Topical

Show 27: The Blind Musician Tradition

Blind musicians stand all through the history of the blues and related roots music, and this show treats that fact with care instead of sentimentality. It argues that blindness shaped routes into music, street performance, repertory, and style, but never explains away the artistry itself.

Host Narration

For today's 27th episode of the CC Blues Show, we will be focusing on the many blind musicians who sang the blues. The first musician of interest I'll play for ya is Blind Boy Fuller, who set the rules and repertoire of the East Coast, or Piedmont, blues region. The tremendous success of Fuller's records between 1935 and 1940 encouraged musicians to express themselves in the East Coast style, which even today remains surprisingly alive. Here's "Get Yer Yes Yes Out" by Blind Boy Fuller, which was famously appropriated by Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones for the title of their 1970 live album.

37Tracks

9Artists

5Theme Tags

5Genre Tags

SeriesTopical

Tagsblind musicianscountry bluessongstersgospel bluesbiography

Genresacoustic bluestraditional bluesbluescountry bluespiedmont blues

Tracklist

Order	Track	Artist	Segment	Bridge	Story
1	Get Your Yas Yas Out	Blind Boy Fuller	1		-
2	Truckin' My Blues Away	Blind Boy Fuller	1		-
3	Rag, Mama, Rag	Blind Boy Fuller	1		-
4	Untrue Blues	Blind Boy Fuller	1		-
5	Homesick and Lonesome Blues	Blind Boy Fuller	1		-
6	Diddie Wah Diddie	Blind Blake	1		-
7	Police Dog Blues	Blind Blake	1		-
8	Early Morning Blues	Blind Blake	1		-
9	Too Tight Blues No.2	Blind Blake	1	Yes	-
10	He's in the Jail House Now	Blind Blake	2	Yes	-
11	West Coast Blues	Blind Blake	2		-
12	Statesboro Blues	Blind Willie McTell	2		Story
13	Mr. McTell Got the Blues	Blind Willie McTell	2		-
14	You Got to Die	Blind Willie McTell	2		-
15	Last Dime Blues	Blind Willie McTell	2		-
16	On the Cooling Board	Blind Willie McTell	2		-
17	Kill It Kid	Blind Willie McTell	2	Yes	-
18	I Got the Cross the River Jordan	Blind Willie McTell	3	Yes	-
19	See That My Grave Is Kept	Blind Lemon Jefferson	3		-
20	Match Box Blues	Blind Lemon Jefferson	3		-
21	Rabbit Foot Blues	Blind Lemon Jefferson	3		-
24	Lord I just can't keep from crying	Blind Willie Johnson	3		-
25	Death Don't Have No Mercy	Rev. Gary Davis	3		Story
26	Keep Your Lamp Trimmed And Burning	Rev. Gary Davis	3	Yes	-
27	There Was A Time That I Was Blind	Rev. Gary Davis	4	Yes	-
28	Sitting on the Top of the World	Ray Charles	4		-
29	Come Back Baby	Ray Charles	4		-
30	Worried Life Blues - Rehearsal Session with Ahmet Ertegun, 1953	Ray Charles,Ahmet Ertegun	4		-
31	The Midnight Hour	Ray Charles	4		-
32	How Long	Ray Charles	4		-
33	Some Day Baby	Ray Charles	4		-
34	Better Day	Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee	4		-
35	Trouble In Mind	Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee	4		-
36	Blues For Gamblers	Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee	4		-
	If I had my way I'd tear the building down	Blind Willie Johnson			-
	It's nobody's fault but mine	Blind Willie Johnson			-
	Jesus make me up my dying bed	Blind Willie Johnson			-