Forest City Joe

* Born July 10 1926 Hughes AR * Died April 03 1960 * Active '40s '50s * Genres Blues * Instrument Harmonica Biography Blues Harpist Forest City Joe Was Heavily Influenced By John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson. He Not Only Played Like Him But Sang Like Him As Well. Unlike His Idol However Who Was Murdered On June 1 1948 Joe Lived Long Enough To Record For The Chess Brothers In The Early Days Of Their Activities When Chess Was Known As Aristocrat. Joe Was Remembered As A "great Harp Player" By Muddy Waters Who Only Missed Playing At Joe's One Major Chess Recording Session On December 2 1948 When Joe Was Only 21. Joe Had More Of A Country Sound Than Most Chicago Artists Of The Period So It's Surprising That The Chess Brothers Paired Him Up With J.C. Coles A Jazz Guitarist Of No Seeming Special Account Who Added Little To A Session But A Few Barely Audible Chords. Joe Bennie Pugh Was Born In Hughes AR On July 10 1926 To Moses Pugh And Mary Walker. He Was Raised In The Area Around Hughes And West Memphis AR And Even As A Boy Played The Local Juke Joints In The Area. He Hoboed His Way Through The State Working Road Houses And Juke Joints During The 1940s And Late In The Decade Hooked Up With Big Joe Williams Playing With Him Around St. Louis MO. Beginning In 1947 He Also Began Working The Chicago Area And A Year Later Had His One And Only Session For The Chess Brothers' Aristocrat Label. He Also Appeared With Howlin' Wolf And Sonny Boy "Rice Miller" Williamson Aka Sonny Boy II On Radio Shows In The West Memphis Area. When He Returned To Chicago In 1949 He Began Working With The Otis Spann Combo Appearing At The Tick Tock Lounge And Other Clubs In The City Until The Mid-'50s. Pugh Returned To Arkansas And Gave Up Music Except For Occasional Weekend Shows With Willie Cobbs Playing In Pool Rooms And On Street Corners Beginning In 1955. Pugh Recorded For Atlantic Records In 1959 And Was Still Performing Until His Death In 1960 In A Truck Accident While Returning Home From A Dance. Had Muddy Played Forest City Joe's One And Only Chess Records Session As Was Intended Chances Are More Of Joe's Work Would've Seen The Light Of Day If Only In An Effort To Scrounge Up Every Note That Muddy Ever Played. But As It Was Only "Memory Of Sonny Boy" And "A Woman On Every Street" Ever Saw The Light Of Day And At This Writing Only The Former Has Ever Appeared On An American CD. As To His Extant Music "Memory Of Sonny Boy" Was Among The First Postwar Tribute Records From One Bluesman To Another Scrapper Blackwell Had Done As Much For Leroy Carr In The 1930s Starting A Trend That Continued For Decade. And It's A Great Record At Least As Far As The Harp Playing And The Singing Go. Joe's Playing Mimics Sonny Boy Williamson I's Call-And-Response Harp Playing Performing Dazzling Volume Acrobatics And His Singing Is Also Highly Expressive. None Of The Rest Is As Strong But "Shady Lane Woman" Is A Good Bluesy Romantic Lament While "A Woman On Every Street" Is The Other Side Of The Coin And A Better Workout On The Harp. "Sawdust Bottom" Should Have Seen Release And "Ash Street Boogie" Could've Seen Action If The Accompaniment Had Been Better Realized. Alas J.C. Coles Was Seemingly Content To Strum Along Almost Inaudibly In The Background -- Ah What Muddy Might've Done.... ~ Bruce Eder All Music Guide read less