Sonny Terry
Listen to, buy or share
Buy
-
176,594
scrobbles
-
32,591 listeners
-
crispinchicken is listening to
Sonny Terry – Old Lost John
Tags
Biography
Greensboro NC, United States (1911 – 1986)
Saunders Terrell, better known as Sonny Terry (October 24, 1911-March 11, 1986), was a blues musician. He was born in Greensboro, North Carolina on October 24, 1911, and died on March 11, 1986 in Mineola, New York. He was most widely known for his energetic blues harmonica style which frequently included vocal whoops and hollers, and imitations of trains and fox hunts.
His father, a farmer, taught him to play basic blues harp as a youth. He sustained injuries to his eyes at a young age which eventually prevented him from doing farm work himself. In order to earn a living Sonny was now forced to play music. He began playing in Shelby, North Carolina. After his father died he began playing with Piedmont-style guitarist Blind Boy Fuller. When Fuller died, he established a long-standing musical relationship with Brownie McGhee, and the pair recorded numerous tracks together. The duo became well-known, even among white audiences, as they joined the growing folk movement of the 1950s and ’60s. This included collaborations with Woody Guthrie and Moses Asch, producing Folkways Records (now Smithsonian/Folkways) classic recordings.
In 1938 Sonny Terry was invited to play at Carnegie Hall for the first From Spirituals To Swing concert and later that year he recorded for the Library of Congress. In 1940 Sonny Terry recorded his first commercial sides.
His father, a farmer, taught him to play basic blues harp as a youth. He sustained injuries to his eyes at a young age which eventually prevented him from doing farm work himself. In order to earn a living Sonny was now forced to play music. He began playing in Shelby, North Carolina. After his father died he began playing with Piedmont-style guitarist Blind Boy Fuller. When Fuller died, he established a long-standing musical relationship with Brownie McGhee, and the pair recorded numerous tracks together. The duo became well-known, even among white audiences, as they joined the growing folk movement of the 1950s and ’60s. This included collaborations with Woody Guthrie and Moses Asch, producing Folkways Records (now Smithsonian/Folkways) classic recordings.
In 1938 Sonny Terry was invited to play at Carnegie Hall for the first From Spirituals To Swing concert and later that year he recorded for the Library of Congress. In 1940 Sonny Terry recorded his first commercial sides.
Featured tracks
-
Burnt Child
3:41 -
Ya, Ya
3:11 -
Whoee, Whoee
5:17 -
Roll Me Baby
5:27 -
Whoo Wee Baby
4:23 -
I Think I Got the Blues
3:41
Featured tracks
Top Tracks
Top Albums
-
Wizard Of The Harmonica
1,562 listeners17 tracks
Released:
-
Whoopin' The Blues: the Capitol Recordings, 1947 - 1950
10,733 listeners16 tracks
-
Sonny Is King
3,546 listeners10 tracks
Released:
-
Whoopin'
4,144 listeners10 tracks
Released:
Listening Trend
32,591listeners all time
176,594scrobbles all time
Recent listeners trend:
Start scrobbling and track your listening history
Last.fm users scrobble the music they play in iTunes, Spotify, Rdio and over 200 other music players.
Create a Last.fm profile



Get exclusive tour, release & promotion updates on Sonny Terry from Universal Music.