Last updated: 5 hours ago
Lil' Son Jackson was a stylistic throwback from the moment he first turned up during the immediate postwar era. Born Melvin Jackson, he was a Texas country bluesman of the highest order whose rustic approach appealed wholeheartedly to the early-'50s blues marketplace. His dad loved blues, while his mother played gospel guitar. Their son's initial experience came with a spiritual aggregation called the Blue Eagle Four. A mechanic by trade, he served in the Army during World War II before giving the idea of being a professional blues musician a shot. In 1946, he shipped off a demo to Bill Quinn, who owned a Houston diskery called Gold Star Records. Quinn was suitably impressed, inking Jackson and enjoying a national R&B hit, "Freedom Train Blues," in 1948 for his modest investment. It would prove Jackson's only national hit, although his 1950-1954 output for Imperial Records must have sold consistently, judging from how many sides the L.A. firm issued by the Texas guitarist. Jackson's best Imperial work was recorded solo. Later attempts to squeeze his style into a small band format (his idea, apparently) tended to emphasize his timing eccentricities. His "Rockin' and Rollin'," cut in December of 1950, became better known through a raft of subsequent covers as "Rock Me Baby." He gave up the blues during the mid-'50s after an auto wreck, resuming work as a mechanic. Arhoolie Records boss Chris Strachwitz convinced Jackson to cut an album in 1960, but his comeback proved fleeting. Jackson died of cancer on May 30, 1976, in Dallas, Texas. ~ Bill Dahl, Rovi
Monthly Listeners
888
Monthly Listeners History
Track the evolution of monthly listeners over the last 28 days.
Followers
1,036
Followers History
Track the evolution of followers over the last 28 days.
Top Cities
17 listeners
13 listeners
12 listeners
12 listeners
11 listeners
Related Artists
One String Sam
Shakey Jake
Elmo Williams & Hezekiah Early
Hollywood Fats
Don Covay & The Jefferson Lemon Blues Band
Billy Bizor
James "Son Ford" Thomas
Bee Houston
Big Amos Patton
R.C. Smith
Reverend Charlie Jackson
Wade Walton
Little Joe Blue
Howard Scott
The Prime Movers Blues Band
Graham Bond Quartet
Gayle Brown
Fred Davis
Moses Williams
Little Howlin' Wolf
Fred McDowell
Little Mac Simmons
Eddie Guitar Burns
Sticks McGhee
James Davis
Big Walter Horton
Little Mack
