Before there was Bob Dylan or John Mellencamp, there was Charlie Poole. A spiritual predecessor to the 1960s folk revival, Poole—born on this day (March 22) in 1892—didn’t let a permanent thumb injury stop him from becoming one of the best banjo players of his time. Although his life and career were tragically cut short in May 1931—when he was just 39 years old—Poole’s influence still shines through in the work of Dylan, Mellencamp, Jerry Garcia, and Billy Strings. Today, on what would have marked his 134th birthday, we’re taking a look at the life and legacy of Charlie Poole.
How Moonshine Helped Charlie Poole Buy His First Banjo
The son of mill workers in rural North Carolina, Poole’s childhood joys were banjo and baseball. A risk taker from an early age, he once made a bet that he could catch a baseball without a glove. The ball broke his thumb and left a permanent arch in his right hand, forcing him to develop his famous three-fingered banjo-playing style.
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Spending much of his adult life working in textile mills, Charlie Poole found time to distill moonshine. In fact, that side hustle helped him purchase his first banjo, an Orpheum No. 3 Special.
In 1923, Poole formed the North Carolina Ramblers with fiddle player Posey Rorer, his friend and brother-in-law, and guitarist Norman Woodlief. They headed to New York City to audition for Columbia Records, landing themselves a deal.
On July 27 1925, the Ramblers recorded “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down Blues”. It sold an impressive 106,000 copies. The band would record more than 60 singles for Columbia Records in the 1920s, including “Sweet Sunny South”, “White House Blues”, “He Rambled”, and “Take a Drink on Me”.
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Poole performed across the eastern U.S. His concerts became famous not only for the music, but for his jokes and onstage cartwheels in between songs. Unfortunately, the Great Depression took its toll and Poole’s fourth recording sold fewer than 1,000 copies. Some believe this setback led to the drinking spree that killed him. Charlie Poole died from alcohol poisoning on May 21, 1931. He was just 39 years old.
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