" BLIND MISSISSIPPI " MORRIS CUMMINGS (II)
Blind Mississippi Morris (born Morris Cummings; April 6, 1955 in Clarksdale, Mississippi, United States) is an American blues musician
Cummings became blind at the age of four, a victim of congenital glaucoma.Morris became a solo blues performer on Beale Street, and his current backing band is called the Pocket Rockets.
Morris comes from a musical background; his cousins, Robert and Mary Diggs, led the Memphis Sheiks, while his aunt, Mary Tanner, played with the Harps of Melody. Morris is also a cousin of Willie Dixon. He was named as one of the 10 best harmonica players in the world by Bluzharp magazine.
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Blind Mississippi Morris
(Morris Cummings)
Born: April 6, 1955, Clarksdale, Mississippi
Morris, Blind MississippiPhoto credit: Francoise Digel f.digel@gmail.com
No one has worked harder at keeping the legacy of the blues alive than Blind Mississippi Morris. The Clarksdale, Mississippi, native hails from a distinguished family of Mississippi musicians. Cummings lost his sight at age four, but that did not stop him from learning the blues. He was schooled on the harmonica at an early age by aunt and uncle Robert and Mary Diggs of the legendary “Mississippi Sheiks” and of the gospel group “The Harps of Melody”. He’s also a cousin of writer/ performer/ producer Willie Dixon, an integral part of Chicago’s Chess Records during their heyday. Over the years, Morris has gained his own national and international recognition having been named by Bluzharp magazine as one of the ten best harmonica players in the world. He also received the Premier Player Grammy Award twice for Harmonica Player of the Year. Morris recorded with the legendary Muddy Waters and has played with Bill Wyman (Rolling Stones) and a multitude of who’s who in the blues world. He opened shows for B.B. King in Louisville, KY and Omaha, NE.
Morris also had the honor of appearing in the 2010 movie “Redemption Road” with Michael Clarke Duncan, Luke Perry, Tom Skerritt and Mario Van Peebles. He plays a blind harmonica player working at a tobacco barn in Kentucky. Playing professionally for 50 years, this disciple of the Delta Blues has toured extensively in Europe on several occasions. Hubert Sumlin, one of Rolling Stone magazine’s 100 Best Guitarists of all time, called Morris “a master”. Known as the “Real Deal”, he holds fast to time-honored blues sounds. He has performed with musicians such as B. B. King, Rufus Thomas, Muddy Waters, David Porter and many other Memphis artists.
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