Gene Campbell (musician)

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Gene Campbell was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist for the Texas blues .

Life

Gene Campbell, who is reminiscent of Texas Alexander in his singing style , probably came from Texas. He had his first recording session in Dallas in November 1929 when he recorded two songs for Brunswick Records , "Mama You Don't Mean Me No Good No How" and "Bended Knee Blues" (# 7139). He recorded ten other songs for Brunswick in Chicago in May 1930, such as "Freight Train Yodeling Blues" (# 7161), "Robbin 'and Steamin' Blues" / "Wondering Blues" (# 7170), "Somebodys Been Playin 'Papa" / "Wash and Iron Woman" (# 7177), "Lazy Woman Blues" / "Wish I Could Die" (# 7184) and "Levee Camp Man Blues", followed by four other titles that were written in November of that year in Dallas . Campbell's last recording session took place in Chicago on January 22nd and 23rd, 1931, when he recorded eight more songs for Brunswick, including "Main Papa's Blues". This contains the lines:

"Put your make-up on baby, go seewhat you can find"
"You can't tell what's for you, till you get out the line."

The blues writer Tony Russell praised the singer's songwriting qualities and continued to write about Campbell, his singing and his instrumental phrasing on the guitar identified him as a student of Lonnie Johnson , in the way that Johnson accompanied Texas Alexander, and also to play Little Has Jones and Carl Davis , recognizable in the titles "Robbin 'and Stealin' Blues". The author also sees references to the Brunswick recordings made by Campbell's friend JT Smith .

Discographic notes

  • Complete Recorded Works 1929-1931 ( Document Records , ed. 1994)
  • Gene Campbell 1929-1931 Texas Blues Pioneer (Wolf Records)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Stephen Calt Barrelhouse Words: A Blues Dialect Dictionary . 2009, page 149
  2. ↑ http://sundayblues.org/archives/tag/gene-campbell
personal data
SURNAME Campbell, Gene
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American singer, songwriter and guitarist of the Texas blues
DATE OF BIRTH 19th century or 20th century
DATE OF DEATH 20th century