Blind Willie Johnson wasn't born blind. He stumbled upon his stepmother cheating on his father. In order to keep Willie from ever seeing such a thing again, she threw lye in his eyes, robbing him of his sight.
He went on to record 30 stunning gospel songs. His hellfire and brimstone voice lent incomparable passion to songs like "It's Nobody's Fault But Mine" (which Led Zeppelin covered) and "Jesus Make Up My Dying Bed." His instrumental "Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground" is one of the most haunting songs ever recorded. This was in 1930, a singles-driven era in "race" music, and the fact that this song was even put to wax amazes me.
What do you think Johnson would have thought about Eric Clapton calling himself a blues man?
I'm not saying white guys can't play the blues. They can--sometimes. BB King said it best: "No race has a monopoly on the blues."
But what would the old-timers, the originators like Blind Willie or Robert Johnson think of the guitar and Lite beer-soaked blues of today?
Just some food for thought.
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