On this 28th day of October in 1936 modern Acoustic Blues and Contemporary Blues guitarist and vocalist Ted Hawkins was born in Biloxi, MS. Although very popular in Europe, Hawkins life consisted mostly of performing for tips on Venice Beach in L.A. here in The States. He played on the beach for many years with only his acoustic guitar and his voice. Hawkins` life was by no means a day at the beach, however. He was raised in poverty in Mississippi, an abused and illiterate child, At age 15, he stole a jacket and was sentenced to 3 years at the notorious Parchman Farm. Upon his release, he roamed to Chicago, Philadelphia, and even Buffalo, NY. In 1966 he left the cold winters of the north and bought a one-way ticket to Los Angeles. He managed to release a few 45s, but never received royalties, and took to street singing to survive. Producer Bruce Bromberg took an interest in Hawkins and recorded him with Phillip Walker`s band and as a solo acoustic artist. Hawkins once again ran afoul of the law, and Bromberg lost touch with him. In 1982, Rounder released the recordings as Watch Your Step and Hawkins began getting attention. The album got a 5 star review in Rolling Stone magazine. Bromberg found Hawkins and brought him into the studio to record Happy Hour in 1986. That same year, a British DJ convinced Hawkins to come to England, and for four years Hawkins was treated like a star and toured Europe and Japan. When he returned home, Hawkins found himself in the same old situation, and once again put out his tip jar on Venice Beach. Geffen Records pulled him off the streets and recorded his breakthrough album The Next Hundred Years in 1994 that finally got Hawkins the recognition he deserved here in the USA. In a cruel twist of fate Ted Hawkins died on New Years Day 1995 just as his star was finally rising. Aside from the CDs mentioned above, two posthumous releases The Final Tour (live) on Evidence and The Ted Hawkins Story: Suffer No More on Rhino are highly recommended. youtu.be/vUrOjNcGgnk
Posted on: Tue, 28 Oct 2014 11:30:33 +0000
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