Carvin Jones, the Texas-born, Phoenix-based blues player, best known by his moniker, the “King of Strings,” has died at the age of 60.
The news was confirmed by his friends and family, who announced his passing via a statement posted to social media.
“It is with immeasurable sadness that we share that Corvin Keith Anthony Jones, known to his family and friends around the world as Carvin Jones, the ‘King of Strings,’ passed away in the early morning of September 20, 2026,” reads the statement.
“Carvin loved being onstage because he loved being with people. He would leave the stage to play in the crowd, turning every show into something shared. That same generosity shaped his life offstage. Basketball was Carvin’s other great love, and he sponsored and coached youth teams. During the pandemic, he created Carvin Cares, using his own money to deliver groceries to elderly residents throughout Phoenix.
“Our family is deeply grateful to everyone who supported Carvin during these last months. Your generosity meant so much to him and to us.”
Born in Lufkin, Texas, Jones devoted his life to music, with his sound rooted in East Texas and, true to the region and scene, blending blues, gospel, R&B, and rock. He first discovered the blues through his grandfather’s B.B. King records, and soon started playing guitar at seven, after his grandmother bought him his first guitar.
Largely self-taught, Jones moved to Arizona at 19, a journey that would eventually lead to him taking the blues across the U.S. and beyond. In fact, his career took him to 37 countries and three continents. He ended up sharing stages and bills with the likes of B.B. King, Santana, Jeff Beck, Albert King, Albert Collins, Joe Cocker, and The Fabulous Thunderbirds.
Eric Clapton once touted Jones as “a young cat out of Phoenix who I think is the next up-and-coming blues player,” and he was named as one of the top 50 blues guitarists of all time by Guitarist in 2001.
The bluesman released more than a dozen albums and, as aptly described by The Blues Magazine, “built the kind of career that depended less on a single breakthrough record than on returning to the stage night after night and winning over another audience.”
