 |
Born near Clarksdale, Mississippi on August
22, 1917 to a sharecropping family, John Lee
Hooker's earliest musical influence came from
his stepfather, Will Moore. By the early
1940's Hooker had moved north to Detroit by
way of Memphis and Cincinnati. Hooker found
work as a janitor in the auto factories, and
at night, like many other transplants from
the rural Delta, he entertained friends and
neighbors by playing at "house parties". He
was "discovered" by record storeowner Elmer
Barbee who took him to Bernard Besman, who
was a producer, record distributor and owner
of Sensation Records, Besman leased some of
his early Hooker recordings to Modern
Records. Among Hooker's first recordings in
1948, "Boogie Chillen" became a number one
jukebox hit for Modern and his first million
seller. This was soon followed by an even
bigger hit with "I'm In The Mood" and other
classic recordings including "Crawling
Kingsnake" and "Hobo Blues." Another surge in
his career took place with the release of
more than 100 songs on Vee Jay Records during
the 1950's and 1960's.
When the young bohemian audiences of the
1960's "discovered" Hooker along with other
blues originators, he and various he and
others made a brief return to folk blues.
Young British artist such as the Animals,
John Mayall, and the Yardbirds introduced
Hooker's sound to the new and eager audiences
whose admiration and influence helped build
Hooker to superstar status in the mid - 60's
England. By 1970 he had moved to California
and worked on several projects with rock
musicians, notably Van Morrison and Canned
Heat. Canned Heat modeled their sound after
Hooker's boggie and collaborated with him on
several albums and tours.
During the late 1970's and much of the
1980's, Hooker toured the U.S. and Europe
steadily but grew disenchanted with
recording, through his appearance in the
Blues Brothers movie resulted in a heightened
profile. Then, in 1989, The Healer was
released to critical acclaim and sales in
excess of a million copies. Today the "The
King Of The Boggie" is enjoying the most
successful period of his extensive career. In
the past ten years Hooker's influence has
contributed to a booming interest in the
blues and, notably, its acceptance by the
music industry as a commercially viable
entity.
Hooker's career has been a series a
highlights and special events since the
release of The Healer. In addition to
recording his on albums Mr. Lucky, Boom Boom,
Chill Out, and Don't Look Back for Pointblank
/ Virgin, he contributed to recordings by
B.B. King, Branford Marsalis, Van Morrison,
and Big Head Todd and the Monsters and
portrayed the title role in Pete Townshend's
1989 epic, The Iron Man.
His influence on younger generations has been
documented on television with features on
Showtime and a special edition of the BBC's
'Late Show' as well as appearances on "The
Tonight Show" and "Late Night With David
Letterman" among many others. John Lee was
invited to perform The Rolling Stones and
guest Eric Clapton for their national
television broadcast during The Stones' 1989
Steel Wheels tour. In 1990, many musical
greats paid tribute to John Lee Hooker with a
performance at Madison Square Garden. Joining
him on some or all of these special occasions
were artists such as Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder,
Joe Cocker, Huey Newton, Carlos Santana,
Robert Clay, Mick Fleetwood, Al Cooper,
Johnny Winter, John Hammond, and the late
Albert Collins and Willie Dixon.
Hooker's 1991 induction into the Rock n' Roll
Hall Of Fame was fitting for the man who has
influenced countless fans and musicians who
have in turn influenced many more. Honors
continue, with recent inductions into Los
Angeles' Rock Walk, The Bammies Walk Of Fame
in San Francisco, and, in 1997, a star in the
Hollywood Walk Of Fame.
John Lee's style has always been unique, even
among other performers of the real deep
blues, few of whom remain with us today.
While retaining that foundation he has
simultaneously broken new ground musically
and commercially. At the age of 80, John Lee
Hooker received his third and fourth Grammy
Awards, for Best Traditional Blues Recording
(Don't Look Back) and for Best Pop
Collaboration for the song "Don't Look Back"
which Hooker recorded with his long time
friend Van Morrison. This Friendship and
others are celebrated on Hooker's newest
Pointblank / Virgin album, The Best Of
Friends. The album also celebrates a return,
exactly 50 years later, to Hooker's first
hit, Boogie Chillen and serves as a perfect
bookend for Hooker's first fifty years in the
business
Tags : HOOKER blues mississippi delta chicago muddy waters bb king buddy guy boom eric clapton brothers hendrix |
