John Lee Hooker

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John Lee Hooker

John Lee Hooker (August 22, 1917 – June 21, 2001) was an influential American

United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
post-war

Post-war

A post-war period is the interval immediately following the beginning of a war and enduring as long as war does not resume. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum when a war between the same parties resumes at a later date ....
blues

Blues

Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
ist, and songwriter

Songwriter

File:Beethoven.jpgA songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics, as well the musical composition or melody to songs. One who writes only lyrics is a lyricist, while one who writes only music is a composer....
born in Coahoma County

Coahoma County, Mississippi

Coahoma County is a county located in the Mississippi Delta region of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of 2000, the population was 30,622. Its county seat is Clarksdale, Mississippi....
near Clarksdale, Mississippi

Clarksdale, Mississippi

Clarksdale is a city in Coahoma County, Mississippi, Mississippi, United States. The population was 20,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Coahoma County, Mississippi....
. From a musical family, he was a cousin of Earl Hooker

Earl Hooker

Earl Hooker was an United States blues guitarist. Hooker was a Chicago slide guitarist in the same league as Elmore James, Hound Dog Taylor, and his mentor, Robert Nighthawk....
. Hooker was also influenced by his stepfather, a local blues guitarist, who learned in Shreveport, Louisiana

Shreveport, Louisiana

Shreveport is the third-largest city and the principal city of the third largest metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Louisiana, as well as being the 99th-largest city in the United States....
to play a droning, one-chord blues that was strikingly different from the Delta blues

Delta blues

The Delta blues is one of the earliest styles of blues music. It originated in the Mississippi Delta, a region of the United States that stretches from Memphis, Tennessee in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi in the south, the Mississippi River on the west to the Yazoo River on the east....
of the time. He developed a half-spoken style

Talking blues

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Biography

Early life

Hooker was born on August 22, 1917 in Coahoma County near Clarksdale

Clarksdale

Clarksdale may refer to some places in the United States:*Clarksdale, Illinois, unincorporated community in Christian County*Clarksdale, Indiana, unincorporated community in Brown County...
, Mississippi

Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Deep South of the United States. Jackson, Mississippi is the state capital and largest city. The state's name comes from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, and takes its name from the Anishinaabe language word misi-ziibi ....
, USA the youngest of the eleven children of William Hooker (1871–1923), a sharecropper and a Baptist

Baptist

A Baptist is a member of a Christian denomination characterized by the rejection of infant baptism in favor of believer's baptism by Baptism#Immersion....
preacher

Preacher

Preacher is a term the for someone who preaches sermons or gives homilies.Some believe a preacher is distinct from a theologian by focusing on the communication rather than the development of doctrine....
, and Minnie Ramsey (1875–?). Hooker and his siblings were home-schooled

Homeschooling

Homeschooling or homeschool is the education of children at home, typically by parents or professional tutors, rather than in a public school or private school....
. They were permitted to listen only to religious songs, with his earliest musical exposure being the spirituals sung in church. In 1921, his parents separated. The next year, his mother married William Moore, a blues

Blues

Blues is a music genre based on the use of the blues chord progressions and the blue notes. Though several blues musical form s exist, the 12-bar blues chord progressions are the most frequently encountered....
singer who provided John's first introduction to the guitar (and whom John would later credit for his distinctive playing style). The year after that (1923), John's natural father died; and at age 15, John ran away from home, never to see his mother and stepfather again.

Throughout the 1930s

1930s

In Western Europe, Australia and the United States, more progressive reforms occurred as opposed to the extreme measures sought elsewhere. Roosevelt's New Deal attempted to use government spending to combat large-scale unemployment and severely negative growth....
, Hooker lived in Memphis

Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis is a city in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County, Tennessee. Memphis rises above the Mississippi River on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff just south of the mouth of the Wolf River ....
where he worked on Beale Street

Beale Street

Beale Street is a street in downtown Memphis, Tennessee, which runs from the Mississippi River to East Street, a distance of approximately . It is a significant location in history and the history of the blues....
at the New Daisy Theatre and occasionally performed at house parties. He worked in factories in various cities during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers....
, drifting until he found himself in Detroit in 1948 working at Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company

The Ford Motor Company is an United States multinational corporation and the world's List of automobile manufacturers#World Motor Vehicle Production by Manufacturer based on worldwide vehicle sales, following Toyota, General Motors, and Volkswagen Group....
. He felt right at home near the blues venues and saloons on Hastings Street, the heart of black entertainment on Detroit's east side. In a city noted for its piano players, guitar players were scarce. Performing in Detroit clubs, his popularity grew quickly, and seeking a louder instrument than his crude acoustic guitar, he bought his first electric guitar

Electric guitar

An electric guitar is a type of guitar that uses pickup to convert the vibration of its steel-cored strings into an electrical current, which is made louder with an instrument amplifier and a speaker....
.

