Samuel John "Lightnin'" Hopkins was an American country blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional pianist from Centerville, Texas. In 2010, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him No. 71 on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time.
Barbara Dane is an American folk, blues, and jazz singer, guitarist, record producer, and political activist. She co-founded Paredon Records with Irwin Silber.
Joseph Spence was a Bahamian guitarist and singer. He is well known for his vocalizations and humming while playing the guitar. Several American musicians, including Taj Mahal, the Grateful Dead, Ry Cooder, Catfish Keith, Woody Mann, and Olu Dara, as well as the British guitarist John Renbourn, were influenced by and have recorded variations of his arrangements of gospel and Bahamian songs.
Arhoolie Records is an American small independent record label that was run by Chris Strachwitz and is based in El Cerrito, California, United States The label was founded by Strachwitz in 1960 as a way for him to record and produce music by previously obscure "down-home blues" artists such as Lightnin' Hopkins, Snooks Eaglin, and Bill Gaither. Strachwitz despised most commercial music as mouse music. Arhoolie still publishes blues and folk music, Tejano music including Lydia Mendoza, Los Alegres de Terán, Flaco Jiménez, regional Mexican music, cajun, zydeco, and bluegrass.
Smokes Like Lightning is an album by the blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins, recorded in Texas in 1962 and released on the Bluesville label the following year.
Lightnin' Sam Hopkins is an album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins recorded in California in late 1961 and Texas in early 1962 and released on the Arhoolie label.
Lightnin' Hopkins is an album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins, recorded in 1959 and released on the Folkways label. The album was first released around the time that the book The Country Blues came out and was an instant success. It gave Hopkin's career a new lease on life.
Blues Hoot is a live album by blues musicians Lightnin' Hopkins, Brownie McGhee, and Sonny Terry recorded at the Ash Grove in Los Angeles in 1961 and originally released on the Davon label before being reissued by Horizon Records in 1963 and Vee-Jay Records in 1965.
Walkin' This Road by Myself is an album by the blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins, recorded in Texas and released on the Bluesville label.
Down Home Blues is an album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins recorded in 1964 and released on the Bluesville label.
Lightnin' Strikes is an album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins recorded in Los Angeles in 1965 and released on the Vee-Jay label.
Something Blue is an album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins recorded in Los Angeles in 1965 and released on the Verve Folkways label in 1967.
Texas Blues Man is an album by the blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins, recorded in Texas in late 1967 and released on the Arhoolie label.
Lightning Hopkins in Berkeley is an album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins recorded in California in 1969 and originally released on the Arhoolie label in 1972. The original LP featured one side of previously unreleased recordings and the other six track which were originally released on Lightnin'!.
Lightnin'! is an album by the blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins recorded in California in 1969 and released on the Poppy label as a double LP.
Po' Lightnin' is an album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins recorded in California in 1969 and originally released on the Arhoolie label in 1983.
Live at Newport is a live album by the blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins, recorded at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965. Several tracks were released on three Vanguard Records compilation albums, The Great Blues Men (1971), Great Bluesmen Newport (1977), and Blues with a Feeling (1993), before the complete performance was released on CD in 2002.
Lightning Hopkins Sings the Blues, also released as Original Folk Blues, is a 12-inch LP album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins collecting tracks recorded between 1947 and 1951 that were originally released as 10-inch 78rpm records on the RPM label. The album was released on the Mainstream Records low budget, Crown subsidiary and was an early 12-inch LP collections of Lightnin' Hopkins material recorded at Gold Star Studios to be released. In 1999 a double CD collection of Jake Head Boogie was released containing all of the Hopkins recordings released by the RPM label along with several previously unreleased recordings.
Early Recordings is an album by the blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins featuring tracks recorded at Gold Star Recording Studios between 1946 and 1950, eight of which were originally released as 10-inch 78rpm records on the Gold Star and Jax labels, along with eight others that were previously unissued. Arhoolie reissued The Gold Star Sessions on two CDs through Smithsonian Folkways in 1990.
Early Recordings Vol. 2 is an album by blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins featuring tracks recorded at Gold Star Recording Studios between 1946 and 1950, thirteen of which were originally released as 10-inch 78rpm records on the Gold Star and Dart labels, along with three others that were previously unissued. Arhoolie reissued The Gold Star Sessions on two CDs through Smithsonian Folkways in 1990.
