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She began playing
guitar at age 7, and
later played bass drum her grandfather’s
fife and drum band. She
lived in Memphis for 20 years, playing on
Beale St. when she wasn’t working various odd
jobs. By the time
she decided to return home to the country in the mid ‘70s, Jessie
Mae focused mainly on her guitar playing.
Hemphill’s guitar style is often
described as idiosyncratic. The stomping guitar parts act as a
rhythmic echo to the words and percussion. Although folklorist Alan Lomax
had recorded several of the Hemphill family members in the
‘50s,
in addition to Mississippi Fred McDowell,
most of the musicians of this region would remain unnoticed for
years to come. Jessie Mae’s solo recording career began in the
early ‘80s with several singles on the High Water label. In
1981 she released her first album,
She-Wolf,
on
the French label Vogue. Unfortunately the album was
only released in Europe and the Vogue label did not
have sufficient resources for wide-scale promotion. The album gained critical acclaim among Blues
enthusiasts, but failed to reach a broader audience.
Nevertheless, Hemphill toured Europe on several occasions
playing at large halls and festivals. In 1986 she
toured France and recorded tracks for the Mississippi
Blues Festival 1986 album on the French Black and
Blue label, which achieved some recognition in the US.
Hemphill won the WC Handy Award for Best
Traditional Female Blues Artist in both 1987/88,
even though she had yet to release an album in
the states. In 1991 she released her second album, first in the
US, entitled
Feelin’
Good
on High Water.
The album won the WC Handy Award for Best Acoustic Album that
year. Coming
off the success of Feelin’ Good, her career looked bright
for the ‘90s. In 1993 she suffered a stroke that
paralyzed her left side, leaving her unable to play guitar.
Jessie Mae Hemphill
passed away July, 22/ 2007
in Memphis TN.
MP3-
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