J.D. Short
| J.D. Short | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Jelly Jaw Short, Jaydee Short, and possibly others, including Spider Carter[1] |
| Born | February 26, 1902 Port Gibson, Mississippi, United States |
| Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. St. Louis Missouri, United States |
| Genres | Delta blues, country blues, acoustic blues |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, harmonicist, songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, harmonica[2] |
| Years active | Mid-1920s–1962 |
| Labels | Various |
J.D. Short (February 26, 1902 – October 21, 1962)[3] was an American Delta blues singer, guitarist[4] and harmonicist. He was a multi-instrumentalist and had a distinctive vibrato-laden singing voice.[2] Early in his career, he recorded under a number of pseudonyms, including Jelly Jaw Short.[1] His noteworthy works include "Lonesome Swamp Rattlesnake" and "You're Tempting Me."[3]
Biography
Born in Port Gibson, Mississippi, Short learned to play the piano and the guitar at an early age. He later mastered the harmonica, saxophone, clarinet and drums. He performed locally in the Mississippi Delta at house parties. In 1923 he relocated to St. Louis, Missouri.[2][5]
Short went on to play with the Neckbones, Henry Spaulding, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Douglas Williams, and Big Joe Williams.[6] In the 1930s, Short recorded for Vocalion Records.[1] The musician Henry Townsend, in his autobiography, A Blue Life, told of an incident in St. Louis in which, seemingly out of jealousy of Townsend's musical standing, Short attacked and stabbed him twice. Later, by way of revenge, Townsend shot Short in his genitals, and Short's testicles were lost.[7] The account was also mentioned in Townsend's obituary in the Guardian.[8] Short continued performing in St. Louis after World War II, often as a one-man band and sometimes with his cousin, Big Joe Williams.[5]
Short disappeared from the music industry for over two decades, before re-emerging during the blues revival. He achieved national recognition and went on to record for Delmark Records and Folkways Records.[6] Some of his recordings were later released by Sonet Records.[1]
Short appeared in the 1963 documentary film The Blues, singing "Slidin' Delta".[2]
He died in October 1962 of a heart attack, in St. Louis, at the age of 60.[3]
Compilation albums
- Stavin' Chain Blues, with Big Joe Williams (1961, Delmark Records)
- Blues from the Mississippi Delta, with Son House (1963, Folkways Records)[1]
See also
References
<templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" />
Cite error: Invalid <references> tag; parameter "group" is allowed only.
<references />, or <references group="..." />External links
- Complete discography at Wirz.de
- Works by or about J.D. Short in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Dixon, R. M. W., Godrich, J., Rye, H. W. (1997). Blues and Gospel Records 1890–1943. 4th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 794.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Pages with reference errors
- Articles with hCards
- 1902 births
- 1962 deaths
- People from Port Gibson, Mississippi
- American blues harmonica players
- American blues singers
- Songwriters from Mississippi
- Singers from Mississippi
- Memphis blues musicians
- Delta blues musicians
- Country blues musicians
- St. Louis blues musicians
- Delmark Records artists
- 20th-century American singers
- Blues musicians from Mississippi
