Blind John Ellsworth has attempted to play the blues for years, but as he he has never mastered the guitar, the attempts have been futile.

Little is known of his early years, although he seems to have reversed the travels of most bluesmen, as he was born near Chicago, Illinois, about 1960 and later migrated south to Dallas, Texas. There are few known photographs, other than his one album cover (and out-takes), although his archivists are still searching for any available.

He has been a railroad traveler for much of his life, although he never actually worked on the rails, as many of his contemporaries did. He also has begun ocean travels, mainly so he had an excuse to write sea shanties. He travels widely, according to some of the locations mentioned in his lyrics and prose.

Not much is known of his professional life outside his poetry and music, although some of his writings were recovered from Mac-formatted discs, so he may have been partially computer-literate. There are also some of his works which were signed “Migrant Programmer”, so perhaps computers helped fund his writing activities. He would perform occasionally at pubs or coffee-houses, usually for tips and usually spontaneously, since he was never asked to perform. None of these shows seem to have been recorded, however. In fact, there is almost no recorded material at all, and as his work is relatively unknown, there are no known “cover” versions.

Blind John Ellsworth has been married twice, his first marriage ending in divorce. It is widely assumed his second will end in his “accidental” death. Records show he fathered one child in his first marriage, although details on Flatulent Richard Ellsworth (known as the “little fart”) are sketchy, at best. His later lyrics seem to deal more with his second wife, Stumblin’ Rose Dogwood.

He is an ordained minister, and has performed at least two weddings. It is not clear if he was asked to sing at those events.

His writings are very sporadic, although he does seem to participate in NaPoWriMo each year, which is when much of his material is created.