Cigar Box Guitar Blues - Shinin' Moon - Lightnin' Hopkins video free download

For my 150th video I had to do a song by an artist who's close to my heart : Sam Lightnin' Hopkins.

The picture you've seen at the beginning is the cover of my very first LH lp, which I bought when I was about 14 years old...I remember asking the lady in the recordshop to play the record so I could hear what it was all about. The first song is "Big Black Cadillac Blues" and starts off with a monologue by LH; he tells about how a beautiful girl charmed him into letting her drive his cad...but a few seconds later her friend jumps behind the wheel and takes off with Sam's cad...Sam said : rubber on wheels is faster than rubber on heels....

You should have seen the saleslady frown when she heard Sam's texan drawl...

Anyway, this song in an adaptation of one of Sam's early recordings. It has a poetic introspective character; I turned it into a slide version tuned to GDgd. Sam's version is in standard tuning key of A. The typical lick with the trill on the first string is a Blind Lemon Jefferson trademark. Sam encountered Blind Lemon when he was a child and I can imagine it left a lasting impression on him.

You can find the original version on the excellent 5 disc box (it's dirt cheap - about $30) "All the Classics 1946-51" JSP label

These recordings prove that Sam was responsible for making the electric guitar a real blues instrument. Forget about his recordings made after 1960....the 1946-51 are much more inventive and stunning compared to his later work.

Yeah, had to wear that t-shirt, hat and inevitable shades like Sam..