Sam Myers: The Blues is My Story

urn:iso:std:iso:639:ed-3:eng

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text excerpt

Starting off in 1952, Elmore [James] was paying me thirty-five dollars a night, playing drums. During the whole time we worked together, I didn't blow much harp, which is what a lot of people look for me to do now, every time when they see me. I didn't blow harmonica on but two of his recordings. One was a big classic by him, "Look on Yonder Wall." That was on Fire and Fury, Bobby Robinson's label out of New York. We did that one in New Orleans. I played with him from '52 until '63, the time when he died.

"Dust My Broom" was actually a Robert Johnson song, but Elmore had made it into his own by the way he played it, all electrified. It was a big record for him. Big Bill Hill and his brother had a cleaners and a booking agency, Colt's Booking Agency, on Madison Street. Big Bill was a disc jockey and used to do his show from there at the cleaners, through radio station WOPA. A lot of the bluesmen who he booked would have shows on that station. From there he would be playing their records from time to time[, … t]hey called that "breaking their records," playing their records when they just came out. That's how a lot of them got started.

excerpt from 'Sam Myers: The Blues is My Story' pp. 52 (221 words)

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