Scene: Chicago Blues, 1948-1968
By John Morthland, eMusic Contributor
Chicago began filling up with blues artists—Blind Blake, Big Bill Broonzy, Memphis Minnie, Sunnyland Slim, Memphis Slim—in the 1920s and '30s--but what we know as "Chicago blues" is a postwar phenomena, a term mostly used to describe electric band blues with Mississippi Delta roots. Its first true star was Muddy Waters, whose earliest Chicago music was mostly made by himself on electrified slide guitar alongside a stand-up bassist. As he grew successful, Muddy began adding musicians… more »