James Carr Blues Obits By: Greg Johnson Article Reprint from the February 2001 BluesNotes      Blues in History Index                          Related Links

    One of the saddest tasks of being a source for Blues information lies in the role of reporting on those who have passed on.   Many performers have touched our lives throughout the years, but alas, nobody is immortal and everybody's time eventually must come to an end.   It is with a heavy heart that we relay the news of the deaths of three more much-beloved musicians who have left us for the hereafter.

    James Carr came to prominence as a Soul singer during the mid-1960s.  He has often been recognized as one of that era's greatest vocalists, placing him alongside an elite list that includes Aretha Franklin and Otis Redding. Born in Coahoma County, Mississippi, on June 13, 1942, Carr's family had moved to Memphis when he was still a young child.  It was here that he discovered music through the sound of Gospel, listening to artists such as Sam Cooke and the Soul Stirrers. In 1963, he signed with the Memphis label Goldwax, and while on their roster, released a string of hit singles, including "You've Got My Mind Messed Up" and his signature tune, "The Dark End Of The Street." His life took a turn, though, as he became a victim of drug and alcohol abuse, as well as stints with manic depression that found him hospitalized in a mental health facility. He had almost disappeared entirely when he started performing again on rare occasions in the early 1990s, often working with Tyrone Davis or Otis Clay. Carr had suffered from lung cancer for many years, spending the end of his life in a nursing home in Memphis. At the age of 58, James Carr died there from his battle with the disease on January 7, 2001.

Related Links:

• James Carr at the All Music Guide

• Find James Carr recordings at CD-DB

• Dogpile Mega-search for James Carr

© 2001 Cascade Blues Association