(William Bunch)
DISCOGRAPHY 1987-2003 (13CD)
BIOGRAPHY
William Bunch was the son of James Bunch and Mary (Burns) Bunch. It has
been reported that he was born in Ripley, Tennessee, but it was widely
believed that he came from Arkansas. After his death, his body was shipped
to Cotton Plant, Arkansas, for burial, and the blues musician Big Joe
Williams stated that this was his hometown.
The earliest biographical facts come from the musicians Henry Townsend
and Teddy Darby, who remember Wheatstraw moving to East St. Louis,
Illinois, in the late 1920s. He was already a proficient guitarist but a
limited pianist. He often performed at a club called Lovejoy in the East
St. Louis area and at a juke joint over a barbershop on West Biddle
Street.[5] By the time Sunnyland Slim moved to St. Louis in the early
1930s, Wheatstraw was one of the most popular singers there, with an
admired idiosyncratic piano style.
Wheatstraw began recording in 1930 and was so popular that he continued to
record through the Great Depression, when the number of blues records
issued was drastically reduced. The blues musician Charlie Jordan
introduced Wheatstraw to recording, setting him up with both Vocalion
Records and Decca Records.
He recorded "Tennessee Peaches Blues" in a duet with an artist called
Neckbones, in August 1930. Following this first recording, Wheatstraw was
especially prolific, recording 21 songs in two years, including solos like
"Don't Feel Welcome Blues," "Strange Man Blues," "School Days," and "So
Soon". He made no records between March 1932 and March 1934, a period in
which he perfected his mature style.
For the rest of his life, he was one of the most recorded blues singers
and accompanists. His total output of 161 recorded songs was surpassed by
only four prewar blues artists: Tampa Red, Big Bill Broonzy, Lonnie
Johnson and Bumble Bee Slim (Amos Easton). In the clubs of St. Louis and
East St. Louis his popularity was outstanding, rivalled only by that of
Walter Davis. Despite references to his touring, there is little evidence
that he worked outside these cities, except to make records......