Nehemiah Curtis James was born on June 9, 1902 in in Bentonia, Mississippi. But he became famous as a blues guitarist-singer-songwriter named Skip James.
James first recorded “Hard Time Killing Floor Blues” and other songs in 1931. The recordings, however, did not sell well record buyers lacked disposable income during The Great Depression. So, James gave up performing for awhile.
In the early 1960s, though, blues fans rediscovered James. And he began recording and performing again until he died in Philadelphia on October 3, 1969
Below, Skip James performs “Hard Time Killing Floor Blues” at the American Folk and Blues Festival in Cologne, Germany on October 9, 1967.
In the film O Brother, Where Art Thou?, singer and actor Chris Thomas King sang “Hard Time Killing Floor Blues” around a campfire.
Leave your two cents in the comments.
(Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)
