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210:, "While he was living in Rockingham he began to have trouble with his eyes. He went to see a doctor in Charlotte who allegedly told him that he had ulcers behind his eyes, the original damage having been caused by some form of snow-blindness." Only the first part of this diagnosis was correct. A 1937 eye examination attributed his vision loss to the long-term effects of untreated
351:. He was criticised by some as a derivative musician, but his ability to fuse together elements of traditional and contemporary songs and reformulate them in his own performances attracted a broad audience. He was an expressive vocalist and a masterful guitar player, best remembered for his up-tempo ragtime hits, including "
33:
449:
Fuller's grave is Grove Hill
Cemetery, located on private property in Durham. State records indicate that this was once an official cemetery, and Fuller's interment is recorded. Only one headstone remains, that of one Mary Caston Langey. The funeral arrangements were handled by McLaurin Funeral Home
317:
in New York City that year. Sonny Terry performed in his place; it was the beginning of Terry's long career in folk music. After Fuller was released from prison, he held his last two recording sessions, in New York City in June 1940, but by then he was increasingly physically weak, and much of the
453:
Fuller has been recognized with two plaques in Durham. A plaque placed by the North
Carolina Division of Archives and History is located a few miles north of Fuller's gravesite, along Fayetteville St. The city of Durham officially recognized Fuller on July 16, 2001, with a commemorative plaque
290:
Over the next five years Fuller recorded over 120 sides, which were released by several labels. His style of singing was rough and direct, and his lyrics were explicit and uninhibited, drawing on every aspect of his experience as an underprivileged, blind black man on the streets—pawnshops,
291:
jailhouses, sickness, death—with an honesty that lacked sentimentality. Although he was not sophisticated, his artistry as a folk singer lay in the honesty and integrity of his self-expression. His songs expressed desire, love, jealousy, disappointment, menace and humor.
470:, recognized as one of two Main Honorees by the Sesquicentennial Honors Commission at the Durham 150 Closing Ceremony in Durham, NC on November 2, 2019. The posthumous recognition was bestowed upon them for their contributions to the
191:, United States, one of ten children of Calvin Allen and Mary Jane Walker. Most sources date his birth to 1907, but the researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc indicate 1904. After the death of his mother, he moved with his father to
359:. Because of his popularity, he may have been overexposed on records, but most of his songs stayed close to tradition, and much of his repertoire and style is kept alive by other Piedmont artists to this day.
283:. Allen, Davis and Washington recorded several tracks in New York City, including the traditional "Rag, Mama, Rag". To promote the records, Long credited Allen as Blind Boy Fuller and Washington as
217:
By 1928 he was completely blind. He turned to whatever employment he could find as a singer and entertainer, often playing in the streets. By studying the records of country blues players like
309:
In 1938 Fuller, who was described as having a fiery temper, was imprisoned for shooting a pistol at his wife, wounding her in the leg. His imprisonment prevented him from performing in "
343:), and the autobiographical "Big House Bound", about his time in prison. Much of his material was culled from traditional folk and blues songs. He possessed a formidable
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He married young, to Cora Allen, and worked as a laborer. He began to lose his eyesight when he was in his mid-teens. According to the researcher
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355:". At the same time he was capable of deeper material; his versions of "Lost Lover Blues", "Rattlesnakin' Daddy" and "Mamie" are as deep as most
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237:. In Durham, playing around the tobacco warehouses, he developed a local following, which included the guitarists
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195:. As a boy he learned to play the guitar and also learned from older singers the field hollers, country
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474:. His influence is acknowledged by many rock artists whose styles draw from the blues, including the
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In April 1936, Fuller recorded ten solo performances and also recorded with guitarist
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429:, and then reluctantly began a short-lived career as Blind Boy Fuller No. 2, so that
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333:" comic), "Let Me Squeeze Your Lemon", and "Get Your Yas Yas Out" (1938) (adapted as
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material did not match the quality and energy of his earlier recordings.
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guitarist and singer. Fuller was one of the most popular of the recorded
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was inspired to name the band after seeing the names of blues singers
611:"Blind Boy Fuller: His Life, Recording Sessions, and Welfare Records"
394:, but continued to require medical treatment. He died at his home in
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441:
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noted on Fuller's death certificate, a narrowing or blockage of the
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Fuller's repertoire included a number of popular double-entendre "
898:"262 Grove Hill Cemetery Durham County North Carolina Cemeteries"
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in the liner notes of a 1962 album by Fuller (Philips BBL-7512).
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155:(July 10, 1904 – February 13, 1941), known as
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of Durham, and the burial took place on
February 15, 1941.
245:, the harmonica player Saunders Terrell (better known as
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could profit from the deceased musician's popularity.
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526:. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger. p. 278.
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421:He was so popular when he died that his protégé,
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445:The only remaining stone at Grove Hill Cemetery
425:, recorded "The Death of Blind Boy Fuller" for
398:, on February 13, 1941. The cause of death was
638:The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray
279:, secured Allen a recording session with the
275:, a record store manager and talent scout in
16:American blues guitarist and singer (1904–41)
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298:. The following year, after auditioning for
935:: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (
872:. University Press of New England. p.
