Barkin' Bill Smith

Barkin' Bill Smith
Born August 18, 1928
Cleveland, Mississippi, United States
Died April 24, 2000 (aged 71)
Chicago, Illinois, United States
Genres Chicago blues, electric blues[1]
Occupation(s) Singer, songwriter
Instruments Vocals
Years active 1950s–2000
Labels Delmark

Barkin' Bill Smith (August 18, 1928 – April 24, 2000)[2][3] was an American Chicago blues and electric blues singer and songwriter.[1] Although he was born in Cleveland, Mississippi,[2] Smith spent his latter years in Chicago.[1]

Biography

Smith was raised in Mississippi, but later relocated to East St. Louis, Detroit and finally Chicago. He obtained his stage name from Homesick James in 1958, after the pair had worked together. Smith sang in front of various blues bands around Chicago for many years, having been initially influenced by Joe Williams, Jimmy Witherspoon and Brook Benton.[1] He finally made his recording debut in 1991, providing the vocals on Dave Specter's first album, Bluebird Blues.[4] His connection with Delmark Records then continued when they issued Smith's own solo debut, Gotcha!, in 1994.[1] Gotcha! featured guitar work by Steve Freund.[5]

In his latter years declining health restricted his live appearances.[6]

Smith died in April 2000 in Chicago, from pancreatic cancer, at the age of 71.[3]

Solo album discography

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Bill Dahl. "Barkin' Bill | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-01-25.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "West Virginia Blues Society : Mountain Blues" (PDF). Wvbluessociety.org. Retrieved 2014-01-24.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Doc Rock. "The Dead Rock Stars Club 2000". Thedeadrockstarsclub.com. Retrieved 2014-01-25.
  4. ↑ Russell, Tony (1997). The Blues - From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray. Dubai: Carlton Books Limited. p. 168. ISBN 1-85868-255-X.
  5. ↑ Bill Dahl. "Gotcha! - Barkin' Bill | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-01-25.
  6. ↑ "Barkin' Bill Smith". Centerstagechicago.com. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Barkin' Bill | Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-01-25.