Bartender! Make that one bourbon, one scotch and one beer.
No! Not John Lee Hooker, the Boogie Man, Texas Slim, Johnny Lee, Birmingham Sam, John Lee Booker. Man, it really hurts when one of the giants passes on.
The other day I asked the question Who's Your Daddy?, wondering who the "real" father of rock and roll was. Ultimately I was unable to assist in coming to any final conclusion. But I do know this for certain--We are all John Lee Hooker's boogie chillun.
Kieth Richards said, "You're not going to mistake John Lee Hooker for anybody else--it was just such a fascinating sound, and so different to the other stuff I've heard; in a way more archaic. Yet it felt so electric, and sounded as if he'd somehow jumped a generation. It was so dark and swampy. I learned those John Lee Hooker chords, which are very strange shapes, and it immediately affected everything I did since then."
My son Nick and I had the good fortune of seeing John Lee Hooker three years ago at the Annual Antone's/KGSR Blues Festival here in Austin. I'm so glad we did. He sang, among other songs:
I'm In The Mood
I'm in the mood baby, I'm in the mood for love
I'm in the mood baby, I'm in the mood for love
I'm in the mood, I'm in the mood, baby, I'm in the mood for love
I said night time is the right time, to be with the one you love
You know when night come baby, God know, you're so far away
I'm in the mood, I'm in the mood baby, I'm in the mood for love
I'm in the mood, in the mood, baby, in the mood for love
I said yes, my mama told me, to leave that girl alone
But my mama didn't know what that little, girl was puttin' down
I'm in the mood, I'm in the mood baby, in the mood for love
I'm in the mood, I'm in the mood, baby, in the mood for love
By John Lee Hooker and Bernard Besman.
Bluesman John Lee Hooker Dies by Marcus Errico.
John Lee Hooker, the transcendent Delta bluesman whose electric boogie grooves and odes to fast living made him one of the 20th century's most influential musicians, died early Thursday morning at the age of 83.
Bluesman John Lee Hooker Dies at 83
For six decades, John Lee Hooker's rich sonorous voice coupled with a brooding rhythmic guitar inspired countless musicians and electrified audiences with songs like "Boom Boom" and "Boogie Chillen."
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Article comments
1 - Dean Esmay
Oh my. We knew it would happen. But I really hoped he'd be with us at least another 17 years.
Time to put on my copy of Hooker 'n' Heat! HEY HEY!!!!
To have lived such a full life, we can only hope to do ourselves.