Charley Patton

(1887-1934)

One of the earliest blues artists from the Mississippi Delta region.  It is in the Mississippi Delta region where "Delta Blues" was born.  Patton was a stage musician who played country blues, ragtime, and spirituals.  He recorded gospel works under the name of Elder JJ Hadley¹. Patton was an innovator and master of the Delta Blues sound. 

Patton utilized open tuning slides and played finger style guitar. In addition, he snapped his strings with his fingers and tapped the guitar like a drum.  Some could argue that his use of percussion as a guitar technique was unique for his time. He exhibited thumb technique, the plucking of strings and the banging on the guitar to created accented counter rhythms in his performances.

Some of Patton's tunes included "Revenue Man Blues", "Pea Vine Blues", "Hang It On The Wall" and a commercial hit called "High Water Everywhere" which documented the 1927 Flood of the Mississippi Delta region.  A haunting tune entitled, "Oh Death" was a call and response song about his recently departed wife.

Patton reached commercial success through a style called "Pony Blues". While some have seen the late great Jimmy Hendrix and others play the guitar behind their back, it was Patton who was first seen as performing with stage tricks of this type. His gritty, guttural sound demonstrated a raw talent bursting with energy.