This Week in Texas Music History

This Week In Texas Music History: Texas Alexander

September 12, 2011 5:45 am by: Haley Howle

texalex

This Week in Texas Music History, we’ll give a shout out to a man who certainly did his share of shouting.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.


Blues singer “Texas” Alexander was born in Jewett, Texas, on September 12, 1900. He worked for years on railroads and farms throughout East Texas, where he often shouted out song lyrics in the tradition of earlier field slaves. Since he did not play guitar, Alexander recruited Blind Lemon Jefferson, Lightnin’ Hopkins, and other instrumentalists to accompany him.

Texas Alexander was one of the most prolific blues singers of the late 1920s, performing and recording with such popular artists as Lonnie Johnson and Little Hat Jones.

Next time on This Week in Texas Music History, we’ll learn about a traveling folklorist who encountered everyone from cowboys to convicts.

Podcast: Download (1.5MB)

Share|

No comments yet.

Add your response

Comments are moderated. They are posted at the discretion of KUT if they stick to the topic and contribute to the conversation. They will not be published if they contain or link to abusive material, personal attacks, profanity or spam.

You must be logged in to post a comment.