Bluestone on Lightnin' Hopkins

Sam Lightnin' Hopkins was born in Centerville, Texas in 1912.  At the early age of 8, Hopkins met Blind Lemon Jefferson and got into the blues.  He played with Jefferson at church gatherings, who supposedly never let anyone else accompany him.  That was about it for his early music career, though.  He moved to Houston with his cousin, Alger Alexander, to try and break into the music industry, but had no success.  He returned home to work on a farm.  In 1946, he tried again in Houston and was discovered playing on the street by Aladdin Records.  Hopkins, a true Texas bluesman, got sick of recording with Aladdin in Los Angeles and returned home to Gold Star Records.  Hopkins' recognition blew up in the 1950s and in 1960 he debuted at Carnegie Hall.  That same year he signed with Tradition Records.  After a treacherous beginning to his career, Hopkins finally became known as one of the greats.
Lightnin' appears in most photographs with dark shades, a goofy smile, and a flask full o' whiskey.  He's just a guy with the blues, who happens to be really good at singing them.  He doesn't play with a back up band, he doesn't need a big stage.  He is, in my opinion, the best at playing bass, lead, rhythm, and percussion all together.  He hammers the low E with a heavy thumb, glazes over the body of the chord, and picks out a high lead with the rest of his fingers.  All the while, using his foot like a drumstick on the floor, and his palm on the body of the guitar; he's a one man show.

 What's great about his style is that it's so universal.  His sound is distinct, but it can also be found everywhere.  The way he played his licks is only one of many; they can be applied to any blues.  The Red Hot Chili Peppers even said they were influenced by Lightnin' around the time Stadium Arcadium came out.
Lightnin's sense of humor shows in a lot of his songs.  Here is Katie Mae Blues; "she walks just like she has oil wells in her backyard," he sings, "some folks say she must be a Cadillac, I say she must be a T-model Ford.  Yeah she got the shape alright, but she can't carry no heavy load."
Listen to Katie Mae Blues.

Buy The Very Best of Lightnin' Hopkins on Amazon.com