Piedmont Bluesman John Cephas, R.I.P.

Guitarist John Cephas, one-half of the popular blues duo Cephas & Wiggins, and one of the last of the early Piedmont bluesmen, died on Wednesday, March 4th, 2009 of natural causes. Cephas was 78 years old.

Born in 1930 in Washington, D.C. to a deeply religious family, Cephas' music was seeped in gospel music and the Piedmont blues sound of artists like Blind Blake and Blind Boy Fuller. Cephas toiled outside of the blues for years, working as a professional gospel singer, a carpenter, and an Atlantic fisherman before he began earning a living with his music during the 1960s.

Cephas began his lengthy musical collaboration with harpist Phil Wiggins in 1976, the duo releasing a dozen critically-acclaimed albums and touring the world. Cephas was honored with a National Heritage Fellowship Award in 1989 for his work in keeping the Piedmont blues sound alive, and in 1997 Cephas & Wiggins performed for then President Bill Clinton. Cephas also served on the Executive Committee of the National Council for the Traditional Arts, and had testified before Congressional committees. He was also a founder of the Washington, D.C. Blues Society.

In February, Cephas was honored as one of eight black trailblazers as designated by the Library of Virginia’s African-American History Month. Richmond Blues, the final Cephas & Wiggins album, was released in 2008 by the Smithsonian Folkways label. A popular and respected blues artist who worked hard to keep interest in the music thriving, John Cephas will be missed by his thousands of fans across the globe.

Related Content: Cephas & Wiggins profile

Photo by Tom Radcliffe, courtesy Alligator Records