[2] Seeking a change from plowing fields, he moved to Memphis in 1926, where he worked in the Buck-Eye feed mill, which processed cotton into oil and other products.

[3] He finally settled in Como, Mississippi, around 1940, where he worked as a full-time farmer for many years while continuing to play music on weekends at dances and picnics.

[2] After decades of playing for small local gatherings, McDowell was recorded in 1959 by roving folklore musicologist Alan Lomax and Shirley Collins,[2] on their Southern Journey field-recording trip.

He coached Bonnie Raitt on slide guitar technique[5] and was reportedly flattered[citation needed] by the Rolling Stones' rather straightforward version of his "You Gotta Move" on their 1971 album Sticky Fingers.

[2] In 1965, he toured Europe with the American Folk Blues Festival,[2] together with Big Mama Thornton, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy, Roosevelt Sykes and others.

Tracks included versions of Bukka White's "Shake 'Em On Down", Willie Dixon's "My Babe", Mance Lipscomb's "Evil Hearted Woman", plus McDowell's self-penned "Kokomo Blues."