Liquor Store Blues - Music
Liquor Store Blues by Sleepy John Estes
Sleepy John Estes
Artist Biography For Sleepy John Estes
John Adam Estes Born In Ripley Lauderdale County Tennessee January 25 1899 — Brownsville Haywood County Tennessee June 5 1977 Best Known As Sleepy John Estes Or Sleepy John Was A Blues Guitarist Songwriter And Vocalist. In 1915 Estes' Father A Sharecropper Who Also Played Some Guitar Moved The Family To Brownsville Tennessee. Not Long After Estes Lost The Sight Of His Right Eye When A Friend Threw A Rock At Him During A Baseball Game. At The Age Of 19 While Working As A Field Hand He Began To Perform Professionally. The Venues Were Mostly Local Parties And Picnics With The Accompaniment Of Hammie Nixon A Harmonica Player And James "Yank" Rachell A Guitarist And Mandolin Player. He Would Continue To Work On And Off With Both Musicians For More Than Fifty Years.
Estes Made His Debut As A Recording Artist In Memphis Tennessee In 1929 At A Session Organized By Ralph Peer For Victor Records. His Partnership With Nixon Was First Documented On Songs Such As "Drop Down Mama" And "Someday Baby Blues" In 1935 Later Sides Replaced The Harmonica Player With The Guitarists Son Bonds Or Charlie Pickett. He Later Recorded For The Decca And Bluebird Labels With His Last Pre-War Recording Session Taking Place In 1941. He Made A Brief Return To Recording At Sun Studio In Memphis In 1952 Recording "Runnin' Around" And "Rats In My Kitchen" But Otherwise Was Largely Out Of The Public Eye For Two Decades.
Estes Was A Fine Singer With A Distinctive "crying" Vocal Style. He Frequently Teamed With More Capable Musicians Like "Yank" Rachell Hammie Nixon And The Piano Player Jab Jones. Estes Sounded So Much Like An Old Man Even On His Early Records That Blues Revivalists Reportedly Delayed Looking For Him Because They Assumed He Would Have To Be Long Dead And Because Fellow Musician Big Bill Broonzy Had Written That Estes Had Died. By The Time He Was Tracked Down By Bob Koester And Samuel Charters In 1962 He Had Become Completely Blind And Was Living In Poverty. He Resumed Touring And Recording Reunited With Nixon And Toured Europe Several Times And Japan With A Clutch Of Albums Released On The Delmark Records Label. His Later Records Are Generally Considered Less Interesting Than His Pre-War Output. Nevertheless Estes Nixon And Rachell Also Made A Successful Appearance At The 1964 Newport Folk Festival.
Bob Dylan Mentions Estes In The Sleevenotes To Bringing It All Back Home 1965 .
Many Of Estes' Original Songs Were Based On Events In His Own Life Or On People He Knew From His Home Town Of Brownsville Tennessee Such As The Local Lawyer "Lawyer Clark Blues" Local Auto Mechanic "Vassie Williams' Blues" Or An Amorously Inclined Teenage Girl "Little Laura Blues" . "Lawyer Clark Blues" Referenced The Lawyer And Later Judge And Senator Hugh L. Clarke. Clarke And His Family Lived In Brownsville And According To The Song Let Estes 'off The Hook' For An Offense.
He Also Dispensed Advice On Agricultural Matters "Working Man Blues" And Chronicled His Own Attempt To Reach A Recording Studio For A Session By Hopping A Freight Train "Special Agent Railroad Police Blues " . His Lyrics Combined Keen Observation With An Ability To Turn An Effective Phrase.
