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Full name: John Cephas
Other names: "Bowling Green"
Born: September 4, 1930
Died: N/A
Instrument: Guitar (and vocals)
Biographical Sketch
John Cephas, born on September 4, 1930, in Washington
D.C., listened to blues music as a child
and soon learned to play guitar by ear. Growing up in Bowling Green, Virginia, Cephas was exposed to the blues style at age eight or nine by his aunt playing blues chords on a guitar. From there, he developed his own style, drawing inspiration from other musicians from the region including Blind Boy
Fuller, Buddy Moss, and some local white blues musicians. His delicate finger-picking style was influenced by other blues musicians from the region. His style is unique because it is so
soft creating a very soothing sound. Cephas and his self-taught harmonica playing partner Phil Wiggins were discovered by German producer Axel Kustner in 1979, which led to exposure in Europe and a European tour.
John Cephas has attracted the attention
of other blues musicians around the U.S. and world. Cephas and Wiggins
have released many recordings featuring excellent examples of Piedmont
blues that existed in the Washington D.C. and northern
Virginia in the earlier part of the 20th century.
Sound File
Cephas, John. "Black Rat Swing."
[Listen  ]
MP3 (Time: 3:43; Size: 1.5 MB) Recorded 17 September 1977.
From Virginia Traditions: Tidewater Blues. Global
Village CD 1006. Courtesy of the Blue
Ridge Institute and the Blue Ridge Heritage Archive,
Ferrum College.
Books
Bastin, Bruce. Red River Blues: The Blues Tradition in the
Southeast. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1986.
Harris, Sheldon. Blues Who's Who. DaCapo Press, 1979
Herzhaft, Gerard. Encyclopedia of the
Blues. Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press,
1992
Lornell, Kip. Virginia's Blues, Country & Gospel Records, 1902-1943: An Annotated
Discography. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1989.
Pearson, Barry Lee. Virginia Piedmont blues : the lives and art of two Virginia bluesmen.
Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1990.
Articles
Pearson, Barry. "Bowling Green John Cephas and Harmonica Phil Wiggins: D.C. Country Blues."
Living Blues 63 (January/February 1985): 14-20.
Beatty, Brian. "Cephas & Wiggins:
Somebody Told the Truth." Blues Revue 80 (February-March
2003): 45-46.
Johnson, Orville. "Blues Ambassador: Piedmont-style Guitarist John Cephas Travels the World Sowing the Seeds of the Blues."
Acoustic Guitar 11 (March 2001): 52-54, 58-60, 62.
Isola, Gregory: "John Cephas: Homemade Piedmont Blues."
Guitar Player 33 (June 1999): 29,32
Pearson, Barry Lee. "Cephas and Wiggins: Blues is Nourishment for the Human Spirit."
Living Blues 30 (May-June 1999): 14-21
DelGrosso, Rich. "Acoustic Profile: Cephas and Wiggins--Heart of the Piedmont Blues."
Blues Revue 42 (November 1998): 20.
Videos
Blues Houseparty [videorecording] :
Music, Dance and Stories by Masters of the Piedmont
Blues. Takoma Park, Md.: Houseparty Productions, 1989.
Recordings on CD
Cephas & Wiggins. Sweet Bitter Blues (1984)
Cephas & Wiggins. Let it Roll: Bowling Green (1985)
Cephas & Wiggins. Guitar Man (1987)
Cephas & Wiggins. Walking Blues (1988)
Cephas & Wiggins. Cool Down (1996)
Cephas & Wiggins. Homemade (1999)
Cephas & Wiggins. Somebody Told the Truth (2002)
Web Sites
All Music Guide. John Cephas Biography. Accessed 20 Oct. 2003 <http://www.allmusic.com/>
"John Cephas (1930- ) and Phil Wiggins (1954-
)." T-Bone's Piedmont Blues Page. Accessed 1 December 2003 <http://www.io.com/~tbone1/blues/bios/cepwig.html>
Cephas & Wiggins. Alligator Records. Accessed 11 December 2003.
<http://www.alligator.com/artists/bio.cfm?ArtistID=031>
Video Guitar Lessons. Accessed 11 December
2003.
<http://www.thegtw.com>
Includes ordering information about the following
instructional videos:
John Cephas My Favorite Blues Licks and Runs.
John Cephas Volume One
John Cephas Volume Two
John Cephas Volume Three
John Cephas Volume Four
John Cephas My Blues Licks and Runs (volume one)
John Cephas My Blues Licks and Runs (volume two)
John Cephas Teaches the Blues A to Z (volume one)
John Cephas Teaches the Blues A to Z (volume two)
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