I was rifling through my vast blues recording collection a few days ago trying to find something to inspire me while I tidied-up my blues room, and I turned to one of my fallback blues favorites to goad me forward; Jimmy Reed.  There is just something so pure about Reed’s laconic, slightly slurred vocal delivery, his rudimentary guitar playing, that swaying rhythm, and his ability to sing, play guitar, and blow rack harmonica during the same song.  Reed’s music just always satisfies, so I pulled out my copy of Reed’s Rockin’ With Reed and I was indeed duly motivated to complete my housekeeping duties.

As I listened to Reed, my mind wandered to the aspect of the one-man band in the blues sphere.  Dynamic artist such as Dr. Ross, Juke Boy Bonner, Jesse Fuller, Driftin’ Slim, Joe Hill Louis, and “Harmonica Frank” Floyd immediately came to mind, but so did modern-day practitioners such as Gerry Hundt (by the way, Hundt’s current day one-man brunch sets at Chicago’s Smoke Daddy BBQ are tremendous).  There is something amazing about the assembled talent required to successfully pull-off being able to sing, blow harmonica, play a guitar, and kick a drum and/or a cymbal within the same tune.  As the saying goes, “I can’t chew gum and walk.”  So later that day after cleaning-up my blues room, I had some time to go through my recording collection and pull out some blues one-man band specialists, and for a couple of hours, I reveled in their broad proficiencies.

One of the bluesmen whose work I plucked from my collection is a relative unknown to many blues fans, but a completely fascinating artist named Blind Joe Hill.  His music always spoke to my greater blues sensibilities because he derived mush of his blues vision from Jimmy Reed.  As such, his work snared me early and captivated me.

Blind Joe Hill came into the world in 1937 (certain research also suggests 1931) in Dunbar, West Virginia, a locale in Kanawha County, which is located in the western third of the state.  It seems that Hill remained in West Virginia until he was roughly eight years of age, at which time his parent made the move northward to Ohio, eventually settling in Akron.  As I often indicate in these pages, not a lot of information is easily gleaned about Hill’s earliest and formative years (especially for a more obscure artist such as Hill), but what is known is that he was bitten by the blues bug early, specifically the wealth of music coming from Chicago.  Of particular and high interest to Hill were the records of Jimmy Reed.  He found their structures, varying components, and overall sounds infectious. 

So, as it goes many times when discussing blues artists, the musical development phase is rife with self-discovery on an instrument or is accomplished via informal alliances with those willing to teach basic skills the basics to get started.  In Hill’s case, he was able to acquire a guitar and research suggests that he was self-taught.  As is also often the case, first bands provide both experience, exposure, and opportunities to discover true musical direction.  Hill’s first band was named The Hideaways.  But Hill, as the leader, discovered that being the boss had various downsides, and the one aspect of band leadership that caused him the greatest stress was the laziness of his bandmates as it related to their inabilities to be timely in showing-up for scheduled shows.

So, Hill decided to take matters into his own hands.  He realized that his skill set had sufficiently expanded to the point where he was adept in the Jimmy Reed style, having also taught himself to play harmonica, so he essentially becoming a one-man cover band by playing other blues artists’ songs in-performance.  Thus, he began his true professional career by playing the Ohio circuit of clubs, taverns, and other venues that would book him.

One aspect of Hill’s world needs to be addressed before going any further with his story.  Hill adopted the performing moniker “Blind Joe Hill” because at the young age of 17 he was involved in an accident that resulted in the loss of one of his eyes.  As if this weren’t tragic enough, Hill developed glaucoma in his remaining eye, and as such he became legally and functionally blind.

It was only a matter of time before Hill made the move westward to Chicago where he established himself within the city’s blues club scene.  Due to his popularity, he was able to score a valued “live” performance on the immensely popular Big Bill Hill radio show on WOPA that bolstered his credibility and performing opportunities.  Hill’s prowess also afforded him the chance to play with the Southern Jubilee Gospel Singers. 

Hill continued plying his blues trade in Chicago wherever and whenever he could.  The year 1975 turned out to be a major one for Hill.  George Paulus, an American record producer and the owner of Barrelhouse Records, St. George Records, and Negro Rhythm Records, brought Hill into a recording studio, ultimately resulting in the release of Boogie In The Dark in 1976 on the Barrelhouse Records label.  This ten-song collection captured all that was superb about Hill’s multi-dimensional competencies, with him playing guitar, cymbals, harmonica, drum, and tambourine.  On this outing, many of the songs were covers.

The early 1980s were a period of profound change for Hill, as he made the decision to move westward where he settled in California.  Hill entrenched himself within the fertile California blues scene, and he early on collaborated with blues harmonica legend George “Harmonica” Smith on some recordings for Smith’s Pick Your Choice release on the Shoe Label Records imprint.  One song on the release entitled “Don’t Be Nobody’s Fool” is credited to Hill.  In 1982, Hill gained major exposure to a world of new blues fans by appearing on the bill of the Long Beach Blues Festival.  

In 1983, Hill was able to record for the German L&R Records label, an 11-song release entitled First Chance under the name of Blind Joe Hill One-Man-Blues Band.  While this release included three Jimmy Reed songs, the remainder of the tunes appear to be of Hill’s authorship.  This was a departure from his 1976 release where, again, many of the songs were others’.

Because of Hill recording for the German label, he was invited to be part of the wildly popular American Folk Blues Festival tour of Europe in 1985, and as an outgrowth of this opportunity, Hill was included on the tour’s ten-song album entitled American Folk Blues Festival ’85.  Hill had two selections on the album, one the Jimmy Reed tune “Big Boss Man’ and another entitled “I’m Travelin’.” 

Hill continued to live in Southern California, regularly performing right up until his death in 1998. 

So, what was it about Hill that made him so popular?  First, his was a unique style of playing that for many blues fans was unlike anything most had ever experienced, especially in the time frame of his greatest achievement when more and more blues artists were carrying full bands that often included horn sections.  His stripped-down capabilities laid bare his arsenal of skills, and for that, fans respected his work.  There was nowhere to hide when Hill performed, and watching someone so highly capable on so many instruments all at once left many in awe of his astounding aptitudes.  His Jimmy Reed-ish delivery certainly appealed to many, as well. 

There is no shortage of Blind Joe Hill audio on YouTube.  Perhaps seek it out and see what my fuss about Blind Joe Hill is all about.  I believe you will find much to appreciate.