Some Accounts Attribute His Nickname "Sleepy" To A Blood Pressure Disorder And/or Narcolepsy. Others Such As Blues Historian Bob Koester Claim He Simply Had A "tendency To Withdraw From His Surroundings Into Drowsiness Whenever Life Was Too Cruel Or Too Boring To Warrant Full Attention". Estes Suffered A Stroke While Preparing For A European Tour And Died On June 5 1977 At His Home Of 17 Years In Brownsville Haywood County Tennessee. Estes Is Buried At Elam Baptist Church Cemetery In Durhamville Lauderdale County Tennessee. His Gravemarker Reads Sleepy John Estes
".. Ain't Goin' To Worry Poor John's Mind Anymore"
In Memory
John Adam Estes
Jan. 25 1899
June 5 1977
Blues Pioneer
Guitarist – Songwriter – Poet Sleepy John Estes' Epitaph ".. Ain't Goin' To Worry Poor John's Mind Anymore" Was Derived From His Song "Someday Baby Blues." "I Ain't Gonna Be Worried No More" Was Recorded In 1935 And In His Song "Drop Down Mama" Also Recorded In 1935 Sleepy John Refers To Himself As "Poor John". Estes' Grave At Elam Baptist Church Cemetery In Durhamville Is Located Off A Country Road And At The Far End Of The Cemetery. His Grave Is Adjacent To A Small Grove Of Trees Secluded But Not Hidden. In 1991 Estes Was Posthumously Inducted Into The Blues Hall Of Fame.
50 Similar Tracks:
Sleepy John Estes - Jack And Jill Blues Sleepy John Estes - Milk Cow Blues Robert Petway - Catfish Blues Blind Boy Fuller - I Crave My Pig Meat Kokomo Arnold - Shake That Thing Blind Boy Fuller - If You Don't Give Me What I Want Tommy McClennan - Blues As I Can Be Blind Willie McTell - Baby, It Must Be Love Blind Willie McTell - Statesboro Blues Charley Patton - Some These Days I'll Be Gone take 1 Bukka White - Bukka Jitterburg Swing Bukka White - Parchman Farm Blues Charley Patton - Mississippi Boweavil Blues Tommy McClennan - Travellin' Highway Man Robert Wilkins - Old Jim Canan's Blind Lemon Jefferson - Change My Luck Blues Robert Johnson - Hellhound On My Trail Mississippi Fred McDowell - You Ain't Treatin' Me Right Big Joe Williams - Sugar Diabetes Blues Blind Lemon Jefferson - Match Box Blues #2 Big Joe Williams - Rollin' And Tumblin' Skip James - Washington D.C. Hospital Center Blues Mississippi Fred McDowell - You Gotta Move Son House - Walking Blues Mississippi John Hurt - Pay Day Skip James - She Lyin' Robert Johnson - Stones In My Passway Mississippi John Hurt - Louis Collins Son House - Death Letter Blues Memphis Minnie - Hodoo Lady Memphis Minnie - When My Man Comes Home Blind Willie Johnson - Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground Big Bill Broonzy - Goodnight Irene Furry Lewis - Judge Harsh Blues Big Bill Broonzy - The Midnight Special Frank Stokes - Memphis Rounders Blues John Lee Hooker - You're Leavin' Me Baby Kokomo Arnold - Back Door Blues Johnny Shines - Travelling Back Home Ishman Bracey - Brown Mama Blues John Lee Hooker - Dark Room Leadbelly - Can't You Line 'Em - 2003 Remastered Leadbelly - Julie Ann Johnson 240-A-4 Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup - Dig Myself A Hole Furry Lewis - I Will Turn Your Money Green Tk. 1 Tommy Johnson - I Wonder To Myself Blind Willie Johnson - Lord I Just Can't Keep From Crying Lightnin' Hopkins - Rolling And Rolling Lightnin' Hopkins - Please Don't Quit Me Mississippi Sheiks - Fingering With Your Fingers
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Biography - Sleepy John Estes
John Adam Estes Born In Ripley Lauderdale County Tennessee January 25 1899 — Brownsville Haywood County Tennessee June 5 1977 Best Known As Sleepy John Estes Or Sleepy John Was A Blues Guitarist Songwriter And Vocalist. In 1915 Estes' Father A Sharecropper Who Also Played Some Guitar Moved The Family To Brownsville Tennessee. Not Long After Estes Lost The Sight Of His Right Eye When A Friend Threw A Rock At Him During A Baseball Game. At The Age Of 19 While Working As A Field Hand He Began To Perform Professionally. The Venues Were Mostly Local Parties And Picnics With The Accompaniment Of Hammie Nixon A Harmonica Player And James "Yank" Rachell A Guitarist And Mandolin Player. He Would Continue To Work On And Off With Both Musicians For More Than Fifty Years.
