David Lonzo Thompson (May 21, 1969 – February 14, 2010)[1] was an American electric blues guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known by his stage name Lil' Dave Thompson.[2] He is best known for his tracks "She Didn't Say Goodbye" and "I Got the Blues".[1]
Lil' Dave Thompson | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | David Lonzo Thompson[1] |
| Also known as | David Thompson, Little Dave, Dave Thompson |
| Born | May 21, 1969 Jackson, Mississippi, United States[1] |
| Died | February 14, 2010 (aged 40) Aiken County, South Carolina, United States[1] |
| Genres | Electric blues[2] |
| Occupation(s) | Guitarist, singer, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, vocals |
| Years active | 1980s–2010 |
| Labels | Fat Possum, JSP, Electro-Fi |
Life and career
editDavid Lonzo Thompson was born in Jackson, Mississippi, United States.[2] His father, Sam Thompson, had played the blues with Asie Payton, Paul "Wine" Jones, and James "Son" Thomas among others.[3] With his encouragement, Thompson learned to play blues guitar by the age of nine, and he formed his first group, the Delta Blues Band, in Leland, Mississippi in his early teens.[1][3] He teamed up with Booba Barnes in 1984, and played the Mississippi juke joint circuit.[2][4]
He first recorded on I Got the Dog in Me (1994),[5] a Fat Possum Records release, providing guitar backing for David Malone, one of Junior Kimbrough's sons. Thompson's own debut record was Little Dave and Big Love (1995). It was also released by Fat Possum.[2] Little Dave and Big Love was produced by Robert Palmer,[6] and nominated for two W. C. Handy Awards in 1996 for 'Best New Blues Artist' and 'Contemporary Blues Album'.[3][7]
In 2002, Thompson released C'mon Down to the Delta on JSP Records. In 2006, Got to Get Over You appeared, issued by Electro-Fi Records, while Deep in the Night followed in 2008.[4] Regarding the latter, Down Beat magazine stated it was "Incendiary and feral, with a church choir hustle and a Mississippi hill country stomp".[8][9] Constant touring gave Thompson a growing loyal audience.[10][11]
In 2012, C'mon Down to the Delta was re-released.[12]
Death
editOn February 14, 2010, and following the last gig of their tour at Fiery Ron's Home Team BBQ in Sullivan's Island, South Carolina,[13] his entourage were driving back to Greenville, Mississippi,[10] when his band's touring Ford van overturned on Interstate 20 in Aiken County, South Carolina.[14] Thompson was thrown from the passenger seat and pronounced dead on arrival.[14][15] He was aged 40.[4] Thompson was buried in Indianola, Mississippi.[15]
Discography
edit| Year | Title | Record label |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Little Dave and Big Love | Fat Possum |
| 2002 | C'mon Down to the Delta | JSP |
| 2006 | Got to Get Over You | Electro-Fi |
| 2008 | Deep in the Night | Electro-Fi |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f "The Dead Rock Stars Club January to June 2010". Thedeadrockstarsclub.com. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ a b c d e Steve Huey. "Dave Thompson | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ a b c "Lil' Dave Thompson – Free listening, videos, concerts, stats and pictures at". Last.fm. 2013-11-26. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ a b c "Yahoo! Groups". Groups.yahoo.com. Archived from the original on August 5, 2014. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ "I Got the Dog in Me – David Malone | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ "Little Dave and Big Love – Dave Thompson | Credits". AllMusic. 1995-02-19. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ "TBH, 1996 Handy Awards". Thebluehighway.com. 1996-05-02. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ "Deep In The Night: Music". Amazon. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ "Rhythm & News" (PDF). Delmark.com. p. 6. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ a b "Blues Guitarist Lil' Dave Thompson, R.I.P". Blues.about.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-12. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ "RIP Lil' Dave Thompson". STLBlues. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ "Lil' Dave Thompson, C'mon Down to the Delta – Red Lick Records Review". Redlick.com. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ T. Ballard Lesemann (2010-02-15). "Blues artist Lil' Dave Thompson dies in accident | Pulse". Charleston City Paper. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ a b "Bluesman Lil' David Thompson Killed in Auto Accident | CHC Network". Crossharpchronicles.wordpress.com. 2010-02-16. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
- ^ a b LeBlanc, Eric S.; Eagle, Bob (2013). Blues: A Regional Experience (1st ed.). Santa Barbara, California, United States: Praeger. p. 236. ISBN 978-0-313-34423-7.
- ^ "Dave Thompson | Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-07-31.