Career

Hooker's recording career began in 1948 when his agent placed a demo disc, made by Hooker, with the Bihari brothers

Bihari brothers

The Bihari Brothers, Lester, Jules, Saul and Joe, were American music entrepreneurs and the founders of Modern Records in Los Angeles and its subsidiaries such as Meteor Records based in Memphis, Tennessee....
, owners of the Modern Records

Modern Records

Modern Records was an United States record label formed in 1945 in music in Los Angeles by the Bihari brothers ? Jules Bihari, Saul Bihari, Lester Bihari and Joe Bihari....
label. The company initially released an up-tempo number, "Boogie Chillen

Boogie Chillen

"Boogie Chillen" is an Electric blues song written by John Lee Hooker. It is considered one of the genre's most important and influential recordings....
", which became Hooker's first hit single. Though they were not songwriters, the Biharis often purchased or claimed co-authorship of songs that appeared on their labels, thus securing songwriting royalties

Royalties

Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property right.Royalties can be determined as a percentage of gross or net sales derived from use of the asset or a fixed price per unit sold....
for themselves, in addition to their streams of income.

Sometimes these songs were older tunes renamed (B. B. King

B. B. King

B. B. King is an United States blues guitarist and singer-songwriter known for his expressive singing and inimitable guitar playing. As Komara has written, "King introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending and shimmering vibrato that would influence virtually every electric blues guitarist that followed." Critic...
's "Rock Me Baby"), anonymous jams ("B.B.'s Boogie") or songs by employees (bandleader Vince Weaver). The Biharis used a number of pseudonym

Pseudonym

A pseudonym, , is a fictitious alternative to a person's legal name. In some cases, pseudonyms are adopted because it is part of a cultural or organizational tradition, as in the case of Religious names used by members of some religious orders and "cadre names" used by Communist party leaders such as Leon Trotsky and Joseph Stalin....
s for songwriting credits: Jules was credited as Jules Taub; Joe as Joe Josea; and Sam as Sam Ling. One song by John Lee Hooker, "Down Child" is solely credited to "Taub", with Hooker receiving no credit for the song whatsoever. Another, "Turn Over a New Leaf" is credited to Hooker and "Ling".

Despite being illiterate, Hooker was a prolific lyricist

Lyricist

A lyricist is a writer who specializes in song lyrics, usually paid for by a band to write a custom song. A singer who writes the lyrics to songs is a singer-lyricist....
. In addition to adapting the occasionally traditional blues lyric (such as "if I was chief of police, I would run her right out of town"), he freely invented many of his songs from scratch. Recording studios in the 1950s

1950s

The 1950s decade was the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive. The Fifties in the developed western world are generally considered social conservative and highly Consumerism in nature....
rarely paid black musicians more than a pittance, so Hooker would spend the night wandering from studio to studio, coming up with new songs or variations on his songs for each studio. Due to his recording contract, he would record these songs under obvious pseudonym

Pseudonym

A pseudonym, , is a fictitious alternative to a person's legal name. In some cases, pseudonyms are adopted because it is part of a cultural or organizational tradition, as in the case of Religious names used by members of some religious orders and "cadre names" used by Communist party leaders such as Leon Trotsky and Joseph Stalin....
s such as "John Lee Booker", "Johnny Hooker", or "John Cooker."

His early solo songs were recorded under Bernie Besman. John Lee Hooker rarely played on a standard beat, changing tempo

Tempo

In musical terminology, 'tempo' is the speed or pace of a given musical piece. It is an extremely crucial element of composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece....
to fit the needs of the song. This often made it difficult to use backing musicians who were not accustomed to Hooker's musical vagaries: As a result, Besman would record Hooker, in addition to playing guitar and singing, stomping

Stomp box

A stomp box or stompbox is a simple percussion instrument consisting of a small wooden box placed under the foot, which is tapped or stamped on rhythmically to produce a sound similar to that of a bass drum....
along with the music on a wooden pallet. For much of this time period he recorded and toured with Eddie Kirkland

Eddie Kirkland

Eddie Kirkland Is a blues guitarist. Kirkland was raised in Dothan, Alabama in the United States until 1935, when he stowed away in the Sugar Girls Medicine Show tent truck and left town....
, who is still performing as of 2008. Later sessions for the VeeJay label in Chicago used studio musicians on most of his recordings, including Eddie Taylor, who could handle his musical idiosyncrasies very well. His biggest UK hit, "Boom Boom", (originally released on VeeJay) had a horn section to boot!

He appeared and sang in the 1980 movie The Blues Brothers
The Blues Brothers (film)

The Blues Brothers is a 1980 in film musical film comedy film directed by John Landis and starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as "Joliet" Jake and Elwood Blues, characters developed from a "Saturday Night Live" musical sketch....
. Due to Hooker's improvisational style, his performance was filmed and sound-recorded live at the scene at Chicago's Maxwell Street Market, in contrast to the usual "playback" technique used in most film musicals. Hooker was also a direct influence in the look of John Belushi

John Belushi

John Adam Belushi was an United States comedian, actor and musician, notable for his work on Saturday Night Live, National Lampoon's Animal House and The Blues Brothers ....
's character Jake Blues, borrowing his trademark sunglasses and soul patch

Soul patch

The soul patch is a small patch of facial hair just below the lower lip and above the chin. It came to prominence in the 1950s and 1960s, when it was a style of facial hair common among African American men, most notably, jazzmen and other soul music....
.