Estes Made His Debut As A Recording Artist In Memphis Tennessee In 1929 At A Session Organized By Ralph Peer For Victor Records. His Partnership With Nixon Was First Documented On Songs Such As "Drop Down Mama" And "Someday Baby Blues" In 1935 Later Sides Replaced The Harmonica Player With The Guitarists Son Bonds Or Charlie Pickett. He Later Recorded For The Decca And Bluebird Labels With His Last Pre-War Recording Session Taking Place In 1941. He Made A Brief Return To Recording At Sun Studio In Memphis In 1952 Recording "Runnin' Around" And "Rats In My Kitchen" But Otherwise Was Largely Out Of The Public Eye For Two Decades.
Estes Was A Fine Singer With A Distinctive "crying" Vocal Style. He Frequently Teamed With More Capable Musicians Like "Yank" Rachell Hammie Nixon And The Piano Player Jab Jones. Estes Sounded So Much Like An Old Man Even On His Early Records That Blues Revivalists Reportedly Delayed Looking For Him Because They Assumed He Would Have To Be Long Dead And Because Fellow Musician Big Bill Broonzy Had Written That Estes Had Died. By The Time He Was Tracked Down By Bob Koester And Samuel Charters In 1962 He Had Become Completely Blind And Was Living In Poverty. He Resumed Touring And Recording Reunited With Nixon And Toured Europe Several Times And Japan With A Clutch Of Albums Released On The Delmark Records Label. His Later Records Are Generally Considered Less Interesting Than His Pre-War Output. Nevertheless Estes Nixon And Rachell Also Made A Successful Appearance At The 1964 Newport Folk Festival.
Bob Dylan Mentions Estes In The Sleevenotes To Bringing It All Back Home 1965 .
Many Of Estes' Original Songs Were Based On Events In His Own Life Or On People He Knew From His Home Town Of Brownsville Tennessee Such As The Local Lawyer "Lawyer Clark Blues" Local Auto Mechanic "Vassie Williams' Blues" Or An Amorously Inclined Teenage Girl "Little Laura Blues" . "Lawyer Clark Blues" Referenced The Lawyer And Later Judge And Senator Hugh L. Clarke. Clarke And His Family Lived In Brownsville And According To The Song Let Estes 'off The Hook' For An Offense.
He Also Dispensed Advice On Agricultural Matters "Working Man Blues" And Chronicled His Own Attempt To Reach A Recording Studio For A Session By Hopping A Freight Train "Special Agent Railroad Police Blues " . His Lyrics Combined Keen Observation With An Ability To Turn An Effective Phrase.
Some Accounts Attribute His Nickname "Sleepy" To A Blood Pressure Disorder And/or Narcolepsy. Others Such As Blues Historian Bob Koester Claim He Simply Had A "tendency To Withdraw From His Surroundings Into Drowsiness Whenever Life Was Too Cruel Or Too Boring To Warrant Full Attention". Estes Suffered A Stroke While Preparing For A European Tour And Died On June 5 1977 At His Home Of 17 Years In Brownsville Haywood County Tennessee. Estes Is Buried At Elam Baptist Church Cemetery In Durhamville Lauderdale County Tennessee. His Gravemarker Reads Sleepy John Estes
".. Ain't Goin' To Worry Poor John's Mind Anymore"
In Memory
John Adam Estes
Jan. 25 1899
June 5 1977
Blues Pioneer
Guitarist – Songwriter – Poet Sleepy John Estes' Epitaph ".. Ain't Goin' To Worry Poor John's Mind Anymore" Was Derived From His Song "Someday Baby Blues." "I Ain't Gonna Be Worried No More" Was Recorded In 1935 And In His Song "Drop Down Mama" Also Recorded In 1935 Sleepy John Refers To Himself As "Poor John". Estes' Grave At Elam Baptist Church Cemetery In Durhamville Is Located Off A Country Road And At The Far End Of The Cemetery. His Grave Is Adjacent To A Small Grove Of Trees Secluded But Not Hidden. In 1991 Estes Was Posthumously Inducted Into The Blues Hall Of Fame. read less
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Estes Made His Debut As A Recording Artist In Memphis Tennessee In 1929 At A Session Organized By Ralph Peer For Victor Records. His Partnership With Nixon Was First Documented On Songs Such As "Drop Down Mama" And "Someday Baby Blues" In 1935 Later Sides Replaced The Harmonica Player With The Guitarists Son Bonds Or Charlie Pickett. He Later Recorded For The Decca And Bluebird Labels With His Last Pre-War Recording Session Taking Place In 1941. He Made A Brief Return To Recording At Sun Studio In Memphis In 1952 Recording "Runnin' Around" And "Rats In My Kitchen" But Otherwise Was Largely Out Of The Public Eye For Two Decades.
