Wade Walton Explained
Wade Walton (October 10, 1919 – January 10, 2000)[1] [2] was an American blues musician and local civil rights leader from Mississippi. He was also a renowned barber, who counted many famous musicians amongst his friends, colleagues, and customers.
Life and career
Walton was born in Lombardy, Mississippi but grew up near Parchman Farm.[2] He attended barber college in Memphis, Tennessee, and subsequently opened a barber shop in Clarksdale, Mississippi.[2]
Walton was known as the "blues barber"[3] because his "Big Six barber shop"[4] was a center of musical activity in Clarksdale. It was located first at 304 Fourth Street, and since 1989 at 317 Issaquena Avenue,[5] which was previously the site of W.C. Handy's house.[6] Walton was proficient on the harmonica, the guitar, and the razor strop,[5] which he played by striking it rhythmically with his razor.[7] Walton was recorded in his barber shop by Paul Oliver in 1960. He later recorded an album, Shake 'Em On Down, released by Bluesville Records in the early 1960s.[5]
In 1960, by chance, Robert Curtis Smith met Paul Oliver and Chris Strachwitz in Walton's barber shop. This led to Smith recording, The Blues of Robert Curtis Smith: Clarksdale Blues (1963).[8] [9]
Walton played in the Kings of Rhythm with Ike Turner, but stayed in Clarksdale working as a barber when Turner took the group national.[10]
Many musicians and other notable people patronized Walton's barber shop to play music with him or in homage, including Howlin' Wolf,[11] Muddy Waters,[12] Sonny Boy Williamson II, and Allen Ginsberg.[5]
Walton was also a local NAACP leader during the civil rights movement in the early 1960s,[12] resulting in the bombing of his barbershop.[13]
He makes appearances in Bill Ferris's 1975 documentary about the Delta blues, Give My Poor Heart Ease[14] and in Robert Mugge's documentary film .[5]
Walton died in St. Louis, Missouri, on January 10, 2000, at the age of 80.[15] [16]
Legacy
Walton was honored with a marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail.[17]
Discography
Notes and References
- Web site: Illustrated Wade Walton discography. Wirz.de. March 11, 2021.
- Book: Edward Komara. Peter Lee. Blues Encyclopedia. July 1, 2004. Routledge. 978-1-135-95832-9. 1048.
- Book: Justin Gage. Melissa Gage. Explorer's Guide Memphis & the Delta Blues Trail: A Great Destination (Explorer's Great Destinations). May 4, 2009. Countryman Press. 978-1-58157-101-1. 145.
- Book: Paul Oliver. Conversation with the Blues. September 25, 1997. Cambridge University Press. 978-0-521-59181-2. 199.
- Book: Steve Cheseborough . Blues Traveling: The Holy Sites of Delta Blues . 2008 . Univ. Press of Mississippi . 978-1-60473-328-0 . 92.
- Book: Christiane Bird. The Da Capo Jazz and Blues Lover's Guide to the U.S.. October 10, 2007. Da Capo Press. 978-0-306-81716-8. 71–73.
- Book: William R. Ferris. Blues from the Delta. 1978. Perseus Books Group. 978-0-306-80327-7. 221.
- Web site: Robert Curtis Smith Biography. AllMusic. September 16, 2014.
- Web site: R.C. Smith discography. Wirz.de. September 16, 2014.
- Book: Colin Larkin. The Virgin Encyclopedia of The Blues. September 30, 2013. Ebury Publishing. 978-1-4481-3274-4. 4.
- Book: James Segrest. Mark Hoffman. Moanin' at Midnight: The Life and Times of Howlin' Wolf. November 28, 2012. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. 978-0-307-83101-9. 539.
- Book: Francis Davis. The History of the Blues. 2003. Da Capo Press. 0-306-81296-7. 28.
- Book: Robert Nicholson. Mississippi: The Blues Today!. 1998. Perseus Books Group. 978-0-306-80883-8. 176.
- Book: Sharon R. Sherman. Documenting Ourselves: Film, Video, and Culture. registration. 1998. University Press of Kentucky. 0-8131-0934-5. 85.
- Book: Komara, Edward M.. Encyclopedia of the Blues. December 6, 2017. 1048. Psychology Press. 9780415926997. December 6, 2017. Google Books.
- Book: Mayfield, Panny Flautt. Live from the Mississippi Delta. July 24, 2017. Univ. Press of Mississippi. 65. 9781496813756. December 6, 2017. Google Books.
- Web site: Wade Walton. Mississippi Blues Trail.
