Editing Skip James (section)

==Biography==
===Early years===
Nehemiah Curtis James was born on June 9, 1902, in a [[Racial segregation in the United States|segregated]] hospital near [[Bentonia, Mississippi]].<ref name="Calt"/> His mother Phyllis worked as a cook and babysitter on the Woodbine Plantation, which was 15 miles south of [[Yazoo City]]. His father Eddie James, a [[rum-running|bootlegger]] who was described as a "local lowlife" by [[Stephen Calt]], left the family around 1907. He later reformed and became a preacher.  As a youth, James heard local musicians, such as Henry Stuckey, from whom he learned to play the guitar, and the brothers Charlie and Jesse Sims. His mother bought him a $2.50 guitar, which was his first instrument. James later began playing the organ in his teens. He later left Bentonia in 1919, and began working on road construction and [[levee]]-building crews in Mississippi in the early 1920s, and wrote what is perhaps his earliest song, "Illinois Blues", about his experiences as a laborer. He began playing the guitar in [[D Minor|open D-minor tuning]].<ref name="Calt"/>

===1920s and 1930s===
For most of the 1920s, James worked a series of illicit jobs, such as bootlegging, [[gambling]], and [[Procuring (prostitution)|procuring]]. His lifestyle was reportedly so "unbridled", that when he returned to Bentonia from [[Dallas, Texas]], in 1929, he was met with local reports of his supposed "violent death". He was met with the same reports five years earlier when he returned from [[Arkansas]]. That same year, in 1929, he met a local musician named [[Johnny Temple (musician)|Johnny Temple]], who became his first protégé. The 23 year old Temple learned how to play in cross-note tuning, which was then unknown to musicians who were from the [[Jackson, Mississippi|Jackson]] area, and also attempted to copy James' high falsetto voice, until he advised Temple to sing in his natural voice.<ref name="I'd Rather Be the Devil: Skip James and the Blues">{{cite book |last1=Calt |first1=Stephen |title=I'd Rather Be the Devil: Skip James and the Blues |date=August 21, 1994 |publisher=Chicago Review Press |isbn=1569769982|page=122 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2C3lConF2NwC&q=murderous+music+cat |access-date=September 4, 2022}}</ref> James also operated a music school for would-be blues musicians in Jackson, giving lessons on guitar, piano, and even [[violin]].<ref name="I'd Rather Be the Devil: Skip James and the Blues 2">{{cite book |last1=Calt |first1=Stephen |title=I'd Rather Be the Devil: Skip James and the Blues |date=August 21, 1994 |publisher=Chicago Review Press |isbn=1569769982|page=124 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2C3lConF2NwC&q=murderous+music+cat |access-date=September 4, 2022}}</ref>

James continued working locally as a street singer. In early 1931, James auditioned for the record shop owner and talent scout [[H. C. Speir]] in Jackson, Mississippi. Speir placed blues performers with various record labels, including [[Paramount Records]].<ref name="russell">{{cite book
| first= Tony
| last= Russell
| year= 1997
| title= The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray
| publisher=Carlton Books
| location= Dubai
| page= 123
| isbn= 1-85868-255-X}}</ref> On the strength of this audition, James traveled to [[Grafton, Wisconsin]], to record for Paramount.<ref name="russell"/> His 1931 records are considered idiosyncratic among [[World War II|prewar]] blues recordings and formed the basis of his reputation as a musician.

As was typical of his era, James recorded various styles of music – blues, [[Spiritual (music)|spirituals]], cover versions, and original compositions – frequently blurring the lines between genres and sources. For example, "[[I'm So Glad]]" was derived from a 1927 song, "So Tired", by Art Sizemore and George A. Little, recorded in 1928 by [[Gene Austin]] and by [[Lonnie Johnson (musician)|Lonnie Johnson]] (Johnson's version was entitled "I'm So Tired of Livin' All Alone"). James's biographer [[Stephen Calt]], echoing the opinion of several [[music journalism|music critics]], considered the finished product totally original, "one of the most extraordinary examples of fingerpicking found in guitar music".<ref name="Calt" /> Several other recordings from the Grafton session, such as "Hard Time Killing Floor Blues", "Devil Got My Woman", "Jesus Is a Mighty Good Leader", and "22-20 Blues" (the basis of [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]]'s better-known "[[32-20 Blues]]"),<ref>{{cite book|title=Deep Blues|author=Palmer, Robert|author-link=Robert Palmer (American writer)|isbn=978-0-14-006223-6|page=[https://archive.org/details/deepblues00palm/page/116 116]|date=1982|publisher=[[Penguin Books]]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/deepblues00palm/page/116}}</ref> have been similarly influential. Very few original copies of James's Paramount [[78 rpm record]]s have survived.

The Great Depression struck just as James's recordings were hitting the market. Sales were poor as a result, and he gave up performing the blues to become the choir director in his father's church.<ref name="russell"/> James was later an ordained minister in [[Baptist]] and [[Methodist]] churches, but the extent of his involvement in religious activities is unknown.<ref name="russell"/>

