Black Ace

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title: "Black Ace" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1905-births", "1972-deaths", "american-blues-singers", "american-blues-guitarists", "american-male-guitarists", "african-american-guitarists", "country-blues-musicians", "texas-blues-musicians", "decca-records-artists", "deaths-from-cancer-in-texas", "20th-century-american-guitarists", "20th-century-african-american-male-singers", "20th-century-american-male-singers", "20th-century-american-singers", "guitarists-from-texas", "people-from-hughes-springs,-texas", "arhoolie-records-artists"] description: "American Texas blues musician (1905–1972)" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Ace" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American Texas blues musician (1905–1972) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox musical artist"]

Field	Value
name	Black Ace
birth_name	Babe Kyro Lemon Turner
alias	{{flatlist
birth_date
birth_place	Hughes Springs, Texas, U.S.
death_date
death_place	Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.
instrument	Guitar, vocals
genre	{{Flatlist
years_active	Late 1920smid-1940s, 1960–1962
label	{{Flatlist
::

| name = Black Ace | image = | caption = | image_size = | birth_name = Babe Kyro Lemon Turner | alias = {{flatlist|

• B.K. Turner
• Black Ace Turner
• Babe Turner
• Buck Turner | birth_date = | birth_place = Hughes Springs, Texas, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. | origin = | instrument = Guitar, vocals | genre = {{Flatlist|
• Texas blues
• Country blues | years_active = Late 1920smid-1940s, 1960–1962 | label = {{Flatlist|
• Decca
• Arhoolie Babe Kyro Lemon Turner (December 21, 1905 – November 7, 1972) was an American Texas blues musician most frequently known by the stage name Black Ace. He was also known as B. K. Turner, Black Ace Turner, Babe Turner and Buck Turner.

Biography

Turner was born in Hughes Springs, Texas, and was raised on his family's farm. He taught himself to play guitar and performed in east Texas from the late 1920s on. In the early 1930s he began playing with Smokey Hogg and Oscar "Buddy" Woods, a lap steel guitarist. Turner then bought a National resonator guitar and began playing what a later music critic called "Hawaii meets the Delta."

In 1937, Turner recorded six songs (possibly with Hogg as second guitarist) for Decca Records in Dallas, including the blues song "Black Ace". In the same year, he started a radio show on KFJZ in Fort Worth, using that recording as a theme song, and soon assumed the name.

In 1941, he appeared in The Blood of Jesus, an African-American movie produced by Spencer Williams Jr. In 1943 Turner was drafted into the U.S. Army and gave up playing music for some years. In 1960, Chris Strachwitz, the owner of Arhoolie Records, persuaded him to record an album for Arhoolie. His last public performance was in the 1962 film documentary The Blues. Turner died of cancer in Fort Worth in 1972.

Discography

• The Black Ace: BK Turner and His Steel Guitar (studio album, Arhoolie, 1960)
• I'm the Boss Card in Your Hand (compilation, Arhoolie, 1992)

References

References

1. Walters, Katherine Kuehler. "Turner, Babe Kyro Lemon (Black Ace)". Texas State Historical Association..
2. Du Noyer, Paul. (2003). "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music". Flame Tree Publishing.
3. "Babe Black Ace Turner". Thebluestrail.com.
4. (1995). "[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music". [[Guinness Publishing]].

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