Homesick James

Trying to find facts about the early life of blues guitarist Homesick James is an exercise in futility. He gave various birthdates over the years, though it feels safe to assume it was around 1910. His last name might be Henderson, Williamson, or Williams. While facts may be hard to come by, the truth is easy to discover; James was one of the finest slide guitar players of all time. He started gigging in Chicago in the early 1930s, and probably began playing the electric guitar around that time. He recorded some sides for Chance in the fifties including “Homesick”, which gave him the name he used professionally for the rest of his career. He played in bands with both Elmore James, who Homesick James claimed was his cousin, and Sonny Boy Williamson. His slashing guitar style was showcased on his most celebrated album, 1964’s Blues on the South Side. Tracks like “Goin’ Down Swingin’”, “Stones in My Passway”, and “Gotta Move” showed his debt to both Robert Johnson and Elmore James, while expressing his own musical personality. He continued to gig into his nineties, with his final live appearance coming less than six months before his death on December 13, 2006.

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