One of the most interesting characters in genre full of interesting characters was J.B. Long of North Carolina. Long was a shopkeeper who, for reasons we may never fully understand, made recording great bluesmen a hobby/passion/obsession. In the summer of 1935 Long, along with his wife and baby girl, drove Blind Boy Fuller, Rev. Gary Davis, and George Washington (Bull City Red) to New York where they made their first recordings. Davis's records did nothing commercially, but Fuller's sold well, and Long made many more subsequent trips with Fuller and other artists including Floyd Council and Brownie McGee. With Fuller, Long acted as a manager and collaborator, insisting that Fuller continue writing original songs, often polishing them and finishing the lyrics himself. Long never received any pay for his work other than reimbursement for auto expenses.
12/08/21 • 39 min
Blues You Should Know - The Long Legacy, Pt. 2
Transcript
Our show today is about a group of musicians who circulated around the Durham/Chapel Hill/Raleigh area of North Carolina’s Piedmont region during the 1930s. Well, it’s about them for sure, but it’s really about the white southern shopkeeper who connected them with their recording opportunities and helped guide their music while being neither a singer nor a musician himself. That man: James Baxter Long.
In 1934 JB Long was a fortunate 31 year-old man. He had a job. And a Wife. And
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