Alvin Youngblood Hart
| Alvin Youngblood Hart | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Born | March 2, 1963 Oakland, California, United States |
| Genres | Blues |
| Occupations | Guitarist |
| Instruments | Acoustic guitar, electric guitar |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Labels | OKeh Records |
| Website | www.mojomusic.com/alvin/ |
Alvin Youngblood Hart (born March 2, 1963, Oakland, California, United States)[1] is a Grammy Award-winning American musician.
Career[edit]
Hart was born in Oakland, California, and spent some time in Carroll County, Mississippi, in his youth, where he was influenced by the Mississippi Country Blues performed by his relatives.[2] Hart is known as one of the world's foremost practitioners of country blues. He is also known as a faithful torchbearer for the 1960s and 1970s guitar rock of his youth, as well as Western Swing and vintage country. His music has been compared to a list of diverse artists ranging from Lead Belly, Spade Cooley to acoustic and electric guitar as well as banjo and sometimes the mandolin. Bluesman Taj Mahal once said about Hart: "The boy has got thunder in his hands." Hart himself said, "I guess my big break came when I opened for Taj Mahal for four nights at Yoshi's."[2]
His debut album, Big Mama's Door, came out in 1996.[2] In 2003, Hart's album Down in the Alley was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album.[3] In 2005, Hart received a Grammy Award for his contribution to Beautiful Dreamer - The Songs of Stephen Foster.
Hart was featured in the 2003 Wim Wenders film The Soul of a Man, which was featured in Martin Scorsese's film series The Blues. Hart was also featured in the documentary Last of the Mississippi Jukes.
Hart appeared in the film The Great Debaters in 2007, playing a 1930s juke-joint musician.
Discography[edit]
- 1996: Big Mama's Door (OKeh Records)
Track Listing 1. Big Mama's Door 2. Joe Friday 3. Them Fair Weather Friends 4. France Blues 5. Gallows Pole 6. Pony Blues 7. Amazed 'N' Amused 8. Things 'bout Comin' My Way 9. When I Was a Cowboy (Western Plains) 10. Rest Your Saddle 11. If Blues Was Money 12. Hillbilly Willie's Blues 13. Livin' In a Strain 14. That Kate Adams Jive
- 1998: Territory
Track Listing 1. Tallacatcha 2. Illinois Blues 3. Ouachita Run 4. Sallie, Queen Of The Pines 5. Countrycide 6. Ice Rose 7. Dancing With Tears In My Eyes 8. Mama Don't Allow 9. John Hardy 10. Just About To Go 11. Underway At Seven
- 2000: Start with the Soul
Track Listing 1. Fightin' Hard 2. Manos Arriba 3. Treat Her Like A Lady 4. Once Again 5. Porch Monkeys' Theme 6. Electric Eel 7. Back To Memphis 8. Cowboy Boots 9. A Prophet's Mission 10. Cryin' Shame 11. The Hustler 12. Maxwell Street Jimmy 13. Will I Ever Get Back Home?
- 2002: Down in the Alley
Track Listing 1. Judge Bouche 2. How Long Before I Change My Clothes 3. Deep Blue Sea 4. Jinx Blues 5. Bootlegger's Blues 6. Alberta 7. Broke And Hungry 8. Devil Got My Woman 9. Chilly Winds 10. Tom Rushen Blues 11. Please Baby 12. Motherless Child
- 2005: Motivational Speaker
Track Listing 1. Big Mama's Door (Might Return) 2. Motivational Speaker 3. Stomp Dance 4. In My Time of Dying 5. Lawd I'm Just a Country Boy in This Great Big Freaky City 6. My World Is Round 7. Nobody's Fault but Mine 8. Shoot Me a Grin 9. The Worm 10. Necessary Roughness (A Power Move) 11. The Meanest Jukebox in Town 12. How Long Before I Change My Clothes 13. Shootout on I-55
Awards[edit]
- W.C. Handy Award for best new artist - 1997[1]
- Down Beat magazine award for best blues album of the year for Territory, 1999[1]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Musicianguide.com biography - accessed January 2008
- ^ a b c Russell, Tony (1997). The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray. Dubai: Carlton Books Limited. p. 117. ISBN 1-85868-255-X.
- ^ Allmusic biography - accessed January 2008
External links[edit]
- Official website
- Hart's myspace site
- Musicianguide.com biography and discography
- Alvin Youngblood Hart at AuthenticBlues.com
|
