BLUE SMITTY
Born in Marietta AK in 1924, Claude Smith grew up in Chicago, but moved back to Arkansas as a teenager. He recalls how his guitar skills came as “a gift” when he was 14, as he amazed his family by suddenly playing all night on the back porch with a borrowed instrument. Claude was conscripted into the Army in WWII and entertained his fellow troops at their Louisiana base with jazzy one-string guitar runs in the style of Charlie Christian. When he was discharged, Claude wound up in Memphis for a spell, and the following year he was playing clubs in Chicago with a couple of young men called Jimmy Rogers and Muddy Waters. Muddy was already an accomplished slide-guitar player, but some of Claude’s technique rubbed off on him as they traded tunings and riffs when they practiced together. They played some club dates with Jimmy and a drummer called ‘Pork Chop’, but Claude had a well-paid day-job as an electrician, which was great for fixing amplifiers and pick-ups, but he was obviously not so committed to all-night gigs: he got the boys their first paid residency, but often did not show up himself. As the others moved up, Claude moved around the towns of Illinois over the next few years, plying his trade and playing in the evenings, and at a residency at Club 99 in Joliet, he picked up the name ‘Blue Smitty’.
Blue Smitty (Claude Smith):Vocals & Guitar
Malron Jett:Piano
? Stewart:Bass
Ike Smith:Drums
Recorded in Chicago, IL. Friday, July 11, 1952
Originally issued on and this recording taken from the 1972 4-LP set "Genesis:Sweet Home Chicago" (Chess 6641 174) (LP) (U.K.)
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Nascut a Marietta AK en 1924, Claude Smith va créixer a Chicago, però es va traslladar de nou a Arkansas com un adolescent. Ell recorda com les seves habilitats amb la guitarra com "un regal" quan tenia 14 anys, ja que va sorprendre a la seva família tocant de sobte tota la nit al porxo del darrere amb un instrument prestat. Claude va ser reclutat a l'exèrcit en la Segona Guerra Mundial i va oferir als seus companys de tropa a la base de jazz de Louisiana amb concerts de guitarra d'una sola corda en l'estil de Charlie Christian. Quan va ser donat d'alta, Claude va acabar en Memphis per un temps, i l'any següent estava tocant a clubs de Chicago amb un parell de joves anomenats Jimmy Rogers i Muddy Waters , aquest ja era un guitarrista slide-consumat, però malgrat aixó algunes curiositats de la tècnica de Claude li van agradar fins al punt de practicar afinacions i riffs junts. Van estar tocant al club amb Jimmy i un bateria anomenat '', Pork Chop " però Claude habitualment es guanyabe bé la vida com a electricista, que li anaba molt bé per a la fixació dels amplificadors i pick-ups, Així com els seus altres colegues van anar pujant amb popularitat i actuacions viatjant bastant ell es conformar amb moure`s al voltant de les ciutats d'Illinois durant uns cuants anys exercint el seu ofici i tocant a les nits, i com a resident del Club 99 a Joliet, on va triar definitivament el nom de BLUE SMITTY
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