Biography
by Barry Lee Pearson
Big
Bill Broonzy called John Estes' style of singing "crying" the blues
because of its overt emotional quality. Actually, his vocal style harks
back to his tenure as a work-gang leader for a railroad maintenance
crew, where his vocal improvisations and keen, cutting voice set the
pace for work activities. Nicknamed "Sleepy" John Estes, supposedly
because of his ability to sleep standing up, he teamed with mandolinist
Yank Rachell and harmonica player Hammie Nixon to play the house party
circuit in and around Brownsville in the early 1920s. The same team
reunited 40 years later to record for Delmark and play the festival
circuit. Never an outstanding guitarist, Estes relied on his expressive
voice to carry his music, and the recordings he made from 1929 on have
enormous appeal and remain remarkably accessible today.
Despite
the fact that he performed for mixed Black and white audiences in string
bands, jug bands, and medicine show formats, his music retains a
distinct ethnicity and has a particularly plaintive sound.
Astonishingly, he recorded for six decades on Victor, Decca, Bluebird,
Ora Nelle, Sun, Delmark, and others. Over the course of his career, his
music remained simple yet powerful, and despite his sojourns to Memphis
and Chicago he retained a traditional down-home sound. Some of his songs
are deeply personal statements about his community and life, such as
"Lawyer Clark" and "Floating Bridge." Other compositions have universal
appeal ("Drop Down Mama" and "Someday Baby") and went on to become
mainstays in the repertoires of countless musicians. One of the true
masters of his idiom, he lived in poverty, yet was somehow capable of
turning his experiences and the conditions of his life into compelling
art.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sleepy-john-estes-mn0000022845/biography
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Biografía
por Barry Lee Pearson
Big Bill Broonzy llamó al estilo de canto de John Estes "crying" (llorar) el blues por su evidente calidad emocional. En realidad, su estilo vocal se remonta a su época de líder de una cuadrilla de mantenimiento del ferrocarril, donde sus improvisaciones vocales y su voz aguda y cortante marcaban el ritmo de las actividades laborales. Apodado "Sleepy" John Estes, supuestamente por su capacidad para dormir de pie, se asoció con el mandolinista Yank Rachell y el armonicista Hammie Nixon para tocar en el circuito de fiestas domésticas en Brownsville y sus alrededores a principios de la década de 1920. El mismo equipo se reunió 40 años después para grabar para Delmark y tocar en el circuito de festivales. Estes nunca fue un guitarrista destacado, sino que se apoyó en su expresiva voz para llevar su música, y las grabaciones que hizo a partir de 1929 tienen un enorme atractivo y siguen siendo notablemente accesibles hoy en día.
A pesar de que actuó para un público mixto de blancos y negros en bandas de cuerda, bandas de jarra y formatos de espectáculos de medicina, su música conserva un marcado carácter étnico y tiene un sonido especialmente lastimero. Sorprendentemente, grabó durante seis décadas en Victor, Decca, Bluebird, Ora Nelle, Sun, Delmark y otros. A lo largo de su carrera, su música siguió siendo sencilla pero poderosa, y a pesar de sus estancias en Memphis y Chicago, conservó un sonido tradicional y casero. Algunas de sus canciones son declaraciones profundamente personales sobre su comunidad y su vida, como "Lawyer Clark" y "Floating Bridge". Otras composiciones tienen un atractivo universal ("Drop Down Mama" y "Someday Baby") y se convirtieron en pilares del repertorio de innumerables músicos. Uno de los verdaderos maestros de su lenguaje, vivió en la pobreza, pero fue capaz de convertir sus experiencias y las condiciones de su vida en un arte convincente.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sleepy-john-estes-mn0000022845/biography
01 - Needmore Blues
02 - Who's Been Tellin' You
03 - Airplane Blues
04 - Vernita
05 - Denmark Blues
06 - I'm A Tearing Little Daddy
07 - I Stayed Away Too Long
08 - Drop Down Mama
09 - The Woman I Love
10 - You Oughtn't Do That
11 - Easin' Back To Tennessee
12 - I'm A Tearing Little Daddy (Alternate)
13 - Blues For J. F. K.
Credits:
Sleepy John Estes – guitar, vocals
Hammie Nixon – harmonica, jug
1966
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