Lightnin' Hopkins: His Life and Blues [Minkštas viršelis]

2011 ARSC Award for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research for Best History

By the time of his death in 1982, Sam &;Lightnin&;&; Hopkins was likely the most recorded blues artist in history. This brilliant biography illuminates the many contradictions of the man and his myth. Born in 1912 to a poor sharecropping family in cotton country, Hopkins left home when he was eight years old with a guitar his brother had given him. This biography explores his meetings with Blind Lemon Jefferson and Texas Alexander, his time on a chain gang, his relationships with women, and his lifelong appetite for gambling and drinking. Hopkins began recording in 1946, when he was dubbed &;Lightnin&;&; during his first session, and he soon joined Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker on the national R & B charts. But by the time he was &;rediscovered&; by Mack McCormick and Sam Charters in 1959, his popularity had begun to wane. A second career emerged--now Lightnin&; was pitched to white audiences, not black ones, and he became immensely successful. This biography is based on scores of interviews with Lightnin&;s lover, friends, producers, accompanists, managers, and fans.