Lightnin' Hopkins by Satchel Zabala-Beltre
BLUES FROM THE BOTTOM
“I always think of Third Ward as one of America’s great
neighborhoods. Within the community, we have the activism, culture,
cuisine, and the intellect. From the Shape Center, the Eldorado
Ballroom, Frenchy’s, Texas Southern University, it’s all here.
Growing up in a community like this amplifies a kind of Black pride
that was important for me to carry along on my journey to another
great American neighborhood, Harlem. I had the feeling that
everything I’d ever need was within 77004.
Within Third Ward is also the barrier of the bayou. There is
something about having a “river” swell and recede that though it is
not as historic as the Mississippi River, that relationship is firm
in the minds of every resident during a storm. Most of all, I think
Third Ward feels so special because it is filled with families that
have been there for generations. I have watched gentrification sink
its teeth into Third Ward, but we still hold our truths for the
neighborhood to keep the bones strong.
The architecture of Third Ward makes it feel like a village, from
the shotgun houses to the railroad and bike path that courses
through it. It is also the wild dogs on the street, and the fried
fish cooked on the corner. Third Ward is a village. I think enough
of life is heard on these streets that easily translates into the
music. From the howl of the train whistle to the barking dog, the
sound of the neighborhood is an orchestra unto itself. It’s still a
country part of a metropolis.”
- Jason Moran, 2021
What are the blues? A question as old as the genre
itself, the blues are hard to pinpoint. As Grammy-award winning
recording artist Van Hunt told me, “You could ask me this question
every day and every day I’d have a different answer; because the blues
are exactly what you need — when you need it.”
At the start of this project, I was on a quest to draw a linear
connection to seven different guitarists who were born, raised, or
lived in my native Third Ward, Houston, Texas: Sam “Lightnin’ Hopkins,
Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Albert Collins, Johnny “Guitar” Watson,
Joe “Guitar” Hughes, Johnny Clyde Copeland, and Marion “Little Joe”
Washington. These figures were each uniquely talented, troubled,
feared, and revered. The similarities among them could not simply be
boiled down to a single musical note, a guitar model, or the subject
matter of their lyrical compositions. They all strove to develop a
unique voice through their instrument. The competition was fierce, and
while influences were inescapable, they each understood that you
couldn’t be a carbon copy of the next guy.
Certainly, at times there was a sense of comradery among the
collective throughout their careers, but no one willingly accepted a
backseat.
LIGHTNIN'S TOWN
Drawing by Satchel Zabala-Beltre
Third Ward is not Houston’s oldest black community, but by the early
20th century it was the largest. The neighborhood featured a prominent
business district centered on Dowling Street (now Emancipation
Avenue). By the 1950’s, the Third Ward was known for live music.
Houston’s lack of zoning regulations fed this eclectic music scene. In
the neighborhood, bungalow houses or local shops bought cases of beer,
put them on ice, and operated as an evening juke joint. Lifelong Third
Ward resident Mary Bennett recalls, “Shady’s Playhouse. That’s where
they would all go play. They had a band just about every night.” Young
musicians in the neighborhood grew up in casual joints like Shady’s
Playhouse, Club Ebony, or Club Savoy, and often ended up playing
renowned upscale venues like the El Dorado Ballroom.
By the time Third Ward had developed a robust live music culture, one
man was already a local legend: Sam “Lightnin’” Hopkins. Born March
15, 1912, in Centerville, Texas, Lightnin’ Hopkins was the patriarch
of the blues guitar in Third Ward. Hopkins first moved to Houston in
the late 1930’s and made Houston his permanent home in 1946. Lightnin’
carried his Texas countryside ties to his new urban stomping ground.
He used this charming and rugged rural upbringing, endearing himself
to Houston until his death in 1982. Local accounts of Hopkins riding
the Houston city bus pre- desegregation and playing impromptu concerts
for riders fueled his legendary status. Few people were as beloved as
Lightnin’ in Third Ward. Houston blues historian Roger Wood said, “His
strong personality and his presence in the community created this kind
of potent mythos about what a bluesman was”. Lightnin’ Hopkins’
greatest influence on future Third Ward guitarists set the standard
for what a bluesman was supposed to be.
Despite his country roots, Lightnin’ did not have the appearance of a
Centerville-born sharecropper. Hopkins sported beautiful gold teeth,
jet black sunglasses, and a fedora perfectly cocked to the side. This
combination of genial countryman mixed with urban cool prevailed in
many of his recordings and performances. Lightnin’ rarely performed
the same song twice in the same way – often improvising lyrics as the
song went on. As jazz pianist and educator Jason Moran put it, “Texas
blues settles in. Lightnin’ settles into his stories in a way that
says “I ain’t leavin’.”
Lightnin’s iconic status nationally and in the Third Ward grew due to
the blues-folk revival of the 1950’s and 1960’s. Suddenly, Lightnin’
became an everyday fixture in the neighborhood, shooting dice in the
alley one day, and playing major gigs in Europe or Japan the next.
Roger Wood believes, “That’s a big part of Lightnin’s influence. He
showed these guys that that the old roots still had juice and there
was something still worth chewing on there.” Despite Lightnin’s career
renaissance, his old school style of fingerpicking took a backseat to
the newer sophisticated styles of jazz, R&B, and rock & roll music.
Ultimately, Lightnin’ represented the country days. Young musicians
growing up in Houston couldn’t understand much of the life that was
prevalent in Hopkins’ music. Wood continued, “Even when he’s playing
electric guitar, he’s still got something that you can’t just say it
and make it happen. It’s got to be real. He’s got the connection to
the battle days, the country days, the sharecropping days and what
preceded that.”
Younger local musicians gravitated to the cool, elegant, progressive
sound of T-Bone Walker. Lightnin’ died in 1982 in Houston and remains
one of the most celebrated bluesmen of all time.
Full story in print. Order here.
Dedicated to my grandmother: Margaret Elaine Lawson-Hutchins
Thanks to: Elneita Hutchins-Taylor, William Taylor III, Lawrence Battle, Mary Bennett, Zack Bastian, Imani Bordeaux, Colin Chambers, Julie Haines, Van Hunt, Jason Moran, Anthony “Fat Tony” Obi, Eddie Stout, Kellye Taylor, Royce Taylor, Sonny Boy Terry, Virginia Watson, Roger Wood, Satchel Zabala
ESSENTIAL THIRD WARD BLUES PLAYLIST
- 1. "Shotgun Blues" - Lightnin' Hopkins
- 2. "Space Guitar" - Johnny "Guitar" Watson
- 3. "Cold Strings" - Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown
- 4. "Frosty" - Albert Collins
- 5. "Someone Loves Me" - Little Joe Washington
- 6. "Houston" - Johnny Copeland
- 7. "Cuttin' In" - Johnny "Guitar" Watson
- 8. "Dirty Work at the Crossroad" - Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown
- 9. "The Freeze" - Albert Collins
- 10. "My Baby's Gone" - Lightnin’ Hopkins
- 11. "I Feel Alright" - Little Joe Washington
- 12. "If You Want to See the Blues" - Joe "Guitar" Hughes
- 13. "Three Hours Past Midnight" - Johnny "Guitar" Watson
- 14. "Bossa Nova and Grits" - Little Joe Washington