SIDNEY MAIDEN

Nacido en Mansfield, LA en 1923, el cantante y  armónica Sidney Maiden obtuvo su mejor éxito con el clásico "Eclipse del Sol" En los años 40, Maiden se mudó a California donde conoció al guitarrista KC Douglas. Congeniaron enseguida  ya que ambos tenían una actitud purista hacia blues rural y no comprometieron ese estilo de tocar  una vez que dejaron el sur. Tocaron en  clubes en la Costa Oeste, y graban "Eclipse del Sol" en 1948 para el sello Down Town dirigido por Bob Geddins. Sería el primer y único hit de Maiden. Cuatro años más tarde una sesión se registró para Imperial con los Blues Blowers (incluyendo Douglas), seguido en 1953 por "Hurry Hurry  Baby" para el sello de Flash. En 1961 Maiden participó en una sesión de grabación, creado por el Arhoolie Registros jefe Chris Strachwitz, él reunirse con Douglas por un Trouble 'Blues Publicado en Bluesville. Desde entonces Maiden ha actuado esporádicamente en el área de Fresno, tanto en situaciones individuales como colectivas. Poco conocido , es indudable que merece unos minutos de atención por su forma de tocar y entender la  música. Aquí teneis el audio del tema Eclipse of the Sun.grabado con el guitarrista K.C. Douglas. y Ford Chaney a la guitarra (1948 ) 

                           

K.C. Douglas & Ford Chaney:Guitars

Sidney Maiden:Vocals & Harmonica

Otis Cherry:Drums

Recorded in Oakland, CA. 1948

Originally issued on and this recording taken from the 1948 single (Down Town 2004) (78 RPM)


Note:Also issued on (Gilt Edge 5003, mislabelled as by Lowell Fulson) (78 RPM)

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Sidney Maiden (1923 – 1970) was an American country blues musician. Maiden principally played harmonica accompaniment, but also sang on some of his own recordings, in addition to writing several compositions. His best known work is "Eclipse of the Sun" (1948).

Maiden was born in Mansfield, Louisiana, United States. In the early 1940s, Maiden relocated to California and met up with K. C. Douglas. They both steadfastly stuck to playing in a country blues style, and performed in nightclubs on the West Coast. The K. C. Douglas Trio's first recording was "Mercury Boogie" (later renamed "Mercury Blues"), in 1948, which included Maiden playing the harmonica. The B-side was "Eclipse of the Sun", which was also produced by the record label owner Bob Geddins, and released on his Down Town label It was Maiden's vocal on the latter track.

By 1952, Maiden recorded a session for Imperial Records, where he was backed by the Blues Blowers, which included Douglas. Three years later, another Maiden track, entitled "Hurry Hurry Baby", was released on Flash Records. This was followed in 1957, when Maiden teamed up with Al Simmons and Slim Green to record "Hand Me Down Baby" in Los Angeles

In April 1961, Maiden recorded his only album, Trouble An' Blues, which was originally released by the Prestige Bluesville label, thus reuniting a partnership with Douglas that had started in the 1940s.The same year, Arhoolie Records released an album recorded in Stockton, California, entitled Mercy Dee, by Mercy Dee Walton. It featured Walton plus Maiden on harmonica, Douglas on electric guitar and Otis Cherry playing the drums.

Afterwards Maiden performed occasionally in Fresno County, both as a solo performer and in various group settings His later life is largely unrecorded, although the date of his death is given by various sources as 1970.