SONG OF THE DAY Abner Jay – My Middle Name is the Blues

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I was at a complete loss tonight for a song and then this little stunner presented itself to me and I was immediately smitten…this is something else!

Born in Fitzgerald, Georgia in 1921 Abner Jay was a multi-instrumentalist best known for performing eccentric, blues-infused folk.  Playing as a one-man band his idiosyncratic lyrics and style has been considered within the realm of outsider music.  As a child he was introduced to a vast repertoire of old-time folk songs by his banjo-playing grandfather and at the age of 5 Abner began playing in medicine shows.  In 1932 he joined the Silas Green (New Orleans) Minstrel Show and then went on to lead the WMAZ Minstrels on Macon radio from 1945-1956 before going solo. He then spent many years travelling the American South, playing concerts from his “converted mobile home that opened up into a portable stage, complete with amplification and home furnishings”.  These concerts, as evidenced in his recordings, were often equal parts spoken word (jokes, philosophical asides, rants) and music.

Abner Jay’s final recordings were documented on an album entitled Last Ole Minstrel Man which was released on Mississippi Records in 2011 and this is where today’s little bobby-dazzler comes from!! Check it out above.