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Mississippi Sheiks

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The Mississippi Sheiks were a popular guitar and fiddle group of the 1930s. They were notable mostly for playing country blues, but were adept at many styles of United States popular music of the time, and their records were bought by both black and white audiences. Country blues is often seen as being the domain of individual musicians, a stereotype propagated by the way such enigmatic delta blues performers such as Robert Johnson and Charley Patton have entered the popular consciousness. Of the smaller number of groups playing at the time, the Mississippi Sheiks are among the better known and most influential.

The Mississippi Sheiks consisted mainly of the Chatmon family, who came from Bolton, Mississippi and were well known throughout the Mississippi Delta; the father of the family had been a “musicianer” during times of black slavery, and his children carried on a keen musical spirit. Their most famous (although by no means permanent) member was Armenter Chatmon, better known as Bo Carter, who managed a successful solo career as well as playing with the Sheiks, which may have contributed to their success. The band named themselves after Rudolph Valentino’s film The Sheik (1921).

When the band first recorded in 1930, the line-up consisted of Carter with Lonnie and Sam Chatmon, and Walter Vinson. Charlie McCoy (not to be confused with Charlie McCoy, a later American musician) played later, when Bo Carter and Sam Chatmon ceased playing full time. It was Lonnie Chatmon and Vinson who formed the real centre of the group.

Tagged as:

blues, delta blues, folk, classic blues, mississippi
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Play The Mississippi Sheiks "Sitting on Top of the World"

Top Albums

Top Tracks

1	Sitting on Top of the World full track	80
2	The World Is Going Wrong full track	30
3	Stop and Listen Blues	21
4	Bootleggers' Blues full track	12
4	Sittin' on Top of the World full track	12
4	I've Got Blood in My Eyes for You full track	12
7	Driving That Thing full track	11
8	Bed Spring Poker full track	10
9	Lonely One In This Town	8
10	Shooting High Dice	7
11	Bootlegger Blues full track	6
11	Sales Tax	6
13	Tell Me To Do Right	5
13	He Calls That Religion	5
13	That's It	5

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DAVERUIZ wrote:
Friday afternoon

!!!

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CoolJack wrote:
February 2008

The best string band which has ever exsisted full stop. Im always amazed how they managed to be so much better than alot of the other string bands of the era.

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Recent Activity

fingerwreck and PLUNKIT added Mississippi Sheiks to their libraries. 6 hours ago
kudawas tagged Mississippi Sheiks with ‘blues’. Saturday morning
DAVERUIZ added Mississippi Sheiks to DAVERUIZ’s library. Friday afternoon
BabyBizarre tagged Mississippi Sheiks with ‘blues’. Thursday afternoon
reevegauche, Carooul, johhnyrevelator and 5 other people added Mississippi Sheiks to their libraries. Thursday morning
Hypnosugar tagged Mississippi Sheiks with ‘blues’. 17 days ago
britods, hookampco, chimichimimamma and 9 other people added Mississippi Sheiks to their libraries. last month
VickyBN1 connected Mississippi Sheiks to the group The Orient Express. last month
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sGarrista- tagged Mississippi Sheiks with ‘prewar blues’ and ‘delta blues’. last month