In 1989, he joined with a number of musicians, including Carlos Santana

Carlos Santana

Carlos Augusto Santana Alves is a Grammy Award-winning Mexican-American Rock music musician and guitarist. He became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana , which created a highly successful blend of rock music, salsa music, and jazz fusion....
and Bonnie Raitt

Bonnie Raitt

Bonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter who was born in Burbank, Los Angeles County, California, California. Raitt is best known for her songs "Nick of Time ", "Something to Talk About", "Love Sneaking Up on You", and the ballad "I Can't Make You Love Me." Raitt is also an avid political activist and has received nine Gra...
to record The Healer
The Healer (album)

The Healer is a blues album by John Lee Hooker, released in 1989. The album features collaborations with Bonnie Raitt and Carlos Santana, among others....
, for which he and Carlos Santana won a Grammy Award

Grammy Award

The Grammy Awards ?or Grammys?are presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States for outstanding achievements in the music industry....
. Hooker recorded several songs with Van Morrison

Van Morrison

George Ivan Morrison Order of the British Empire is a Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, author, poet and multi-instrumentalist, who has been a professional musician since the late 1950s....
, including "Never Get Out of These Blues Alive", "The Healing Game

The Healing Game (song)

"The Healing Game" is the title song on Northern Ireland singer-songwriter Van Morrison's 1997 album.It was released twice as a single in 1997 as an A-side with different B-sides - including "Have I Told You Lately" and "Gloria "....
" and "I Cover the Waterfront". He also appeared on stage with Van Morrison several times, some of which was released on the live album A Night in San Francisco
A Night in San Francisco

A Night in San Francisco is a live album by Northern Ireland singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1994 .Guest artists were John Lee Hooker, Junior Wells and Jimmy Witherspoon as well as Morrison's daughter, Shana Morrison....
. The same year he appeared as the title character on Pete Townshend

Pete Townshend

Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend , is an English rock and roll guitarist, singer, songwriter, composer, and writer, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for The Who, as well as for his own solo career....
's The Iron Man: A Musical
The Iron Man: A Musical

The Iron Man: The Musical by Pete Townshend, released in 1989, is an adaptation of Ted Hughes' story The Iron Man , produced and largely composed and performed by Pete Townshend of The Who....
.

Hooker recorded over 100 albums. He lived the last years of his life in the San Francisco Bay Area

San Francisco Bay Area

The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, or the Bay, is a metropolitan region that surrounds the San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay Bays in Northern California....
, where, in 1997, he opened a nightclub called "John Lee Hooker's Boom Boom Room", after one of his hits.

He fell ill just before a tour of Europe in 2001 and died soon afterwards at the age of 83. The last song Hooker recorded before his death, is "Ali D'Oro", a collaboration with the Italian

Italian people

The Italian people are a Southern European ethnic group located primarily in Italy and, by virtue of a wide-ranging Italian diaspora, throughout Western Europe, the Americas and Australia....
soul singer Zucchero

Zucchero

Adelmo Fornaciari , more commonly known by his stage name Zucchero Fornaciari, is an Italians rock singer. His music is largely inspired by gospel music, blues and rock music, and alternates between Ballad_ and more rhythmic Boogie woogie -like pieces....
, in which Hooker sang the chorus "I lay down with an angel". He was survived by eight children, nineteen grandchildren, numerous great-grandchildren and a nephew.

Among his many awards, Hooker has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

Hollywood Walk of Fame

The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a sidewalk along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA, that serves as an entertainment hall of fame....
and in 1991 he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shores of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland Cleveland, Ohio, United States, dedicated to recording the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, and other people who have in some major way influenced the music industry, particularly in the are...
. Two of his songs, "Boogie Chillen" and "Boom Boom" were named to the list of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll is an unordered list of 500 songs, created by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, that they believe have been most influential in shaping the course of rock and roll, though some of them belong to different styles even after the consolidation of rock music ....
. "Boogie Chillen" was included as one of the Songs of the Century

Songs of the Century

The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America , the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc....
. He was also inducted in 1980 into the Blues Hall of Fame

Blues Hall of Fame

The Blues Hall of Fame is a listing of people who have significantly contributed to blues music. Started in 1980 by the Blues Foundation, it honors those who have performed, recorded, or documented blues....
. In 2000, Hooker was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award

Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award

The Grammy Award Lifetime Achievement Award is awarded by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to "performers who, during their lifetimes, have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording" ....
.

