Louisiana harmonica player and singer Marion Jacobs is better known by his blues sobriquet “Little Walter,” and rose to fame in the 1950s when he racked up 15 hits for Chess Records’ Checker imprint including “My Babe,” which spent five weeks at the summit of the US R&B singles charts in 1955. – Charles Waring Little Walter And His Jukes – My Babe The tune has been a favorite of other bluesmen (Slim Harpo, Buddy Guy, and Freddy King have all recorded it) and even rock bands Led Zeppelin once included it in a medley they recorded for BBC radio in 1969. Considered a delta blues classic, the record also epitomized the “boogie” style with its rhythmic syncopations.

An original tune recorded in 1948, the song represented the minimalist aesthetic that was Hooker’s hallmark the only instrument on the record was Hooker’s guitar, on which he strummed guitar chords in a hypnotic, loop-like fashion behind his gravelly bark of a voice. Hooker’s biggest commercial success was during the years 1949 to 1951 when he was in his thirties he put six singles in the US R&B charts, the first of which was “Boogie Chillen,” which went all the way to No. – Charles Waring John Lee Hooker – Boogie Chillen It offers a quintessential example of Johnson’s soulful wail and skeletal guitar accompaniment, and became a touchstone for later blues musicians those who covered it included Peter Green Splinter Group, Eric Clapton, and Gil Scott-Heron. The fact that Johnson died in mysterious circumstances not long afterwards made the record seem prophetic. One of the last recordings he made, released on the Vocalion label in 1938, this classic fable about Satan calling in a debt, helped to fuel the long-held myth that Johnson had made a Faustian pact with the devil at a crossroads, exchanging his soul for musical success. – Brett MilanoĬlick to load video Robert Johnson – Me And The Devil Blues “Thrill Is Gone” wasn’t the first record to fuse blues with pop, but it was the smoothest and most successful to date (hitting No.15 as a pop record) and setting the stage for many crossovers to come. The producer had no qualms about polishing King’s sound, recording him with top-flight studio players (instead of his road band) and, in this case, coaxing out one of his more heartfelt vocals. Producer Bill Szymczyk – yes, the same one who’d make millions a few years later with The Eagles – caused a small revolution when he added a string section to this track, otherwise one of many smooth ballads that BB King recorded in the 60s. While you’re reading, listen to our Best Blues Songs playlist here. Suffice to say that if Robert Johnson had never gone to the crossroads, or if BB King was still feeling a thrill, the world would be a poorer place.

Many of the most influential blues songs reverberate to this day, and a few were probably covered by a local band in your town last weekend. Either they were famously covered, or the licks got borrowed, or they schooled the rockers in style and attitude. Without the blues there’d be no rock’n’roll, but certain tracks were especially pivotal. The great blues artists talked, the savviest rockers listened.

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