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cashed.102 Charters, who had long held a grudge against McCormick, angrily replied on February 27, 1964: “Your letter reached me in time to delay the issuing of a warrant for your arrest in Houston; however, if I don’t hear from you concerning the money you have received for the Lightning Hopkins sessions I will have to consider some kind of action …. Lightning Hopkins, for whom the money was sent to you as agent, has stated verbally … that he did not see you at any time before you left the country and that the money sent on to you was not turned over to him. He also stated that he knew nothing about a pending exclusive contract with a major label and denied that poor health is interfering with his playing.”103 Moreover, Charters says that he had researched the Prestige files on Lightnin’ to confirm that he had been sent regular statements, both as artist and composer, and that “all checks had been cashed.”

In a letter to Charters, received by Prestige on March 16, McCormick denied any wrongdoing. He claimed that he had made all the necessary arrangements before leaving for Mexico and had given the advance payment, after it had cleared the bank, to Lightnin’ via a personal check, though this has never been confirmed. There are no copies of McCormick’s canceled check to Lightnin’ in the Prestige files. McCormick did not want to accept any responsibility for the missing money, nor did Lightnin’.104 It is possible that Lightnin’ owed McCormick money, and that McCormick kept the advance as a means of collecting what was due to him. Lightnin’ could be extremely demanding and irresponsible, but McCormick had nonetheless worked hard to record, manage, and promote his career. McCormick was a major figure in introducing Lightnin’ to a white audience, but this incident with Prestige pushed their already strained relationship to the breaking point. Needless to say, McCormick never worked with Hopkins again.

When Charters saw Lightnin’ a few months after McCormick had run off, he felt “Lightning didn’t seem to mind what had happened that much…. He shrugged his shoulders and said, ‘You can manage me for a while—if you got any jobs.’”105 Lightnin’ realized that he needed help to get the best recording deals and bookings in the white blues revival scene. He was making more money than he ever had in his life, and he was enjoying himself. He particularly liked the West Coast, where he was able to visit with family and friends. Antoinette had relatives in the Los Angeles area, and Lightnin’ could spend time with her there without the pressures of her “other family” in Houston. The blues revival had untold benefits that Lightnin’ was only just beginning to realize.

6

The Touring Intensifies

In 1962, Peter Gardner, the adult activities director for Houston’s Jewish Community Center, started a Folk Song Series that featured a mix of revivalists and traditional musicians. Lightnin’s first show at the Jewish Community Center on March 15, 1962, was a big hit, though he was initially skeptical. To perform for an enthusiastic audience of white, mostly middle-and upper-middle-class Jews, some of whom spoke Yiddish among themselves, must have made Lightnin’ a little uncomfortable, yet more acutely aware of how his life and career were changing. His concert there typified the expanding folk and blues revival scene that was taking hold across the country, and the opportunities for new bookings had never been greater. But at this point, Lightnin’ also had a following in the juke joints and cafes of the Third Ward, where he liked to gamble and carouse. As much as he was able to cross between black and white audiences, he did so with caution. He had a deep-seated distrust for some white producers and concert promoters, but he was learning how to get what he wanted and was loyal to those who treated him fairly.

Less than a week later Lightnin’ returned to New York City, where he stayed for several weeks, presumably with Martha Ledbetter, and performed at the Village Gate seven times in a month-long period, appearing on bills with flamenco