Wells, Lightnin' - R.A. Fountain

A native of West Virginia, Mike “Lightnin'” Wells grew up in Goldsboro where he started playing music in local bands as a teenager. He lives just of outside of Fountain, in rural Edgecombe County, from where he travels to gigs across the U.S. and Europe.

Best known as a bluesman, Wells also performs from a variety of traditions and styles. Lightnin’s shows are always fun and always include songs that are new to him, which means they were originally recorded sometime in the early twentieth century.

He performs Piedmont and Delta blues, early vaudeville and hokum, country, early 20th century pop, gospel, and old-time songs. He plays at Fountain twice a year, shows he enjoys not just for the crowds and the old brick-and-wood building’s acoustic resonance. It’s one of the few places where he can bring nearly all of his instruments, and he’s an excellent performer on them all. A typical Wells performance will find him playing acoustic and resonator guitars, three kinds of ukuleles, banjo, mandolin, and harmonica.

Read Donna Davis’ profile of Lightnin’.

Wells, Lightnin’

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Wells, Lightnin’

Date(s) performed at RAF

R.A. Fountain Storeaccepts credit/debit cards via:

R.A. FountainProud Member of

R.A. Fountain Store
accepts credit/debit cards via:

R.A. Fountain
Proud Member of