Curtis Jones (pianist)

Curtis Jones (August 18, 1906 – September 11, 1971)[2] was an American blues pianist.

For other people named Curtis Jones, see Curtis Jones (disambiguation).
Curtis Jones
Background information
Birth nameCurtis Jones
Born(1906-08-18)August 18, 1906
Naples, Texas, United States
DiedSeptember 11, 1971(1971-09-11) (aged 65)
Munich, Germany
GenresPiano blues
Occupation(s)Pianist, singer
Instrument(s)Piano, guitar
Years activeLate 1930s–1971
LabelsVocalion, Okeh, Bluebird, Parrot, Bluesville, Delmark, Decca, Blue Horizon[1]

Biography

Jones was born in Naples, Texas, United States,[2] to sharecropping parents,[3] and played guitar whilst young but switched to piano after a move to Dallas. He often played guitar on one or two songs on his albums and at live performances.[4] In 1936 he relocated to Chicago, where he recorded between 1937 and 1941 on Vocalion, Bluebird, and OKeh. Among his best-known tunes from these recordings were the hit "Lonesome Bedroom Blues" and the song "Tin Pan Alley".[4] His "Decoration Blues" though unissued at the time, was recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson I in 1938. World War II interrupted his recording career, which he did not resume until 1953, when a single of his, "Wrong Blues"/"Cool Playing Blues", was released on Parrot, featuring L. C. McKinley on guitar.

Jones's first album appeared in 1960 on Bluesville, by which time he had become a noted performer on the Chicago folk music scene.[4] A solo album was released in 1962, by which time Jones had moved to Europe. He lived there and in Morocco for the rest of his life.[4] He made further albums in the UK, including one in 1968 that featured Alexis Korner on guitar.[4]

One of Jones' songs, "Highway 51 Blues", was included on Bob Dylan's 1962 debut album, Bob Dylan.[5]

Jones died of heart failure in Munich, Germany, in 1971, at the age of 65.[2][6]

Discography

References
Footnotes
  1. Olderen, Martin van, Blues and Troubles, Linernotes OL 2824, 1980
  2. Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 1309. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  3. Giles Oakley (1997). The Devil's Music. Da Capo Press. p. 75. ISBN 978-0-306-80743-5.
  4. Russell, Tony (1997). The Blues – From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray. Dubai: Carlton Books Limited. p. 128. ISBN 1-85868-255-X.
  5. "Bob Dylan - Bob Dylan | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  6. Doc Rock. "The 1970s". The Dead Rock Stars Club. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
Sources
  • Curtis Jones at Allmusic
  • Harry Shapiro Alexis Korner: The Biography, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, London 1997, Discography by Mark Troster, ISBN 0-7475-3163-3
  • Olderen, Martin van, Blues and Troubles, Linernotes OL 2824, 1980
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