Luke Jordan

Luke Jordan ranks among the Piedmont blues’ most compelling figures, having entered the world on January 28, 1892, in Bluefield, West Virginia. During his teenage years he moved to Lynchburg, Virginia, and that city served as his lifelong base. Across a pair of Victor Records sessions held in 1927 and 1929 he laid down twelve sides, ten of which still exist on 78-rpm discs; among them are his landmark renditions of “Church Bell Blues,” “Pick Poor Robin Clean,” and “Cocaine Blues.” Jordan’s guitar work was marked by clarity and precision, while his tenor voice carried an elegant tone that projected a wry yet affable spirit. Drawing on a storehouse of ballads, gambling songs, ragtime numbers, and minstrel pieces, his output captures the Piedmont blues idiom with unmistakable fidelity. Within his locale he exerted a powerful influence on fellow players, yet he remains under-recognized beyond blues circles. Jordan passed away on June 25, 1952.