John Lee Hooker (August 22, 1917 – June 21, 2001) was an Americanblues singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was born inMississippi, the son of asharecropper, and rose to prominence performing an electric guitar-style adaptation of Delta blues. Hooker often incorporated other elements, including talking blues and early North MississippiHill country blues. He developed his own driving-rhythm boogie style, distinct from the 1930s–1940s piano-derived boogie-woogie style. Some of his best known songs include Boogie Chillen (1948), Crawling King Snake (1949), Dimples (1956), Boom Boom (1962), and One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer (1966) – the first being the most popular race record of 1949. He appeared and sang in the 1980 movie The Blues Brothers. Due to Hookers improvisational style, his performance was filmed and sound-recorded live at the scene at Chicagos Maxwell Street Market, in contrast to the usual playback technique used in most film musicals.Hooker was also a direct influence in the look ofJohn Belushis character Jake Blues.In 1989, he joined with a number of musicians, including Carlos Santana and Bonnie Raitt to record the album The Healer, for which he and Santana won a Grammy Award. Hooker recorded several songs with Van Morrison, including Never Get Out of These Blues Alive, The Healing Game, 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. The same year he appeared as the title character on Pete Townshends The Iron Man: The Musical by Pete Townshend.On December 19, 1989, Hooker appeared with The Rolling Stonesand Eric Clapton to perform Boogie Chillenin Atlantic City, N.J., as part of The Rolling StonesSteel Wheels tour. The show was broadcast live on cable television on a pay-per-view basis.Hooker recorded over 100 albums. He lived the last years of his life in Long Beach, California.In 1997, he opened a nightclub in San Franciscos Fillmore District calledJohn Lee Hookers Boom Boom Room, after one of his hits. Hooker fell ill just before a tour of Europe in 2001 and died in his sleep on June 21 at the age of 83, two months before his 84th birthday. He was interred at theChapel of the Chimes in Oakland, California. Awards and recognitionEdit A Star on the Hollywood Walk of FameInducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1980.Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.Grammy Awards:Best Traditional Blues Recording, 1990 for Im in the Mood (with Bonnie Raitt).Best Traditional Blues Recording, 1998 for Dont Look Back.Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals, 1998, Dont Look Back(with Van Morrison).Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000.Two of his songs, Boogie Chillenand Boom Boom were named to the list of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fames 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. Boogie Chillen was included as one of the Songs of the Century.
Posted on: Sun, 26 Oct 2014 20:29:45 +0000
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