J. Howard Duff Cements His Legacy
Longtime Union County singer-songwriter-guitarist J. Howard Duff has released two full albums in an effort to “hand something down to my kids when I’m not here anymore.” Back in 2024, we went “Up-Close” with him and his “This Misery” is still in our “Hot 100.”
Legacy: The Road is the first of the “The Best Of J. Howard Duff.” Legacy: The Road Home is his personal brand of rock-gospel. “As many years have passed since I began to walk `the road,’” he says, “I came to realize that I had three companions who not only walked with me but protected and guided me as ``the road’ turned into the ‘the road home.’ These companions of mine still walk with me today: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”
Time out! This reporter has known Duff for decades and not once has he prosletized. Who knew he walked with the Lord? Maybe some in his adopted home of Ridgeland, South Carolina where he’s been for the last 28 years. Maybe his gorgeous talented Woodstock-survivor wife Dawn Gaye. That, right there, is impressive. As he says, “just wanted you to know that I NEVER push my faith on anyone. I see it as a personal choice. It happens to work for me both in my personal and musical life”
“I am so glad,” he continues, “that you could get past any preconceived notions to just listen to THE MUSIC! I always thought that the subject matter & the performance should be kept separate. For the most part, I strive to present Gospel (i.e.) "faith-based" music in a way that it has rarely (to my knowledge) been presented. The image of the old sitting in church pews as an even older organist plays centuries-old hymns as the congregation falls asleep is exactly what I am trying to overcome by my presentation of the subject matter; set to music that in the 21st century is relatable.”
Actually, there is musical precedent for a longtime bluesman like Duff to also record gospel. There’s a distinct line between the sacred and the secular that many rural Mississippi Delta bluesmen straddled. Blind Willie Johnson [1897-1945] played a blistering slide guitar with songs about women and whiskey but it was his God-Fearing classic, “Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground,” that he is most known for. Rev. Gary Davis [1896-1972] pioneered the Piedmont style of acoustic blues that Jorma Kaukoken of Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna perfected. Then there’s Sister Rosetta Tharpe [1915-1973], “The Godmother of Rock’n’Roll,” who even used distortion on her electric guitar solos within her gospel that made Clapton sound like a pretender. Rev. Robert Wilkins [1896-1987] was a Memphis Blues Master yet switched entirely to singing for the Lord, becoming a Minister in the process. Thomas A. Dorsey [1899-1993] may be the “Father of Gospel Music,” but before that, he was a blues pianist who worked with the legendary Ma Rainey. Sam Cooke, Son House, Charley Patton, Blind Lemon Jefferson and Washington Phillips are other examples of the secular/sacred divide.
Duff’s sacred gospel, if you don’t listen to the words, is pure solid Stones-like hard rock, 22 songs strong. That said, Duff’s secular stuff rocks like a bitch. Just listen (below) to his version of the 1965 Animals hit “I’m Crying” by The Animals where he makes mincemeat out of Hilton Valentine’s original lead guitar. There’s lots of gems here including covers of John Lee Hooker, Ray Charles, Howlin’ Wolf, The Kinks, Chuck Berry, BB King, Blind Lemon Jefferson and Free.
J. Howard Duff has lived his life making music. He plays electric, acoustic, 12-string, slide and bass guitars, organ, percussion and still has that little wiggle in his voice. For more information, visit https://jhowardduffmusic.com/.