John Lomax Jr.

John A. Lomax Jr. (June 14, 1907 – December 12, 1974)

Biography John A. Lomax Jr. was born in Austin, Texas, United States. He graduated from West High School in 1924, earning a B.A. with a cum laude distinction at the University of Texas in 1928. He began postgraduate work at Harvard Business School, but the start of the Great Depression prevented him from continuing. He had a brief stint at a bank in Corpus Christi until the bank began to fail.

At the age of 34, Lomax enlisted in the Navy His wife, Margaret, encouraged him to sing some of his favorite folk songs. This led to more performances over the years, including the University of California’s Folk Music Festival at Berkeley (1960), the first two Kerrville Folk Festivals, the Cullen Auditorium at the University of Houston, and countless hootenannies. The HFMS sought to preserve and celebrate folklore and folk music with monthly meetings that were open to the public. Membership dues included a subscription to the Society’s monthly publication, The Cottonpatch Rag. The group facilitated first meetings between many of these fledgling artists, in addition to giving them a space to play music and share songs. The HFMS staged group concerts in the Jewish Community Center and the University of Houston, while solo acts frequented the club circuit.

Lomax was known for his rendition of Lead Belly’s "Take This Hammer" at HFMS meetings. The only accompaniment to his baritone voice was an axe and stump; he would punctuate the end of each line with a swing of the axe.

In 1956, Lomax made the John A. Lomax Jr. Sings American Folksongs album.

Lomax suffered a fatal stroke at home on December 12, 1974. His lifelong celebrations of folklore and music carry on through the still-regular meetings of the HFMS. His younger son, Joe, followed in his footsteps as a performer, often appearing with family friend Hally Wood. His older son, John M. Lomax (aka John Lomax III), and grandson, John Nova Lomax, continued the family tradition by writing extensively about music and musicians.

Family John Avery Lomax Jr. was the son of John Avery Lomax, the pioneering folklorist who collected and performed folk songs across America. He was a brother to Shirley Lomax, Alan Lomax, and Bess Lomax. John and his wife, Margaret, were parents to John Lomax III and Joseph Franklin Lomax, a journalist, publisher, photographer, and filmmaker (1949–1988).