Birth name James Founty Years active 1924–1972 Record label Gotham Records | Instruments Vocals, guitar Labels Gotham Records | |
Born August 31, 1907
Pike County, Alabama, United States ( 1907-08-31 ) Occupation(s) Singer, guitarist, songwriter Died 16 August 1967, Boaz, Alabama, United States Albums Dan Pickett & Tarheel Slim, Get on the Road to Glory Genres Country blues, Piedmont blues Similar Ralph Willis, Allen Bunn, Carolina Slim, Gabriel Brown, Ed Bell | ||
James Founty (August 31, 1907 – August 16, 1967), better known as Dan Pickett, was an American Piedmont blues and country blues singer, guitarist and songwriter. He only recorded fourteen tracks for Gotham Records in 1949, several of which were issued in more recent times. AllMusic noted that "Pickett had a distinctive rhythmic style and unique phrasing that makes his records compelling decades after his release".
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For many years, blues researchers had failed to firmly establish Dan Pickett's true identity. More recently, due to continuing diligence and discovery of a contact made regarding royalty payments, the elusive information duly emerged.
Biography
Pickett was born in Pike County, Alabama, United States. In 1949, Pickett traveled to Philadelphia, where he recorded fourteen songs. Gotham Records duly released ten of those sides as five 78rpm singles the same year. The other tracks, along with some alternate takes of those already issued, remained unreleased for decades. Unusually for the time, the recordings were made onto master tape, which subsequently meant that these were of a superior quality to most other recordings of that era. The songs Pickett used were mainly re-workings of tracks recorded in the 1930s. These included versions of Leroy Carr's "How Long", Buddy Moss's "Ride To A Funeral In A V-8", Blind Boy Fuller's "Let me Squeeze Your Lemons" (renamed as "Lemon Man" by Pickett), plus Pickett's only gospel music effort, "99 1/2 Won't Do".
By the 1960s, the recordings had gained a mythical status among record collectors, being deemed to be one of the best commercial country blues recordings in the post World War II era. Eventually a letter dated July 1950 from a James Founty to Charles R. Paul, an attorney, emerged with Founty claiming he had not been paid any royalties. Investigations at that time concluded that Founty's label had paid him for the recording session, and that any royalties were part of that single contractual arrangement. The connection to Dan Pickett was finally established, when it was also noted that he did not record more material under any name.
Some reviewers had previously speculated that Dan Pickett could have been Charlie Pickett, the Tennessee-based guitarist who recorded for Vocalion Records in 1937. There is no hard evidence of Pickett's life after his only recording session took place, other than the unearthed details concerning his real name, birth and death.
Dan Pickett died in Boaz, Alabama, United States, in August 1967, days short of his 60th birthday.
Selected discography
The following compilation album contains all of the songs issued on five single releases by Gotham Records in 1949, alternate takes of those efforts, plus four previously unreleased tracks.
Songs
Baby How Long
Ride To a Funeral In A V8
99 1/2 Won't Do