How old was Blind Willie McTell when he died?
61 years (1898–1959)Blind Willie McTell / Age at death
How was Blind Willie Johnson blinded?
He grew up in rural eastern Texas. When he was seven years old, his stepmother, fighting with his father, threw lye in Johnson’s face, permanently blinding him.
Is Blind Willie Johnson Blind Willie McTell?
Johnson met Blind Willie McTell, a popular street musician in Atlanta, and the two blind singers traveled and performed together throughout the Southeast for several months before Johnson returned to Beaumont.
Where is Blind Willie McTell from?
Thomson, GABlind Willie McTell / Place of birthThomson is a city in McDuffie County, Georgia, United States. The population was 6,778 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of McDuffie County. Thomson’s nickname is “The Camellia City of the South”, in honor of the thousands of camellia plants throughout the city. Wikipedia
Where is Blind Willie McTell buried?
Jonesgrove Baptist Church, GABlind Willie McTell / Place of burial
What tuning did Blind Willie McTell use?
For those not familiar with playing Blind Willie McTell on a 12-string guitar, the first thing to note is that McTell tunes down from concert pitch to varying degrees: his low E or sixth string is generally tuned down anywhere from C# to A, or even lower.
Who did Blind Willie Johnson influence?
Along with “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground,” just about all of his songs have been recorded or reinterpreted in the almost-90 years since, putting Blind Willie’s profound influence on par with that of Robert Johnson and Charlie Patton.
Why were so many blues musicians blind?
Blindness was a symptom of diseases associated with malnutrition. Many of these people grew up in extreme poverty and sickness was rife. Once blind they were no good for working the land etc, so their only recourse was to sit down with a guitar as a means of earning money.
How did Blind Willie Johnson tune his guitar?
If you’re going to play slide guitar, you really need to know about the blues great Blind Willie Johnson, who recorded in the early 1930s and played exclusively in open-D tuning: D A D F# A D.
What guitar did Blind Willie play?
“Blind Willie” McTell was one of the great blues musicians of the 1920s and 1930s. Displaying an extraordinary range on the twelve-string guitar, this Atlanta-based musician recorded more than 120 titles during fourteen recording sessions.
What is Vestapol tuning?
Vestapol is an open D Major tuning for the guitar. This means that if a guitar tuned in Vestapol is strummed without fretting any notes, it will produce a D Major chord (D A D F# A D). Vestapol tuning was used quite often in the parlor guitar music that was popular from the mid-1800s to the turn of the century.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPn_DyDd-KY