[3] According to journalist Tony Russell in his book The Blues - From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray, "Walton created a series of memorable blues about the unattractiveness of rural life, sardonically aimed at the black migrant workers in southern California who constituted his typical audience".

To make ends meet, he had to earn his living in the fields chopping cotton, picking grapes or cutting spinach.

Shortly after that, he had a national hit on Specialty Records with "One Room Country Shack", now considered a blues standard.

[4] After that success, he was able to start working as a musician full-time, and he toured with the jump blues band of Big Jay McNeely.

[4] Featured with him was Sidney Maiden on harmonica, K. C. Douglas on electric guitar and Otis Cherry playing the drums.