Buddy Guy at the peak of his powers playing the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1992
Buddy Guy
This is a name everyone knows, even if not everyone has heard his music. A great American guitarist, a real embodiment of Chicago blues, whose fame has long gone beyond the city, state or country. One of those giants who are mentioned next to Muddy Waters, B.B. Kinga, Willie Dixon, John Lee Hooker, Howlin ‘Wolf, Big Joe Turner …
One can be almost certain – if it were not for Buddy Guy, the last living genius of the first generation of electric blues, we would never know the size of Jimi Hendrix, Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards or Stevie Ray Vaughan. And even if we met, they would play differently. “He’s the best living guitarist,” Clapton once said.
Guy’s unusual style of playing was certainly influenced by the fact that he was self-taught. One hundred percent. So everything he learned, he learned himself. Of course, he listened a lot, and he does it today.
There are many covers, but this one is worth a listen, even if his guitar is a tad out of tune in places. The band are just solid and look as though they’ve walked in from 1972! It’s a lot of fun.
