Who's Who

The blues singer and guitarist Muddy Waters, b. McKinley Morganfield in Rolling Fork, Miss., Apr. 4, 1915, d. Apr. 30, 1983, was a seminal figure in the music known as {rhythm and blues}.Waters began his career with an acoustic guitar- his country blues were recorded in 1941 for the Archives of American Folksong of the Library of Congress- but he switched to electric guitar in 1943. In The 1950s, Waters established an innovative approach to the blues by using a band consisting of amplified guitar, harmonica, piano, and drums. Waters inspired countless musicians in the United States and Britain, Bob Dylan- whose hit “Like a Rolling Stone” was named for Waters “Rolling Stone”- Elvis Presley, Mick Jagger. Although a star at international blues, folk, and jazz festivals, Waters never gained the kind of commercial success accorded those who imitated his songs. It was not until the 1970s, that he received widespread recognition.

Waters was an inspiration to his people and a strength. He expressed his feelings, thoughts, and moods through the strings of his guitar. His music was copied time and time again, and still to this day. I think respect is do for this man and the trail of music he left behind that swept the world. lie was a legend in his time, and a legend now in ours; keep rolling.

Terry