King Of The Electric Blues

Performer: Muddy Waters
Distributor: Sony Music Distribution (

Notes: Producer: Johnny Winter. Compilation producer: Lawrence Cohn. Recorded between 1976-1980. Includes liner notes by Charles Shaar Murray. This is part of Legacy's Mojo Workin' series. From 1977 to 1980, Johnny Winter undertook a mission to counterbalance Muddy's iffy crossover attempts of the last decade. By recording in an atmosphere designed to emulate a live stage environment, with the right musicians and loads of enthusiasm, Winter pulled the old fire out of Muddy, the kind of energy he'd generally been emitting only in live performance. Like its companion collection BLUES SKY--with which there's no overlap--KING OF THE ELECTRIC BLUES cherry-picks those sessions recorded for CBS imprint Blue Sky, resulting in an anthology nearly as satisfying as any from Muddy's Chess days. The live cuts from MUDDY "MISSISSIPPI" WATERS LIVE showcase Muddy and his band at their most unfettered. Unhinged slide solos intersect with pounding, near-primal drums, and Muddy's own razor-sharp growl. The studio recordings are equally impressive; just when you thought you'd heard it all from Muddy, he's promoting the use and bemoaning the illegality of marijuana on "Champagne & Reefer." Despite his usual randiness, he sounds like the soul of sorrow on a track like "Sad sad Day." "No Escape from the Blues," the final studio recording of Muddy's life, is more manifesto than elegy.

Originally a Delta bluesman in the vein of Son House, Muddy Waters moved north in the 1940s and became the leader of the first--and greatest--electric Chicago blues band. Waters' abrasive guitar, impassioned singing, and commanding stage presence inspired generations of disciples, and hits like "Hoochie Coochie Man" and "I've Got My Mojo Workin'" are now indisputable classics.

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