Emerging as a pivotal presence in the post-war West Coast blues scene, Lowell Fulson distinguished himself as a guitarist, singer, and songwriter whose activity spanned from the late 1940s through the mid-1990s. Although he explored a wide range of styles across his long career, his most celebrated recordings drew from jump blues and the sleek, emotionally charged urban approach associated with fellow California bluesman T-Bone Walker. At the same time, Fulson also produced austere, country-rooted blues pieces, potent soul-inflected tracks during the mid- to late 1960s such as the 1967 album Tramp and its hit title song, occasional funky and rock-tinged blues efforts like the 1970 release In a Heavy Bag, and straightforward barroom guitar performances on the 1995 collection Them Update Blues.
Lowell Fulson entered the world on March 31, 1921, in Atoka, Oklahoma, located on a Native American reservation, where his father carried Cherokee ancestry. After losing his father at age six, his mother relocated the family to nearby Clarita, Oklahoma, the site of his grandfather’s landholdings. Like numerous other blues musicians, Fulson began performing in church as a vocalist and first picked up the guitar at age 12, absorbing the styles of Blind Lemon Jefferson and Blind Boy Fuller. He quickly applied these skills in local string-band performances at dances. Upon reaching 18, Fulson ventured out independently, spending time in Ada, Oklahoma, where he collaborated with regional blues figure Texas Alexander and absorbed the demands of extensive touring. Following a year alongside Alexander, he moved to Gainesville, Texas, balancing Saturday-night dance gigs with daytime work as a fry cook. Drafted into military service in 1943, Fulson was assigned by the Navy to Oakland, California, where he witnessed multiple performances by T-Bone Walker. After his discharge in 1945, he established residence in Oakland, securing club work and assembling a band featuring pianist Eldridge McCarthy. Producer and label owner Bob Geddins discovered Fulson, offered him a contract, and recorded material later leased to Swing Time Records; Geddins further supported him by purchasing an electric guitar and amplifier, leading to several guitar-duet sides with Fulson’s brother Martin.
Fulson achieved his breakthrough hit in 1948 when Swing Time released “Three O’clock in the Morning Blues,” a track later adapted by B.B. King as “Three O’clock Blues.” Subsequent successes included “Everyday I Have the Blues,” “Blue Shadows,” and “Lonesome Christmas.” While maintaining a busy touring schedule, he organized a band that featured saxophonist Stanley Turrentine and a young Ray Charles on piano, the latter of whom would later record Fulson’s composition “Sinner’s Prayer.” The group became a regular attraction at Southern and Southwestern nightclubs and R&B package shows. In 1954 Fulson signed with Checker Records, a subsidiary of Chess Records, and his debut single for the label, “Reconsider Baby,” emerged as a major success and enduring standard, later reaching the pop charts via Elvis Presley in 1960. He remained with Checker through 1963, delivering additional hits such as “Loving You,” “That’s All Right,” “Low Society,” and “Hung Down Head,” all marked by incisive single-note guitar lines, deeply felt vocals, and nuanced arrangements.
After departing Checker, Fulson entered an agreement with Kent Records, adopting the spelling Lowell Fulsom for his releases. He scored one of his strongest chart entries in 1965 with “Black Nights,” which climbed to number 11 on the R&B Singles Chart. The following year proved even more successful when the playful, funk-inflected “Tramp” advanced to number five on the R&B chart; Otis Redding and Carla Thomas soon recorded their own version and achieved wider commercial impact. Fulson’s next single, “Make a Little Love,” reached number 20 R&B, establishing him as a prominent figure on the soul circuit for a period. By 1970 he had moved to Jewel Records and recorded the blues-rock album In a Heavy Bag with support from the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. Although his string of hits concluded by the mid-1970s, Fulson retained strong demand as a live performer, particularly on the West Coast, and resumed using the original spelling of his name. He continued to record for niche labels, including the 1981 set Blue Shadows with the Canadian band Powder Blues and the 1984 album One More Blues alongside the Phillip Walker Blues Band. Rounder issued the contemporary barroom-blues collection It’s a Good Day in 1988, while its Bullseye Blues imprint later released Hold On in 1992 and Them Update Blues in 1995. Health difficulties prompted Fulson to retire from music in 1997. He passed away in Long Beach, California, on March 6, 1999, less than a month before his 78th birthday.
