Bman's Blues Report

Henry 'Mule' Townsend (October 27, 1909 – September 24, 2006) was an American blues singer, guitarist and pianist Townsend was born in Shelby, Mississippi and grew up in Cairo, Illinois. He left home at the age of nine because of an abusive father and hoboed his way to St. Louis, Missouri. He learned guitar while in his early teens from a locally renowned blues guitarist known as "Dudlow Joe". By the late 1920s he had begun touring and recording with pianist Walter Davis, and had acquired the nickname "Mule" because he was sturdy in both physique and character. In St. Louis, he worked with some of the early blues pioneers, including J.D. Short. Townsend was one of the only artists known to have recorded in nine consecutive decades (starting in the 1920s). He has recorded on several different labels including Columbia and Folkways Records. He first recorded in 1929 and remained active up to 2006. By the mid 1990s, Townsend and his one-time collaborat...