Tampa Red (real name Hudson Woodbridge). Born in Georgia in 1904, Red’s parents died when he was very young. He was taken in by an aunt and uncle of the name of Whittaker who lived in Tampa and so he was thereafter known as Hudson Whittaker.
Red had an older brother named Eddie who played guitar so Red took up the instrument. He then met a busker called Piccolo Pete who took Red under his wing and taught him about playing and performing blues. In 1928, Red was hired by Ma Rainey to play guitar for her on the song “It’s Tight Like That.” This type of blues, called hokum, became Red’s trademark material for the rest of his career. Hokum is a form of light blues full of sexual innuendo and double entendres. Often a vaudeville dialog with musical accompaniment would serve as a song.
Also in 1928, Red got himself one of the first National tricone resonator guitars. It was gold-plated and so Red became known as “the Man with the Gold Guitar.” On these old recordings, Red’s guitar actually sounds like an electric. Red would go on to play with Georgia Tom (Thomas A. Dorsey who coined the term “gospel music”) and Frankie Jaxon under such names as the Hokum Boys or Tampa Red’s Hokum Jug Band. Red’s recordings were distinguished by his trademark single string runs done with a bottleneck instead of full chords which prefigured the lead guitar playing of rocknroll.
By 1932, Red was a session man backing such notables as Sonny Boy Williamson (the original), Big Bill Broonzy and Memphis Minnie. By the early 40s, he began using the electric guitar. His band, the Chicago Five, backed many of the Bluebird solo artists and their sound was called “the Bluebird Sound.” He had another hokum hit in 1942 called “Let Me Play With Your Poodle.”
In Chicago, Red’s house was a bluesman’s mecca. Blues personalities coming from the Delta recently moved to Chicago often stayed there until they could get on their feet. Jam sessions, rehearsals and bookings were common at Red’s.
In 1953, Red’s contract with Victor was not renewed and his wife passed away. Red took to drink which plagued him for the rest of his days. He enjoyed a revival of interest in his music in the late 50s when Americans and Britons began to seriously consider blues.
Red made his last recording in 1960 but he was a spent force who lived in obscurity until his death in 1981 at the age of 77. By then, he was destitute and forgotten. His golden tricone guitar was recovered somewhere in Illinois in the 90s and donated to the Experience Music Project in Seattle.
Tampa Red - It Hurts Me Too - YouTube