Died On This Date (August 29, 2011) David “Honeyboy” Edwards / Delta Blues Great
themusicsover David “Honeyboy” Edwards
June 28, 1915 – August 29, 2011
David “Honeyboy” Edwards was one of the last surviving Delta blues greats from the ’30s. Edwards was just 14 when he left his Mississippi home to go on the tour with Big Joe Williams, and it was on that road he stayed for the better part of the next two decades. During those early years, he also shared the stage and a close friendship with the great Robert Johnson, making him one of the last living links to the legend. In fact, he was the ONLY link to the legend of Johnson’s sudden demise. On that hot August night in 1938, Edwards was with Johnson when he drank the poisoned whiskey that killed him. It was Edwards’ version of the lore that has long been considered the most accurate account. Edwards also performed with the likes of Charley Patton, Johnny Shines, and Tommy Johnson. Edwards made relatively few recordings through the late ’80s – mostly for folklorists Alan Lomax and Peter B. Lowery. Thankfully he became more active in the studio during his later years. He released his autobiography, The World Don’t Owe Me Nothin’ in 1997 and continued to tour well into his 90s. On July 17, 2011, David “Honeyboy” Edwards, the “Last of the Great Mississippi Delta Bluesmen,” passed away at the age of 96.
Thanks to Harold Lepidus of the Bob Dylan Examiner for the assist
What You Should Own
Tommy Johnson was a Mississippi-born blues musician whose career began around 1915, with his first recordings coming in the late ’20s. He is considered one of the foundations of Delta blues due to his solid songwriting and his strong falsetto voice. The band Canned Heat took their name from his “Canned Heat Blues.” Johnson was the first known blues musician’s to claim that he sold his soul to the devil. A primary character in the 2000 film O’ Brother Where Art Thou, also named Tommy Johnson, is said to be based upon him and not