Big John Wrencher
Encyclopedia
Big John Wrencher also known as One Arm John, was an American
blues
harmonica
player and singer, well known for playing on Maxwell Street Market
, Chicago in the 1960s, and who later toured Europe in the 1970s.
, United States
. He became interested in music as a child, and taught himself to play harmonica at an early age, and from the early 1940s was working as an itinerant musician in Tennessee
, Missouri
, Indiana
, and Illinois
. By the mid 1940s he had arrived in Chicago and was playing on Maxwell Street and at house parties with Jimmy Rogers
, Claude "Blue Smitty" Smith and John Henry Barbee
. In the 1950s he moved to Detroit, where he worked with singer/guitarist Baby Boy Warren
, and formed his own trio to work in the Detroit and Clarksdale, Mississippi
areas.
In 1958 Wrencher lost his left arm as a result of a car accident outside Memphis, Tennessee
. By the early 1960s he had settled in Chicago, where he became a fixture on Maxwell Street Market, in particular playing from 10am to 3pm on Sundays. In 1964 he appeared in a documentary film about Maxwell Street, titled And This Is Free; performances by Wrencher recorded in the process of making the film were eventually issued on the three CD set And This Is Maxwell Street. During the 1960s he recorded for the Testament label backing Robert Nighthawk, and as part of the Chicago String Band. In 1969 he recorded for Barrelhouse Records
, backed by guitarist Little Buddy Thomas and drummer Playboy Vinson, who formed his Maxwell Street band of the time. The resulting album, Maxwell Street Alley Blues, was described as "superlative in every regard" by Cub Koda
at Allmusic.
Wrencher toured Europe with the Chicago Blues Festival in 1973 and with the American Blues Legends in 1974, and during the latter tour recorded an album in London for the Big Bear label, backed by guitarist Eddie Taylor
and his band.
During a trip to Mississippi to visit his family in July 1977, Wrencher died suddenly of a heart attack
in Wade Walton's barber shop in Clarksdale, Mississippi
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
player and singer, well known for playing on Maxwell Street Market
Maxwell Street
Maxwell Street is an east-west street in Chicago, Illinois that intersects with Halsted Street just south of Roosevelt Road. It runs at 1330 South in the numbering system running from 500 West to 1126 West. The Maxwell Street neighborhood is considered part of the Near West Side and is one of the...
, Chicago in the 1960s, and who later toured Europe in the 1970s.
Biography
John Thomas Wrencher was born in Sunflower, MississippiSunflower, Mississippi
Sunflower is a town in Sunflower County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 696 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Sunflower is located at ....
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He became interested in music as a child, and taught himself to play harmonica at an early age, and from the early 1940s was working as an itinerant musician in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, and Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. By the mid 1940s he had arrived in Chicago and was playing on Maxwell Street and at house parties with Jimmy Rogers
Jimmy Rogers
Jimmy Rogers was an American Chicago blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player, best known for his work as a member of Muddy Waters' band of the 1950s.-Career:...
, Claude "Blue Smitty" Smith and John Henry Barbee
John Henry Barbee
John Henry Barbee was an American blues singer and guitarist. He was born William George Tucker in Henning, Tennessee, United States, and changed his name with the commencement of his recording career to reflect his favorite folk song, "The Ballad of John Henry".-Biography:Barbee toured in the...
. In the 1950s he moved to Detroit, where he worked with singer/guitarist Baby Boy Warren
Baby Boy Warren
Baby Boy Warren was an American blues singer and guitarist, who was a leading figure on the Detroit blues scene in the 1950s.-Early life:...
, and formed his own trio to work in the Detroit and Clarksdale, Mississippi
Clarksdale, Mississippi
Clarksdale is a city in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 20,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Coahoma County....
areas.
In 1958 Wrencher lost his left arm as a result of a car accident outside Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
. By the early 1960s he had settled in Chicago, where he became a fixture on Maxwell Street Market, in particular playing from 10am to 3pm on Sundays. In 1964 he appeared in a documentary film about Maxwell Street, titled And This Is Free; performances by Wrencher recorded in the process of making the film were eventually issued on the three CD set And This Is Maxwell Street. During the 1960s he recorded for the Testament label backing Robert Nighthawk, and as part of the Chicago String Band. In 1969 he recorded for Barrelhouse Records
Barrelhouse Records
Barrelhouse Records was an American blues and rockabilly record label, set up in 1969 by George Paulus.Its roster included musicians as varied as Washboard Willie, Big John Wrencher, Charlie Feathers, Harmonica Frank, Sleepy John Estes, Johnny "Man" Young, Blind Joe Hill, Joe Carter, Robert...
, backed by guitarist Little Buddy Thomas and drummer Playboy Vinson, who formed his Maxwell Street band of the time. The resulting album, Maxwell Street Alley Blues, was described as "superlative in every regard" by Cub Koda
Cub Koda
Michael "Cub" Koda was an American rock and roll singer, guitarist, songwriter, disc jockey, music critic, and record compiler. Rolling Stone magazine felt that Koda was best known for writing the song "Smokin' in the Boys' Room", which reached #3 on the 1974 Billboard charts as performed by...
at Allmusic.
Wrencher toured Europe with the Chicago Blues Festival in 1973 and with the American Blues Legends in 1974, and during the latter tour recorded an album in London for the Big Bear label, backed by guitarist Eddie Taylor
Eddie Taylor
Eddie Taylor was an American electric blues guitarist and singer.-Biography:Born Edward Taylor in Benoit, Mississippi, United States, as a boy Taylor taught himself to play the guitar. He spent his early years playing at venues around Leland, Mississippi, where he taught his friend Jimmy Reed to...
and his band.
During a trip to Mississippi to visit his family in July 1977, Wrencher died suddenly of a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in Wade Walton's barber shop in Clarksdale, Mississippi
Clarksdale, Mississippi
Clarksdale is a city in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 20,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Coahoma County....
.