Johnny Winter: Self Titled Album (1969)
Happy 66th Birthday to music legend Johnny Winter. An incredible artist whose music continues to inspire us. Here’s one of my favorite articles that was featured last year… Make sure you add your comments at the end of the post!
Flashback Summer 1969
I recall it well… I was helping The Big F, my brother’s friend/roadie, bring in the gear from last night’s gig… My brother was in his glory admiring his latest acquisition; a red 1964 Gibson SG standard. Then the boys, as they usually did on Saturday afternoons, started to rehearse. This time they were inspired by some tunes they heard on the latest Johnny Winter album…
I hung out for a while and then decided to go to the store for some soda. So I took my bike and starting making my way down the sidewalk… I remember thinking how cool it was that I could still hear them playing Mean Mistreater halfway down the block… I got distracted by my next door neighbor, who said something I didn’t quite hear as I cycled by. I glanced back momentarily to acknowledge her, and then as I turned around, I cycled right into a tree. If that didn’t suck, I fell off my bike and broke my arm.
My neighbor ran to my house and after ringing the doorbell several times, she managed to finally get The Big F’s attention. I still remember that crazed look of concern on his face as he ran down the street telling people to get out of his way. Without hesitation, he picked me up like I was a football. And proceeded to run into the house and let everyone know what happened… Off I went to the hospital. Yes, I guess I ended the rehearsal prematurely that day… Oh well, life is hard sometimes. No wonder I love the blues so much.
Present Time
Today almost 40 years later, I reflected about this while recovering from my ridiculous dirt bike incident over a week ago… Reminiscing, I went downstairs into my gym closet. After a moment, I pulled out my personal copy of Johnny Winter’s 1969 LP. It had been a while since I listened to it, so I put the album on my turntable and converted it to digital. I then get the sound of the vinyl with the convenience of MP3. It helps get my creative mind in motion… I started a mild walk on the treadmill, did some stretching and listened once again as I got swept away in one of my many reflective vinyl moments.
Johnny Winter
was born in February 23 1944. Playing clarinet at the age of 5, Winter made his first television appearance at 10 years old playing ukulele and singing on a local children’s show with his brother Edgar.
He first recorded with his band Johnny and the Jammers when he was 15 and released the single School Day Blues, which became a local hit. Winter was further inspired at the time by the live performances of classic blues artists like Muddy Waters, B.B. King and Bobby Bland.
After a string of ventures throughout the sixties, Winter released his first album on Sonobeat Records called The Progressive Blues Experiment in 1968. On 1969’s self titled LP, Johnny Winter found himself backed by blues stars such Willie Dixon and “Big” Walter Horton on harp. As well as bass player Tommy Shannon, who would later get recognized as backing Stevie Ray Vaughan in Double Trouble.
The accomplishments and inspiration Johnny Winter has garnered is enormous. His life long dream of playing with Muddy Waters became reality in 1977 when he produced Muddy’s album Hard Again. The following year, he continued that success with Muddy’s I’m Ready, and then one final time in 1980 on King Bee. Together Muddy Waters and Johnny Winter’s partnership produced a number of Grammy Awards.
Winter performed at Woodstock, was on the cover of the first issue of Guitar World in 1980, and in 1988 was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame. And if that ain’t cool enough, he even jammed with Jimi Hendrix.
“Like Bloomfield’s band and the Blues Project, Johnny Winter pulled blues classics, like ‘Mean Mistreater’ and ‘When You Got A Good Friend,’ back into the mainstream of rock music and forced rock guitarists once again to pay attention to their musical heritage and draw from it.” ~Gene Santoro
Listening to this album again sort of gave me the shivers. It certainly will go down as the soundtrack to some of my broken bones…. All kidding aside, I love this record. There are some albums that act like a time machine, and this one took me way back. It contains some of the most genuine and memorable blues that I recall then and now.
Johnny Winter On Tour
Here is a brief itinerary of his latest schedule. Times and dates are subject to change, so make sure you double check.
MARCH 2010
Thu 03/04/10 Treviso, Italy New Age
Fri 03/05/10 Trezzo, Italy Live Station
Sat 03/06/10 Forli, Italy Naima
Sun 03/07/10 Rome, Italy Parco della Musica Auditorium
Wed 03/10/10 Monte Carlo, Monaco Moods
Fri 03/12/10 Abbeville, France Theatre
Sat 03/13/10 Terville, France Le 112
Sun 03/14/10 Lille, France Theatre Sebastopol
Mon 03/15/10 Paris, France Legend
Wed 03/17/10 Cleon, France La Traverse
Fri 03/19/10 Exeter, United Kingdom Exeter Phoenix
Sat 03/20/10 Frome, United Kingdom Cheese & Grain
Sun 03/21/10 Southampton, United Kingdom The Brook
Mon 03/22/10 Cardiff, United Kingdom The Globe
Wed 03/24/10 Zoetermeer, Netherlands Boerderij
Thu 03/25/10 Limbourg, Belgium Le Kursaal
Fri 03/26/10 Lessines, Belgium Culturel Centre
APRIL 2010
Thu 04/08/10 Pittsburgh, PA Diesel Club Lounge
Fri 04/09/10 Auburn Hills, MI Callahan’s
Sat 04/10/10 Akron, OH Tangier Restaurant & Cabaret
Sat 04/17/10 Appearing at “Wanee Festival”Widespread Panic \ The Allman Brothers Band Live Oak, FL Spirit Of The Suwannee Music Park
Wed 04/21/10 Hamilton, ON This Ain’t Hollywood
Thu 04/22/10 Peterborough, ON Showplace
Fri 04/23/10 Pembroke, ON Festival Hall
Sat 04/24/10 Montreal, QC Club Soda
Fri 04/30/10 Uncasville, CT Wolf Den
MAY 2010
Sat 05/01/10 Annapolis, MD Rams Head On Stage
Fri 05/14/10 Manaus, Brazil Studio 5
Sat 05/15/10 Brasilia, Brazil Centro De Convencoes Brasilia
Sun 05/16/10 Recife, Brazil Teatro Guarapapes
Thu 05/20/10 Rio De Janeiro, Brazil Canecao
Fri 05/21/10 Belo Horizonte, Brazil Chevrolet Hall
Sat 05/22/10 Sao Paulo, Brazil Via Funchal
JUNE 2010
Fri 06/11/10 Biloxi, MS Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi
Fri 06/18/10 Houston, TX Wired Live
Sat 06/19/10 Appearing at “T-Bone Walker Blues Festival” Linden, TX Music City Texas Theatre
Sun 06/20/10 Dallas, TX Granada Theater
Wed 06/23/10 New York, NY B.B. King Blues Club
Thu 06/24/10 Foxboro, MA Showcase Live
Fri 06/25/10 Appearing with James Cotton (Superharp) Albany, NY Empire State Plaza Conv. Ctr.
During the Course of This Blog
I’ve featured some albums that were released in 1969. Johnny Winter’s self titled release came out almost 40 years ago to the date that I am writing this. If you’re unfamiliar I strongly suggest getting a copy of this. Sony Legacy re-issued this recording with five extra bonus tracks 5 years ago. It’s a great album for any fan old or new who wants a good dose of the blues from a true music legend. Just try not to hurt yourself when you listen. 
This post represents only a small portion of Winter’s work. It’s impossible to cover the rich history and his contribution to the music world in just one blog post. Perhaps you can add your comments and help fill in some of the many gaps… Is there any Johnny Winter moments that comes to mind for you? Will you be checking out any of the shows listed above?
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