Henry Townsend has the distinction of being the only blues musician to have recorded in every decade from the 1920s through 2000s. His recording career spans from 1929 through the Grammy winning “The Last of the Great Delta Bluesmen,” with Robert Lockwood Jr., Pinetop Perkins and Honeyboy Edwards in 2006. After moving from Shelby, MS. to St. Louis as a youth, he became an integral part of the St. Louis blues scene from the 1920s through 1940s. His playing was influenced by Roosevelt Sykes and Lonnie Johnson.
1909-2006
Birthplace- Shelby, MS.
Henry Townsend, Chicago Blues Festival, 1999