Henry Qualls (July 8, 1934 – December 7, 2003)[1] was an American Texas and country blues guitarist and singer. He found success late in his life after being "discovered" in 1993 by the Dallas Blues Society.[1][2][3] He released his only album in 1994 but toured globally playing at a number of festivals.
The Dallas Observer noted that "Qualls, whether unearthing obscurities from Jimmy Reed or Lowell Fulson or Blind Willie Johnson or bearing down upon his own material, is a purist's dream-come-true, attacking his 36 year-old guitar with a demon-fire ferociousness first heard in the playing of Son House and other blues masters long gone to hell."[3]
According to the researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc, Qualls was born John Henry Miles[4] in Elmo, Kaufman County, Texas, a small settlement forty miles east of Dallas.[3] He became known as Henry Lee Qualls as a child, after his mother married Scottie Moore Qualls.[4] He grew up in Cedar Grove, Texas, and later attended Wills Point High School. He learned the rudiments of the guitar, which he named Mabelene (variously Mabelline or Maybelline), from his grandmother. Qualls originally played gospel music at his local church.[5] In his youth, he was further instructed in guitar playing by Emmitt Williams, and he traveled to Dallas to watch Lightnin' Hopkins, Melvin "Lil' Son" Jackson, and Frankie Lee Sims in concert.[6]
In 1955 he married Ethel Mae Cooper, and together they had eleven children.[5] Qualls's own music career was mainly part-time, as he worked during the day ploughing fields around his lifelong home in Elmo, or else mowing lawns in Dallas.[1]Guitar Player magazine noted that Qualls's style often involved playing his guitar flat on his lap and using a Tabasco sauce bottle as a slide.[3] He also had a faltering style and erratic slide technique that AllMusic stated was "reminiscent of Willie "Smokey" Hogg, an artist who built a reputation on his incapacity to observe the formalities of 12-bar blues."[1] It was this slowly dying East Texas country blues sound that captured the attention of a senior from the Dallas Blues Society, when he first heard Qualls play outside his home. Qualls became a somewhat reluctant local star[1] and was amazed at the attention that was subsequently bestowed upon him.[3] Although almost sixty years old at the time, he was persuaded to record an album, Blues from Elmo, Texas, which was released in 1994. The collection included cover versions of songs written and originally performed by Hopkins and Jackson, plus Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup's "Death Valley Blues".[1] In addition it had Qualls's versions of such diverse songs as "Motherless Children", "I Shall Not Be Moved", the Newbeats' "Bread and Butter", and Lowell Fulson's "Reconsider Baby".[1] His work also appeared on the compilation albumsBlues Across America – The Dallas Scene and Texas Blues Guitar Summit.[3]
As a result of this exposure, Qualls performed at the Utrecht Blues Festival, where Juke Blues noted he was a surprise hit.[3] This led to engagements across Europe and the United States, including performances at the Long Beach Blues Festival (1996), the Chicago Blues Festival, and the King Biscuit Blues Festival. Despite this newfound success, Qualls continued to live in a house next to the Texas and Pacific Railway line in Elmo. He occasionally performed in Deep Ellum and Fort Worth, but generally he hated the urban environment. His rapid rise to fame is chronicled in the book In Search of the Blues: A Journey to the Soul of Black Texas.[7]
On December 7, 2003, Qualls died in a hospital in Dallas of complications from intestinal surgery, at the age of 69. He was buried in Fairview Cemetery in Elmo. He was survived by his wife, Ethel, and nine children.[5]
^Minutaglio, Bill (March 2010). In Search of the Blues: A Journey to the Soul of Black Texas. University of Texas Press. pp. 138–140. ISBN9780292778566. Retrieved 2017-01-10.
^"Henry Qualls, Blues from Elmo, Texas: Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.com. 1995-11-22. Retrieved 2017-01-10.
