Snooks Eaglin was a blind blues singer and guitarist from New Orleans who played a highly accessible brand of the blues. Eaglin lost his sight not long after his first birthday, having been stricken with glaucoma, and spent several years in the hospital. Around the age of five he received a guitar from his father and taught himself to play. A mischievous youngster, he was given the nickname “Snooks” after a radio character named Baby Snooks. He developed a style which would sometimes stray into rock‘n’roll or folk music territories, Eaglin often re-worked other artists’ songs and earned himself the nickname of “The Human Jukebox”.

His wide and varied repertoire in ‘live’ performances ensured he was active for around half a century, but this 52-track collection focuses on the first decade or so of that extensive recording career. It comprises early recordings as Blind Guitar Ferd for the Wonder label, plus most of the titles from his albums as Snooks Eaglin Possum Up A Simmon Tree on Folk-Lyric, Message From New Orleans on Heritage, and That’s All Right on Bluesville, plus his A- and B-sides from these years on Imperial on which he was known as Ford Eaglin. It was while at Imperial his style diversified into the pop arena.

This set features versions of classic songs plus equally classic recordings associated with him, including Mean Old World, Bottle Up And Go, Down By The Riverside, That’s Alright, Country Boy, Mama Don’t You Tear My Clothes, Yours Truly, Travellin’ Mood and many more.

He died, aged 72, in 2009 and will be remembered as an artist who played the blues to entertain, and this very much comes across in these selections of his early recordings.

TRACKS