Lightnin' Wells

Lightnin' Wells
Birth nameMichael Wells[1]
BornWest Virginia, United States
OriginNorth Carolina, United States
GenresPiedmont blues[2]
Occupation(s)Guitarist, harmonicist, singer, one-man band, record producer
Instrument(s)Guitar, vocals, ukulele, mandolin, banjo, harmonica
Years activeEarly 1970s–present
LabelsMusic Maker, various
WebsiteOfficial website

Lightnin' Wells is an American Piedmont blues multi-instrumentalist and singer. He is a proficient musician and regularly plays various instruments in concert including the guitar, mandolin, harmonica, ukulele and banjo. At times he has performed as a one-man band. His style encompasses elements of the blues, country, gospel, old-time, bluegrass and folk. Mark Coltrain stated in Living Blues that, "You won't find a more versatile musician around – able to move deftly between country blues, old-time banjo, and novelty tunes with a single pluck. Lightnin' Wells changes the past..."[3]

Wells has released six solo albums and worked for ten years on the board of directors at Music Maker Relief Foundation. His most recent recording was O Lightnin', Where Art Thou? (2017).

  1. ^ "Your blues". Pastblues.com. April 15, 1952. Retrieved July 15, 2017.
  2. ^ Edward Komara; Peter Lee (July 2004). The Blues Encyclopedia. Routledge. p. 776. ISBN 978-1-135-95832-9.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Fdd was invoked but never defined (see the help page).