Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield, known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer, songwriter, and musician who was a major figure in the postwar blues scene and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago blues."
Muddy was born on April 4, 1913, in Issaquena County, Mississippi, United States. He earned his stage name (Muddy Waters) because of his childhood habit of playing in a river.
At age 13, he began his endless relationship with music, starting by playing the harmonica, until one day he had the privilege of seeing two blues legends play: Charley Patton and Son House. The latter, in particular, was a great influence on him, teaching Muddy how to play slide guitar with a glass bottle, which led him to switch instruments at age 17. He would later move to Chicago, Illinois, where he traded the acoustic guitar for the electric guitar. His popularity began to grow among black musicians, and this allowed him to start performing in busy clubs. Waters' technique is strongly characteristic due to his use of the capo on the guitar. His first recordings for Chess Records featured Waters on guitar and vocals supported by a cello. Later, he would add a rhythm section and Little Walter's harmonica, inventing the classic Chicago blues formation.
With his deep, rich voice, charismatic personality, and the support of excellent musicians, Waters quickly became the most famous figure in Chicago Blues. Even B.B. King would later refer to him as the "Chief of Chicago." His bands were a "who's who" of Chicago blues musicians: Little Walter, Big Walter Horton, James Cotton, Junior Wells, Willie Dixon, Otis Spann, Pinetop Perkins, Buddy Guy, and so on.
Waters' recordings from the late 50s and early 60s were particularly his best. Many of the songs he played became hits: "I've Got My Mojo Working," "Hoochie Coochie Man," "She's Nineteen Years Old," and "Rolling and Tumbling," great classics that would be covered by various bands of diverse styles.
His influence was enormous across many musical genres: blues, rhythm and blues, rock, folk, country. It was Waters who helped Chuck Berry get his first record deal.
His tours of England in the early 1960s probably marked the first time a heavy, amplified band performed there (one critic even felt compelled to leave a show to write his review because he thought the band was playing too loud). Waters' music also exerted a great influence on British bands. The Rolling Stones took their name from "Rollin' Stone," from 1950, better known as "Catfish Blues." One of Led Zeppelin's biggest hits, "Whole Lotta Love," was based on "You Need Love," composed by Willie Dixon. It was Dixon who composed some of Muddy Waters' best-known songs, such as "I Just Want to Make Love to You," "Hoochie Coochie Man," and "I'm Ready."
Among other songs that made Waters famous are "Long Distance Call," "Mannish Boy," and the rock/blues anthem "I've Got My Mojo Working."
Throughout history, he became a true master of the Blues, as it's no coincidence that the King himself, B.B. King, used to call Muddy "The Boss of the Chicago Blues." The number of artists and bands influenced by Muddy wouldn't fit in these poorly written lines. From Eric Clapton to the Rolling Stones, from Johnny Winter to Rory Gallagher, practically any musician who has the Blues as a fundamental art form of passion, has Muddy Waters as one of their main sources of inspiration, thanks to his explosive, powerful, and soulful style of singing and playing.
Throughout his career, he produced great works that are now considered true sacred gems of the genre. Spectacular albums such as "Muddy At Newport" (1960), "The Folk Singer" (1964), "Electric Mud" (1968), "Hard Again" (1977), and "I'm Ready" (1978) function perfectly as essential Blues recordings.
Muddy passed away in 1983 at the age of 70, but his life and brilliant legacy will forever be celebrated and acclaimed by all those who see the Blues not only as one of the most fascinating musical genres of all time, but also as a way of life.
MUDDY WATERS - FUTPEDIAMUSIC SELECTION
Howlin Wolf
Futpediamusic Selection
10 Songs To Download
Needed WinRar or Winzip to open the files
Click here: