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Artist
Becky Barksdale
12+ albums
bluesfemale bluesblues rockblues guitar womenlos angeles
about
A rare performer in any day or age, Becky Barksdale embodies in one individual the vast Texas blues guitar tradition of a Freddie King, the flirtatious sensuality and assertive independence of a Bessie Smith and the raw passionate vocals of a Janis Joplin. Surprisingly, those conventions seem to have seeped into her pores rather than emanating from any specific source. My biggest influences were all of the other musicians I played with, she asserts. While, like Joplin, Barksdale was born in Port Arthur, Texas, she is currently based out of Los Angeles where she is a favorite on the West Coast blues and R&B circuit. It was Barksdale's grandfather who gave her a guitar when she was twelve. A professional at sixteen, she learned to play and was introduced to the blues gigging with local musicians and performing in a number of regional bands. After nailing down guitar and vocal duties with boogie-blues masters Canned Heat, Barksdale landed the lead guitar spot with Michael Jackson adding some fiery punch to the King of Pops 1993 Dangerous World Tour. The first artist to be signed by the House of Blues Music Company, Barksdale appeared on two compilations on the label before releasing Real Live (1999), a gripping mélange of electric blues and steamy rock that easily justified the growing hype crowning the Red Hot Queen of the Blues. Cowgirl Blues (2002), an EP of five original songs unearthed her country roots (two great uncles were members of the Sons of the Pioneers), while B
