Died On This Date (July 14, 2000) Bill Barth / Blues Guitarist

Bill Barth
December 13, 1942 – July 14, 2000

Photo by Tim Kendall

Bill Barth was a festival planner and blues guitarist who is perhaps best remembered for being with John Fahey and Henry Vestine when the found early blues great, Skip James in a Mississippi hospital and relaunched his career in 1964.  As a musician, Barth helped form blues rock band, The Insect Trust who were likened to Jefferson Airplane and Fairport Convention.  The band, which also included Elvin Jones and future rock critic, Robert Palmer, released two albums.  During the mid ’60s, Barth founded the Memphis Valley Blues Society which produced five festivals during the late ’60s and featured the likes of Bukka White, Mississippi Fred McDowell, and Sleepy John Estes.  Bill Barth was 57 when he passed away on July 14, 2000.

 



Died On This Date (July 3, 1972) Mississippi Fred McDowell / Blues Icon

Mississippi Fred McDowell
January 12, 1904 – July 3, 1972

Mississippi Fred McDowell was born outside of Memphis and picked up the guitar at the age of 14.   By his early 20s, McDowell was playing dances in and around Memphis, mastering the art of the slide guitar.  In the late ’50s, he was exposed to a larger audience thanks to recordings he made for folklorist, Alan Lomax.  He was a direct influence on Bonnie Raitt, R.L. Burnside, Junior Kimbrough, the Rolling Stones and countless others.  McDowell died of cancer at the age of 67.

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Mississippi Fred McDowell