NONFICTION

Mojo Hand: The Life and Music of Lightnin' Hopkins

by David Ensminger
O'Brien, Timothy J. & . Univ. of Texas. Apr. 2013. 304p. photogs. index. ISBN 9780292745155. $29.95. MUSIC
COPY ISBN
Lightnin' Hopkins was a deeply influential blues musician whose career was filled with staggering highs and lows. After years of toil and a brief prison term in Texas, Hopkins found success in the late 1940s when he was in his 30s. His style of unaccompanied, straight-talking country blues, coupled with a conversational stage presence, led him through a vast recording career and countless live performances that are well documented here by the late O'Brien (history, Univ. of Houston) and Ensminger (Left of the Dial: Conversations with Punk Icons). Hopkins had rather unorthodox business practices for a musician—avoiding managers, agents, etc.—and the details of his career, filtered through a picture of the business at large, paints an interesting portrait of the blues and folk world from the 1940s through the 1980s.
VERDICT This is the second biography of Hopkins to appear in the last few years, joining Alan Govenar's 2010 Lightnin' Hopkins: His Life and Blues. While both books are thorough and well researched, this new release, though very informative, is slightly more academic and does not shed dramatic new light on the subject. Recommended only for dedicated fans.
Reviewed by Peter Thornell, Hingham P.L., MA , Apr 15, 2013
Comment Policy:
  • Be respectful, and do not attack the author, people mentioned in the article, or other commenters. Take on the idea, not the messenger.
  • Don't use obscene, profane, or vulgar language.
  • Stay on point. Comments that stray from the topic at hand may be deleted.
  • Comments may be republished in print, online, or other forms of media.
  • If you see something objectionable, please let us know. Once a comment has been flagged, a staff member will investigate.

RELATED 

NONFICTION

Putin and the Return of History: How the Kremlin Rekindled the Cold War
by Sixsmith, Martin
NONFICTION

Belonging Without Othering: How We Save Ourselves and the World
by Powell, John A. & Stephen Menendian
NONFICTION

Trippy: The Peril and Promise of Medicinal Psychedelics
by Londoño, Ernesto
NONFICTION

1217: The Battles That Saved England
by Hanley, Catherine
NONFICTION

The War That Made America: Essays Inspired by the Scholarship of Gary W. Gallagher
NONFICTION

A Deeper South: The Beauty, Mystery, and Sorrow of the Southern Road
by Candler, Pete
More
ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?