Muddy Waters

Muddy Waters, born McKinley A. Morganfield, is known as "The Father of Chicago Blues". Waters was a major influence on many of the English blues bands of the 1960s including The Rolling Stones, who took their name from one of Muddy's songs.

Fast Facts

1. Name: McKinley A. Morganfield
2. Hometown: Chicago, Illinois
3. Born: April 4, 1915
4. Died: April 30, 1983
5. Grammy Awards: 6
6. Member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Early Life

Born in Sharkey County, Mississippi in 1915, Waters began by playing the Blues harmonica, but eventually switched to the guitar in order to emulate his heros Son House and Robert Johnson. After moving to St. Louis in 1940 and recording briefly with Alan Lomax, Waters moved to Chicago to try his hand at becoming a professional musician.

Rolling Stone

After recording a number of hits for the Chess Record label, including his signature song "Rollin Stone", Waters formed a full Blues band and began recording such classic songs as "Hoochie Coochie Man" and "I Just Want to Make Love to You." As the genre of Blues began to get more and more popular, Waters started to face competition from artists such as Howlin' Wolf and Bo Diddley. Waters continued to record and perform until his death in 1983. In 1987, he was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

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