Abner Jay was a one man blues man, gospel singer, corny joke teller and roads scholar. He called himself, “The Last Working Southern Black Minstrel” having performed professionally for over 65 years.
Cool & Interesting Facts About Abner Jay
—Jay began performing in 1926 at the age of five, playing guitar and banjo in medicine shows throughout the south.
—He traveled and performed with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels, a traveling tent show that toured the American south from the turn of the twentieth century until 1959. Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Brownie McGhee, Louis Jordan and Rufus Thomas were all a part of the troupe early in their careers.
—Abner had his own radio show on WMAZ out of Macon, Georgia from 1946-1956 playing and singing with the Macon Minstrels.
—He worked as a booking agent for Little Richard and James Brown and once managed Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
—During a brief residency in New York City he played the famous Apollo Theatre in Harlem.
—He performed for many years as a one man band, singing and accompanying himself on the six string banjo and drums. He released albums and cassette tapes on his own Brandie record label. His repertoire included blues songs, old gospel hymns, Stephen Foster songs and original tunes about a wide variety of subjects including Vietnam, drugs and jail. Needless to say, nobody sounds like Abner Jay.
—Abner Jay had sixteen children.
—He traveled the country playing shows out of a mobile home that opened up into a stage complete with “amplification and home furnishings.” He could literally play anywhere.
—Later in life, he performed regularly at the Stephen Foster Folk Culture State Park in White Springs Florida and at Tom Flynn’s Plantation Restaurant in Stone Mountain, Georgia.
—You can stream and download some of his music on Amazon, Spotify and Apple and there is some video footage on YouTube.
—Abner Jay died on November 4th, 1993 in Augusta Georgia. He was 72 years old.
—If anyone has any additional information on Abner’s life, feel free to contact me at,
rnrcasey@gmail.com.
—-Casey Redmond
January 3, 2020
Casey’s Website
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