washington white

Biography

Booker T. Washington “Bukka” White, who also recorded under the name Washington White, was an American Delta blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter born on a farm near Houston, Chickasaw County, Mississippi, most likely on November 12, 1906 (though dates between 1904 and 1909 appear in records).[2][4][5] Raised in a musical family—his father John White was a multi‑instrumentalist—he first played fiddle at local square dances before turning to guitar, developing a driving bottleneck slide style on National resonator guitars in open and cross‑note tunings.[1][3] As a young man he rambled across Mississippi, the Delta, St. Louis, and Chicago, playing blues, spirituals, and dance music while absorbing influences from leading Delta figures such as Charley Patton and fellow local musicians.[1][3] In 1930 talent scout Ralph Lembo took him to Memphis for his first recording session for Victor Records, where he cut both country blues and gospel sides issued under the name Washington White.[1][2][3][4]

White’s career had several dramatic turns. After working around Mississippi and traveling with musicians like Peetie Wheatstraw to Chicago, he recorded in 1937 for producer Lester Melrose, creating what became his signature prewar hits, including “Shake ’Em On Down” and “Po’ Boy.”[1][2][3][4] That same year he was convicted in a shooting incident and sent to Mississippi State Penitentiary (Parchman Farm), where folklorist John Lomax recorded him in 1939 for the Library of Congress.[1][2][4] Following his release he returned to Chicago in 1940 and recorded a powerful set of songs for Vocalion based on his trial and imprisonment, such as “Parchman Farm Blues,” “Fixin’ to Die Blues,” “District Attorney Blues,” and “When Can I Change My Clothes.”[2][3][4] During World War II he settled in Memphis, worked in a defense plant, and performed locally, often alongside older bluesman Frank Stokes, while also helping his younger cousin, B.B. King, get established on the Memphis scene.[1][2][4]

Like many country blues artists, White’s fortunes declined in the 1950s as tastes shifted, but he was dramatically rediscovered in the early 1960s when guitarist John Fahey and Ed Denson tracked him down via a postcard address on a decades‑old record sleeve.[2][3] White re‑entered the studio to re‑record early material and new songs for Takoma and Arhoolie Records, including the improvisatory “sky songs” that he said he “pulled out of the sky,” and became a popular figure on the folk‑blues and college‑festival circuit across North America and Europe into the mid‑1970s.[2][3][4] His guttural vocals, propulsive rhythms, vivid storytelling, and intense slide guitar made him one of the most distinctive country blues stylists, and he was a key influence on postwar electric blues through B.B. King as well as on later blues revivalists and rock musicians.[1][2][3][4] White died of cancer in Memphis, Tennessee, on February 26, 1977, and was later inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame and the Grammy Hall of Fame for “Fixin’ to Die Blues,” cementing his legacy as a foundational figure of Delta and country blues.[3][4]

Fun Facts

• White recorded under two names in the 1930s: his Victor sides were issued as Washington White, while later Chicago records used the colloquial nickname Bukka (a spoken variant of “Booker”).[1][2][4]
• His powerful 1940 song “Fixin’ to Die Blues,” partly inspired by his prison experience, was later honored by the Recording Academy with induction into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2012.[3]
• White described his later improvisatory pieces as “sky songs”, explaining that he would “reach up and pull them out of the sky,” emphasizing spontaneous composition over fixed arrangements.[4]
• Blues historians note that when applying for a Social Security card in 1940, White himself listed his birthdate as March 9, 1904, which conflicts with the more commonly cited November 12, 1906, illustrating the frequent uncertainty around early blues artists’ vital records.[4][5]

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• John White - White’s father, a local multi‑instrumentalist who introduced him to music and gave him his first guitar, shaping his early development as a blues musician. (Early country blues and dance music repertoire performed around Houston, Mississippi) [Childhood and teens (c. 1910s–early 1920s)[1][3]]
• Charley Patton - Leading Delta bluesman whom White claimed to have met and admired; Patton strongly influenced White’s ambition and approach to country blues. (Influence audible in White’s early recordings such as the 1930 Victor sides and later songs like “Shake ’Em On Down” and “Parchman Farm Blues.”) [Early 1930s influence, following meetings in the Delta.[3]]
• Henry Stuckey (probable tuning influence) - White was one of the few bluesmen, along with Skip James, to use cross‑note tuning in E minor; this technique may have been derived from Henry Stuckey, from whom James learned it. (Slide‑guitar performances using cross‑note tuning, including various prewar and revival recordings.) [Technique developed across his early performing years, c. late 1920s–1930s.[3]]

