"One for the Road:" Pinetop Perkins

By Chuck Sudo in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 22, 2011 9:30PM

One of the last remaining Delta Blues musicians was called home yesterday with the passing of Joe Willie "Pinetop" Perkins, who died of a heart attack in Austin, TX.

A self-taught musician, Mr. Perkins was one of the musicians who helped define the Chicago Blues sound after he settled on the South Side during the Great Migration. His piano playing style meshed stride with blues licks and, even at the age of 97, his fingers could glide across a keyboard. Mr. Perkins didn't start recording under his own name until the 1980s and last month he became the oldest performer to win a Grammy award. Howard Reich's obituary of Mr. Perkins encapsulates his life very well, We'll let those whom he influenced tell the tale today.