Francis Hillman "Scrapper" Blackwell (February 21, 1903[1] – October 7, 1962)[2] was an American blues guitarist and singer, best known as half of the guitar-piano duo he formed with Leroy Carr in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

[7] His father played the fiddle, but Blackwell was a self-taught guitarist,[4] building his first guitar out of a cigar box, wood and wire.

The session ended bitterly, as both musicians left the studio mid-session and on bad terms, stemming from payment disputes.

Two months later Blackwell received a phone call informing him of Carr's death due to heavy drinking and nephritis.

Blackwell was ready to resume his blues career, when he was shot and killed in a mugging in an Indianapolis alley, in October 1962 at the age of 59.

[9] His stature as a musician can be seen by Bob Dylan's comment: "There is a strong line in all our music that can be traced back directly to Scrapper Blackwell.