Estes Was A Fine Singer With A Distinctive "crying" Vocal Style. He Frequently Teamed With More Capable Musicians Like "Yank" Rachell Hammie Nixon And The Piano Player Jab Jones. Estes Sounded So Much Like An Old Man Even On His Early Records That Blues Revivalists Reportedly Delayed Looking For Him Because They Assumed He Would Have To Be Long Dead And Because Fellow Musician Big Bill Broonzy Had Written That Estes Had Died. By The Time He Was Tracked Down By Bob Koester And Samuel Charters In 1962 He Had Become Completely Blind And Was Living In Poverty. He Resumed Touring And Recording Reunited With Nixon And Toured Europe Several Times And Japan With A Clutch Of Albums Released On The Delmark Records Label. His Later Records Are Generally Considered Less Interesting Than His Pre-War Output. Nevertheless Estes Nixon And Rachell Also Made A Successful Appearance At The 1964 Newport Folk Festival.
Bob Dylan Mentions Estes In The Sleevenotes To Bringing It All Back Home 1965 .
Many Of Estes' Original Songs Were Based On Events In His Own Life Or On People He Knew From His Home Town Of Brownsville Tennessee Such As The Local Lawyer "Lawyer Clark Blues" Local Auto Mechanic "Vassie Williams' Blues" Or An Amorously Inclined Teenage Girl "Little Laura Blues" . "Lawyer Clark Blues" Referenced The Lawyer And Later Judge And Senator Hugh L. Clarke. Clarke And His Family Lived In Brownsville And According To The Song Let Estes 'off The Hook' For An Offense.
He Also Dispensed Advice On Agricultural Matters "Working Man Blues" And Chronicled His Own Attempt To Reach A Recording Studio For A Session By Hopping A Freight Train "Special Agent Railroad Police Blues " . His Lyrics Combined Keen Observation With An Ability To Turn An Effective Phrase.
Some Accounts Attribute His Nickname "Sleepy" To A Blood Pressure Disorder And/or Narcolepsy. Others Such As Blues Historian Bob Koester Claim He Simply Had A "tendency To Withdraw From His Surroundings Into Drowsiness Whenever Life Was Too Cruel Or Too Boring To Warrant Full Attention". Estes Suffered A Stroke While Preparing For A European Tour And Died On June 5 1977 At His Home Of 17 Years In Brownsville Haywood County Tennessee. Estes Is Buried At Elam Baptist Church Cemetery In Durhamville Lauderdale County Tennessee. His Gravemarker Reads Sleepy John Estes
".. Ain't Goin' To Worry Poor John's Mind Anymore"
In Memory
John Adam Estes
Jan. 25 1899
June 5 1977
Blues Pioneer
Guitarist – Songwriter – Poet Sleepy John Estes' Epitaph ".. Ain't Goin' To Worry Poor John's Mind Anymore" Was Derived From His Song "Someday Baby Blues." "I Ain't Gonna Be Worried No More" Was Recorded In 1935 And In His Song "Drop Down Mama" Also Recorded In 1935 Sleepy John Refers To Himself As "Poor John". Estes' Grave At Elam Baptist Church Cemetery In Durhamville Is Located Off A Country Road And At The Far End Of The Cemetery. His Grave Is Adjacent To A Small Grove Of Trees Secluded But Not Hidden. In 1991 Estes Was Posthumously Inducted Into The Blues Hall Of Fame. read less
16 Similar Artists To Sleepy John Estes - Frogtoon Music
Blind Willie McTell Big Joe Williams Furry Lewis Robert Petway Skip James Tampa Red Bukka White Johnny Shines Roosevelt Sykes Big Bill Broonzy Mississippi John Hurt Mississippi Fred McDowell Charley Patton Little Milton Memphis Minnie Elmore James.