Music

Hooker's guitar playing is closely aligned with piano boogie-woogie

Boogie-woogie (music)

Boogie woogie is a style of piano-based blues that became very popular in the late 1930s and early 1940s, but originated much earlier, and was extended from piano, to three pianos at once, guitar, big band, and country music, and even Gospel music....
. He would play the walking bass pattern with his thumb, stopping to emphasize the end of a line with a series of trills

Trill (music)

The trill is a ornament consisting of a rapid alternation between two adjacent notes of a scale . It is sometimes referred to by the German triller or the Italian trillo....
, done by rapid hammer-on

Hammer-on

Hammer-on is a stringed instrument playing technique performed by sharply bringing a fretting-hand finger down on the fingerboard behind a fret, causing a note to sound....
s and pull-off

Pull-off

A pull-off is a string instrument technique performed by plucking a string by "pulling" the string off the fingerboard with one of the fingers being used to fret the note....
s. The songs that most epitomize his early sound are "Boogie Chillen", about being 17 and wanting to go out to dance at the Boogie clubs, "Baby Please Don't Go", a blues standard first recorded by Big Joe Williams

Big Joe Williams

Big Joe Williams was an United States Delta blues musician and songwriter, known for his characteristic style of guitar-playing, his nine-string guitar, and his bizarre, cantankerous personality....
, and "Tupelo Blues", a stunningly sad song about the flooding of Tupelo, Mississippi

Tupelo, Mississippi

Tupelo is the largest city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, Mississippi, United States. It is the eighth largest city in the state of Mississippi, smaller than Meridian, Mississippi, and larger than Olive Branch, Mississippi....
in April 1936.

He maintained a solo career, popular with blues

Blues

Folk music

Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including:* Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous with the term "Traditional music", also often including World Music and Roots music; the term "Traditional music" was given its more specific meaning to distinguish it from the other definition...
fans of the early 1960s and crossed over to white audiences, giving an early opportunity to the young Bob Dylan. As he got older, he added more and more people to his band, changing his live show from simply Hooker with his guitar to a large band, with Hooker singing.

His vocal phrasing was less closely tied to specific bars than most blues singers'. This casual, rambling style had been gradually diminishing with the onset of electric blues

Electric blues

The electric blues is a type of blues music distinguished by the amplifier of the guitar, the bass guitar , and/or the harmonica. Electric blues is performed in several regional subgenres, such as Chicago blues, Texas blues and Memphis blues....
bands from Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois and the Midwestern United States, as well as the List of United States cities by population city in the United States with more than 2.8 million residents....
but, even when not playing solo, Hooker retained it in his sound.

Though Hooker lived in Detroit during most of his career, he is not associated with the Chicago-style blues prevalent in large northern cities, as much as he is with the southern rural blues styles, known as delta blues

Delta blues

Country blues

Country blues refers to all the acoustic, mainly guitar-driven forms of the blues. After blues' birth in the southern United States, it quickly spread throughout the country , giving birth to a host of regional styles....
, folk blues, or "front porch blues". His use of an electric guitar tied together the Delta blues with the emerging post-war electric blues.

His songs have been covered by Cream

Cream

Cream is a dairy product that is composed of the higher-butterfat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, over time, the lighter fat rises to the top....
, ZZ Top

ZZ Top

ZZ Top is an American Rock music trio formed in late 1969 in Houston, Texas, United States. The group members are Billy Gibbons , Dusty Hill , and Frank Beard ....
, Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin were an English rock music band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page , Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham . With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal music bands....
, Jimi Hendrix

Jimi Hendrix

James Marshall Hendrix was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter whose guitar playing continues to be a considerable influence on rock music....
, Eric Clapton

Eric Clapton

Eric Patrick Clapton Order of the British Empire is an English blues-rock guitarist, singer, songwriter and composer. He is "probably most famous for his mastery of the Stratocaster guitar." Clapton has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Yardbirds, of Cream , and as a solo performer, being the only person to...
, Van Morrison

Van Morrison

The Yardbirds

The Yardbirds are an England Rock music band, noted for starting the careers of three of rock's most famous guitarists: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page....
, The Animals

The Animals

The Animals were an England music group of the 1960s known in the United States as part of the British Invasion. Known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature songs "The House of the Rising Sun" and "We Gotta Get Out Of This Place", the band balanced tough, rock music-edged pop mu...
, Buddy Guy

Buddy Guy

George "Buddy" Guy is a five-time Grammy Award-winning United States blues and rock music guitarist and singer. Known as an inspiration to Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and other guitarists, Guy is considered an important exponent of Chicago blues....
, The Doors

The Doors

The Doors were an United States rock music band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California by Singer Jim Morrison, keyboard instrument Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger....
, The White Stripes

The White Stripes

The White Stripes is an American rock band, formed in 1997 in Detroit, Michigan. The group consists of songwriter Jack White and Meg White .After releasing several singles and three albums within the Music of Detroit#1990s independent music underground music, The White Stripes rose to prominence in 2002, as part of the garage rock#Revival...
, MC5

MC5

The MC5 was an United States rock band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan in 1964 and active until 1972. They played hard rock music that also included blues-rock, psychedelic rock, rock & roll and garage rock....
, George Thorogood

George Thorogood

George Thorogood is a blues-rock performer from Wilmington, Delaware. He was raised on Clearview Avenue in Naamans Gardens, a suburb of Wilmington....
, R. L. Burnside

R. L. Burnside

R. L. Burnside was a North Mississippi hill country blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist who lived much of his life in and around Holly Springs, Mississippi, Mississippi....
, The J. Geils Band and The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.