Key Collaborators

• Ralph Lembo - Store owner and talent scout who arranged White’s first professional recording session with Victor Records, effectively launching his recording career. (1930 Victor recordings of country blues and gospel issued under the name Washington White.) [1930 session in Memphis.[1][2][3][4]]
• Lester Melrose - Chicago producer who oversaw White’s 1937 recording session that yielded his best‑known prewar commercial sides. (“Shake ’Em On Down,” “Po’ Boy,” and related 1937 Chicago recordings for Vocalion.) [1937 Chicago sessions.[2]]
• John Lomax - Folklorist who recorded White at Parchman Penitentiary for the Library of Congress, preserving crucial examples of his prison repertoire. (Library of Congress field recordings (1939) of Bukka White at Mississippi State Penitentiary.) [1939 recordings at Parchman Farm.[1][2][4]]
• Frank Stokes - Memphis blues legend with whom White performed after settling in Memphis during World War II. (Joint appearances in Memphis clubs and local venues (no specific commercial recordings documented in sources).) [Early–mid 1940s Memphis period.[1]]
• B.B. King - Younger cousin and emerging blues guitarist whom White housed in Memphis; he actively introduced King around the Memphis music community and helped him secure work. (Assistance in building King’s early reputation and obtaining his job at Newberry Equipment; indirect musical collaboration through mentoring and live performance context.) [Late 1940s Memphis; King lived with White for about ten months.[1][2][4]]
• John Fahey and Ed (Edward) Denson - Guitarist and producer (Fahey) and manager/producer (Denson) who rediscovered White, recorded him, and helped manage his career during the 1960s blues revival. (Album Mississippi Blues: Bukka White for Takoma Records and further recordings; Denson served as his manager.) [From 1963 through the mid‑1960s revival period.[2][3]]
• Chris Strachwitz - Founder of Arhoolie Records who recorded White’s new material, including his “sky songs,” during the 1960s. (Bukka White: Sky Songs Vol. 1 and Sky Songs Vol. 2 on Arhoolie.) [Mid–late 1960s.[2]]
• Furry Lewis - Memphis blues contemporary and friend; the two were recorded together informally, capturing late‑career performances. (Album Furry Lewis, Bukka White & Friends: Party! At Home, recorded mainly in Lewis’s Memphis apartment.) [Recorded in 1968; album released later.[2][3]]

Artists Influenced

• B.B. King - White’s younger cousin and one of the most important electric blues guitarists; White helped him get established in Memphis and contributed to his early musical environment. (King’s early Memphis work and later phrasing and repertoire reflect strong Delta roots; White’s assistance in securing King’s job at Newberry Equipment and introductions to key figures helped launch his career.) [Late 1940s Memphis; influence carried throughout King’s subsequent career.[1][2][4]]
• 1960s folk‑blues revival guitarists (e.g., John Fahey) - Fahey admired traditional Delta stylists; his decision to locate and record White, and to feature him in Takoma releases, reflects White’s impact on the emergent American primitive and folk‑blues guitar scene. (Takoma releases featuring White influenced guitarists interested in bottleneck slide and Delta repertoire.) [1960s folk revival and beyond.[2][3]]
• Later blues and rock musicians drawing on Delta slide style - White’s forceful slide technique, rhythmic drive, and songs like “Fixin’ to Die Blues” and “Shake ’Em On Down” became staples for later interpreters, including rock and blues‑rock artists. (Covers and adaptations of “Fixin’ to Die Blues,” “Shake ’Em On Down,” and “Parchman Farm Blues” by later generations (noted in critical discussions of his legacy).) [From the 1960s blues revival through subsequent decades.[1][2][3][4]]

Discography

Top Tracks

1. The Promise True And Grand (Sacred Roots Of The Blues (When The Sun Goes Down Series))
2. I Am In The Heavenly Way (Raw Pre-war Gospel (1926-36) - American Primitive, Volume 1)
3. I Am the Heavenly Way (The World Library of Folk and Primitive Music on 78 Rpm Vol. 12, USA Pt. 5)
4. The New 'Frisco Train (Mississippi Moaners (1927-1942))
5. The Panama Limited (The Roots of Blues: 1927 - 1930)
6. The New 'Frisco Train (Saga Blues: Aberdeen Mississippi Blues)
7. The Panama Limited (Saga Blues: Aberdeen Mississippi Blues)
8. I Am In the Heavenly Way (Saga Blues: Aberdeen Mississippi Blues)
9. Promise True and Grand (Saga Blues: Aberdeen Mississippi Blues)
10. Sic 'Em Dogs On (Saga Blues: Aberdeen Mississippi Blues)

External Links

• Spotify
• Wikipedia