1075:20th-century African-American male singers
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347:guitar style. He played a steel National
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582:The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music
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1005:People from Wadesboro, North Carolina
952:"Pink Floyd's name traces back to NC"
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522:Eagle, Bob; LeBlanc, Eric S. (2013).
1100:American musicians with disabilities
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640:. Dubai: Carlton Books. p. 13.
922:Durham 150 Closing Ceremony Program
772:. New York: Penguin Books. p.
512:
264:Bull City Blues historical marker,
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1080:20th-century American male singers
371:in July 1940, probably due to the
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743:(revised ed.). eBookIt.com.
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339:for the title of an album by the
1065:20th-century American guitarists
281:American Recording Company (ARC)
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985:Blind Boy Fuller at Discogs.com
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919:Durham 150 (November 2, 2019).
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1085:20th-century American singers
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227:Winston-Salem, North Carolina
203:popular in poor rural areas.
820:Postgraduate Medical Journal
739:Clifford E. Olstrom (2012).
524:Blues: A Regional Experience
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1010:African-American guitarists
548:"Kansas City Blues Society"
466:Blind Boy Fuller was, with
10:
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1030:East Coast blues musicians
277:Burlington, North Carolina
193:Rockingham, North Carolina
1045:American blues guitarists
764:Santelli, Robert (1997).
615:Jas Obrecht Music Archive
313:", a concert produced by
221:and live performances by
189:Wadesboro, North Carolina
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71:Wadesboro, North Carolina
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37:Studio portrait of Fuller
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1050:American male guitarists
1025:Piedmont blues musicians
1020:Vocalion Records artists
801:August 13, 2007, at the
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311:From Spirituals to Swing
199:, traditional songs and
1035:Country blues musicians
832:10.1136/pgmj.56.656.383
379:which can be caused by
212:neonatal conjunctivitis
950:WRAL (June 25, 2019).
869:The Story of the Blues
741:Undaunted by Blindness
636:Russell, Tony (1997).
462:Posthumous recognition
456:American Tobacco Trail
446:
408:gastrointestinal tract
396:Durham, North Carolina
268:
266:Durham, North Carolina
235:Durham, North Carolina
88:Durham, North Carolina
43:Background information
1095:American blind people
1040:Country blues singers
1015:Decca Records artists
814:Blandy, J. P (1980).
768:The Best of the Blues
668:Giles Oakley (1997).
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402:, due to an infected
369:suprapubic cystostomy
263:
253:player and guitarist
900:. Cemeterycensus.com
816:"Urethral stricture"
707:Blues Off the Record
585:(Concise ed.).
167:artists, along with
468:Reverend Gary Davis
367:Fuller underwent a
336:Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out
159:, was an American
783:978-0-14-02-3755-9
680:. pp. 190/2.
454:located along the
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386:, infections from
373:urethral stricture
302:, he recorded for
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231:Danville, Virginia
187:Allen was born in
725:978-0-306-80321-5
687:978-0-306-80743-5
672:The Devil's Music
647:978-1-85868-255-6
550:. March 28, 2018.
353:Step It Up and Go
273:James Baxter Long
255:George Washington
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81:February 13, 1941
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349:resonator guitar
331:Keep On Truckin'
300:J. Mayo Williams
157:Blind Boy Fuller
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619:. Retrieved
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587:Virgin Books
580:
577:Colin Larkin
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486:and others.
484:Eric Clapton
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427:Okeh Records
420:
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327:Robert Crumb
320:
315:John Hammond
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208:Bruce Bastin
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153:Fulton Allen
152:
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139:Years active
83:(1941-02-13)
53:Fulton Allen
18:
1090:1904 births
1000:1941 deaths
980:Discography
961:January 16,
714:. pp.
488:Syd Barrett
357:Delta blues
249:), and the
247:Sonny Terry
233:; and then
219:Blind Blake
169:Blind Blake
121:Instruments
994:Categories
904:August 30,
506:References
492:Pink Floyd
381:syphilitic
223:Gary Davis
177:Buddy Moss
173:Josh White
64:1904-07-10
49:Birth name
931:cite book
418:failure.
392:chlamydia
388:gonorrhea
271:In 1935,
251:washboard
143:1928–1940
956:WRAL.com
866:(1998).
799:Archived
704:(1984).
412:perineum
384:chancres
850:6997851
841:2425711
414:, plus
404:bladder
377:urethra
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593:
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416:kidney
400:pyemia
175:, and
130:vocals
127:Guitar
95:Genres
90:, U.S.
73:, U.S.
716:95–98
390:, or
363:Death
323:hokum
201:blues
161:blues
963:2020
937:link
906:2015
878:ISBN
846:PMID
778:ISBN
745:ISBN
720:ISBN
682:ISBN
642:ISBN
623:2013
591:ISBN
528:ISBN
498:and
410:and
329:'s "
241:and
197:rags
78:Died
58:Born
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836:PMC
828:doi
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