=== Rediscovery and legacy ===

For the next thirty-three years, James made no known recordings and performed sporadically. He was virtually unknown to the general public until about 1960. Blues singer and guitarist [[Big Joe Williams]] believed that James had already passed, having been murdered in Mississippi.<ref name="I'd Rather Be the Devil: Skip James and the Blues 3">{{cite book |last1=Calt |first1=Stephen |title=I'd Rather Be the Devil: Skip James and the Blues |date=August 21, 1994 |publisher=Chicago Review Press |isbn=1569769982 |page=12 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2C3lConF2NwC&q=murdered+in+mississippi |access-date=September 4, 2022}}</ref> In 1964, blues enthusiasts [[John Fahey (musician)|John Fahey]], [[Bill Barth]], and [[Henry Vestine]] found him in a hospital in [[Tunica, Mississippi]].<ref name="LarkinBlues">{{cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Guinness Who's Who of Blues]]|editor=[[Colin Larkin (writer)|Colin Larkin]]|publisher=[[Guinness Publishing]]|date=1995|edition=Second|isbn=0-85112-673-1|page=197/9}}</ref> According to Calt, the "rediscovery" of both James and [[Son House]] at virtually the same time was the start of the [[blues revival]] in the United States.<ref name="Calt">{{cite book| last = Calt | first = Stephen | title = I'd Rather Be the Devil: Skip James and the Blues| url = https://archive.org/details/idratherbedevils00calt | url-access = limited | publisher = [[Da Capo Press]]| year = 1994| page =[https://archive.org/details/idratherbedevils00calt/page/88 88]| isbn = 978-0-306-80579-0}}</ref>

In July 1964, James and other rediscovered musicians appeared at the [[Newport Folk Festival]].<ref name="russell"/> Several photographs by the blues promoter [[Dick Waterman]] captured this performance, James's first in over 30 years. James subsequently recorded for [[Takoma Records]], [[Melodeon Records]], and [[Vanguard Records]] and performed at various engagements until his death from cancer on October 3, 1969, in [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]], at the age of 67.<ref name="russell"/><ref>{{cite web | title=Nehemiah Skip James: Mississippi Blues Musician | website=Mississippi Writers, Musicians, Actors, and Artists | date=1902-06-09 | url=https://www.mswritersandmusicians.com/mississippi-musicians/skip-james | access-date=2019-09-10}}</ref>

More of James's recordings have been available since his death than were available during his lifetime. His 1931 recordings and several of his recordings and concerts from the 1960s have been reissued on numerous compact discs, in and out of print. His songs were not initially recorded as frequently as those of other rediscovered blues musicians.  However, the British rock band [[Cream (band)|Cream]] recorded "I'm So Glad",<ref name=latimes/> providing James with $10,000 in royalties, the only windfall of his career.<ref name="AMG"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.musicianguide.com/biographies/1608002248/Skip-James.html |title=Skip James Biography |author=<!--Not stated--> |access-date=10 September 2019 }}</ref> Subsequently, Cream's adaptation was recorded by other groups.  James' "22-20" inspired the name of the English group [[22-20s]]. The British post-rock band [[Hope of the States]] released a song partially about the life of James, entitled "Nehemiah", which reached number 30 on the [[UK Singles Chart]].<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums">{{cite book
| first= David
| last= Roberts
| year= 2006
| title= British Hit Singles & Albums
| edition= 19th
| publisher= Guinness World Records
| location= London
| page= 259
| isbn= 1-904994-10-5}}</ref>  Only 15 copies of James' original shellac 78 recordings are still in existence, and have become extremely sought after by collectors such as John Tefteller.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/12/arts/music/12petr.html |title=They've Got Those Old, Hard-to-Find Blues |first=Amanda |last=Petrusich |date=July 8, 2009 |website=NY Times |access-date=October 14, 2020}}</ref>

In 2004, [[Wim Wenders]] directed the film ''[[The Soul of a Man]]'' (the second part of ''[[The Blues (film)|The Blues]]'', a series produced by [[Martin Scorsese]]), focusing on the music of [[Blind Willie Johnson]], [[J.B. Lenoir]] and James.<ref name="festival-cannes.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/4075488/year/2003.html |title=Festival de Cannes: The Soul of a Man |access-date= March 20, 2015|website=Festival-cannes.com}}</ref> Because James had not been filmed before the 1960s, Keith B. Brown played the part of the young James in the documentary.  James' song "Hard Time Killing Floor Blues" was featured in the 2000 film ''[[O Brother, Where Art Thou?]]'' and included on the [[O Brother, Where Art Thou? (soundtrack)|soundtrack album]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/o-brother-where-art-thou-original-soundtrack-mw0000106868|title=''O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' [Original Soundtrack] – Various Artists|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=June 7, 2019|last=Cater|first=Evan}}</ref>

James was the inspiration for [[Dion DiMucci|Dion]]'s 2007 blues album, ''[[Son of Skip James]]'', which peaked at No. 4.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/dion/|title=Dion|website=Billboard.com|access-date=August 14, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17680145|title = 'The Wanderer' Has Got the Blues|newspaper=NPR.org|date=December 29, 2007}}</ref>

James was honored with a marker on the [[Mississippi Blues Trail]] in [[Bentonia, Mississippi|Bentonia]], his hometown.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://msbluestrail.org/blues-trail-markers/skip-james|title=Skip James|website=Mississippi Blues Trail}}</ref>

In 2020, James' song "Devil Got My Woman" was added to the [[Grammy Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Blistein |first=Jon |date=2020-01-21 |title= Elton John, Public Enemy, Joni Mitchell Recordings Added to Grammy Hall of Fame|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/elton-john-public-enemy-joni-mitchell-recordings-grammy-hall-of-fame-2020-induction-937561/ |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |access-date=2020-08-17 }}</ref>

===Personality===
James was described as aloof and moody.<ref name=dahl>Dahl, Bill (1997). Liner notes to ''D.C. Blues: The Library of Congress Recordings, Vol. 1''. [[Fuel 2000 Records]].</ref> The musicologist [[Richard K. Spottswood|Dick Spottswood]] commented, "Skip James, you never knew. Skip could be sunshine, or thunder and lightning depending on his whim of the moment".<ref name=dahl/>