He calls himself one of Mississippi’s last true original bluesmen. And this true American original has the sound and story to back it up.
He goes by Super Chikan – go ahead, laugh at the absurdity of his name at first. But spend a little time with this ingenious guitarist and instrument maker, and a more profound picture emerges.
Rarely on The Checkout do we feature artists so directly connected with America’s brutal past, a troubled history that still echoes in these tumultuous times. Now may be the best time to spotlight an artist who has spent his whole life rooted in the Mississippi Delta, and survived the worst of the Jim Crow south.
"Slavery lasted all the way until 1963 as far as I’m concerned," he says, "because we were still sharecropping in '61 and '62."
Listen to the remarkable story of this prodigal artist who overcame the most extreme circumstances – supporting a massive family as a child cotton farmer – to becoming one of the most important musicians from the region.
The Checkout recorded Super Chikan with the Berklee Blues Explosion at the Griot Arts Café at the 14th annual Juke Joint Blues Festival in Clarksdale, Mississippi.
Music Mix: David Tallacksen
Producer: Simon Rentner
Production Assistance: Sarah Geledi & Molly Fichter
Super Chikan, guitar
David Linwood Stallworth, Music Director & Bass
Da’Dreion Murrell, vocals
Sebastion Robert Falvo, guitar
Byron Pickett, keys
Tyson Jackson, drums
