Earring George Mayweather (September 27, 1927 – February 12, 1995) was an American electric blues and Chicago blues harmonica player, songwriter and singer. He recorded only one solo album, but he played the harmonica on recordings by

J. B. Hutto Joseph Benjamin Hutto (April 26, 1926 – June 12, 1983) was an American blues musician. He was influenced by Elmore James and became known for his slide guitar playing and declamatory style of singing. He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame ...

and Eddie Taylor.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

commented that his album ''Whup It! Whup It!'' was "an admirable shot at recreating the '50s Chicago harp sound".

Life and career

George Mayweather Jr. was born in Montgomery County, Alabama. He learned to play the harmonica after receiving the instrument as a Christmas present at the age of six. Inspired by the playing of Sonny Boy Williamson I, Mayweather mainly taught himself the rudiments of the instrument. Upon his relocation to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, in September 1949, he befriended

Little Walter Marion Walter Jacobs (May 1, 1930 – February 15, 1968), known as Little Walter, was an American blues musician, singer, and songwriter, whose revolutionary approach to the harmonica had a strong impact on succeeding generations, earning him ...

, who taught him techniques of harmonica playing. He lived in Chicago, next door to J. B. Hutto, and in 1951 he teamed up with Hutto and the percussionist Eddie "Porkchop" Hines to form the Hawks, a trio performing on weekends at the

Maxwell Street Maxwell Street is an east-west street in Chicago, Illinois that intersects with Halsted Street just south of Roosevelt Road. It runs at 1330 South in the numbering system running from 500 West to 1126 West.Hayner, Don and Tom McNamee (1988). '' ...

market. With few opportunities for steady work, Mayweather alternately performed with Hutto and in Bo Diddley's backing ensemble. In 1952, when Little Walter left

Muddy Waters McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913 April 30, 1983), known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer and musician who was an important figure in the post-war blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago b ...

's touring band, Mayweather was offered a job as his replacement, but he declined the potentially lucrative position. By 1954, Mayweather recorded with Hutto in sessions for Chance Records, which produced "Dim Lights", "Things Are So Slow", "Combination Boogie", and "Pet Cream Man". He later teamed up Eddie Taylor, and together they recorded a number of tracks, including "You’ll Always Have a Home" and "Don’t Knock at My Door". Several of these were released as singles, but they were not commercial successes. Mayweather continued working in Chicago during the 1950s and was given the nickname "Earring" by Big Bill Hill, a Chicago

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...

. In the late 1980s, Mayweather relocated to

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, and gained regular employment at the 1369 Jazz Club. In 1992, Mayweather recorded his first solo album, ‘''Whup It! Whup It!’,'' using musicians from the Magic Rockers band, which backed Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson, the album comprised mostly Chicago blues standards, made notable by Howlin' Wolf ("

Forty Four "Forty-Four" or "44 Blues" is a blues standard whose origins have been traced back to early 1920s Louisiana. However, it was Roosevelt Sykes, who provided the lyrics and first recorded it in 1929, that helped popularize the song. "Forty-Four," t ...

"),

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

(" What'd I Say"), Muddy Waters, Jimmy Rogers and Little Walter. There was one original track, "Cheatin' on Me", written by Mayweather. The

music journalist Bill Dahl noted that the album was "an admirable shot at recreating the '50s Chicago harp sound". Mayweather died of

liver cancer Liver cancer (also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy) is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary (starts in liver) or secondary (meaning cancer which has spread from elsewhere to th ...

in Boston, in February 1995, at the age of 67.

Discography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayweather, Earring George 1927 births 1995 deaths American blues harmonica players Harmonica blues musicians American blues singers Chicago blues musicians Electric blues musicians American session musicians Musicians from Montgomery, Alabama People from Montgomery County, Alabama Songwriters from Alabama Deaths from cancer in Massachusetts Deaths from liver cancer 20th-century American singers

Life and career

Discography

See also

References