Bull City Red(bornGeorge Washington,February 19, 1917 – October 1958)[1]was an AmericanPiedmont bluesguitarist,singer,and predominantlywashboardplayer, most closely associated withBlind Boy Fullerand theReverend Gary Davis.Little is known of his life outside of his recording career.
Bull City Red | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | George Washington |
| Also known as | Oh Red |
| Born | February 19, 1917 Indiantown, South Carolinaor Durham, North Carolina,United States |
| Died | October 1958 (age 41) |
| Genres | Piedmont blues,East Coast blues,country blues,gospel |
| Occupation(s) | Singer,guitarist,washboard player |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals,guitar,washboard |
| Years active | Early 1930s-early 1940s |
| Labels | Vocalion |
| Formerly of | Blind Boy Fuller,Reverend Gary Davis,Sonny Terry,Brownie McGhee,Sonny Jones |
Biography
editWashington was born inIndiantown, South Carolina,[1]though some sources stateDurham, North Carolina.His primarynickname,"Bull City Red", came from the "Bull City" nickname for Durham, where he grew up. A partialalbino,he was sometimes alternatively billed asOh Red,[2]also the name of a popular song written byJoe McCoyand first recorded in 1936 by theHarlem Hamfats.Red and Fuller recorded their own version of the song, titled "New Oh Red!", in 1937.[3]Although he was just good enough as a guitarist to imitate Fuller, with whom he frequently played, he was a talented washboard player and also sang.[4]
Red was a street musician in Durham before becoming the sole sighted member of a band managed by the talent scoutJ. B. Long,which included at various times Fuller,Sonny Terryand Davis.[5][6]In 1935, then a trio featuring Red, Davis, and Fuller, the band went to New York to enter the recording studio for the first time,[6]in a session for theAmerican Record Corporation(ARC).[7]As his collaborators were blind, Red signaled them by touch when the recording process was ready to end.[7]Accompanying Fuller along with Terry, Red recorded many songs for ARC's Perfect label between 1935 and Fuller's death during surgery in 1941.[4][8]
Red alsorecordedsongs based ongospel musicwith Fuller, Terry, and Sonny Jones, under the name of Brother George and His Sanctified Singers.[4]He recorded "I Saw the Light" with guitar backing by Davis.[6]On Fuller's latterdaycompilation album,Get Your Yas Yas Out,Red played the washboard on "Jitterbug Rag".[5]Between 1935 and 1939, he struck out on his own as well, recording solo with his own vocals, guitar and washboard.[4]His tracks included "Black Woman and Poison Blues" and "I Won't Be Dogged Around".[9]
In 1941, Red became involved with another band. In late 1940, he had introducedBrownie McGheeand his collaborator Jordan Webb to his manager, John Baxter Long, and also to Fuller and Terry. After Fuller's death, the group came together along with another washboard player, Robert Young, to record.[4]
Red died in 1958, at an unknown location.[1]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^abcEagle, Bob; LeBlanc, Eric S. (2013).Blues: A Regional Experience.Santa Barbara, California: Praeger. p. 336.ISBN978-0313344237.
- ^"Bull City Red".Discogs.Retrieved2020-07-30.
- ^"Original versions of New Oh Red! by Blind Boy Fuller | SecondHandSongs".Secondhandsongs.com.Retrieved2020-07-30.
- ^abcdeEder, Bruce."Bull City Red: Biography".AllMusic.RetrievedDecember 26,2009.
- ^abRussell, Tony (1997).The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray.Dubai: Carlton Books. p. 203.ISBN1-85868-255-X.
- ^abcYoung, Alan (1997).Woke Me Up This Morning: Black Gospel Singers and the Gospel Life.American Made Music Series. University Press of Mississippi. p.11.ISBN0-87805-944-X.
- ^abDavis, Gary; Stefan Grossman (1993).Stefan Grossman's Early Masters of American Blues Guitar: Rev. Gary Davis.Alfred Publishing. p. 4.ISBN0-7390-4329-3.
- ^Anderson, Jean Bradley (1990).Durham County: A History of Durham County, North Carolina.Duke University Press. p. 375.ISBN0-8223-1056-2.
- ^"Magpie Records Discography".Wirz.de.RetrievedJanuary 25,2014.