Howard Luedtke, also known as Howard "Guitar" Luedtke, is an American blues guitarist,

singer Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

and

musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

. Luedtke is considered one of the best

slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos tha ...

players in the American midwest, and currently tours with his band Howard "Guitar" Luedtke & Blue Max. Blue Max is a

Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin Chippewa Falls is a city located on the Chippewa River in Chippewa County in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 14,778 in the 2021 census. Incorporated as a city in 1869, it is the county seat of Chippewa Cou ...

based blues-rock band that has been performing in the upper Midwest for the past two decades. Luedtke interprets the blues material by

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and

Willie Dixon William James Dixon (July 1, 1915January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he ...

Biography

Early life

Howard, from

, has been playing guitar since 1964. "I grew up with the

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

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and the

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," says Luedtke. "Then in '69 or '70 I was first exposed to the classic blues and was fascinated by it." Howard played in a variety of blues, rock and country bands, in the Wisconsin area during the early seventies including Black Cat Bone Band in 1974. He formed his own band in 1982 called Blue Max.

Music career

Averaging over a 150 shows per year (solo and with Blue Max), Howard has traveled all over the midwest and Europe performing his tribute to the blues. His power-trio band is rounded out by his wife, Deb Klossner on bass and a wide assortment of drummers. From

New Ulm, Minnesota New Ulm is a city in Brown County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,120 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Brown County. It is located on the triangle of land formed by the confluence of the Minnesota River and the Co ...

, Klossner had been performing since 1983. After four years of performing with several rock bands in Southern Minnesota, Klossner joined Blue Max in 1987. Over the years Howard "Guitar" Luedtke & Blue Max has opened for the likes of

Hubert Sumlin Hubert Charles Sumlin (November 16, 1931 – December 4, 2011) was a Chicago blues guitarist and singer, best known for his "wrenched, shattering bursts of notes, sudden cliff-hanger silences and daring rhythmic suspensions" as a member of Howlin ...

Tinsley Ellis Tinsley Ellis (born June 4, 1957) is an American blues and rock musician, who was born in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, and grew up in South Florida. According to ''Billboard'', "nobody has released more consistently excellent blues albums ...

Koko Taylor Koko Taylor (born Cora Anna Walton, September 28, 1928 – June 3, 2009) was an American singer whose style encompassed Chicago blues, electric blues, rhythm and blues and soul blues. Sometimes called "The Queen of the Blues", she was known for ...

Jeff Healey Norman Jeffrey Healey (March 25, 1966 – March 2, 2008) was a Canadian blues, rock and jazz singer, guitarist, and songwriter who attained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. He reached No. 5 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart with " A ...

and

Lonnie Brooks Lonnie Brooks (born Lee Baker Jr., December 18, 1933 – April 1, 2017) was an American blues singer and guitarist. The musicologist Robert Palmer, writing in ''Rolling Stone'', stated, "His music is witty, soulful and ferociously energetic, b ...

. In 2001, Luedtke & Blue Max placed second in the Rock category of Contest 4 of ''Ed McMahon's NextBigStar.com Internet video contest''. Luedtke released ''Alone with the Blues'' (2006), a solo CD with him performing guitar and vocals.

Discography

* ''Molded by the Blues'' (False Dog Records, 1992) * ''Live in Geisdorf, Austria'' (False Dog Records, 1995) * ''Face to Face with the Blues'' (False Dog Records, 1996) * ''Alone with the Blues'' (False Dog Records, 2006) * ''Goin' Down to Alabama'' (False Dog Records, 2016) * ''Meet Me in Muscle Shoals'' (False Dog Records, 2019) * ''By Request'' (False Dog Records, 2023)

Guest Artist

*Bake Sale Various Artists Great Northern Blues Society *Michael Bucher Believe 2009 *Otis & The Alligators, Serious Alligations, 1991

References

External links

Howard "Guitar" Luedtke & Blue Max: Official Web SiteMinnesota/Midwest blues websiteArticle
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luedtke, Howard Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Outsider musicians American blues guitarists American male guitarists American blues singer-songwriters Musicians from Wisconsin American male singer-songwriters