Cecil Augusta
Encyclopedia
Cecil Augusta is an American
Delta blues
singer and guitarist
, recorded by Alan Lomax
in Memphis
, Tennessee
in 1959.
Augusta recorded a single track, "Stop All The Buses" before leaving. This recording was entirely neglected until its release on Alan Lomax: The Blues Songbook, a 2003 release. Musicologist David Evans described him as "The perfect example of an artist who shows up at a field recording session and leaves before anyone realizes how good he was"; and noted his unique acoustic guitar
technique, which included many features which would later become integral to electric blues
playing.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Delta blues
Delta blues
The Delta blues is one of the earliest styles of blues music. It originated in the Mississippi Delta, a region of the United States that stretches from Memphis, Tennessee in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi in the south, Helena, Arkansas in the west to the Yazoo River on the east. The...
singer and guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, recorded by Alan Lomax
Alan Lomax
Alan Lomax was an American folklorist and ethnomusicologist. He was one of the great field collectors of folk music of the 20th century, recording thousands of songs in the United States, Great Britain, Ireland, the Caribbean, Italy, and Spain.In his later career, Lomax advanced his theories of...
in Memphis
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....
, 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...
in 1959.
Augusta recorded a single track, "Stop All The Buses" before leaving. This recording was entirely neglected until its release on Alan Lomax: The Blues Songbook, a 2003 release. Musicologist David Evans described him as "The perfect example of an artist who shows up at a field recording session and leaves before anyone realizes how good he was"; and noted his unique acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
technique, which included many features which would later become integral to electric blues
Electric blues
Electric blues is a type of blues music distinguished by the amplification of the guitar, bass guitar, drums, and often the harmonica. Pioneered in the 1930s, it emerged as a genre in Chicago in the 1940s. It was taken up in many areas of America leading to the development of regional subgenres...
playing.