Joshua Barnes Howell, known as Peg Leg Howell

Joshua Barnes Howell, known as Peg Leg Howell (March 5, 1888 - August 11, 1966), was an African American

blues singer and guitarist, who connected early country blues and the later 12-bar style. He had the strong

He was born on a farm in Eatonton, Georgia, and taught himself guitar at the age of 21. Over time he

became skilled in pre-Piedmont finger picking and slide guitar techniques. He continued working on the farm

until he was shot in a fight, as a result of which he lost his right leg and began working full-time as a

musician. In 1923 he moved to Atlanta, Georgia and began playing on street corners, but also served a

period in prison for bootlegging liquor.

In 1926, he was heard playing on the streets of Atlanta and was recorded for the first time by Columbia

Records. They released "New Prison Blues", written whilst in prison and the first country blues to be issued

on the label. Over the next three years Columbia recorded him on several occasions, often accompanied by a

small group including Henry Williams on guitar and Eddie Anthony on fiddle. His recorded repertoire covered

ballads, ragtime, and jazz, as well as blues. Anthony's vigorous dance playing gives us a rare view of the

black string-band music that was almost obliterated by the craze for recording blues guitarists.

Howell continued to play around the Atlanta area for several years, but also began selling bootleg liquor

again. After the mid 1930s he only performed occasionally and, in 1952, his left leg was removed as a result

of diabetes, confining him to a wheelchair. A single track by Howell was issued on The Country Blues in 1959,

and in 1963 he was "rediscovered" in dire poverty in Atlanta by folklorist and field researcher George Mitchell

and his high-school class-mate, Roger Brown. They recorded Howell at the age of 75 with the results issued

on LP by Testament Records thirty-four years after his last recorded sessions, one of Mitchell's first field-recording sessions in his long career. He

died in Atlanta in 1966. delivery and ear-catching repertoire of the professional street-singer.

broke and hungry blues........ Peg Leg Howell

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Peg Leg Howell(aka Joshua Barnes Howell)