Awards and Recognition

A Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame

The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a sidewalk along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA, that serves as an entertainment hall of fame....
Inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame
Blues Hall of Fame

The Blues Hall of Fame is a listing of people who have significantly contributed to blues music. Started in 1980 by the Blues Foundation, it honors those who have performed, recorded, or documented blues....
in 1980
Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shores of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland Cleveland, Ohio, United States, dedicated to recording the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, and other people who have in some major way influenced the music industry, particularly in the are...
in 1991

Grammy Awards:

Best Traditional Blues Recording, 1990 for "I'm in the Mood" (with Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Raitt

Bonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter who was born in Burbank, Los Angeles County, California, California. Raitt is best known for her songs "Nick of Time ", "Something to Talk About", "Love Sneaking Up on You", and the ballad "I Can't Make You Love Me." Raitt is also an avid political activist and has received nine Gra...
)
Best Traditional Blues Recording, 1998 for Don't Look Back
Don't Look Back (John Lee Hooker album)

Don't Look Back is an album released by blues music singer-songwriter John Lee Hooker in 1997 that was produced by Van Morrison, who also performed duets with Hooker on four of the tracks....
Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals, 1998, "Don't Look Back
Don't Look Back (John Lee Hooker song)

"'Don't Look Back '" is a song written by Blues singer-songwriter John Lee Hooker and released as a single in 1964. As a duet Hooker performed with Northern Ireland singer-songwriter Van Morrison, it was a Grammy Award winner in Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals in 1998 from the album, Don't Look Back ....
" (with Van Morrison
Van Morrison

George Ivan Morrison Order of the British Empire is a Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, author, poet and multi-instrumentalist, who has been a professional musician since the late 1950s....
)
Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award

The Grammy Award Lifetime Achievement Award is awarded by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to "performers who, during their lifetimes, have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording" ....
in 2000

Two of his songs, "Boogie Chillen" and "Boom Boom" were named to the list of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll is an unordered list of 500 songs, created by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, that they believe have been most influential in shaping the course of rock and roll, though some of them belong to different styles even after the consolidation of rock music ....
. "Boogie Chillen" was included as one of the Songs of the Century
Songs of the Century

The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America , the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc....
.

Discography

Singles
Hooker issued a large number of singles, with almost a hundred releases by 1960.
Here are ten of his early classic recordings:
Detroit September 1948 - Boogie Chillen' - Modern 627 (11/48) R&B #1 (Crown LP "The Blues")
Detroit September 1948 - Hobo Blues - Modern 663 (3/49) R&B #5 (Crown LP "The Blues")
Detroit September 1948 - Crawling King Snake - Modern 715 (10/49) R&B #6 (Crown LP "The Blues")
Detroit August 7, 1951 - I'm In the Mood - Modern 835 (9/51) R&B #1 (Crown LP "The Blues")
Detroit Early 1955 - The Syndicator b/w Hug And Squeeze - Modern 966 (8/55) (Crown LP "Sings The Blues")
Chicago March 17, 1956 - Dimples - Vee-Jay 205 (8/56) (VJ LP "I'm John Lee Hooker")
Chicago June 10, 1958 - I Love You Honey - Vee-Jay 293 (9/58) R&B #29 (VJ LP "I'm John Lee Hooker")
Chicago March 1, 1960 - No Shoes - Vee-Jay 349 (4/60) R&B#21 (VJ LP "Travelin'")
Chicago Late 1961 - Boom Boom - Vee-Jay 438 (4/62) R&B #16 (VJ LP "Burnin'")
Chicago Mid 1964 - It Serves Me Right (To Suffer) - Vee-Jay 708 (11/65) (VJ/Dynasty LP "In Person")

Albums
There are many John Lee Hooker albums out there. Below you will find the original albums with notable reissues.

THE DETROIT YEARS (recordings 1948-1955)

1960 - The Blues (Crown
Crown Records

Crown Records may refer to one of several record labels:* Crown Records ,* Crown Records , headquartered in New York City 1930-1933* Crown Records, another United States based label, launched in the late fifties as a subsidiary of Modern Records...
) - reissued on United, also as "The Greatest Hits" (Kent, 1971) Modern tracks
1960 - House Of The Blues (Chess
Chess Records

Chess Records was an United States record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
) 1951-52 tracks
1961 - Sings The Blues (Crown
Crown Records

Crown Records may refer to one of several record labels:* Crown Records ,* Crown Records , headquartered in New York City 1930-1933* Crown Records, another United States based label, launched in the late fifties as a subsidiary of Modern Records...
) - reissued on United, also as "Driftin' Thru The Blues" (Custom) Modern tracks
1961 - Plays And Sings The Blues (Chess
Chess

Chess is a recreational and competitive game played between two Player . Sometimes called Western chess or international chess to distinguish it from History of chess and other chess variants, the current form of the game emerged in Southern Europe during the second half of the 15th century after evolving from similar, much older...
) 1950-52 tracks
1961 - Sings Blues (King
King Records

is a Japanese record company, founded in 1931 in music as a division of Japanese publisher Kodansha. It became and began operating as an independent entity in the 1950s, but remains part of the publisher's Otowa Group....
) - reissued as "Moanin' and Stompin'", and "Don't You Remember Me" (Charly) Texas Slim 1948-50 tracks
1962 - Folk Blues (Crown
Crown Records

