Blind Lemon Henry Jefferson (1893-1929). Born blind as one of eight children in a sharecropping family, he was called Lemon due to his rotund build. He took up guitar in his teens and played picnics but eventually started busking in the streets of East Texas. In the early 1910s, Lemon frequently played in Dallas alongside Lead Belly. In 1917, Lemon took on a protégé, Aaron “T-Bone” Walker, who would act as a guide for Lemon whose busking netted him enough to live on comfortably and some say he even
supported a wife and child on this money (there is no definitive proof he was married or had children).
Lemon’s first release was on Paramount very early in 1926, two gospel numbers recorded under the name of Deacon L. J. Bates. In March, he began recording blues as Blind Lemon Jefferson and he immediately
became a very popular artist. Every blues fan had Lemon’s records in those days. Lemon was one of the earliest true bluesmen to record. From ’26 to ’29, Lemon recorded 43 sides and was a hot seller. The recordings earned Lemon the title of “The Father of Texas Blues.”
He played his guitar with it sitting flat in his lap but even when standing he held the guitar this way—perpendicular to his chest. Not surprisingly, T-Bone Walker played his guitar in the identical position. Other bluesmen of that time said Jefferson was a highly proficient guitarist and very difficult to match much less beat.
Life busking on the streets was not without its risks, especially for a blind man. Consequently, Lemon carried a handgun in case someone tried to steal his tip money. One might feel tempted to ask what good a firearm is for a blind man but those who knew Jefferson said he was a crack shot. One man said, “If he could hear you, he could hit you.” Assessments of his character range from that of a foul, womanizing drunk to a warm, polite man. Neither T-Bone Walker nor Lighnin' Hopkins, both protégés, seemed to have anything bad to say about him.
Rumors abound about Jefferson’s death but, as near as can be determined, he died of either a heart attack or he froze to death in a snowstorm in Chicago at the age of 36. He was a big influence on many bluesmen besides T-Bone and Lightnin’. B. B. King claimed Jefferson as an important influence as did Robert Johnson and Son House. His legacy is far-reaching. Many bluesmen as Billy Gibbons were inspired by Lightnin' but without Lemon there would have been no Lightnin' and hence no Billy Gibbons.
Incidentally, Jefferson Airplane took their name from Lemon indirectly. Guitarist Jorma Kaukonen knew a guy named Steve Talbot who made up funny names for people based on word association. Talbot loved Blind Lemon Jefferson and so called himself Blind Thomas Jefferson Airplane. Blind Tom was a very famous black pianist in the 19th century who was retarded but could play anything on the piano even after hearing it only once. Through word association, Jefferson was hooked onto Thomas and airplane was hooked onto Jefferson (a Jefferson airplane is a paper match that is split so as to hold a marijuana roach—a makeshift roach clip). The band decided to use the last half of Talbot’s name as their own.
To my knowledge, this is the only known photo of Blind Lemon Jefferson. Funny how all the blind artists of the Paramount label were able to sign their autographs and in the same handwriting no less.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXC1jjRCXtg
And you thought Carl Perkins wrote this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3jG_tsTn_w