Jazz Gillum

Blues singer and harmonica player, born September 11, 1904 in Indianola, Mississippi, died March 29, 1966 in Chicago, Illinois. He began to play the harp as a young boy and left home at the tender age of seven to live with relatives in Charleston, Mississippi, where he played on street corners for spare change. When he visited Chicago, his playing caught the popular mood and when he bumped into guitarist Big Bill Broonzy, they found that their musical styles blended well. This was the beginning of a beautiful friendship, and the two men played together continually until World War II. By 1934 Gillum was recording for ARC Records and Bluebird Records.