Eddie Jones (December 10, 1926 – February 7, 1959), also known as Guitar Slim, was an American guitarist who performed in the 1940s and 1950s. He is most famous for the song "The Things That I Used to Do," which sold over a million copies for Specialty Records. This song is listed in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's collection of 500 songs that helped shape rock and roll. Guitar Slim had a major influence on the development of rock and roll. He was among the first musicians to use distorted sounds on the electric guitar, doing so ten years before Jimi Hendrix.

Biography

Jones was born in Greenwood, Mississippi. His mother passed away when he was five years old, and he was raised by his grandmother. During his teenage years, he worked in cotton fields and spent free time at juke joints, where he began performing as a singer or dancer. He was known for his dancing skills and earned the nickname "Limber Leg."

After returning from military service during World War II, Jones started playing music in clubs in New Orleans, Louisiana. A bandleader named Willie D. Warren introduced him to the guitar. He was greatly influenced by T-Bone Walker and Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown. Around 1950, he adopted the stage name Guitar Slim and became known for his unique stage performances. He wore bright-colored suits and dyed his hair to match. His assistant carried a long cord between his guitar and amplifier, sometimes allowing Jones to stand on the assistant’s shoulders or take his guitar outside the club, stopping traffic. His music style was unusual—he used guitar distortion more than a decade before rock musicians did, and his vocals, influenced by gospel music, were easily recognized.

Jones played with Muddy Waters in Los Angeles, California. His first recording session was in 1951. In 1952, he had a minor rhythm and blues hit with "Feelin' Sad," which Ray Charles later covered. His most famous song was "The Things That I Used to Do" (1954), produced by Ray Charles and released by Art Rupe’s Specialty Records. The song reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart, sold over a million copies, and became a blues standard. It also helped shape the development of soul music. Jones recorded for several labels, including Imperial, Bullet, Specialty, and Atco.

Jones died of pneumonia in New York City at the age of 32. He is buried in a small cemetery in Thibodaux, Louisiana, where his manager, Hosea Hill, lived.

Buddy Guy, Albert Collins, and Frank Zappa were influenced by Guitar Slim. Other musicians have also used the nickname "Guitar Slim." A blues guitarist from North Carolina named James Stephens released music under this name. One of Jones’s sons performs as Guitar Slim Jr. in New Orleans and plays many of his father’s songs.

Al Reed, a New Orleans R&B artist, said, "I think [Jones] had a greater impact on the electric sound than any other guitarist…he could make people feel excited and lifted up as he played, he would create sensations within your body that really played tricks with your mind. He was the first man to do this."