Crown Records may refer to one of several record labels:* Crown Records ,* Crown Records , headquartered in New York City 1930-1933* Crown Records, another United States based label, launched in the late fifties as a subsidiary of Modern Records...
) - reissued on United (Modern tracks)
1963 - The Great John Lee Hooker (CrownCrown
Crown Records

Crown Records may refer to one of several record labels:* Crown Records ,* Crown Records , headquartered in New York City 1930-1933* Crown Records, another United States based label, launched in the late fifties as a subsidiary of Modern Records...
) - reissued as "The Great Blues Sounds of" (United) Modern tracks
1963 - Don't Turn Me from Your Door - John Lee Hooker Sings His Blues (Atco
Atco Records

Atco Records is an United States record label owned by Warner Music Group, currently operating through WMG's Rhino Entertainment....
) 1953 and 1961
1963 - Big Maceo Merriweather / John Lee Hooker (Fortune) 1/2 of an LP
1964 - Original Folk Blues (Kent) Modern compilation - reissued on United
1967 - John Lee Hooker & his Guitar (Advent) British bootleg; early tracks
1969 - No Friend Around (Red Lightnin') early tracks, bootleg compilation
1970 - Alone (Specialty) 1949-1951 tracks
1971 - Goin' Down Highway 51 (Specialty) 1949-1951 tracks
1972 - Coast to Coast Blues Band - Anywhere Anytime Anyplace (United Artists) 1948-1952 tracks
1972 - Johnny Lee (Greene Bottle) early Besman alternates (not issued on CD)
1973 - Hooker, Hopkins, Hogg (Specialty) half an LP of 1954 recordings
1973 - Slim's Stomp (Polydor) King's "Sings Blues" plus bonus tracks
1973 - John Lee Hooker's Detroit (United Artists) Besman alternate 1948-1952 tracks
1973 - Mad Man Blues (Chess
Chess Records

Chess Records was an United States record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
) compilation 1950s and 1966
1979 - Southern Blues (Savoy) 1948 tracks on half an LP
1981 - Blues For Big Town (Chess) compilation featuring unissed early 1950s
1987 - Gotham Golden Classics - Rare Recordings (Collectables) 1951-52 tracks - also issued as "Detroit Blues, 1950-51" (Krazy Kat with bonus tracks)
1989 - 40th Anniversary Album (DCC) - also issued on Demon as "The Detroit Lion" (compilation of early tracks)
1990 - Boogie Awhile (Krazy Kat) unissued early Elmer Barbee recordings
1999 - Savoy Blues Legends, 1948-1949 (SavoyJazz/Atlantic) - reissued on Savoy (Elmer Barbee recordings)
2000 - The Unknown John Lee Hooker (Krazy Kat, 1951 tracks) - reissued as "Jack 0'Diamonds" (Eagle, 2004)

THE CHICAGO YEARS (recordings 1955-1964)

1959 - I'm John Lee Hooker (Vee Jay 1955-1959)
1960 - Travelin (Vee Jay)
1961 - The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker (Vee Jay)
1962 - Burnin' (Vee Jay)
1962 - The Big Soul of John Lee Hooker (Vee Jay)
1962 - The Best of John Lee Hooker (Vee Jay) - compilation
1963 - John Lee Hooker On Campus (Vee Jay) - reissued as "Big Band Blues" (Buddah)
1965 - ... And Seven Nights (Verve-Folkways) British recordings of 1964 (re-issued with brass overdub as "On The Waterfront" on Wand) - and reissued in several versions later
1965 - Is He The World's Greatest Blues Singer? (Vee Jay) compilation - reissued on Exodus
1974 - Gold (Vee Jay) - compilation comprisising "I'm John Lee Hooker" and "Burnin'"
1974 - In Person (VeeJay/Dynasty) late Vee-Jay tracks
1993 - John Lee Hooker on Vee-Jay 1955-1958 (VeeJay) compilation

THE FOLK YEARS (recordings 1959-1963)

1959 - The Country Blues of John Lee Hooker (Riverside
Riverside Records

Riverside Records, a United States record label specializing in jazz, was the raison d'etre for Bill Grauer Productions, a company founded by Bill Grauer and Orrin Keepnews in 1953 in music in New York City....
) - reissued as "How Long Blues" (Battle, 1963)
1960 - That's My Story - JLH Sings the Blues (Riverside
Riverside Records

Riverside Records, a United States record label specializing in jazz, was the raison d'etre for Bill Grauer Productions, a company founded by Bill Grauer and Orrin Keepnews in 1953 in music in New York City....
) - reissued as "The Blues Man" (Battle, 1963)
1962 - John Lee Hooker (Galaxy
Galaxy Records

Galaxy Records was a subsidiary of Fantasy Records. It was established in 1951 in music and has been reactived several times. Its first incarnation was as a 1950s jazz record label....
) - reissued as "The King of Folk Blues" (America)
1963 - Live At Sugar Hill (Galaxy)
1964 - Burning Hell (Riverside
Riverside Records

