McGhee (Brownie) Papers

Brownie McGhee publicity still
Brownie McGhee publicity still, circa 1990s, Brownie McGhee papers , MS 180, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library.

The Brownie McGhee Papers consist of audio cassettes, photographs, programs, and VHS videotape documenting the life and musical career of blues musician Walter B. "Brownie" McGhee (1915-1996).

The collection is arranged into three series: I. Brownie McGhee, II. Blues is Truth Foundation, III. Interviews with Styve Homnick. A majority of the Brownie McGhee series consists of 83 audiocassettes of interviews with Brownie McGhee conducted by Leslie Ann Wright and her partner Mike Twomey in preparation of his autobiography. The interviews document McGhee's musical career including his experiences living with blues musician Leadbelly and performing in New York City in the 1940s, traveling internationally as a blues musician, the West Coast Blues scene in California, and his long career in film and television. The collection offers a detailed first person perspective of a blues-folk musician whose career spanned most of the 20th century.

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Dates: 1990-1996
 
Collection number: MS 180
 
Creator: McGhee, Brownie, 1915-1996.
 
Collector: Twomey, Michael
 
Collection Size: 3 linear feet (4 boxes)
 

Guide to the Brownie McGhee Papers

Available at the African American Museum & Library at Oakland (AAMLO)

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