April 11, 2024
henry, qualls, july, 1934, december, 2003, american, texas, country, blues, guitarist, singer, found, success, late, life, after, being, discovered, 1993, dallas, blues, society, released, only, album, 1994, toured, globally, playing, number, festivals, birth,. Henry Qualls July 8 1934 December 7 2003 1 was an American Texas and country blues guitarist and singer He found success late in his life after being discovered in 1993 by the Dallas Blues Society 1 2 3 He released his only album in 1994 but toured globally playing at a number of festivals Henry QuallsBirth nameJohn Henry MilesAlso known asHenry Lee QuallsBorn 1934 07 08 July 8 1934Elmo Kaufman County Texas United StatesDiedDecember 7 2003 2003 12 07 aged 69 Dallas Texas United StatesGenresTexas blues country bluesOccupation s Musician singer songwriterInstrument s Guitar vocalsYears active1950s 2003LabelsDallas Blues Society The Dallas Observer noted that Qualls whether unearthing obscurities from Jimmy Reed or Lowell Fulson or Blind Willie Johnson or bearing down upon his own material is a purist s dream come true attacking his 36 year old guitar with a demon fire ferociousness first heard in the playing of Son House and other blues masters long gone to hell 3 Contents 1 Life and career 2 Discography 3 See also 4 ReferencesLife and career editAccording to the researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc Qualls was born John Henry Miles 4 in Elmo Kaufman County Texas a small settlement forty miles east of Dallas 3 He became known as Henry Lee Qualls as a child after his mother married Scottie Moore Qualls 4 He grew up in Cedar Grove Texas and later attended Wills Point High School He learned the rudiments of the guitar which he named Mabelene variously Mabelline or Maybelline from his grandmother Qualls originally played gospel music at his local church 5 In his youth he was further instructed in guitar playing by Emmitt Williams and he traveled to Dallas to watch Lightnin Hopkins Melvin Lil Son Jackson and Frankie Lee Sims in concert 6 In 1955 he married Ethel Mae Cooper and together they had eleven children 5 Qualls s own music career was mainly part time as he worked during the day ploughing fields around his lifelong home in Elmo or else mowing lawns in Dallas 1 Guitar Player magazine noted that Qualls s style often involved playing his guitar flat on his lap and using a Tabasco sauce bottle as a slide 3 He also had a faltering style and erratic slide technique that AllMusic stated was reminiscent of Willie Smokey Hogg an artist who built a reputation on his incapacity to observe the formalities of 12 bar blues 1 It was this slowly dying East Texas country blues sound that captured the attention of a senior from the Dallas Blues Society when he first heard Qualls play outside his home Qualls became a somewhat reluctant local star 1 and was amazed at the attention that was subsequently bestowed upon him 3 Although almost sixty years old at the time he was persuaded to record an album Blues from Elmo Texas which was released in 1994 The collection included cover versions of songs written and originally performed by Hopkins and Jackson plus Arthur Big Boy Crudup s Death Valley Blues 1 In addition it had Qualls s versions of such diverse songs as Motherless Children I Shall Not Be Moved the Newbeats Bread and Butter and Lowell Fulson s Reconsider Baby 1 His work also appeared on the compilation albums Blues Across America The Dallas Scene and Texas Blues Guitar Summit 3 As a result of this exposure Qualls performed at the Utrecht Blues Festival where Juke Blues noted he was a surprise hit 3 This led to engagements across Europe and the United States including performances at the Long Beach Blues Festival 1996 the Chicago Blues Festival and the King Biscuit Blues Festival Despite this newfound success Qualls continued to live in a house next to the Texas and Pacific Railway line in Elmo He occasionally performed in Deep Ellum and Fort Worth but generally he hated the urban environment His rapid rise to fame is chronicled in the book In Search of the Blues A Journey to the Soul of Black Texas 7 On December 7 2003 Qualls died in a hospital in Dallas of complications from intestinal surgery at the age of 69 He was buried in Fairview Cemetery in Elmo He was survived by his wife Ethel and nine children 5 Discography editYear Title Record label1994 Blues from Elmo Texas Dallas Blues Society 8 See also editList of country blues musicians List of Texas blues musiciansReferences edit a b c d e f g Henry Qualls Biography AllMusic com Retrieved 2017 01 10 Christensen Thor Henry Qualls East Texas Country Blues Singer Found Success Late in Life Dallas Morning News a b c d e f g Henry Lee Qualls 1934 2003 Findagrave com Retrieved 2017 01 10 a b Eagle Bob LeBlanc Eric S 2013 Blues A Regional Experience Santa Barbara California Praeger p 296 ISBN 978 0313344237 a b c Henry Qualls Obituary Legacy com Dallas Morning News Retrieved 2017 01 10 Colin Larkin ed 1995 The Guinness Who s Who of Blues Second ed Guinness Publishing p 297 ISBN 0 85112 673 1 Minutaglio Bill March 2010 In Search of the Blues A Journey to the Soul of Black Texas University of Texas Press pp 138 140 ISBN 9780292778566 Retrieved 2017 01 10 Henry Qualls Blues from Elmo Texas Songs Reviews Credits AllMusic com 1995 11 22 Retrieved 2017 01 10 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Henry Qualls amp oldid 1208496382, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
