Mance Lipscomb released his first album in 1960. Titled Texas Songster, the record was a symphony of blues born out of the Lone Star State. It led to more people than ever before listening to the unique sound that he’d been delicately crafting since his youth. It catapulted him onto the airwaves and festival stages – and for many, this would have been the perfect springboard into a long and fruitful career.
This, however, wasn’t the case for Mance. It wasn’t that he didn’t have the talent or the artistic prowess to keep producing music of a similar calibre but instead was because of his age.
After all, he was 65.
While it’s this not-so-small detail that meant Mance wasn’t able to enjoy decades of success in the music industry, it’s also this that makes him stand out from his peers. Indeed, it’s what makes his impact on the blues genre even more extraordinary.
Beau is born
Who is Beau De Glen Lipscomb? You’d be forgiven for never having heard this name before. It was, however, the name that Mance Lipscomb was given at birth
Born in Navasota, Texas, in 1895 – the town that he would call home for the rest of his life – during his youth, he switched his name to Mance. This was short for emancipation, a nod to his father, who had been born into slavery in Alabama.
Mance was largely raised by his mother, who was half Native American and half African American. He quit school at a young age to work alongside her in the fields after his father left home and the family needed more money coming into the household.
It wasn’t an easy job, nor was it well paid. Mance’s mother earned around $1.50 for three days’ work in the fields – which was just enough money to buy her son a guitar…
Playing the blues
Blues music had originated just a few short decades before Mance could pick up his first guitar. There would have been local musicians from whom he could gain inspiration, but the genre was nowhere near as readily consumable as it would become in the latter years of the twentieth century.
Mance was self-taught and played regularly in Navasota. The most common places where he would be seen performing included local dances and small country festivals. He soon became accomplished in the region, and it wasn’t long before the opportunity came knocking.
At the age of 27 in 1922, Mance was offered the chance to become a professional musician when he was invited on tour with Jimmie Rodgers. Despite having the talent to take his act on the road, Mance honourably opted to stay with his wife and family in Navasota.
The chance to become a star had come and gone, but it wouldn’t be the last opportunity offered to Mance. Unfortunately, it would be almost 40 years until something similar came along.
Plucked from obscurity
Mance continued to perform the blues on a small scale. While the genre began to pick up steam and seep into the national consciousness across the United States, Mance worked in the fields doing an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay.
Throughout the 1920s and 1930s – around the same time that the blues scene exploded in post-war America – Mance could be found working hard to purchase land and build his own house in Navasota. He could easily have been a regular on the radio, and a staple feature heard in bars across the country, but that wasn’t the life he had chosen.
It wasn’t until 1960 that Mance would receive a second chance to play a bigger role on the blues scene. It all happened by coincidence when musicologists Chris Strachwitz and Mack McCormick stumbled upon his work. Strachwitz invited Mance to produce music for his new label, Arhoolie, and Mance accepted this offer.
Suddenly a new chapter had officially begun in the winter of his life.
Better late than never
Mance might not have been the youngest blues singer, but he certainly brought something to the table. He quickly proved that he could keep up with the best of them as he performed alongside household names such as Bob Dylan. It wasn’t long before people knew him for his spin on classic tracks such as Shine On, Harvest Moon, and It’s a Long Way to Tipperary.
In addition, Mance was finally able to perform outside of his beloved Navasota. He ventured into California, where he would play at college campuses and different music festivals. This was a pretty impressive feat for a man who was approaching 70 and had spent most of his life carrying out manual labour.
It wasn’t long until a second album followed. Titled Trouble in Mind, it signalled that he was far from just a flash in the pan upon its release in 1962. The record is perhaps what he’s most well-known for and was actually re-released with additional tracks in 2003.
Leaving his mark
Mance passed away at the age of 80 in 1976. By this point, he’d done more than enough to solidify his reputation and was widely considered to have contributed to the blues genre. This is even though it had only been 16 years since he recorded his first album.
Blues fans still stumble upon Mance in record stores and on sites such as YouTube. In many ways, this is how he continues to influence the next generation.
Arguably, the biggest reminder of him is a 300lbs bronze statue located in Navasota. It features him playing the guitar with his famous dead-thumb finger-picking technique while sitting on a bench.
It’s a humble tribute to the man who lived a humble life. More so, it’s a reminder that there’s more than one path to your destiny – and often, it doesn’t have to matter how long it takes to get there.
