Despite his colourful name and his reputation among his peers, Stackhouse only received interest and acclaim towards the end of his life, although he played a contributory role in the development of delta blues. He became an active musician in his teens, learning first harmonica, violin, then mandolin and guitar. Moving to Crystal Springs, Mississippi, he came under the influence of Tommy Johnson and his brothers, Clarence and Mager. He in turn taught his first cousin, Robert Nighthawk, and on one occasion the pair worked with Jimmy Rodgers in Jackson, Mississippi. During the 30s, with Carey 'Ditty' Mason and Cootsie Thomas, he worked in a band modelled on the Mississippi Sheiks, with whom he occasionally played. In April 1946, Nighthawk summoned him to Helena, Arkansas, where he was advertising Mother's Best flour on station KFFA, with a band that included Pinetop Perkins and Kansas City Red. Stackhouse then became a member of the King Biscuit Boys, led by Peck Curtis when Sonny Boy Williamson (Rice Miller) was out of town. A day job with Chrysler and gigs with the Biscuit Boys continued through the 50s. He was not recorded until August 1967, in a session that also included Nighthawk and Curtis. A week later, he recorded with 'Ditty' Mason. Tracks from these sessions appeared on anthologies released by Testament, Arhoolie, Matchbox and Flyright. During the 70s, Stackhouse became a regular participant in blues festivals throughout the USA. As befitted the station he had taken for himself, his death in 1980 went unrecorded.
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By Jason Ankeny
The mentor of Delta slide virtuoso Robert Nighthawk, Houston Stackhouse never achieved the same commercial or artistic success as his famed pupil, and remained little known outside of his native Mississippi. Born in the small town of Wesson on September 28, 1910, he was a devotee of Tommy Johnson, whose songs he frequently covered; neither an especially gifted singer nor guitarist, he was quickly surpassed by the young Nighthawk, although the student repaid his debts by backing Stackhouse on a series of sessions cut during the mid- to late '60s. Outside of the rare European tour, Stackhouse was primarily confined to playing Delta border towns throughout the majority of his career; he died in Houston, Texas in 1980.