of Charley Patton. The photo and its copyrights are owned by collector John Tefteller. Purchasing price was fifty thousand dollars. Wikipedia does not have a permission to use the photo.

Contents

[edit] Charley Patton Time Line

  • (1891) - Charlie Patton born in Hinds County, Mississippi near Edwards or Bolton.
  • (1895) (4) - The Patton family moves near Edwards Depot.
  • (1900) (9) - Moves to Dockery's plantation in Sunflower County, Mississippi
  • (1905/1907) (14-16)- He gets guitar lessons from Earl Harris of Cleveland, and learns You Take My Woman and Maggie
  • (1908) (17) - Lives with Millie Barnes, and has a baby girl named Willie Mae
  • (1910) (19) - Some of his songs include: Pony Blues, Banty Rooster Blues, Mississippi BoWeavil, and Down The Dirt Road
  • (1916) (25) - Offered a position in W.C. Handy's band
  • (1922) (31) - Marries Mandy France on Oss Pepper's plantation
  • (1926) (35) - Willie Brown becomes his duet partner
  • (1929) (38) - Records fourteen titles for Paramount Records at Richmond, Indiana
  • (1932) (41) - Final Paramount recording is released
  • (1932) (41) - Marries an overseer's daughter in Morgan City, Mississippi
  • (1933) (42) - Almost killed when his throat is slit near Holly Ridge
  • (1934) (43) - (January 30 - February 1) - Records twenty-six titles for ARC in New York
  • (1934) (43) - Dies of heart failure on the Heathman-Dedham plantation

[edit] Discography

[edit] Original 78's (in chronological order)

Title Catalogue No. Releasedate Notes
Paramount
Pony Blues/Banty Rooster Blues Paramount 12792 July 1929
Prayer Of Death Pt.1/Prayer Of Death Pt. 2 Paramount 12799 pseudonym as Elder J. Hadley
Screamin' And Hollerin' The Blues/Mississippi Bo Weavil Blues Paramount 12805 pseudonym as The Masked Marvel
Down The Dirt Road Blues/It Won't Be Long Paramount 12854
A Spoonful Blues/Shake It And Break It But Don't Let It Fall Mama Paramount 12869
Pea Vine Blues/Tom Rushen Blues Paramount 12877
Lord I'm Discouraged/I'm Going Home Paramount 12883
High Water Everywhere Pt. 1/High Water Everywhere Pt. 2 Paramount 12909 April 1930
Rattlesnake Blues/Running Wild Blues Paramount 12924
Magnolia Blues/Mean Black Cat Blues Paramount 12943 July 1930
Mean Black Moan/Heart Like Railroad Steel Paramount 12953 August 1930
Green River Blues/Elder Greene Blues Paramount 12972 September 1930
Jesus Is A Dying-Bed Maker/I Shall Not Be Moved Paramount 12986 October 1930
Hammer Blues/When Your Way Gets Dark Paramount 12988 November 1930
Moon Going Down/Going To Move To Alabama Paramount 13014 December 1930
Some Happy Day/You're Gonna Need Somebody When You Die Paramount 13031
Circle Round The Moon/Devil Sent The Rain Blues Paramount 13040 End 1930 / Beginning of 1931
Dry Well Blues/Bird Nest Bound Paramount 13070 Spring 1931
Some Summer Day Pt. 1/Jim Lee Blues Pt. 1 Paramount 13080 Spring / Summer 1931
Frankie And Albert/Some These Days I'll Be Gone Paramount 13110 Beginning 1932
Joe Kirby/Jim Lee Blues Pt. 2 Paramount 13133 Beginning 1932
Vocalion
34 Blues/Poor Me Vocalion 02651
High Sheriff Blues/Stone Pony Blues Vocalion 02680 15th April 1934
Love My Stuff/Jersey Bull Blues Vocalion 02782 1st September 1934
Oh Death/Troubled 'Bout My Mother Vocalion 02904 With Bertha Lee
Hang It On The Wall/Revenue Wall Blues Vocalion 02931 15th April 1935

[edit] Edition

  • Screamin' and Hollerin' the Blues: The Worlds of Charley Patton, Revenant Records No. 212, 2001, (Complete recordings on seven CDs including all alternate takes, all recordings of other artists with Patton as company and two books on Patton beside many other features.)

[edit] Songs Ogg Vorbis

34 Blues A Spoonful Blues
Banty Rooster Blues Bird Nest Bound
Down the Dirt Road Blues Dry Well Blues
Elder Green Blues Going to Move to Alabama
Green River Blues Hammer Blues
High Water Everywhere Part I High Water Everywhere Part II
High Sherriff Blues It Won't Be Long
Mississippi Bo Weavil Blues Moon Going Down
Pony Blues Poor Me
Screamin' and Hollerin' the Blues Shake It and Break It
Some These Days I'll Be Gone Stone Pony Blues
Tom Rushen Blues When Your Way Gets Dark

[edit] Notes

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    [edit] References

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