Kokomo Arnold

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Kokomo Arnold (actually James Arnold ; born February 15, 1901 in Lovejoys Station , Georgia ; † November 8, 1968 in Chicago , Illinois ), was an American blues musician.

Life

He had learned the basics of guitar playing in Georgia from his cousin John Wiggs. After moving north in the 1920s , he began working alongside his jobs, e.g. B. to play as a farm worker in Buffalo or as a steel worker in Pittsburgh , as an entertainment musician. In 1929 he went to Chicago , where he made his living mainly as a ' bootlegger ' (illegal distribution of alcoholic beverages during Prohibition ).

Kokomo Arnold - Milk Cow Blues

On May 17, 1930 , he made his first recordings under the name Gitfiddle Jim in Memphis , Rainy Night Blues and Paddlin 'Madeline Blues for RCA-Victor ; however, his debut only sold poorly. Then he moved back to Chicago. After a 4-year hiatus from recording, he recorded a total of 88 tracks for Decca Records between 1934 and 1938 and was one of the leading musicians of the Chicago blues together with Peetie Wheatstraw and Amos Easton . This is where he got his nickname in 1934 after he recorded the song Old Original Kokomo Blues (originally by Scrapper Blackwell ). The title, named after a coffee brand, was created with 3 other titles on September 10, 1934. Among them was the Milkcow Blues , which has since become a classic and was selected as the A-side of Arnold's first Decca single # 7026.

Arnold influenced especially Robert Johnson , the Old Original Kokomo Blues in Sweet Home Chicago reworked, while from the Milkcow Blues of Milkcow Blues Boogie was the Elvis Presley recorded on 10 December 1954th From the most famous song in his repertoire, the Milkcow Blues , Arnold played 4 more numbered versions. On April 18, 1935, Busy Bootin '/ Southern Railroad Blues (Decca # 7139) was created, the A-side of which later served as a template for Little Richard's Keep A-Knockin in September 1957 and became its sixth million-seller.

As early as 1938 , Kokomo Arnold retired from the music business after disputes with Decca producer Mayo Williams . His last recording session took place on May 12, 1938, when the final single was Going Down In Gallilee / Something's Hot (Decca # 7485). It was not rediscovered until 1962 , but could not get excited about the blues revival in front of a white audience. He died of a heart attack in Chicago in 1968 and was buried in Alsip , Illinois .

Arnold was a (left-handed) master on the slide guitar. One of the most striking features of his playing is his unusually high tempo for a slide guitarist. On some pieces his singing - occasionally performed in falsetto - seems to be barely able to follow with its style, which is characterized by high recognition value .

Cover versions

His most famous song Milkcow Blues was covered 47 times. First versions appeared on February 13, 1935 by Pinewood Tom and on February 27, 1935 by Bumble Bee Slim. The version that probably inspired Elvis Presley came from Johnny Lee Wills & His Boys (recorded April 28, 1941), which was followed by his brother Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys (May 20, 1946). In addition to Elvis Presley, another Rock & Roll version of this blues was written by Eddie Cochran (January 5, 1962). The Kinks version of August 10, 1965 is not based on Arnold's song, but on a completely different composition, the "Milk Cow Blues" by Sleepy John Estes , which was composed on May 13, 1930.

Discography

  • 1991 Complete Recorded Works, Vols. 1-4 Document
  • 1994 Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 1 (1930-1935) Document
  • 1994 Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 2 (1935-1936) Document
  • 1994 Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 3 (1936-1937) Document
  • 1994 Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 4 (1937-1938) Document
  • 1997 Blues Classics, Vol. 1 Blues Classics
  • 1998 Original Kokomo Blues 1934-1938 EPM
  • 1999 Old Original Kokomo Blues Catfish
  • 2000 King of the Bottleneck Guitar (1934-1937) Black and Blue
  • 2001 Kokomo Arnold: The Essential Classic Blues
  • 2002 Old Original Kokomo Blues P-Vine Records
  • 2003 Old Original Kokomo Blues Vol. 2 P-Vine Records
  • 2004 The Story of the Blues Membrane Music Ltd.
  • 2004 Essential Kokomo Arnold Classic Blues
  • Blues Classics by Kokomo Arnold & Peetie Wheatstraw Blues Classics
  • Bottleneck Guitar Trendsetters of the 1930's Yazoo
  • Kokomo Arnold Blues Interactions
  • Midnight Blues History

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ the Presley version is more based on the version recorded on April 28, 1941 by Johnny Lee Wills (a brother of Bob Wills who also covered the song) than on the original by Arnold
  2. ↑ Milk Cow Blues No. 1 was created in the session on February 2, 1935 . 2
  3. ↑ AMG, CD Universe, Amazon

literature

  • Robert Santelli, The Big Book Of Blues - A Biographical Encyclopedia , 1993, ISBN 0-14-015939-8 , p. 14 f.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Arnold, Kokomo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Arnold, James (real name); Gitfiddle Jim (pseudonym)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American blues musician
DATE OF BIRTH February 15, 1901
PLACE OF BIRTH Lovejoys Station , Georgia
DATE OF DEATH November 8, 1968
Place of death Chicago , Illinois