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Home » Junior Wells

Tag: Junior Wells

An illustration of blues guitarist Byther Smith embedded in the title card for the Secret History of Chicago Music
Posted inMusic

Blues guitarist Byther Smith made the long haul count

by Steve Krakow April 5, 2022April 5, 2022

So little in the world seems to be going right that I hardly feel the need to explain why the Secret History of Chicago Music is extending its annual Winter Blues series into April. Sticking to the calendar is less important to me than eulogizing an important bluesman who recently passed away. I hope this […]

An illustration of blues guitarist Sammy Lawhorn embedded in the title card for the Secret History of Chicago Music
Posted inMusic

Sammy Lawhorn might be the most widely recorded blues guitarist lost to time

by Steve Krakow January 26, 2022January 25, 2022

Folks often ask me how I’ve come up with subjects for the Secret History of Chicago Music month after month. I have lots of answers, all of them true, including digging in record bins, falling down Internet rabbit holes, and cultivating knowledgeable friends. I’m tight with experts in several genres well represented in Chicago: big-city […]

Posted inMusic

Bob Koester leaves a colossal legacy in Chicago jazz and blues

by Howard Mandel May 19, 2021August 18, 2021

For nearly 70 years, Bob Koester owned the Jazz Record Mart and Delmark Records—and though his businesses could be “crazy town,” they helped nurture thriving communities.

Posted inMusic

A local R&B favorite by the Fabulous Turks gets resurrected after half a century

by Steve Krakow May 6, 2021August 18, 2021

Chicago singer-songwriter RJ Griffith has released a cover of his uncle’s old R&B band the Fabulous Turks.

Posted inMusic

The Aces helped invent the sound of electric Chicago blues

by Steve Krakow January 28, 2021August 18, 2021

The Aces are best known as a backing band, but they took the lead when it came to the future of the blues.

Posted inMusic

Give your money to Mary Lane

by Katie Prout August 20, 2020September 15, 2021

Chicago blueswoman Mary Lane has been making music for more than 70 years. She should be a legend, but she can barely pay her bills.

Posted inMusic

Louis Myers cofounded one of the great backing bands in the blues

by Steve Krakow April 9, 2019January 5, 2022

The guitar and harmonica master from the Aces played with Junior Wells, Little Walter, Otis Rush, Magic Sam, and many more.

Posted inMusic

Lefty Dizz was one of the greatest showmen in the blues

by Steve Krakow January 30, 2019August 18, 2021

Guitarist Lefty Dizz toured abroad for decades, but even in his home base of Chicago he was never the star he played like.

Posted inMusic

Blues drummer Sam Lay has made five careers’ worth of music

by Steve Krakow February 26, 2018January 31, 2022

Sharp-dressed drummer Sam Lay has played with Dylan and Howlin’ Wolf, and in 2015 he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band.

Posted inMusic

Blueswoman Mary Lane is still looking for the respect she deserves at age 82

by Steve Krakow January 30, 2018August 18, 2021

No-nonsense west-side veteran Mary Lane, who’s shared stages with the likes of Howlin’ Wolf and Buddy Guy, is raising money to finish her long-awaited second album.

Posted inMusic

John Hulburt’s 1972 LP of acoustic-guitar magic was reissued this year with help from Ryley Walker

by Steve Krakow November 25, 2015August 18, 2021

Guitarist John Hulburt was born on a Wisconsin dairy farm and died in Paris, but it was in Chicago that he made his one immortal album.

Posted inFood & Drink

Rosa of Rosa’s Lounge brought the blues to Logan Square

by Gwynedd Stuart March 12, 2015August 18, 2021

The Italian immigrant and her son have logged 31 years on Armitage.

Posted inMusic

The Secret History of Chicago Music: Fenton Robinson

by Chicago Reader February 5, 2015August 18, 2021

This soulful, sophisticated blues guitarist is best remembered for the slow burner “Somebody (Loan Me a Dime).”

Posted inMusic

In Billy Branch’s blues, the legendary Palm Tavern still stands

by David Whiteis February 2, 2015August 18, 2021

Gerri’s Palm Tavern, once a crown jewel of Bronzeville, was shut down by the city in 2001. But blues harpist Billy Branch remains dedicated to preserving the history and culture it embodied.

Posted inMusic

The Secret History of Chicago Music: Lafayette Leake

by Chicago Reader March 6, 2014August 18, 2021

Brilliant pianist Lafayette Leake played countless sessions with blues giants but released little music of his own.

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