Riverside Records, a United States record label specializing in jazz, was the raison d'etre for Bill Grauer Productions, a company founded by Bill Grauer and Orrin Keepnews in 1953 in music in New York City....
) recorded 1959
1964 - Concert At Newport (Vee Jay) - reissued with bonus tracks as "Live At Newport" (Fantasy)
1966 - Teachin' The Blues (Guest Star) half an LP of recordings from 1961
1969 - That's Where It's At! (Stax) recordings of 1961
1971 - Detroit Special (Atlantic) compilation ("Don't Turn Me From Your Door" plus bonus tracks)
1972 - Boogie Chillun (Fantasy) ("Live at Sugar Hill" plus bonus tracks) - reissued on Ace as "Live at Sugar Hill Vol. 1 & 2"
1972 - Black Snake (Fantasy 2-set) - reissue of Riverside's "The Country Blues" nd "Tat's My Story"
1979 - Sittin' Here Thinkin (Muse) - reissued as "Sad And Lonesome" (Savoy recordings of 1961)
2002 - Live At Sugar Hill, Vol. 2 (Fantasy) unissued recordings from 1961 (featuring a "third session")

THE ABC YEARS (recordings 1965-1974)

1966 - It Serve You Right To Suffer (Impulse)
1966 - The Real Folk Blues
The Real Folk Blues

The Real Folk Blues is a series of Blues music compilation albums released between 1965 and 1967 by Chess Records and distributed by MCA Records....
(Chess
Chess Records

Chess Records was an United States record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
) new Chicago recordings
1967 - Live at the Café Au Go-Go (Bluesway)
1968 - Urban Blues (Bluesway)
1969 - Simply The Truth (Bluesway)
1969 - If You Miss 'Im ... I Got 'Im (Bluesway)
1969 - On The Waterfront (Wand) (... And Seven Nights" with brass overdub)
1970 - I Wanna Dance All Night (America) Europe recordings - reissued with the next as "Black Rhythm 'n' Blues" (Festival)
1970 - I Feel Good (Carson) Europe recordings - reissued on Jewel (1972)
1971 - Endless Boogie (ABC)
1971 - Get Back Home In The USA (Black & Blue) Europe recordings - reissued with bonus tracks as "Get Back Home"
1971 - Hooker 'N Heat (Liberty) - reissued as "Infinite Boogie" (Rhino)
1972 - Never Get Out Of These Blues Alive (ABC)
1972 - Live at Kabuki Wuki (Bluesway)
1973 - Live At Soledad Prison (ABC)
1973 - Born In Mississippi, Raised Up In Tennessee (ABC)
1974 - Free Beer And Chicken (ABC)
1991 - More Real Folk Blues - The Missing Album (Chess
Chess Records

Chess Records was an United States record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
) - also issued with "The Real Folk Blues" as "The Complete Chess Folk Blues Sessions"

THE ROSEBUD YEARS (recordings 1975-2001)

1976 - Alone Vol 1 (Labor) live - reissued on Tomato
1976 - Alone - Live in New York Vol 2 (MMG) - reissued on Tomato
1978 - Live + Well (Ornament)
1978 - The Cream (Tomato) live recordings - reissued with bonus tracks on Charly
1979 - Live in 1978 (Lunar)
1981 - Hooker 'n' Heat Recorded Live at the Fox Venice Theatre (Rhino, various artists)
1986 - Jealous (Pulsa) - reissued on Pointblank 1996 - and on Shout!Factory with bonus tracks
1989 - The Healer
The Healer (album)

The Healer is a blues album by John Lee Hooker, released in 1989. The album features collaborations with Bonnie Raitt and Carlos Santana, among others....
(Chameleon)
1990 - The Hot Spot
The Hot Spot

The Hot Spot is a } Cinema of the United States drama and romance film directed by Dennis Hopper and starring Don Johnson, Virginia Madsen, and Jennifer Connelly....
(Featuring Miles Davis)
1991 - Mr. Lucky
Mr. Lucky (Hooker album)

Mr. Lucky is a 1991 album by United States blues vocalist, songwriter and guitar John Lee Hooker. Produced by Ry Cooder, Roy Rogers and Carlos Santana under the executive production of Mike Kappus, the album assembled a diverse range of notable guest and session musicians, including Keith Richards, #10 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of...
(Pointblank)
1992 - Boom Boom (Pointblank) - reissued on Shout!Factory with bonus tracks
1995 - Chill Out (Pointblank) - reissued on Shout!Factory with bonus tracks
1997 - Don't Look Back
Don't Look Back (John Lee Hooker album)

Don't Look Back is an album released by blues music singer-songwriter John Lee Hooker in 1997 that was produced by Van Morrison, who also performed duets with Hooker on four of the tracks....
(Pointblank/Virgin
Virgin Records

Virgin Records is a United Kingdom record label founded by England entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972 in music. It was later sold to Thorn EMI, and then, in the US, merged with Capitol Records in 2007 to create the Capitol Music Group....
) - reissued on Shout!Factory with bonus tracks
1998 - The Best of Friends (Pointblank) compilation 1986-1998 incl one new track - reissued on Shout!Factory download with bonus track
2003 - Face to Face (Eagle) new recordings

