Mississippi John Hurt

For the actor, see John Hurt.

"Mississippi" John Smith Hurt (July 2, 1892, Teoc, Mississippi - November 2, 1966, Grenada, Mississippi) was an American blues singer and guitarist.

Mississippi John Hurt
Mississippi John Hurt recording for the Library of Congress 1964
Background information
Birth name	John Smith Hurt
Born	(1892-07-02)July 2, 1892 Teoc, Mississippi, US
Died	November 2, 1966(1966-11-02) (aged 74) Grenada, Mississippi, US
Genres	Piedmont blues
Occupation(s)	musician
Instruments	guitar, vocals
Years active	1920s - 1960s
Labels	Okeh Vanguard
Website	http://www.msjohnhurtmuseum.com/

Life

Hurt was raised in Avalon. He tought himself playing guitar at the age of nine. While he was working as a sharecropper, he played at local dances and parties. He did his first recording in 1928 for Okeh Records but was not successful. So he worked on as a sharecropper and played on at the local parties.

Two of Hurt's songs were included in the album The Anthology of American Folk Music and an Australian found a copy of Avalon Blues. So the interest in finding John Hurt himself increased. In 1963 Tom Hoskins found him in Avalon and found out that his musical skill was still intact. He brought him to Washington, D. C. He started playing at greater festivals like the 1964 Newport Folk Festival. In his later years he often played in colleges, concert halls, coffee houses and also on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. He also recorded three albums for Vanguard Records and recorded most of his songs for the Library of Congress.

Hurt influenced different music genres like blues, country, bluegrass, folk and contemporary rock and roll.

Death

Hurt died on November 2, 1966 from a heart attack in Grenada, Mississippi.

Discography

1. "Frankie" (3:21)- February 24, 1928, Memphis, TN - 400221-B, OK 8560
2. "Nobody's Dirty Business" (2:52)- February 24, 1928, Memphis - 400223-B, OK 8560
3. "Ain't No Tellin'" (2:54)- December 21, 1928, New York City, NY - 401471-A, OK 8560
4. "Louis Collins" (2:57)- December 21, 1928, NYC - 401472-A, OK 8724
5. "Avalon Blues" (3:01)- December 21, 1928, NYC - 401473-B, OK 8759
6. "Big Leg Blues" (2:50)- December 21, 1928, NYC - 401474-B, unissued
7. "Stack O' Lee" (2:55)- December 28, 1928, NYC - 401481-B, OK 8654
8. "Candy Man Blues" (2:44)- December 28, 1928, NYC - 401483-B, OK 8654
9. "Got The Blues (Can't Be Satisfied)" (2:49)- Dec 28, 1928, NYC- 401484-B, OK 8734
10. "Blessed Be The Name" (2:46)- December 28, 1928, NYC - 401485-B, OK 8666
11. "Praying On The Old Camp Ground" (2:35)- Dec 28 1928, NYC- 401486-B, OK 8666
12. "Blue Harvest Blues" (2:51)- December 28, 1928 NYC - 401487-A, OK 8692
13. "Spike Driver Blues" (3:13)- December 28, 1928 NYC - 401488, OK 8692

Last Sessions - 1966 (Vanguard)

1. "Poor Boy, Long Ways From Home"
2. "Boys, You're Welcome"
3. "Joe Turner Blues"
4. "First Shot Missed Him"
5. "Farther Along"
6. "Funky Butt"
7. "Spider, Spider"
8. "Waiting For You"
9. "Shortnin' Bread"
10. "Trouble, I've Had It All My Days"
11. "Let The Mermaids Flirt With Me"
12. "Good Morning, Carrie"
13. "Nobody Cares For Me"
14. "All Night Long"
15. "Hey, Honey, Right Away"
16. "You've Got To Die"
17. "Goodnight Irene"

Mississippi John Hurt 1928 Sessions (Yazoo 1065, Yazoo Records)

Side 1	Side 2
"Got the Blues Can’t Be Satisfied" "Louis Collins" "Blue Harvest Blues" "Avalon Blues" "Blessed Be the Name" "Nobody’s Dirty Business" Frankie	Ain’t no tellin’ Big leg blues Stack O’Lee blues Praying on the old camp ground Spike Driver Blues Candy Man Blues

Worried Blues (Piedmont PLP 13161, Piedmont Records)

Side 1	Side 2
Lazy Blues Farther along Sliding delta Nobody cares for me Cow hooking blues	Talkin’ Casey Jones Weeping and wailing Worried blues Oh Mary don’t you weep I been cryin’ since you been gone

Mississippi John Hurt Today (VSD-79220, Vanguard Records)

Side 1	Side 2
Payday I’m satisfied Candy man Make me a pallet on the floor Talkin’ Casey Jones Corrina, Corrina	Coffee blues Louis Collins Hot time in the old town tonight If you don’t want me. Baby Spike driver blues Beulah land

Mississippi John Hurt Last Sessions (VSD-79327, Vanguard Records)

Side 1	Side 2
Poor boy long ways from home Boys, you’re welcome Joe Turner blues First shot missed him Farther along Spider, spider Waiting for you Shortnin’ bread	Trouble, I’ve had it all my days Let the mermaids flirt with me Good mornin’, Carrie Nobody cares for me All night long Hey, Honey, right away You’ve got to die Goodnight, Irene

The Best of Mississippi John Hurt (VSD-19/20, Vanguard Records) Recorded live at Oberlin College April 15, 1966

Side 1	Side 2
Here I am, Oh Lord, send me I shall not be moved Nearer my God to thee Baby what’s wrong with you It ain’t nobody’s business	Salty dog blues Coffee blues Avalon, my home town Make me a pallet on the floor Since I’ve laid this burden down

Side 3	Side 4
Sliding delta Monday morning blues Richland women blues Candy man Stagolee	My creole belle CC rider Spanish Fandango Talking casey Chicken You are my sunshine

The Candy Man (QS 5042, Quicksilver Records)

Side 1	Side 2
Richland women blues Trouble, I’ve had it all my days Chicken Coffee blues Monday morning blues	Frankie and Albert Talking Casey Here I am, Oh Lord, send me Hard time in the old town tonight Spike driver blues

Volume One of a Legacy (CLPS 1068, Piedmont Records)

Side 1	Side 2
Trouble, I’ve had it all my days Pera Lee See See rider Louis Collins Coffee blues Nobody’s dirty business Do Lord remember me Monday morning blues	Let the mermaids flirt with me Payday Stack-o-lee blues Casey Jones Frankie and Albert

Folk Songs and Blues (PLP 13757, Piedmont Records)

Side 1	Side 2
Avalon blues Richland woman blues Spike driver blues Salty dog Cow hooking blues Spanish Fandang	Casey Jones Louis Collins Candy Man Blues My Creole belle Liza Jane – God’s unchanging hand Joe Turner blues

Other websites

• Mississippi John Hurt Museum Archived 2020-09-09 at the Wayback Machine Includes a link to a discussion forum regarding Mississippi John Hurt with substantive participation by grand nephew, Fred Bolden.
• Mississippi John Hurt News Archived 2018-12-27 at the Wayback Machine Website run by John's grand nephew, Fred Bolden. Has several forums and discussions open to the public.
• Illustrated Mississippi John Hurt discography
• Available recordings at The Internet Archive
• Allmusic
• Mississippi John Hurt's Stackolee Archived 2016-06-19 at the Wayback Machine Recording, sheet music and guitar tab.