A master of the twelve-string acoustic guitar, Blind Willie McTell possessed a fluid fingerpicking technique and a warm, expressive tenor voice that separated him from his rougher delta blues contemporaries. Expressing an expansive musical command that stretched far beyond standard country blues, McTell seamlessly integrated ragtime, spirituals, pop melodies, and hillbilly music into his rich repertoire. His brilliant instrumental precision and evocative songwriting left a permanent mark on American roots music, earning him a revered status among later rock and folk legends like Bob Dylan, who famously paid tribute to his singular genius.
Blind Willie McTell was a country blues singer/guitarist and probably the greatest performer of the Piedmont style of blues playing. He also played ragtime music. McTell was born blind as William Samuel McTier in Thomson, Georgia, in 1898.
McTell learned to read and write music from Braille and acquired a six-string guitar in his early teens. He was born into a musical family and is a relation of gospel music pioneer Thomas A. Dorsey. When his mother died during the twenties, the now parentless McTell began wandering the South. He wound up in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1927 and scored a recording contract with Victor Records. He would remain in Atlanta and record for several record companies.
Technical Catalog Spotlight: Atlanta Twelve String: Blues Originals Vol. 1 (1972)
This historic archive preserves a remarkable, relaxed 1940 field recording session captured by John A. Lomax for the Library of Congress. The stark acoustic production frames McTell performing solo with his iconic twelve-string Stella guitar, capturing a captivating mix of monologue storytelling, brilliant bottleneck slide work, and classic Piedmont blues phrasing.
- Released: 1972
- Label: Atlantic Records
- Producer: John A. Lomax
- Core Personnel: Blind Willie McTell (Vocals, Twelve-String Guitar)
- Key Tracks: Chainey, Delia, Dying Crapshooter's Blues
McTell’s best-known song is “Statesboro Blues,” which was recorded by the Allman Brothers Band. The White Stripes have recorded two of his tunes, “Southern Can Mama” and “Lord, Send Me an Angel.”
McTell’s albums, “Atlanta Twelve String:Blues Originals Vol. 1” (1972), “The Definitive Blind Willie McTell” (1994), and “King of Georgia Blues” (2007), are all essential listening.
Technical Catalog Spotlight: The Definitive Blind Willie McTell (1994)
A monumental double-CD retrospective that stands as the gold standard for his foundational pre-war commercial career. The pristine digital restorations cleanly preserve his historic late-1920s and 1930s recording dates for labels like Victor and Vocalion, highlighting his rapid fingerpicking synchronization and remarkable narrative range.
- Released: 1994
- Label: Legacy Recordings / Columbia Records
- Producer: Lawrence Cohn
- Core Personnel: Blind Willie McTell (Vocals, Guitar), Ruth Mary Willis (Vocals), Curley Weaver (Guitar)
- Key Tracks: Statesboro Blues, Southern Can Mama, Broke Down Engine Blues
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