Night of the Hunter

Late bloomers hold a special place in our hearts. They represent perseverance, new directions, and second acts. Such is the story of Long John Hunter, a Texas bluesman who didn’t “make it” until he was 66 years old, when Alligator Records turned him into a star -- outside of the West Texas scene he had dominated for nearly 30 years -- in 1996.

Like any good bluesman with almost five decades in the game, the guitarist harbors a few good legends -- like the one about how murdered hitmaker Bobby Fuller (“I Fought the Law”) was Hunter’s protégé. Or the one in which a young Buddy Holly would sneak over the border into Juárez, Mexico, to see Hunter play. Don’t matter if the tales are tall or not. It’s all part of the blues.