Big Joe Williams

Joseph Lee Williams (October 16, 1903 – December 17, 1982) was an American Delta blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter, notable for the distinctive sound of his nine-string guitar. Performing over five decades, he recorded the songs "Baby, Please Don't Go", "Crawlin' King Snake", and "Peach Orchard Mama", among many others, for various record labels. He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame on October 4, 1992.

The blues historian Barry Lee Pearson (Sounds Good to Me: The Bluesman's Story, Virginia Piedmont Blues) described Williams's performance:

When I saw him playing at Mike Bloomfield's "blues night" at the Fickle Pickle, Williams was playing an electric nine-string guitar through a small ramshackle amp with a pie plate nailed to it and a beer can dangling against that. When he played, everything rattled but Big Joe himself. The total effect of this incredible apparatus produced the most buzzing, sizzling, African-sounding music I have ever heard.

Birth and Death Data: Born Crawford (town in Lowndes County, Mississippi), Died December 17, 1982 (Macon (city in Mississippi, United States of America) )

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1935 - 1947

Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, guitar, composer, lyricist, leader

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 60 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor BS-85479 10-in. 2/25/1935 Sloppy drunk again Walter Davis Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with 2 guitars and piano instrumentalist, guitar  
Victor BS-85480 10-in. 2/25/1935 Travelin' this lonesome road Walter Davis Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with 2 guitars and piano instrumentalist, guitar  
Victor BS-85481 10-in. 2/25/1935 Sad and lonesome blues Walter Davis Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with 2 guitars and piano instrumentalist, guitar  
Victor BS-85482 10-in. 2/25/1935 Minute man Walter Davis Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars and piano instrumentalist, guitar  
Victor BS-85483 10-in. 2/25/1935 Minute man Walter Davis Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars and piano instrumentalist, guitar  
Victor BS-85484 10-in. 2/25/1935 Sweet sixteen Walter Davis Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars and piano instrumentalist, guitar  
Victor BS-85485 10-in. 2/25/1935 Wonder where my baby's gone Walter Davis Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars and piano instrumentalist, guitar  
Victor BS-85487 10-in. 2/25/1935 Little leg woman Big Joe Williams Male vocal solo, with guitar vocalist, composer, lyricist  
Victor BS-85488 10-in. 2/25/1935 Somebody been borrowing that stuff Big Joe Williams Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars vocalist, composer, lyricist  
Victor BS-85489 10-in. 2/25/1935 Providence help the poor people Big Joe Williams Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars vocalist, composer, lyricist  
Victor BS-85490 10-in. 2/25/1935 49 Highway blues Big Joe Williams Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars vocalist, composer, lyricist  
Victor BS-85491 10-in. 2/25/1935 My grey pony Big Joe Williams Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars vocalist, composer, lyricist  
Victor BS-85492 10-in. 2/25/1935 Stepfather blues Big Joe Williams Male vocal solo, with 2 guitars vocalist, lyricist, composer  
Victor BS-85520 10-in. 2/26/1935 The spasm Daddy Stovepipe ; Mississippi Sarah Female-male vocal duet, with guitar, harmonica, and jug composer, lyricist  
Victor BS-85532 10-in. 2/27/1935 Milk cow blues Amos Male vocal solo, with guitar and piano composer  
Victor BS-96244 10-in. 10/31/1935 Baby, please don't go Joe Williams’ Washboard Blues Singers Male vocal solo, with instrumental trio leader, composer, lyricist, instrumentalist, guitar, vocalist  
Victor BS-96245 10-in. 10/31/1935 Stack o' dollars Joe Williams’ Washboard Blues Singers Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with instrumental trio instrumentalist, guitar, vocalist, composer, lyricist, leader  
Victor BS-96246 10-in. 10/31/1935 Wild cow blues Joe Williams’ Washboard Blues Singers Male vocal solo, with instrumental trio vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar, composer, lyricist, leader  
Victor BS-96247 10-in. 10/31/1935 Worried man blues Joe Williams’ Washboard Blues Singers Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with instrumental trio vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar, composer, lyricist, leader  
Victor BS-07661 10-in. 5/5/1937 I know you gonna miss me Big Joe Male vocal solo, with harmonica and 2 guitars vocalist, composer  
Victor BS-07662 10-in. 5/5/1937 Rootin' ground hog Big Joe Male vocal solo, with harmonica and 2 guitars vocalist, composer  
Victor BS-07663 10-in. 5/5/1937 Brother James Big Joe Male vocal solo, with harmonica and 2 guitars vocalist, composer  
Victor BS-07664 10-in. 5/5/1937 I won't be in hard luck no more Big Joe Male vocal solo, with harmonica and 2 guitars vocalist, composer  
Victor BS-053590 10-in. 10/30/1940 Beer drinking woman Memphis Slim Male vocal solo, with piano and cano composer  
Victor BS-053591 10-in. 10/30/1940 You didn't mean me no good Memphis Slim Male vocal solo, with piano and cano composer  
(Results 1-25 of 60 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Williams, Big Joe," accessed December 24, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103396.

Williams, Big Joe. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 24, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103396.

"Williams, Big Joe." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 24 December 2025.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103396

External Sources

Wikipedia: Big Joe Williams

Discogs: Big Joe Williams

Allmusic: Big Joe Williams

IMDb: Big Joe Williams

Linked Open Data Sources

LCNAR: Williams, Big Joe, 1903-1982 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n81140140

Wikidata: Big Joe Williams - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q519289

VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/44487527

MusicBrainz: Big Joe Williams - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/bf295ac0-21e8-4e11-89e9-22b10fd8973a

Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/83280 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/83280

Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license

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