Birthdate - October 8, 1955
Birthplace - Lexington MS
Died - November 8, 1998
He was born and raised about five miles outside of Lexington, a rural
Mississippi town not far from Clarksdale. Lonnie Pitchford is one of the
most versatile musicians you will ever hear. He's played one room jook
joints and Carnegie Hall. He is a carpenter by trade and he is good at
his work. He's built his own guitars and his own house. A guiet man who
never lets on he is a world famous musician; Lonnie can be seen around
Clarksdale wearing his carpentry belt and carrying on his trade.
Lonnie began making one string guitars as a child and taught himself to
play them. He often constructs one on stage and then proceeds to amaze
audiences with his abilitiy to get incredible sounds from it. He also
builds a one string guitar known as the Diddley Bow. He can get more
from his Diddley Bow than a lot of guitarist can get from their Strat.
In 1974 Lonnie became an over night wonder when the Smithsonian
discovered his ability to bring the material of the ledgendary Robert
Johnson to life. He was 17 years old and whisked off to Washington DC
to play at the National Folk Festival. He banged together his one
string guitar on stage at the festival and proceeded to teach the
audience about the Blues.
Lonnie is not limited to his Diddley Bow. He is equally at home with the
Strat. On his latest CD release "All Around Man" he plays acoustic
guitar, diddley bow, electric slide, lead, rhythm, bass, piano, and mouth
harmonica. Proving he is an all around musician.
For more information on Lonnie Pitchford read
Lonnie Pitchford by Jim O'Neal
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