SAM CHATMON

Biography

Vivian 'Sam' Chatmon (January 10, 1897 – February 2, 1983) was born in Bolton, Mississippi, into a renowned musical family known for their string band performances of rags, ballads, and popular dance tunes. He began playing guitar at age three, laying it flat on the floor, and by age four was singing blues songs; he performed regularly for white audiences in the 1900s and played banjo, mandolin, harmonica, and guitar at parties and street corners throughout Mississippi. Chatmon may have been half-brother to Charley Patton, and in the 1920s-1930s, he recorded with brothers Lonnie Chatmon and Bo Carter alongside Walter Vinson as the Mississippi Sheiks, and separately as the Chatmon Brothers.[1][3][6]

In the early 1940s, Chatmon moved to Hollandale, Mississippi, working on plantations and as a night watchman, playing music sporadically until his rediscovery in 1960, which launched a prolific folk-blues revival career. He recorded for Arhoolie in 1960, Blue Goose (1970), Albatros (1977), Rounder (1979), and Flying Fish (1981), and toured extensively in the 1960s-1970s, performing at major festivals like the Smithsonian Folklife Festival (1972), Mariposa Folk Festival (1974), and New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (1976). In 1970, while in California, he formed 'The California Sheiks' with Sue Draheim, Kenny Hall, and others, and reunited with Walter Vinson as the New Mississippi Sheiks in 1972.[1][3]

Chatmon's style blended Delta blues with country blues, ragtime, and classic blues, characterized by his rich voice and deft guitar work. He died in Hollandale at age 86; Bonnie Raitt funded his headstone inscribed 'Sitting on Top of the World' in 1998, and he received a Mississippi Blues Trail marker.[1]

Fun Facts

• Claimed to start playing guitar at age three by laying it flat on the floor and crawling under it to strum.[1]
• Refused to fly, traveling everywhere by bus, train, or car, even missing European tours.[3]
• In 1928, recorded in Atlanta as Mississippi Sheiks after talent scout Brock discovered the family in Bolton; played guitar since no bass was wanted.[3]
• Headstone funded by Bonnie Raitt in 1998 bears inscription 'Sitting on Top of the World' from a Mississippi Sheiks song.[1]

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• Charley Patton - Possible half-brother and early musical family influence (Family string band performances) [1900s-1910s]

Key Collaborators

• Lonnie Chatmon - Brother and frequent bandmate in family string band and recordings (Mississippi Sheiks, Chatmon Brothers (1936 Bluebird session)) [1920s-1930s]
• Bo Carter - Brother and Mississippi Sheiks member (Mississippi Sheiks recordings (1928 Atlanta session)) [1920s-1930s]
• Walter Vinson - Mississippi Sheiks guitarist; reunited later (Mississippi Sheiks, New Mississippi Sheiks (1972 University of Chicago Folk Festival)) [1920s-1930s, 1972]
• Sue Draheim - Fiddler in California group (The California Sheiks recordings (1970 Sweet's Mill Music Camp)) [1970]
• Kenny Hall - Collaborator in California Sheiks (1970 Sweet's Mill Music Camp recordings) [1970]

External Links

• Spotify
• Wikipedia