Selected CD Compilations

1990 - That's My Story/The Folk Blues of (Ace) - the two original Riverside LPs on one CD
1990 - That's Where It's At (Stax) reissue of Florida recordings from 1961
1991 - The Ultimate Collection 1948-1990 (Rhino 2CDbox)
1991 - Half A Stranger (Mainstream) Modern tracks 1948-1955 incl unedited masters
1991 - Free Beer And Chicken (BeatGoesOn/MCA) recorded 1974
1991 - Don't Turn Me From Your Door (Atlantic/Atco) 1953 and 1961 (incl the bonus tracks)
1992 - Graveyard Blues (Specialty/Ace) 1948-1950 Besman/Sensation tracks
1992 - The Best of John Lee Hooker 1965 to 1974 (Universal) Impulse and ABC/Bluesway recordings
1993 - Everybody's Blues (Specialty/Ace) Besman tracks of 1950-51 plus two 1954 sessions direct for Specialty
1993 - The Legendary Modern Recordings 1948-1954 (Flair/Ace) the original singles
1994 - The Boogie Man (Charly DIG 5) anthology box featuring 1948-1966 (excluding Modern)
1995 - Alternative Boogie - Early Studio Recordings, 1948-1952 (Capitol 3CD) Besman alternates
1995 - The Gold Collection - 40 Classic Performances (Retro) 2 CD set Made in Italy by Phonocomp
1996 - Live at the Café Au Go-Go (and Soledad Prison) (Universal) 1966 with Muddy Waters' band and 1972
1998 - The Complete 50's Chess Recordings (Chess 2CD) anthology featuring the tracks from "House of the Blues" and "Plays and Sings the Blues" (1951-52) plus several bonus tracks from Fortune 1954 incl "Blues For Big Town"
2000 - The Complete 1964 recordings (RPM) last Vee-Jay session 1964 plus British London recordings - the British tracks reissued with brass overdubs as "The London 1965 Sessions" on Sequel
2000 - I'm John Lee Hooker (Charly -with bonus tracks) his very first LP, 1955-1959 recordings - reissued on SNAP in 2003 and without bonus tracks on Shout!Factory in 2007
2000 - Travelin (Charly -with bonus tracks) the great LP session of 1960- reissued on SNAP in 2003
2000 - The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker (Charly -with bonus tracks) his third VJ LP - reissued on SNAP in 2003
2000 - Burnin (Charly -with bonus tracks) the fourth VJ LP, 1962 - reissued on SNAP in 2003
2000 - The Complete - Vol. 1 1948-49 [Body & Soul 2CD]
2000 - The Complete - Vol. 2 1949 [Body & Soul 2CD]
2001 - The Complete - Vol. 3 1949-50 [Body & Soul 2CD]
2001 - House Rent Boogie (Ace) Modern compilation of rare early 1950s recordings
2001 - Testament - 3CDbox featuring some of the very best Vee-Jay recordings (Charly/Snapper)
2002 - The Complete - Vol. 4 1950-51 [Body & Soul 2CD]
2002 - The Real Folk Blues/More Real Folk Blues
The Real Folk Blues

The Real Folk Blues is a series of Blues music compilation albums released between 1965 and 1967 by Chess Records and distributed by MCA Records....
(Chess) 1966 recordings; reissue of the 1991 CD "The Complete Chess Folk Blues Sessions"
2003 - Boogie Chillen (Audio Fidelity) 1949 - 1952 Besman and Siracuse (engineer) compilation
2003 - Blues Kingpins - Blues Immortal (Virgin) 1948-1955 Modern anthology
2004 - Early Years - The Classic Savoy Sessions (Metro Doubles 2CD) recorded 1948 and 1961 - comprising the tracks from "Savoy Blues Legends" (Savoy in 1999 and 2003) and the 1961 Savoy recordings from "Sittin' Here Thinkin'" (32Blues in 2004 with the bonus track)
2004 - I'm A Boogie Man (Varése Sarabande) Vintage 1948 - 1953 Texas Slim and John Lee Booker (King/DeLuxe tracks featuring all the King singles)
2004 - The Complete - Vol. 5 1951-53 [Body & Soul 2CD]
2005 - The Complete - Vol. 6 1953-54 [Body & Soul 2CD]
2006 - Hooker (4 disc chronological anthology covering his entire career) (Shout!Factory)
2006 - The Boogie Man 1948 - 1955 (Charly 4 CDBox) - not identical to Charly's rare CD DIG 5 (but this time also featuring Modern recordings)
2007 - Gold (Hip-O Select 2CD) 1948-2001 chronological anthology
2009 - John Lee Hooker Anthology: 50 Years (Shout!Factory 2CD) 1948-1998 chronological anthology

Bibliography

Boogie Man: Adventures of John Lee Hooker in the American 20th Century, by Charles Shaar Murray
Charles Shaar Murray

Charles Shaar Murray is an England music journalist.His first experience in journalism came 1970 when he was asked to contribute to the satirical magazine Oz ....
, ISBN 0-14-016890-7.
"John Lee Hooker - That's my story" Documentary by Jörg Bundschuh

External links

The World's Greatest Blues Singer
San Francisco nightclub founded by Hooker

John Lee Hooker

Biography

Early life

Career

Music

Awards and Recognition

Discography

Singles

Albums

Selected CD Compilations

See also

Bibliography

External links