[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 126 (Wednesday, September 9, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2214-E2215]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO BLIND LEMON JEFFERSON AND THE BLIND LEMON BLUES

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, September 9, 2009

  Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, as the famed York Theatre Company of New 
York celebrates its 40th anniversary, today I rise to recognize their 
newest musical genius, ``Blind Lemon Blues'' and to pay tribute to the 
Legendary Father of the Texas Blues, ``Blind'' Lemon Jefferson.
  Blind Lemon Blues celebrates the legacy of Blind Lemon Jefferson and 
his profound influence upon the development of American popular music. 
Blind Lemon Blues is set in New York City in 1948 at the last recording 
session of the legendary Huddie Ledbetter, better known as Lead Belly, 
and combines elements of traditional blues, gospel, rhythm and blues, 
soul, doo-wop, and rap to evoke the enduring legacy of Blind Lemon and 
his contemporaries, Blind Willie Johnson, Lillian Glinn, Hattie Hudson, 
Bobbie Cadillac, Lillian Miller and Lead Belly himself.
  ``Blind'' Lemon Jefferson was one of the most popular blues singers 
of the 1920s, and has been titled ``Father of the Texas Blues.'' 
Jefferson's singing and self-accompaniment were distinctive as a result 
of his high-pitched voice and originality on the guitar. He used Dallas 
as a base to launch an extraordinary blues career, during which he made 
over 80 recordings of his intricate melodic rhythms and influenced 
countless artists, including B.B. King. Other later blues and rock and 
roll musicians attempted to imitate both his songs and his musical 
style.
  Often heralded as one of the most influential bluesmen of all time, 
``Blind'' Lemon Jefferson was born blind near Coutchman, Texas, in 
Freestone County, near present-day Wortham, Texas, in September 1893. 
Jefferson was one of eight children born to sharecroppers Alex and 
Clarissa Jefferson. Jefferson began playing the guitar in his early 
teens, and soon after he began performing at picnics and parties. He 
also became a street musician, playing in east Texas towns in front of 
barbershops and on corners.
  In the early 1920s, Jefferson traveled to Dallas, where he met Huddie 
``Leadbelly'' Leadbetter and established the blues scene in Dallas' 
Deep Ellum district. Five years later, he was on the road of instant 
success. Between the years of 1925 and 1929, Jefferson made over 80 
recordings for Paramount Records and became the first commercially 
successful male black artist. Some of his most notable recordings are 
``Black Snake Moan,'' ``Boll Weevil Blues,'' ``Matchbox Blues,'' and 
the song that would become his trademark, ``See That My Grave Is Kept 
Clean.''
  Jefferson died from mysterious circumstances on the streets of 
Chicago on December 22, 1929, and was buried in the old Wortham Negro 
Cemetery. His grave was unmarked until 1967, when a Texas state 
historical marker was dedicated to him. He was inducted in the Blues 
Foundation's Hall of Fame in 1980. In 1997 the town of Wortham began a 
blues festival named for the singer, and a new granite headstone was 
placed at his gravesite--a fitting tribute to the man who

[[Page E2215]]

sang ``. . . Lord, there's just one favor I ask of you, see that my 
grave is kept clean.'' In 2007 the name of the cemetery was changed to 
Blind Lemon Memorial Cemetery.
  So Madam Speaker, I ask that you and my distinguished colleagues join 
me in recognizing the good work of Director and Choreographer Akin 
Babatunde and Producer Alan Govenar for such a magnificent rendition of 
the life of Blind Lemon Jefferson and those Blind Lemon Blues.

                          ____________________