Ernest Lawlers
Encyclopedia
Ernest Lawlers was an American
blues
guitarist
, vocalist, and composer
, also known as Little Son Joe.
, Arkansas
, United States
. He is best known for his musical partnership with his wife, Memphis Minnie
, but he had been playing guitar and singing blues for some years around Memphis before they got together, including a period with Rev. Robert Wilkins
, whom he accompanied on record in 1935. He took up with Minnie in the late 1930s, replacing her previous husband and partner, Kansas Joe McCoy
. Lawlers made records under his own name, including the well known "Black Rat Swing", but mostly appeared in the supporting role, on a large number of sides covering most of the 1940s and the early years of the following decade. He retired from music with Minnie in the 1950s.
He died in Memphis
, Tennessee
, in November 1961 from heart disease
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, vocalist, and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, also known as Little Son Joe.
Life and career
Lawlers was born in HughesHughes, Arkansas
Hughes is a city in St. Francis County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 1,867 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Hughes is located at ....
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He is best known for his musical partnership with his wife, Memphis Minnie
Memphis Minnie
Memphis Minnie was an American blues guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. She was the only female blues artist considered a match to male contemporaries as both a singer and an instrumentalist.-Career:...
, but he had been playing guitar and singing blues for some years around Memphis before they got together, including a period with Rev. Robert Wilkins
Robert Wilkins
Robert Timothy Wilkins was an American country blues guitarist and vocalist, of African American and Cherokee descent....
, whom he accompanied on record in 1935. He took up with Minnie in the late 1930s, replacing her previous husband and partner, Kansas Joe McCoy
Kansas Joe McCoy
Kansas Joe McCoy was an African American Delta blues musician and songwriter.-Career:McCoy played music under a variety of stage names but is best known as "Kansas Joe McCoy". Born in Raymond, Mississippi, he was the older brother of the blues accompanist Papa Charlie McCoy...
. Lawlers made records under his own name, including the well known "Black Rat Swing", but mostly appeared in the supporting role, on a large number of sides covering most of the 1940s and the early years of the following decade. He retired from music with Minnie in the 1950s.
He died in Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, in November 1961 from heart disease
Heart disease
Heart disease, cardiac disease or cardiopathy is an umbrella term for a variety of diseases affecting the heart. , it is the leading cause of death in the United States, England, Canada and Wales, accounting for 25.4% of the total deaths in the United States.-Types:-Coronary heart disease:Coronary...
.
Selective discography
| Year | Title | Genre | Label | Songs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Me & My Chauffeur 1935-1946 | Blues | EPM | "Hoodoo Lady" "Hot Stuff" "My And My Chauffeur Blues" "My Baby Don't Want Me No More" |
| 2000 | Pickin' the Blues with Kansas Joe McCoy Kansas Joe McCoy Kansas Joe McCoy was an African American Delta blues musician and songwriter.-Career:McCoy played music under a variety of stage names but is best known as "Kansas Joe McCoy". Born in Raymond, Mississippi, he was the older brother of the blues accompanist Papa Charlie McCoy... |
Blues | Culture | "Bumble Bee" "When The Levee Breaks" "Joe Louis Strut" "Crazy Cryin' Blues" "Picking The Blues" "Ma Rainey" |
External links
- [ All Music: Ernest "Little Son Joe" Lawlers]