The London Muddy Waters Sessions
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''The London Muddy Waters Sessions'' is a studio album by Muddy Waters, released in 1972 on
Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and roll ...
. A follow-up to 1971's '' The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions,'' the concept was to combine American bluesmen with British blues/rock stars. The album was an attempt to capitalise on the increasing popularity of traditional blues music and blues artists in Britain. ''The London Muddy Waters Sessions'' won the 1972
Grammy Award for Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording The Grammy Award for Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording was awarded from 1960 to 1986. During this time the award had several minor name changes: *From 1960 to 1961 the award was known as Best Performance - Folk *From 1962 to 1967 it was awa ...
; it marked the second of six times that Muddy Waters would win that award.


The Players

The album features Waters on
slide Slide or Slides may refer to: Places *Slide, California, former name of Fortuna, California Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums * ''Slide'' (Lisa Germano album), 1998 * ''Slide'' (George Clanton album), 2018 *''Slide'', by Patrick Glees ...
and
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
, backed by Sammy Lawhorn and Rory Gallagher on guitar,
Carey Bell Carey Bell Harrington (November 14, 1936 – May 6, 2007) was an American blues musician who played harmonica in the Chicago blues style. Bell played harmonica and bass guitar for other blues musicians from the late 1950s to the early 1970s bef ...
Harrington on harmonica,
Rick Grech Richard Roman Grechko (1 November 1945 – 17 March 1990), better known as Ric Grech, was a British rock musician. He is best known for playing bass guitar and violin with rock band Family as well as in the supergroups Blind Faith and Traffic ...
on bass, Georgie Fame (credited as "George Fortune") and
Steve Winwood Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a keyboard player and vocalist prominent for his disti ...
on piano and organ, Mitch Mitchell from Jimi Hendrix Experience and Herbie Lovelle on drums and
Rosetta Hightower Rosetta Jeanette Hightower (23 June 1944 – 2 August 2014) was an American singer and the lead singer of the 1960s girl group The Orlons. She was born in Philadelphia. As lead singer of The Orlons, the Orlons recorded several Top 10 U.S. hits ...
on vocals, Ernie Royal and Joe Newman on trumpet, Garnett Brown on trombone and Seldon Powell on tenor saxophone. Irish blues-rocker Gallagher, who began a successful solo career following the demise of his trio, Taste, played on three tracks, providing solos on "Young Fashion Ways" and two others. Winwood reprised his keyboard role on the Howlin' Wolf sessions, making appearances on three tracks. Fame, a swinging-jazz-blues player who went on to collaborating with Van Morrison, played on the remaining tracks. Mitchell, who had worked with Georgie Fame's Blues Flames prior to joining the Jimi Hendrix Experience and drew his greatest inspiration from jazzmen such as Elvin Jones, played on most of the album. On the shuffles like "I'm Ready" and "Blind Man Blues", the drummer is New York session veteran Lovelle. Grech was best known as one-fourth of Blind Faith, together with Winwood. It is also noteworthy that Blind Faith included two ex- Cream members, Ginger Baker and
Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...
– the latter having played on The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions, while Grech had previously been a member of Traffic, another band featuring Winwood. Blues harp man
Carey Bell Carey Bell Harrington (November 14, 1936 – May 6, 2007) was an American blues musician who played harmonica in the Chicago blues style. Bell played harmonica and bass guitar for other blues musicians from the late 1950s to the early 1970s bef ...
was essential. Like Muddy, Bell was born in Mississippi and came of age in Chicago; like Lawhorn, he was a long-time member of Muddy Waters' band, having previously worked with
John Lee Hooker John Lee Hooker (August 22, 1912 or 1917 – June 21, 2001) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. The son of a sharecropper, he rose to prominence performing an electric guitar-style adaptation of Delta blues. Hooker often ...
, Eddie Taylor and Earl Hooker. Bell alternated between a standard Marine Band harp and the big double-key chromatic harp which was his specialty.


Track listing

#"Blind Man Blues" ( Lafayette Leake) – 3:30 #" Key to the Highway" ( McKinley Morganfield) – 2:24 #"Young Fashioned Ways" (
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 ...
) – 4:22 #" I'm Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town" ( William Weldon) – 3:54 #"Who's Gonna Be Your Sweet Man When I'm Gone" (McKinley Morganfield) – 5:03 #" Walkin' Blues" (Willie Dixon) – 3:00 #" I'm Ready" (Willie Dixon) – 4:08 #"Sad Sad Day" (McKinley Morganfield) – 5:15 #"I Don't Know Why" (Willie Dixon) – 4:00


Personnel

*Muddy Waters – slide guitar, vocals *Sammy Lawhorn – guitar * Rory Gallagher – guitar *Carey Bell Harrington – harmonica *
Rick Grech Richard Roman Grechko (1 November 1945 – 17 March 1990), better known as Ric Grech, was a British rock musician. He is best known for playing bass guitar and violin with rock band Family as well as in the supergroups Blind Faith and Traffic ...
– bass * George Fortune – piano, organ *
Steve Winwood Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a keyboard player and vocalist prominent for his disti ...
– piano, organ * Mitch Mitchell – drums * Herbie Lovelle – drums *
Rosetta Hightower Rosetta Jeanette Hightower (23 June 1944 – 2 August 2014) was an American singer and the lead singer of the 1960s girl group The Orlons. She was born in Philadelphia. As lead singer of The Orlons, the Orlons recorded several Top 10 U.S. hits ...
– vocals on "Blind Man Blues" *
Ernie Royal Ernest Andrew Royal (June 2, 1921 in Los Angeles, California – March 16, 1983 in New York City) was a jazz trumpeter. His older brother was clarinetist and alto saxophonist Marshal Royal, with whom he appears on the classic Ray Charles big ban ...
– trumpet * Joe Newman – trumpet * Garnett Brown – trombone * Seldon Powell – tenor saxophone * Johnny Pate - horn arrangements


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:London Muddy Waters Sessions, The 1972 albums Muddy Waters albums Albums produced by Esmond Edwards Chess Records albums Albums recorded at IBC Studios Grammy Award for Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording