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Son House
Son House
American blues singer and guitarist
1
Otis Spann
Otis Spann
American Chicago blues pianist
2
Skip James
Skip James
American Delta blues singer, guitarist, pianist and songwriter
3
Chris Smither
Chris Smither
American singer-songwriter
4
Carter Family
Carter Family
traditional American folk music group
5
Jim Kweskin
Jim Kweskin
American musician
6
W. C. Handy
W. C. Handy
American blues composer and musician
7
Lonnie Johnson
Lonnie Johnson
musician from the USA
8
Charley Patton
Charley Patton
American Delta blues musician
9
Memphis Jug Band
Memphis Jug Band
band
10
Peter Case
Peter Case
American musician
11
Blind Willie Johnson
Blind Willie Johnson
American blues and gospel singer and guitarist
12
John Herald
John Herald
American musician
13
Big Joe Williams
Big Joe Williams
American Delta blues guitarist, recording artist, singer and songwriter
14
Archie Edwards
Archie Edwards
American Piedmont blues guitarist
15
Alice Stuart
Alice Stuart
American musician
16
Blind Boy Fuller
Blind Boy Fuller
American blues guitarist and singer
17
Fred McDowell
Fred McDowell
American Hill country blues singer and guitar player.
18
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
American singer and guitarist
19
Sonny Boy Williamson II
Sonny Boy Williamson II
American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter
20
Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal
American Blues musician famous for incorporating elements of world music
21
Jimmie Rodgers
Jimmie Rodgers
American country singer, songwriter
22
Rory Block
Rory Block
American blues guitarist and singer
23
Sylvester Weaver
Sylvester Weaver
American country blues guitarist
24
Mississippi Sheiks
Mississippi Sheiks
band
25
Otis Rush
Otis Rush
American musician
26
Frankie Trumbauer
Frankie Trumbauer
American musician
27
John Fahey
John Fahey
1939–2001; American fingerstyle guitarist
28
Bukka White
Bukka White
American Delta blues guitarist and singer
29
Tommy Johnson
Tommy Johnson
American musician
30
Eli Cook
Eli Cook
American singer, songwriter
31
Buddy Moss
Buddy Moss
American East Coast blues guitarist
32
Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
American blues singer and guitarist
33
Alan Wilson
Alan Wilson
musician
34
Elizabeth Cotten
Elizabeth Cotten
American blues and folk musician, singer and songwriter
35
Frank Hutchison
Frank Hutchison
American early country blues and Piedmont blues musician
36
Pokey LaFarge
Pokey LaFarge
American musician
37
The Frost
The Frost
38
Hedy West
Hedy West
American folksinger and songwriter
39
Eddie "Guitar" Burns
Eddie "Guitar" Burns
American Detroit blues guitarist, harmonica player, singer and songwriter
40
John Hiatt
John Hiatt
American rock guitarist, pianist, singer, and songwriter; born 1952
41
Robert Wilkins
Robert Wilkins
American country blues guitarist and singer
42
Hound Dog Taylor
Hound Dog Taylor
American Chicago blues guitarist and singer
43
John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker
American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist
44
Mike Bloomfield
Mike Bloomfield
American guitarist and composer
45
Lightnin' Hopkins
Lightnin' Hopkins
American country blues singer, songwriter and guitarist
46
Henry Whitter
Henry Whitter
American musician
47
Lead Belly
Lead Belly
American folk and blues musician
48
James Cotton
James Cotton
American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter
49
Blind Willie McTell
Blind Willie McTell
Piedmont and ragtime blues singer and guitarist
50
Robert Lockwood Jr.
Robert Lockwood Jr.
American Delta blues guitarist
51
Freddie Spruell
Freddie Spruell
American Delta blues guitarist and singer
52
Johnny "Guitar" Watson
Johnny "Guitar" Watson
guitarist
53
Terry Robb
Terry Robb
Canadian guitarist
54
Frank Hamilton
Frank Hamilton
American musician
Intro
American country blues singer and guitarist
Record Labels

John Smith Hurt (March 8, 1893 – November 2, 1966), better known as Mississippi John Hurt, was an American country blues singer and guitarist.

Raised in Avalon, Mississippi, Hurt taught himself to play the guitar around the age of nine. He worked as a sharecropper and began playing at dances and parties, singing to a melodious fingerpicked accompaniment. His first recordings, made for Okeh Records in 1928, were commercial failures, and he continued to work as a farmer.

Dick Spottswood and Tom Hoskins, a blues enthusiast, located Hurt in 1963 and persuaded him to move to Washington, D.C. He was recorded by the Library of Congress in 1964. This helped further the American folk music revival, which led to the rediscovery of many other bluesmen of Hurt's era. Hurt performed on the university and coffeehouse concert circuit with other Delta blues musicians who were brought out of retirement. He also recorded several albums for Vanguard Records.

Hurt returned to Mississippi, where he died, in Grenada, a year later.

Material recorded by him has been re-released by many record labels. His songs have been recorded by Bob Dylan, Dave Van Ronk, Jerry Garcia, Beck, Doc Watson, John McCutcheon, Taj Mahal, Bruce Cockburn, David Johansen, Bill Morrissey, Gillian Welch, Josh Ritter, Chris Smither, Guthrie Thomas, Parsonsfield, and Rory Block.


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