“I don’t want you to, to be no slave
I don’t want you to, to work all day
I don’t want you sad and blue
I just want to make love to you…”
The year was 1954. If you turned on a radio, your ears would most likely be greeted by the vocal stylings of men and women like Eddie Fisher, Doris Day and Frank Sinatra. Musically, it was a great time to be alive.
Then, of course, there was the song ‘I Just Want To Make Love To You’. Arguably the most soulful, the most impassioned and the most fervent of them all, it proved that the artist, Muddy Waters, was a man who could go toe-to-toe with any singer of the day.
Reading the lyrics, most people might first think about the Etta James version of the song released in 1960 (the same version that re-emerged again in Europe in the 1990s after becoming the unofficial soundtrack to Coca-Cola). However, the single was first recorded by Muddy Waters.
It was just one of many crowning achievements from a man whose journey first started with just a harmonica and a dream.
The Boy in the Creek
Who was Muddy Waters? The fact that his date of birth has always been unclear and disputed should give you a good idea of the life that this would-be star was born into. Entering this world somewhere between 1913 and 1915, he was named McKinley Morganfield. The nickname ‘Muddy’ would be given to him when it became clear that he had an affection for playing in the muddy waters of a local creek.
Muddy’s first home was in Rolling Fork, Mississippi. However, following the death of his mother, he moved to live with his grandmother on a plantation near Clarksdale, Mississippi. The days of slavery had come to an end by this point, but its horrors – as well as a rigid system that limited the opportunities of African Americans – still existed. The majority of the black community were sharecroppers and some even had even lived through slavery.
Mississippi was far from an ideal place to be if you were African American in the 1910s. There was one benefit, though: it was a place where blues music was celebrated and adored. Muddy joined in with this cherished genre when he was just a child who was self-taught in playing the harmonica. He then picked up his first guitar when he was 17. Suddenly, it must have felt that there was much more to the world than just the life he had known until then in Mississippi.
Opportunity Knocks
Muddy got his first taste of performing when he was picked to be a support act on the tour of Big Joe Williams. This was in the early 1930s when he was still just a teenager and learning the ropes. In 1943, he became much better placed to go it alone when he made the move to Chicago, Illinois. In those early days when he was financially supporting his musical ambitions by driving a truck and working in a factory, even he must have had his doubts that he would ever become the “Father of Modern Chicago Blues”.
This, however, is exactly what he became known as.
While Muddy enjoyed some success working alongside men such as Big Bill Broonzy and Sunnyland Slim, it’s actually quite easy to pinpoint the moment when he first became deserving of the aforementioned title. This happened when he formed his own group, featuring the likes of Little Walter Jacobs on harmonica, Jimmy Rogers, Elga Edmonds and Otis Spann.
With a mixture of instruments, including the harmonica, guitars, drums and piano, Muddy’s band soon became responsible for a number of hits. The most memorable of which were ‘Hoochie Coochie Man’ and ‘I’m Ready’. These massive songs – alongside ‘I Just Want To Make Love To You’ – solidified Muddy’s name in music history.
The Father of Modern Chicago Blues
While Muddy’s legacy was guaranteed by the time the 1950s had come to an end, he still continued to perform and build upon his reputation. With a catalogue of songs featuring tracks such as ‘Trouble No More’ and ‘Forty Days and Forty Nights’, Muddy quickly started to become an icon who future blues stars would emulate.
It was no surprise that he became an in-demand act to see live throughout the 1960s and 70s. In fact, many musicians didn’t just want to share the stage with him but also contribute to his albums. Famous blues musician Johnny Winter actually idolised Muddy so much that he produced four of his records.
The support of his fans and fellow musicians must have brought great joy to Muddy, especially during the more difficult years of his wife. One particular tragedy saw his long-term partner, Geneva, die from cancer in 1973. The couple had three children together, all of which would go on to enter the music industry in one form or another.
Much like their talented father, their chosen genre was the blues.
Muddy Waters – A Celebrated Life
The young boy who was born to sharecroppers and grew up to be a celebrated musician sadly passed away from heart failure in April 1983. Muddy had, by that point, proving that there was much more to life than just what was initially offered to him during those early years in Mississippi.
The accolades he achieved during his life are vast. He won six Grammy Awards, had four songs listed by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and scooped five Blues Foundation Awards.
Perhaps the biggest honour of all came when he was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1992. During the ceremony, he was inducted alongside huge names such as Jimi Hendrix, James Brown and John Coltrane.
There should be no doubt that his music and his career were more than worthy of this honour. After all, there was only one Muddy Waters.