Topic: James "Boodle It" Wiggins - Jesse James

[blueshome]

Been listening to a bit of James Wiggins recently and there seems to be a striking similarity between his voice and that of Jesse James - could they be one and the same?

[Prof Scratchy]

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=OGyWw-M5wFsC&pg=PA72&lpg=PA72&dq=jesse+james+cincinnati+blues&source=bl&ots=4hxke8GlUJ&sig=DLiA_kWHDdr8cy-mIA8ZdLwofdU&hl=en&sa=X&ei=Zko-VP7CNYvZarnygsAI&ved=0CEQQ6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=jesse%20james%20cincinnati%20blues&f=false

The above lengthy URL takes you to an excerpt from which I learned more about Jesse James than I'd previously known (albeit still not very much)! Use the arrows at the top of the page to progress through the excerpt.

Jeff Harris's excellent show notes here give an overview of what little is known about James Wiggins:http://sundayblues.org/archives/tag/james-boodle-it-wiggins

So, whilst there's no doubt that there is great similarity in the vocal styles of Jesse James and James Wiggins, they certainly seem to have been from different places, at least when recorded.

Both piano styles are rough and ready, although Jesse James gets the prize in my opinion. So on balance I'd say no, not the same person. But we'll never know, and I think you did well to spot the vocal and stylistic similarities on a brief listen. Maybe they were the same person, in which case you should definitely be awarded the Nobel Blues Brick!

[blueshome]

Maybe they are not the same, but listening to Wiggins' "Keep a Knocking" and the similarities in the voice are really close.