| Robert Lee McCollum | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Robert Lee McCollum |
| Also known as | Robert Lee McCoy Robert Nighthawk |
| Born | November 30, 1909 Helena, Arkansas, United States |
| Died | November 5, 1967 (aged 57) Helena, Arkansas, United States |
| Genres | Blues |
| Occupations | Musician |
| Instruments | Vocals, slide guitar, harmonica |
| Labels | Victor Records Bluebird Decca Aristocrat Records Chess Records United Records States Records |
| Associated acts | Memphis Jug Band |
Robert Lee McCollum (November 30, 1909 – November 5, 1967)[1] was an American blues musician, who played and recorded under the pseudonyms Robert Lee McCoy and Robert Nighthawk.
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Born in Helena, Arkansas, he left home at an early age to become a busking musician, and after a period wandering through southern Mississippi, settled for a time in Memphis, Tennessee where he played with local orchestras and musicians, such as the Memphis Jug Band. A particular influence during this period was Houston Stackhouse, from whom he learnt to play slide guitar, and with whom he appeared on the radio in Jackson, Mississippi.
After further travels through Mississippi, he found it advisable to take his mother's name, and as Robert Lee McCoy moved to St. Louis, Missouri in the mid 1930s.[2] Local musicians with whom he played included Henry Townsend, Big Joe Williams, and Sonny Boy Williamson. This led to two recording dates in 1937, the four musicians recording together at the Victor Records studio in Aurora, Illinois as well as recordings under his own name, including "Prowling Night-Hawk" (recorded 5 May 1937), from which he was take his later pseudonym.
These sessions led to Chicago blues careers for the other musicians, though not, however, for McCoy, who continued his rambling life, playing and recording (for Victor/Bluebird and Decca) solo and with various musicians, under various names. He also became a familiar voice on local radio stations; then Robert Lee McCoy disappeared.
Within a few years, he resurfaced as the electric slide guitarist Robert Nighthawk, and began recording for Aristocrat and Chess Records, the latter of which was also Muddy Waters' label; in 1949 and 1950, the two men's styles were close enough that they were in competition for promotional activity; as Waters was the more marketable commodity, being more reliable and a more confident stage communicator, he received the attention. Though Nighthawk continued to perform and to record, taking up with United and States 1951 and 1952, he failed to achieve great commercial success.
In 1963, Nighthawk was rediscovered busking in Chicago and this led to further recording sessions and club dates, and to his return to Arkansas, where he appeared on the King Biscuit Time radio programme on KFFA. As late as 1964, Nighthawk could be found playing on Chicago's, Maxwell Street.[2] He had a stroke followed by a heart attack, and died of heart failure[1] at his home in Helena.
Nighthawk was honored by the Mississippi Blues Commission places a historic marker in Friars Point, Mississippi, marking his position on the Mississippi Blues Trail. Governor Haley Barbour stated the following:
This talented Mississippian made a huge contribution to development of that unique genre of music, the Mississippi blues. I am pleased Nighthawk’s imprint on the blues scene, which is still heard through the tunes of modern-day blues artists, will be recognized with his inclusion on the Mississippi Blues Trail.[3]
The marker was placed at Friars Point, as Nighthawk called this town his home at various times during his itinerant career. He recorded a song called "Friars Point Blues" in 1940.[3]