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Josh White: You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To

By Ian Patterson
February 11, 2024
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Josh White could probably have made a career just as a singer, but for his wonderful guitar playing. Good job he refused doctors' advice to have his left hand amputated after a bar fight when he was just 22. An influence on everyone from Peter Seeger to Elvis Presley and Harry Belafonte, and from John Fahey and Ry Cooder to John Renbourn. This clip from 1962 finds him in spellbinding form. According to Village Vanguard owner Max Gordon, "The greatest conversations ever heard at the Vanguard was the carving out of the guitars between Lead Belly and Josh White."

Contact Ian Patterson on All About Jazz.
Ian is dedicated to the promotion of jazz and all creative music all over the world, and to catching just a little piece of it for himself.

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